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He clearly thought he was God’s gift, and we’d gotten into a bit of a tiff. When we’d finally parted ways with eye rolls and snarls, I had told him to email me his section when he finished so I could put it together. But, of course, it was last minute. Literally. He’d sent it to me ten minutes before we had to hand it in to our professor.
Since then, we had been at each other’s throat whenever we crossed paths, which, thankfully, wasn’t all that often. I knew he had interned at Novak & Novak for two summers, but I hadn’t realized he’d been hired full time. Imagine my surprise when I’d walked into the West Chester office and saw him and his stupid crooked smile.
Now, I answered my grandmother’s question with a question. “Why are you so protective of him?”
She breathed deeply and crossed her arms, cupping her elbows in her hands. “I am no more protective of him than anyone else who works at the firm.” When I stared blankly at her, she gave in to a small sigh. “This time of year is hard for him.”
“Why?”
“His best friend passed away right before Christmas.”
I blanched. “When?”
“I guess…” Nan rolled her eyes up in thought. “When you two were still in school.”
“That was a while ago,” I said, not that grief had an end date. I knew that all too well. But I didn’t understand why my grandmother, who had experienced so much loss, seemed to bend over backward for this guy.
“He took it hard. You know,” she said, as if I really did know, “he had planned on living in Philadelphia, but he was just so distraught.”
My attention unwillingly coasted around the room until I found Dean, where he was speaking to Robert, a senior associate in Wilmington, and his wife, Crystal, a paralegal in the same office. He was in profile, and I watched his jaw, covered in a neat beard, work as he talked. He kept one hand in his slim-cut dark pants while he gestured in the air with the other. Occasionally, he combed his fingers through his dark-blond hair that I hated myself for knowing appeared brown when it was wet. He shouldn’t have looked so good in that burgundy shirt and black tie, but he did. And I hated myself even more for thinking so.
“Okay,” I said, forcing my gaze back to my grandmother, “what does that have to do with anything?”
“I should think you’d be a little more empathetic.”
“I feel bad for him, but that doesn’t change the fact that we don’t get along. And probably never will.”
She inhaled audibly, shaking her head at me. “That’s a shame. Because we’re going to need you two.”
“Needus? For what?”
With a slight smile, she stepped away from me and waved her arms in the air. “Excuse me! Hello!”
Someone whistled, quieting the small crowd, and everyone turned toward my grandmother still waving her arms.
“Hello. Hi, I’m so glad to see everyone here.” A few claps rang out, and she smiled in their direction. “William and I always loved this time of year, but we especially loved being able to gather everyone together like this.” Nan pressed her hands to her chest. “You can’t know the appreciation I feel for all of you. To know Novak & Novak started in a tiny office with only the two of us, to now having offices in three different states with dozens of partners, associates, and assistants. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your dedication and hard work.”
Everyone clapped, and I stretched my neck to see almost everyone in the crowd smiling at my grandmother. The same woman who was raised by a single mom and worked her way through college and law school, opened her own firm, and raised two children. She was so incredible. My hero.
“I think of you all as family.” Nan extended her hand out toward me and to Uncle Kevin on the other side of her. “Weall think of you as family. And I love to see it expanding.” She waved to a man who appeared to be a few years older than me. I didn’t know his name, but I was sure he worked at the Cherry Hill office and was holding a baby.
Nan straightened and folded her hands together in front of her torso. “This coming year will be an exciting one. A lot of change, but I know it will be for the better. I’d like to bring Mr. Reed Johnson up here.”
I clapped, letting a smile loose as Reed made his way up front. He was a junior partner at our office and a great guy. He hugged my grandmother, exchanging a few quiet words with her before looking to my uncle. They hugged too, and even before Uncle Kevin raised his glass, I had already guessed what he was about to announce.
“I’d like to introduce everyone here to our newest managing partner of a brand-new branch, opening in Aberdeen, Maryland.”
Cheers rang out, and while I was happy for Reed, for the firm to be expanding to another location, my mind reeled with the possibilities of what that meant for me.
And why my grandmother would have said she neededus, me and Dean.
Dean and I were on the same level, senior associates, and if Reed was moving, that meant the only other person above us was Dominic Payne, the managing partner. I knew his daughter was a few months away from having a baby and how much he was looking forward to retirement. I saw it. The road to me being managing partner of our office. It was paved in gold and not too far off.
I smiled to myself.
Untilhecaught my gaze. Those sly blue eyes glowing under the garish Christmas lights of this place.
Dean Hargrove, he was my roadblock.
