Grey looked at me skeptically. “Why are you asking this now?”
I could tell he was fighting the urge to think the worst of me, so I rushed to reassure him. “I plan to talk to Ian about everything, but I wanted to check in with you first.”
“Don’t talk to Ian without me.”
“No, I—”
He cut me off. “Ells, seriously. I want to be there.”
How could I tell him I’d already talked to Ian about it? And how would he feel if he discovered the truth about my father’s involvement in the building Grey needed for his project?
“Don’t you trust me to manage my own godfather?” Great, now I just sounded petulant.
“I trust you to remember this is my project on the line,” he said carefully. “I don’t want it managed for me behind my back. I want to be involved. I’d like to be able to explain my plans to Ian and address any issues or concerns he has.”
“I think he’s going to agree to sell it to you. But I need to know if he does… if he does, you’re going to sign York back over, right?”
Part of me worried this was part of Grey’s revenge. I wouldn’t blame him for being tempted to renege on the deal. Well… I wouldn’t blame him if it wasn’t me he was dealing with. I had a hard time believing he’d betray me and our agreement that way. Still, I needed to know before I could get my father to agree to let Ian sell the building.
“Yes. I will return York Capital, and with the handful of original assets as you requested. All assets acquired after your father’s hire date will be transferred to Blackwood Holdings.”
I let out a breath and smiled at him. “Good. Perfect. Thank you.”
I could tell he was still wary, but I hoped to give him good news within a couple of hours that would remove his doubt forever.
After we stood up, I pulled him into a hug and squeezed him tightly.
“What are you doing?” I could hear the reluctant smile in his voice.
“Being brave enough to show affection in public,” I said with a dramatic sigh. “Not all superheroes wear capes, Grey.”
I knew I was making light of a serious issue. We wouldn’t always be in the safe environment of a private house party. I wasn’t naive about the risks involved in showing affection to him in other places, but I also wasn’t experienced with it. Hopefully I could find a time to talk to him about it and ask questions to overcome my own ignorance.
His strong hands pressed up along my back until one gripped me by the back of the neck. “You’re an inspiration,” he said dryly. “Maybe do something better with that mouth than spouting bullshit.”
I leaned forward and kissed his smirk, relishing in the chance to show him how I felt about him, even though it was too soon for pretty words. I could only imagine how Grey Blackwood would react to a giant emotional confession. He’d probably shudder in revulsion and then change the subject to avoid getting any messy feelings all over him.
When we finished kissing, I met his eyes. “Thank you,” I said again. “Really. You’re a good man, Grey. I’m sorry for everything, but I’m not sorry we had a chance to reconnect and get past everything.”
“Can we not?” He lifted an eyebrow in challenge. “I’d really rather play croquet than talk about this again if that tells you anything.”
I nodded and agreed, but not before kissing the fuck out of his face again. “Go make your video call. I’m going to look for a Honeycrisp apple even though they’re not in season yet. A girl can dream.”
While Grey left to take his video call, I made my way to the kitchen and had to settle for a Gala apple. It was a bad omen.
I crunched on it unhappily on the way to the room my parents were staying in. They were enjoying a breakfast tray at a small table in their much larger room. The television played Fox News at a low volume while my mom scrolled on her iPad and my father buttered his toast.
When I entered the room, my mom stood up and gave me a hug. “I loved catching up with you and Cate yesterday. That young lady is a delight. And so smart! She said you were going to escort her to the Ballard Ball in November. I think that is absolutely wonderful, dear. I don’t know why you don’t pop the question and let us plan an engagement party for the holidays.”
I stared at her. “Uh, because I’m dating Grey?”
“But your father said that was all a fabrication. A ruse. Isn’t that true? Warren?”
My father shifted in his seat. “Marianne, let me have a talk with him. Why don’t you go ahead and hop in the shower?”
Mom shot Dad a pointed look before leaving the room to take her shower and get ready for the day. Clearly, she was trusting him to “fix” this misunderstanding.
“Have a seat, Ellison.”
I sat down across from Dad and poured myself a cup of coffee from the carafe on the tray. When Dad finished eating his toast, I began. “Tell me about Marlette Venture Partners.”
He looked surprised, but he controlled it well. “What about it?”
“How long have you had it? Who else is involved? What’s the asset value?”
“Why are you asking? How did you hear about it?”
I took a sip of coffee and tried calming down. “I’m asking because I want Marlette to allow Ian to sell the building in Hell’s Kitchen, and he says he can’t do it without your approval.”
He frowned. “Why does he want to sell the building? And what does it have to do with you?”
I’d finally reached the point where I had to trust I held enough cards in this deal to win the hand. Once he knew Grey was involved, my father would fight tooth and nail to fuck him over. But I couldn’t think of another way to explain my interest in the deal. I tried anyway.
“The company that wants to acquire the building has plans to create a charity incubator that’s closely aligned with the mission of my own programs at the academy. If they can succeed in building this place, I’ll have another pathway to success to offer my students.”
“Why this building in particular? We have a client with specialty fittings in their office space. It would take a large investment to recreate in a new space.”
“The purchase offer would include compensation for that.”
My father was suspicious by nature. He knew there was more here than I was letting on. He took his time, glancing out the window at the sun rising higher over the water. “Who’s the purchaser?”
“A group called BGP.”
He faced me again. “And the B stands for Blackwood?”
I ground my back teeth together and nodded.
Dad grinned. “Then obviously the answer is not only no but hell no.”
It was time to play my trump card. “What if I could get York Capital back in exchange for you allowing the sale to go through?”
He tilted his head. “Grey would agree to give us back York Capital in exchange for my signing off on the sale? What’s the catch? He’d be better off finding another real estate plot for his project.”
“It wouldn’t be the full value of the company. He would take the assets, all except the original ones from before your tenure, and give us the name and history back. We would have to rebuild the assets with new investments.”