their own women.”
She sighs long, and pained. “They’ve done a horrible job of it. All over thirty, and not one of them
has found someone to love. I fear that they may never find love and get married.”
“There’s time. I never expected to find someone. And then suddenly, there he was. Maybe it will
be the same for your grandsons.”
“I hope so young lady,” she says, giving me a wink. “Well, I will leave you to your day. Please
excuse me. And Miss…”
“Maya. My name is Maya.”
“Maya,” she repeats. “I’m Constance. And I expect you to come and join me for tea one of these
days. Mr. Lee will give you my contact information.” She taps her cane, and gets on the elevator like
a queen, her dogs trotting happily behind her.
“She’s so nice.”
Zach snorts. “She’s terrifying.” I frown at him, because really? He grins. “That nice old woman is
one of the most terrifying people I’ve ever met. She and her husband started a steel business fifty
years ago. Now, she’s the largest steel supplier on the entire eastern seaboard. She makes teamsters
quake in their boots. The woman’s as rich as we are.”
“Wait. What?”
Grinning, Zach explains. “She still runs the company, but her grandsons are next in line. But
they’re all over the world, acting crazy. She’s pretty pissed about it.”
“Wow,” I murmur, staring at the closed doors. “I really want to have tea with her.”
“She owns the entire sixteenth floor. You’ll find her there.”
“The whole sixteenth floor,” I repeat dumbly. I am so having tea with that woman. I can’t imagine
the life she’s lived, and I want to know more about her. To have built that kind of company long
before women were CEOs is an amazing accomplishment.
Zach moves to the door, holding a hand out to me. “Come on, love. I need you with me.”
I move to him, taking his hand. Stopping for a moment, I savor our connection. It’s not just holding
hands, it’s so much bigger. “How does that work?” I ask, tightening my grip. He tilts his head
questioningly. “This,” I say, shaking our joined hands. “How does holding your hand make me feel
like everything is perfect? Like I can handle anything the world has to throw at me?”
“I don’t fucking know how that happened. But I need you to make me a promise.” His hand
