AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“What do you mean what am I going to do about it?”
“Are you going to ask her out?”
“Have you lost your ever-loving mind? She works for me, is almost half my age and is Sophie’s friend. I don’t think it’s possible for her to be any more taboo than she currently is.”
Oliver waves me off. “Oh yeah, I forgot you mentioned that she and Sophie are close… Anyway, stop being so dramatic. It’s not as dire as you’re making it seem. Number one, she works for you, but she is not your employee. Technically, she is employed by her company. Basically, she workswiththe company, notforit. Next, age is just a number. If you get together, will you get strange looks from strangers? Probably, but who cares? As long as she makes you happy. About Sophie, I don’t think she’d mind. Young people today are more liberal and open-minded than we were. I don’t think she’ll have a problem with you dating her friend.”
“Yeah? How do you know? Did you ask her?” I ask, trying to squeeze every ounce of sarcasm that I possibly can into my statement.
“I don’t have to ask her. I know her pretty well. I mean, she is my goddaughter.”
“Do you know what? All of this is irrelevant because Emma can’t stand me. Even if she could get over her strong dislike for me, I’m not sure she could overlook the other reasons why it would be a bad idea for the both of us to get involved.”
Oliver shrugs. “Well, you never know till you try.”
“Yeah, yeah…”
“Anyway, what suggestions has she made that have gotten you so wound up?”
“I can’t tell you that. The board has asked me to keep everything quiet until the final decision has been made,” I lie.
Oliver nods, respecting my boundary. This is exactly why he has been in my life as long as he has.
When I was setting up the company, it was a no-brainer to bring him on board. Oliver has a wicked mind for numbers and he’s easy to get along with. I haven’t had to worry about any shady dealings or creative bookkeeping where Oliver has been concerned. That has been a privilege. That is exactly why I’m not going to fire him. I trust him and the company needs him.
Not long after that, Oliver and I called it a night.
I leave in a cab because I don’t trust myself to drive, considering how many drinks I’ve had.
When I get home, I let myself into my mini mansion, Jamaica Plains. This place has always kind of been cold, but it was less so when Sophie lived here.
I bought it when she was in high school and tried to make it more of a home for her. When she moved out, she took all the warmth with her.
I amble up the stairs and collapse in my bed and massage my temples as I feel a headache coming on. I reach into my pockets, retrieve my phone and dial Sophie’s number.
It rings for a few moments then my daughter's voice comes at me through the speaker. “Daddy? What’s wrong?”
“Does something have to be wrong for me to call my one and only daughter?”
She giggles. “No, Daddy. It’s just that it’s really late. So I thought maybe there was an emergency.”
I pull my phone away from my ear and look at the time on the screen. It’s a little after 11 o’clock. I put the phone back to my ear, and say, “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize how late it had gotten.”
“It’s OK. So what’s up?”
“I just wanted to make sure that you’re taking care of yourself.”
I can hear the smile in her voice when she says, “Yes, Daddy. I am taking care of myself.”
“Soph, I am being serious. When was the last time you had a full-body checkup with your doctor?”
“I don’t know, maybe six months ago.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. I know it hasn’t been a year.”
“And they checked everything?”
