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Chapter 1
On the second day in New York, after putting my mother in a cab headed to the airport to fly back home, I Googled my father’s name. He was easy to find; he’d recently bought into his new wife’s company, and his name was plastered all over the internet, newspapers, and television news.
I was furious with my mother for waiting to tell me about him. He could have been a big jerk, and I’d still think he walked on water if the news stories about him were true.
Randy Braddock Takes Over New York Historic Preservation. His company was the self-proclaimed savior of historic Manhattan architecture.I didn’t realize that I was going to figure into his goals for the company. I’m sure he didn’t know it either until he saw me. I don’t think I’m great looking. But you could say I’m what men and the media are looking for, which I know infuriates many women: tall, slender, and strawberry blond.
I walked into the packed waiting room of the office, and the secretary took an immediate dislike to me.
“He doesn’t see anyone without an appointment,” she growled, not taking her eyes off the computer screen.
“Could you tell him Crystal Long’s daughter is here?” I asked.
“Just a minute.” She reached up, closed the sliding glass partition with a bang, and picked up the phone. Trying to cover her mouth with her hand, she glared at me while she spoke.
In fifteen seconds, my father came busting through the door like a linebacker. He didn’t even try to hide his emotions, grabbing me by my shoulders.
“Crystal said to watch for you, but I didn’t think you’d really do it, and she wouldn’t tell me where you were.”
“Well, here I am, Dad.”
“Laura?”
“That’s what they call me,” I said, allowing this tall stranger to hug me and pat my back. It was unfamiliar, something I’d never had to deal with before—a father’s love. “I can see where I get my build,” I mumbled, gently pushing him away with my hands on his arms. My mother is short and curvy and has curly black hair. I’m just the opposite.
“You are definitely my child,” he said, sniffing and wiping his eyes with the back of his hand as he pulled back to stare at me more. “What am I doing? Come in!”
He took my hand and pulled me along to a door marked PRIVATE. For the head of the company, he had a shockingly unimpressive office, with four gray walls and a scarred-up desk with uncomfortable chairs.
“Sit, sit. Have you eaten yet?”
“No, it’s only nine,” I said, though I was starving.
“We have breakfast delivered daily, but it’s the standard cheese, egg, and bacon on a bagel with coffee and sweet rolls.”
“That all sounds wonderful,” I replied, thinking of the little box of Corn Flakes, skimmed milk, and canned fruit cocktail offered at my ladies’ hotel that morning.
“You got it.”
The breakfast was more elaborate than he’d let on, with fresh fruit salad, mimosas, bakery fresh muffins, and assorted sweet rolls. Uniformed wait staff brought it into a conference room adjoining Randy’s office. They placed the trays, bags, carafes of coffee and hot water, and several glass pitchers of juice on a long credenza under a window that overlooked New York Harbor from the thirty-third floor.
“Help yourself,” Randy said, coming up beside me and handing me a plate. “The rest of the staff will be in shortly, and I’ll introduce you, if you’re okay with it.”
“I guess it’s okay. Not sure why you want to do that, though. We might end up hating each other.”
“Oh, I don’t think so,” Randy exclaimed. “I felt a kinship immediately. It was so powerful, I’m surprised you didn’t notice it, too.”
“I noticed, but we need to take it slowly,” I said. I had a feeling Randy Braddock took nothing slowly.
I piled food onto my plate: a hot breakfast sandwich, a warm corn muffin with butter, and strawberries. I placed the plate and a glass of juice on the table and returned to pour a cup of coffee, trying to pay attention to Randy’s stream of conversation. I picked up a few adjectives like attractive, made for television, striking, figuring out fast he was talking about me, while I tried not to cringe.
The staff he’d mentioned streamed in, looking at me curiously. I noticed then that at least half the women who worked for my dad were in various stages of pregnancy. Someone even had what appeared to be a new baby in her arms. From the conversation swirling around me, I gathered that her nanny had called in sick and Randy had told her she could bring the kid to work with her.
Randy looked over at me with concern. “Let’s head back to my office,” he said, evidently changing his mind about introducing me around. “You’re right; it might be premature to show you off. I should get to know you myself first.”
He motioned for me to follow him, but not before a handsome guy, tall and built and impeccably dressed, looked at me and sort of reared back as though stunned. Of course, that flustered me, and I tried not to spill my cup of coffee, all the while frowning at his obvious interest.
“Oh, Ryan, this is my daughter, Laura Long. Laura, Ryan Maddox. Ryan, if you have a minute, join us in the office after you get your breakfast.”
