Lost and Found Family by Jennifer Ryan

“Sarah, you look absolutely gorgeous in that dress. The press is going nuts over you. Can you believe all of this? . . . Sarah, I’m talking to you.”

Abby’s voice finally penetrated Sarah’s daydream.

“I’m sorry. I was thinking about Luke. And last night. And this morning.”

Abby beamed. “Tell me everything. I want details.”

“I don’t mean that. Well, I do, but I was thinking about how happy he was when I got home and how sweet. I took a short nap before dinner. When I woke up he’d brought up one of the bouquets of flowers and put them on the nightstand. I went downstairs to find him and saw one of the bouquets on the dining room table and another on the coffee table in front of the fireplace. It was so lovely how he’d put them throughout the house, so that no matter where I went, I could enjoy them. The last bouquet was on the kitchen table. He was at the stove making me pancakes, eggs, and bacon. We ate in front of a roaring fire.”

Abby’s eyes turned all dreamy. “He made you breakfast for dinner.”

“He said it was the fastest thing he could make that would stick to my ribs and give me enough energy.”

Abby perked up and her eyes lit with interest. “Energy for what? Come on, give.”

“Let’s just say I woke up in his arms in front of the fireplace this morning.”

He’d given her another perfect night, with the roaring fire she’d included in her dream day.

Abby sighed. “I am so jealous. I can’t wait to meet him.”

“How many more meetings do we have to get through?” She and Luke agreed it didn’t make sense for him to trail her from one meeting to the next before the benefit, so he was meeting her right before the actual event started.

“Two more to go. Luke, his family, and yours will meet us after that and you’ll all go to the ballroom together. You have your speech, right?”

“I do. I’ve kept it short and sweet. I’ll make a few comments about the Spencer Foundation and what we’re doing, and then accept the award. Sound good?”

“Perfect. Let’s get these meetings out of the way. I can’t wait to meet your Luke.”

“My Luke. I like that. Who are we meeting with next?”

“TriStar, Inc.”

“Right. A security project like the Knox Project.”

“Exactly. Then . . .” Abby stalled and held up her hand. “Promise you won’t freak out?”

“Why?”

“Because the second meeting is actually a press conference with about a hundred reporters who all want to ask you about Spencer Software and Andy’s Antics and how you, as a woman, built the companies into what they are today.” Abby winced and waited for Sarah’s reaction. “I’ve been fending off requests for months,” she went on. “As soon as it was announced you were actually going to make a public appearance, the organizers set it up without asking me first. You can answer all their questions at once, then go hide out on Luke’s ranch.”

There was no stopping it now. And Abby had warned her they’d do a lot of press today. Meeting them all at once and getting it over with suited her. “Sounds like a plan.” And after, Luke would be here, and that made her really happy.

*  *  *

Luke arrived with his entire family. The press snapped pictures of their arrival. Once inside the lobby, he and Jason got caught up with some old friends.

“We missed you guys at the Governor’s Ball last month,” Tom said.

“Jason has an excuse. He’s married with a kid, but where have you been hiding, Luke?” Brandon asked.

Luke shrugged. “It’s a long drive in from the ranch.” He didn’t go into any more detail about how his life had changed recently. He wasn’t the same man who’d meet these guys at the bar after work or on the weekend and pick up women just to pass the time and fill the void that never seemed to disappear.

“You never come out with us anymore,” Paul complained. “It’s no fun without you.”

“You mean without him picking up the tab,” Jason teased.

“Whatever happened to that waitress you were seeing?” Tom asked.

Paul shook his head. “No, she was a landscape architect.”

Brandon narrowed his gaze. “I thought you were seeing some Google girl.”

Jason grinned at him. “Wasn’t the last one the designer you hired to do your house?”

“She wanted to do me.” He got the laugh he expected from his friends, but Jason frowned at him. “And I wasn’t seeing her. I hired her to do a job.”

Luke caught sight of his parents and Michelle across the lobby seconds before they got swept up in the crowd of reporters and photographers coming out of one of the conference rooms. Hundreds of flashes went off as the photographers swarmed whoever was in the middle of the melee.

“If you turn into Farmer John, you’re going to lose your most-eligible-bachelor status,” Paul teased.

Luke didn’t respond. He stood transfixed as the sea of reporters and photogs split and his mom, dad, and Michelle greeted the woman in the middle. She had her back to him when she hugged his mom. Her red velvet dress had short cap sleeves and left her back completely exposed to her waist. She didn’t wear a long gown like most of the women here at the benefit. Her gown had a full skirt that ended at her knees and showed off a pair of gorgeous legs that ended in red satin ribbons tied around her ankles, her feet encased in red heels. Her hair was piled on top of her head and secured with a ruby and diamond clip. Long tendrils escaped in waves of mahogany. A pearl necklace circled her throat and one long strand hung down her back and ended with a large ruby that sparkled from all the flashbulbs going off.

