Page 43 of Tastes Like Summer

I sniffle once again. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Now tell me where the spare key is.”

I’ve never been one to let go easily, which is why when I hang up with Michael, it takes everything inside me to walk back into that client meeting with my boss and not bolt right out the front door instead.

I squeeze my eyes shut, and press the phone to my forehead, trying to gather myself.

Today is important. This meeting is so important. For my boss and myself. It’s a chance to prove that I am more than an executive assistant. It’s a chance to prove to Edgar that he can trust me with things other than scheduling, especially since he’s hiring me as a paralegal. And Michael was right. While I can say that staying here is selfish, the only reason I’m here, the only reason I took this job to begin with, was for my daughters.

So it’s a good thing.

I’m just not used to people helping me with childcare. Maybe my parents, when they could manage to come down to Denver and help me, but my ex has certainly never pitched in much. Or at all. So it’s difficult to accept that this man—this man who I didn’t even like when we first met—would willingly offer to help. That Michael would not only be capable of handling a delicate situation, but was happy to unload it from me in order for me to have the tools necessary to succeed today.

Wiping the tears off my cheeks, I check the CGM one last time. After taking a deep breath, I push the conference room door open, praying my makeup isn’t that big of a mess.

Quietly, I slide back into my seat at the long, oval table with a murmured apology. “I’m so sorry for the interruption. It was a family emergency.” I shoot Edgar a pleading look. “It won’t happen again,” I assure everyone in the room.

“Is everything all right? Do you need to excuse yourself?” Edgar asks.

“No, no. It’s been handled.” At least, I’m trusting that it has.

The meeting wraps up smoothly an hour later, leaving both parties pleased—thank god. Edgar is happy with how our presentation went, and I’m ecstatic that my personal emergency didn’t affect our business—or so it seems. With a smile on my face, I gather up our documents and ready myself to leave.

When Edgar and Max excuse themselves to go to the restroom, and the rest of the Bloom Inc. legal team leaves, I’m left alone by the elevators with the man who has unknowingly kept me up late working on his case. Not that I’m complaining; I’ve actually found it quite fascinating. But it’s odd to have spent so much time wading through his sensitive information without ever having really met him until today’s meeting.

“Are you joining us for drinks?” Jonathan asks.

“Oh. I didn’t know I was invited.” I clutch the documents to my chest, and look up at him.

“Of course you are!” He laughs, his blue eyes shining. “I was the one who made you guys come all the way here. It would be horrible of me to not even take you guys out for a drink.”

“That’s very kind of you, Mr. Bloom, but you’re the client. We’re supposed to be taking you out for drinks.”

That makes him laugh. “Please, call me Jonathan. And you think I’m going to make you pay on top of having the entire team travel all the way here?” He shakes his head. “I’m not that type of guy.”

No, he doesn’t seem like that type of guy. In the hour I’ve known him, Jonathan Bloom hasn’t given me Evil Billionaire vibes. He actually seems… nice.

“Well, that’s super nice of you, but I’m pretty sure we would’ve just billed you for it later,” I say with a smirk. “Still, I think I’m going to have to pass this time around. Remember that family emergency? It’s not an emergency anymore, but I should probably make sure everything is okay.”

“I understand,” Jonathan tells me. “Family should always take priority over work.”

I guess I must be visibly surprised that a billionaire would say that, since he asks “What? You don’t think I could ever value family over work?”

“Um, well, you’re Jonathan Bloom. You’re a media mogul and you’re self-made. I’m sure you had to make a lot of sacrifices in order to get to where you are. I’ve read your bio—you didn’t get to where you are easily.”

Running a hand through his thick, dark hair, he chuckles. Piercing blue eyes bounce around my face, searching for… something. His smile is perfect and straight, inviting and kind. The guy is basically Superman in a business suit—Clark Kent without the glasses—but it’s not doing much for me. Have I gone insane?

“Yes, it’s been years of hard work. But recently I’ve realized that the sacrifices I made may not have been worth it. It’s been a lot of lonely nights and empty holidays. It’s a cliché, but what’s success if you have no one to share it with?”

I smile up at him. “I suppose you’re right.”

“You look like the type of person who carries a lot of weight and self-blame around. So, I just want to make sure you know that you didn’t cause a big interruption in the meeting today. You did the right thing, and you had your priorities straight. And if Edgar says anything to you, I’ll be extremely disappointed.”

I grin at him and shake my head. “You’re really nice, but he would never. He’s probably the most supportive boss anyone’s ever had. He was my divorce attorney, too, so he knows me pretty well. That’s why I think he won’t mind me skipping out on our drinks to go back to Long Island.”

He perks up. “You’re from Long Island? I thought you were from Colorado.”

“Oh, I’m from Colorado, that’s true. But I’m spending the summer in Sag Harbor at a friend’s house for now.”