“Good morning to you, too, love. I missed you last night.”
“I missed you, too.”
“I got a text from Richard. He wanted to let me know he was back and was checking to make sure our chess game is still on for tonight.”
“Hmm, I’d think Granddad would want to rest up from jet lag.”
Cobra chuckled. “Richard has more energy than you think. Will you be there tonight?” he asked.
“I have a special one-on-one tutoring session with one of my adult readers who couldn’t make last Saturday’s class.”
“Where?”
“I’ve reserved one of the meeting rooms on the amenity floor. She works as a nanny for a family who lives in this building. It’ll only take about an hour, so I’ll see you before your chess game with Granddad is over.”
“You will because I’m not leaving until you get home.”
***
Desiree knocked on the door to her grandfather’s study.
“Come in.”
She entered, and her gaze immediately went to the huge window and its stunning view of the George Washington Bridge. His study was just as massive as his office at the Sharpe Corporation. Her gaze then shifted to her grandfather, who had stood when she’d entered.
“Good morning, Granddad. Welcome back.”
“Thank you, Allison. Helga mentioned that you didn’t go into the office today. Are you ill?”
“No, I’m fine. I took the day off because I knew you were coming home, and I wanted to talk to you about something.”
He lifted a brow. “Oh? Is there something going on at the office that I need to know about?”
“No, this is personal. I hope I’m not interrupting you,” she said, upon seeing all the papers spread over his desk.
“There’s never a time you can’t talk tome, Allison.”
His words gave her pause. When she was away at school, there had never been a time when shecouldtalk to him.
“Please have a seat,” he said, gesturing to the chair in front of his desk.
She studied her grandfather. He looked the same, but somehow different. He seemed more relaxed, restful, and calm—not words she would usually use to describe someone who had just returned from a five-week business trip. “How was your trip?”
A smile -an actual smile -spread across his lips. “It was wonderful.”
Wonderful? She could only assume the trip had been productive, and he hadn’t had any issues to deal with. “I’m glad.”
“So, what personal matter do you want to discuss withme?” he asked.
Desiree really didn’t know how to start this conversation. But in a way, Richard had unknowingly given her the opening she needed. “I need to ask you something. Earlier, you said there was never a time when I couldn’t talk to you. But if that’s true, why did you block my number so I wouldn’t call you when I was in college?”
Richard stared at his granddaughter, looking as if he hadn’t heard her right. “I never blocked your number. Why would you think such a thing?”
“Because it’s true. Of course, I couldn’t use a cell phone at that boarding school in California because they were banned. But when you got me that phone just before college, I assumed you wanted me to call you now and then.”
He nodded. “That was the reason I gave it to you. I don’t know anything about you not being able to reach me. Why didn’t you ever mention it to me when you came home for the holidays?”
She shrugged. “You were busy, and I didn’t want to bother you.”
