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“Pepperoni and pineapple with olives and extra cheese,” I said.
“Olives?” she asked.
“Yep,” I said.
“Well, we’ll put those on your half. Large pizza with soda and cheesy bread?” she asked.
“Sounds fantastic,” I said.
She got up to order the pizza and left me with my thoughts. My eyes scanned the room, landing on the shelves of books I still hadn’t read yet. When I started getting my Bachelor’s in health and nutrition, I didn’t have the time to come home and read like I did when getting my Associate’s. I didn’t have the time to sit on this leather couch and devour his collection just so I could feel closer to him while he was working in his office.
So, I got up and walked over to the first shelf and plucked a book from its place before carrying it back over to the leather couch.
“Oh, and Stella?” Daisy asked.
“Yeah?”
“You’re going to be alright. Okay?”
“I know,” I said, a slight smile crossing my face. “I know.”
“And you’ll be a hell of a business owner,” she said, winking.
I shook my head at her while she ordered the pizza and I cracked open the book in my hands. I found my father’s notes in the margins of the textbook, years of pencil and pen marks that scrawled idea after idea on the pages, and even found little drawings and doodles with dimensions and schematics scribbled in between the text lines of the pages.
It was then I realized what I’d picked up.
I’d found my father’s treasure trove of ideas.
And I read everything he had written in the margins while Daisy’s voice faded into the background.
Chapter Three
Christian
“Better late than never,” Stella said, muttering.
The reading of my mother’s will was today, and I was not looking forward to it. I couldn’t have cared less about all the things they were leaving to Stella, and I didn’t understand why the lawyer insisted I be here. From the moment I walked in, I could feel Stella’s entitled snobbery bounce off the walls, and all I wanted to do was turn around and leave.
“It’ll be quick because everything’s already yours anyway,” I said.
“Whatever,” she said.
I sat down beside her while the lawyer rifled through papers. I pulled out my phone and started playing on it, willing this entire thing to be over. I co
uld feel Stella’s eyes on me before I saw her shake her head, but it was the lawyer’s voice who caught me off guard.
“You are going to want to pay attention to this, Mr. Gunn,” he said.
“Fine,” I said, sighing.
“The first item on the list—”
“There’s a list?” I interrupted.
“—is a letter from Stella’s father,” the lawyer said, shooting me a nasty look.
“Try to shut up for this part,” Stella said coolly.
