Page 17 of Bobby

“Give me some time. I’ll find them,” Marco mutters, and I grin, knowing he’ll find out who dared to ruin something of Ivy’s. Lily might have asked him to be her protector, but I have a feeling that Ivy got a giant protector as well.

I turn away and pull out my phone. Changes are coming, and that means I need to let at least one person know. Danny will not be happy, but I’d rather deal with him before he grumbles about a change in plans and not having enough men on my security detail to watch over me and those under my care.

Chapter 7—Willow

As soon as Bobby leaves, I read the papers he gave me twice, as fast as possible, watching the door like he might come back just as quickly as he left. I want to have an answer ready the second he walks back in. But the longer he’s away, the more I relax, enough to pour myself another coffee and grab a pen off his desk to make notes in the margins.

There isn’t anything here I’m against. It’s more than I ever thought I’d get by going from part-time to full-time. This promotion packet is more in line with someone who’s spent years at the company and was promoted several times over.

I mark up the pages, focusing on all the benefits, as there are several. I read things over and over to make sure I understand them, as some of the legal jargon is a bit more than I can handle. I’m smart, but not lawyer smart. I pick things up quickly, though, and I’m a sucker for details.

After a while, I start to wonder if he’s ever going to come back. I stack the leftover pastries in their box, which is off to the side on one of the half shelves, and tidy the table as much as I can before setting my laptop on it. I’m not going to sit here and do nothing, so I power it up and go through my work emails, then start focusing on a project that was put on hold while I worked the Charles and Myers files.

That’s when he comes back. I stand out of principle, since he’s the boss, and no matter what my new title says, I still work for him.

“Sir.” I give him a wide smile to show him my enthusiasm for the contract.

However, he just stops walking, the door clicking behind him, and he practically glares at me. “I swear to Christ, Willow, if you don’t start calling me Bobby, I’ll bend you over my desk and spank that ass of yours. And I don’t make empty threats.”

I swallow my tongue and wobble on my feet. I’m not sure if I should call human resources or the fire department.

“Yes, sir.” I breathe out and then shake my head. “I mean Bobby.”

He glares at me a second more before stomping over and giving me a box, then goes to sit on the other side of his desk.

“I take it you had time to look over the contract?”

He changes gears so quickly that I only have half a second to think I imagined the whole thing moments before.

“Yes, si—Bobby.” His eyes narrow, but nothing more than that. “I only have one ask.”

He waves a hand in the air as if brushing away my thought. “I already had my secretary, Alfonso, look into childcare programs that you might find suitable for the girls. He should have emailed them to you by now. Take a look and let me know which one you would like. The company will take on the expense, and a car service will be provided for you and the girls on workdays to drop the girls off and then to make sure they get to the program you select for them, as well as your travel to collect them.”

I actually trip on my way to the chair in front of his desk. The box he handed me falls to the ground as I reach out to grab the nearest object to steady myself.

“Are you all right?” He’s at my side in an instant, and I can’t look at him. Not because of what he said and how he thought of things that I was trying to work through on my own, but what came out of the box he gave me. Heels. Black, red-soled heels. But unlike the classic shoe that the brand is known for, the heels are low and wide, with gel inserts already inside both shoes. Styled for work, but made for comfort.

I nod, swallowing the lump of emotion in my throat as I right myself with the help of his hand on my elbow. He steadies me easily, and I slide into the chair I was coming to sit in.

Then this man, who’s known for his global skills in negotiations and overtaking new businesses to make them thrive, bends down and picks up the fallen heels, putting them back into the box and handing them to me.

“Consider this a signing bonus.”

He turns and heads back to his desk. Unbuttoning his suit jacket, he sits down. “Along with an actual bonus and back pay for the hours you weren’t compensated for when you worked off the clock. Please make a tally of that, and I’ll make sure payroll is notified. I also alerted human resources that those employees under your former boss might put in timesheet request changes due to also working without pay. I had a memo sent out to them to alert them they have until the end of the week to put it in to keep with policy. Despite what your predecessor claimed, this company pays overtime, and I don’t let anyone work for free. Not if I expect the best out of them.”

He folds his hands on the desk and leans forward as if warning me. But I had already planned to give him my very best, even without all the extras.

“Thank you for the shoes.” I slip off my tennis shoes and put the heels on. As expected, they fit perfectly. I never even doubted that he would know my shoe size.

The man has a way about him. I’m not sure if it’s the dark eyes behind the thin black frames or the chiseled jaw dusted with a five-o’clock shadow despite the hour of the day. But he sees details. If I knew nothing about him and went off looks alone, I’d know all that just by his appearance. He’s perfectly put together, even down to each strand of his hair. Cut short on the sides, tapered close to the scalp, while the top is left longer and thick. Always styled back as if he ran his fingers through it, rising slightly at the front, deliberate and dominant. An effortless look but controlled all in one. The kind of style that suggests he cares about details without wanting anyone to know how much.

“And I wouldn’t usually ask for help with my girls, but I truly appreciate and accept the help.” I’m not about to turn down something that will make my life easier. I’ve been through enough to know when to accept a handout. Screw pride when it comes to providing for my girls.

“I was only going to suggest that it would be better to bring in two financial analysts to this new team instead of just me.” The job promotion isn’t to take over someone else’s spot, but to run a new group that focuses on double-checking the owner copies versus the physical. A checks and balances system that I’m honestly surprised wasn’t already in place before all of this. But I guess that’s how these things happen. You don’t think you need a second team to review files when the others are already reviewing them. The assumption that something will be randomly noticed by someone is the human error in it all.

“Anyone in mind?”

“Missy, my cubicle mate. She was the one who first alerted me to the issue, so she has an eye for detail even if she’s unaware of what she stumbled upon. She’s also young and eager, and I think it would be beneficial if you want this team running quickly.”