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She shook her head. It was no use thinking about Roman anymore. It was time to move out and move on. “I’m ready to join you, Dad,” she said, her voice strong with determination. “I’ll come right away if you’ll have me.”
Serena was not surprised when her father called her late that afternoon to tell her that Roman had agreed that she’d learned enough from him and she was ready to move on to the family business. No, she wasn’t surprised, but she could not help feeling hurt that he’d made no attempt to keep her. Her father made it sound as if Roman had not even questioned her decision to move on. She sighed. He was probably glad to see the back of her.
The day she packed up her things and left the offices of Steele Industries, Roman was nowhere to be seen. He hadn’t even had the courtesy to come and wish her well. Obviously, she was of so little importance to him that he could not even spare the time to bid her goodbye. Well, if he wasn’t thinking about her, then she certainly wouldn’t think about him. At least, that was what she told herself. Easier said than done.
Serena started at Van Buren and Associates the following Monday morning. There was no fanfare at her arrival and she didn’t expect it. She was treated like a regular employee, assigned to her task, and instructed to execute them according to deadline just like everyone else.
Eventually, as she learned more about the business she began to take more initiative. She asked her father to allow her to work more closely with the heads of each department so she could learn as much as possible in the shortest amount of time. She spent a few days in the manufacturing plant working with the operations manager, then with the sales manager working in the field, then with the marketing director meeting with the advertising agency.
Every evening she went home feeling satisfied with a day well spent, knowing that soon she would become a valuable asset to her father. She would be one of the few people in the company with such a broad knowledge base, covering all aspects of the company’s operations.
Despite all that her nights ended with a feeling of dejection. She could not get Roman Steele off her mind. He was always in her thoughts but was he thinking about her, too? She doubted it.
Sometimes she wondered if she’d made a mistake in declining her father’s offer for her to move back home. No, she told him. She needed this feeling of independence. It was part of growing up. She’d even reminded him of the speech he’d given her about budgeting. How would she ever learn if she didn’t have to live within her means? And so they’d agreed that, at least for one year, she would remain a salaried employee and she’d be responsible for her own bills. She’d be leading the corporation one day. This was just another part of her preparation for that day.
The drawback was that she was left all alone each evening with no one to talk to, no one to reign in her mind that constantly wandered to a man who could not care less about her.
And what was the use of having friends who were halfway across the world? Serena sighed and picked up the phone. She’d call the one person in the world she knew she could always talk to, no matter what the time of day.
Sylvie picked up the phone on the third ring. “Hello?” Her voice was bright and cheerful, no matter that it was almost eleven o’clock at night.
“Grandma, can you talk?” Serena tried to keep her voice light and happy but there was a tremble to it that must have given her away.
“Are you alright?” There was a world of concern in Sylvie’s voice.
“I’m fine,” she replied with a soft sigh. “I just need to talk.”
“It’s about Roman, isn’t it?”
Serena bit her lip. “How did you know?”
Sylvie chuckled softly into the phone. “I know you, Serena. Your father told me about your sudden departure from Steele Industries. That could only mean one thing. You had a falling out with Roman. And it had nothing to do with work.”
“But how could you know?”
“Child, I’m a woman with several decades head start on you. I know when a man’s involved.” Then her voice turned serious. “I wanted to ask you about this but I didn’t want to be a nosy mother hen. It’s your life and I have to let you learn at your own pace. I knew you’d reach out to me when you were ready.” For a moment Sylvie was silent. Then she said, “Do you want to talk?”
The question opened the floodgates for Serena. Without telling her grandmother everything she revealed that for the first time in her life she’d fallen head over heels for a man who, ironically, did not feel the same way about her.
Sylvie gave a soft laugh. “Now you know how those young men felt, the ones you dismissed so easily.”
Serena sighed. It wasn’t much fun when the shoe was on the other foot.
“But how do you know he doesn’t love you, too?” Sylvie asked.
“How could he? He rejected me.”
“Did he? Or did you walk away?”
Now what kind of question was that? She’d walked away because he’d rejected her. What was her grandmother getting at? “He was the one who-”
“How badly do you want this, Serena?” Sylvie asked, cutting her off. “What have you done to let him know how you feel?”
What had she done? Hadn’t she done enough? She was about to say just as much to her grandmother when the words sank in. She, more than most, knew how fleeting life was. She’d only had her mother the first six years of her life. She’d almost lost her own life two years later. If she wanted anything in life she needed to act decisively and act now. Life flew by a lot faster than generally thought.
Could she afford to deny herself whatever happiness life could offer? No, she couldn’t. She wouldn’t. Even at the risk of being rebuffed she needed to know for sure. She had to see Roman one more time.
***
Roman lifted the glass to his lips and took a sip of Bacardi as his eyes skimmed the room. There were beautiful women everywhere, all in attendance at the agency’s launch of the Enchanted product line. Members of the press milled around with cameras hanging from straps around their necks. Models preened in front of them, posing for pictures.
But as his eyes scoured the room there was one woman, only one who he wished would fill his vision. But she was nowhere to be found.
He’d had Theresa send invitations to both Richard and Serena. Richard was there but he’d come alone. The disappointment of Serena’s absence was bitter on Roman’s tongue.
He could not believe that he, a calm and collected man at the mature age of thirty, had been floored by a slip of a girl. Try as he might, he could not get her out of his mind. Serena had come into his life, grabbed hold of his heart then walked away…taking his heart with her. But whatever the cost - his friendship with Richard, his pride or her scorn - he had to see her again.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The next morning did not come fast enough for Roman. Now that he’d made up his mind to take action he wanted to move right away. He’d beat himself up over the past few weeks since Serena left. He knew he was the one who had driven her away and he felt like a heel for treating her that way. Still, he justified it with the thought that it was all for the best.
The guilt was eating him up. How could he explain his actions to Richard? Would the man accept that he’d fallen in love with his daughter? Hell, he hadn’t believed it himself. He’d never believed in love at first sight but here he was, the victim of the very thing he’d derided.
And then there was the matter of the difference in their ages. Would Serena, fresh out of college, really be interested in him?
These were the questions that swirled around in his mind, immobilizing him when all he wanted to do was find her and make crazy love to her.
Now he pushed those questions to the back of his mind. He was going to swallow his pride and self-doubt and seek her out. If she slammed him and told him never to contact her again then he would have to honor that. But he had to know how she truly felt.
He leaned forward and reached across his desk then picked up the phone receiver. Before he could change his mind he dialed the number for Van Buren and Associates.
It took just a few seconds for someone to answer the phone and advise him that Ms. Van Buren was not in office. Damn. He didn’t want to wait till tomorrow to talk to her. He scrolled through his phone and found her cell phone number. He dialed. It went straight to voicemail. Now what?
He stared at the phone, deep in thought. Maybe this was just not meant to be. Then he shook his head. No, he would not give up so easily. He got up, reached for his jacket and grabbed his car keys. He had to find her.
***
Serena hopped into her yellow Porsche, a belated graduation gift from her father, and sped out of the parking lot of her apartment complex. Now that she’d made up her mind nothing was going to stop her.
She was on her way to Roman’s office. She had no appointment but she was determined to see him today. She had to hear from his own lips what he felt about her.