His mother stepped back from her, caught his eye, and then said something to the beautiful woman, who slowly turned to face him and stopped his heart.

The back of her dress was spectacular, but the front was even better. The dress had a deep V-neck that showed off the swell of her breasts. It was skintight to her waist, where the skirt flared out.

Sarah.

Mine, his heart called out.

“Luke can’t remember who he was seeing,” Jason said to their friends, “because now, all he sees is her.”

Truer words . . .

Luke couldn’t get to her fast enough or take his eyes off her. She stared at him from across the room with a smile on her beautiful face that lit up his heart. She held her hands away from her sides and leaned a little to her left to show off the dress, which nearly stopped his heart. She did a little twirl and waved her hands down at the pretty shoes.

She knew she looked amazing. She knew he liked what he saw.

His mouth watered and his long, determined strides took him across the room and right to her.

Just before he reached her, his dad grinned and said, “Watch out, dear. That’s a man on a mission.”

“I love that man.” Sarah’s smile and eyes said it, too.

“I know you do. And he loves you.”

Luke appreciated that his father saw the love between them, that Luke had finally found what he’d admired about his parents’ relationship. Undying, unyielding, undeniable love.

Luke stopped short of taking her in his arms and stuffed his hands in his pockets and just took in the breathtaking woman who made his life infinitely better in more ways than he could count.

Sarah cocked her head, confused. “Aren’t you going to kiss me?”

He shook his head.

“Don’t you like the dress?”

“I love the dress. I just can’t kiss you, because if I do, that dress is going to fly right off you, and all these people are going to get an eyeful of me devouring you.”

“Oh. Oh!” She smiled at him. “I’ll take my chances. Your mother and father are right behind me.” She gave him a wicked grin and then leaned into him and kissed him softly. Before she could pull back, he pulled his hands free and put them around her waist and crushed her to him. Then he really kissed her.

Flashbulbs went off all around them. He didn’t care how many pictures of them ended up splashed across the Internet. All he could think about was how soft the skin on her back felt and how sweet she tasted.

He ended the kiss and looked down at her. “You’re beautiful.”

“Thank you.” A shy smile tugged at her red-tinted lips. “Another gift. No one’s ever said that to me.”

He leaned his forehead to hers. “I think it every day I’m with you and will remember to tell you more often.”

“Son, let’s get her away from all this chaos.”

“Okay, Dad. I can’t wait to dance with my beautiful girlfriend.” He needed to change that to “wife.” Soon.

He led her away from the crowd, the press calling out questions to her, and headed toward the ballroom.

Jason and Michelle, along with his mom and dad, followed.

“You look amazing, Sarah,” Michelle said from just behind them.

Sarah glanced over her shoulder as he led her down the hall. “Thank you, so do you. How do you like your new job?”

“It’s fantastic. My boss is really great and so understanding,” she teased, because Sarah was her boss.

A woman ran up beside Sarah and smiled at the two of them.

Sarah looked back at Michelle again. “Wow! You’re really lucky. Abby, here, has a horrible boss who makes her work like crazy. She gets back at me by setting up press conferences behind my back.” She smiled to soften the sarcasm.

“Hey, I warned you ahead of time.” Abby shrugged. “I may have kept the size and scope of it to myself.”

Sarah and Luke stopped just outside the ballroom. “It’s all right.” His family gathered around them. “Abby, I’d like to introduce you to the Thompson family. This is James, his wife, Lila, their son Jason, and his wife, Michelle, who is our newest marketing associate for Andy’s Antics.”

Everyone said hello and shook hands.

Sarah wrapped her arm around Luke’s and beamed at Abby. “And this is Luke.”

He shook hands with Abby. “It’s nice to put a face with the cell phone ringing.”

Abby laughed at his silly joke. “I’m very happy to meet the man who finally put a smile on Sarah’s face. I can’t remember ever seeing her this happy.”

“I’m hoping to keep her that way from now on.”

“I’ll hold you to it.” Abby smiled, but she meant every word.

He appreciated that she looked out for Sarah. And when he wasn’t around, he’d count on her to still do it. But now that was his job and he’d never let anything bad happen to Sarah ever again.

Abby held up a padded envelope and glanced around as everyone else attending the benefit made their way through the double doors into the ballroom. “I’m not sure where your family is. Maybe they’ve already gone inside. But I have the package for Tyler.”

“Thank you.” Sarah turned to a man who tapped her on the shoulder.

“A word, please?” the man asked.

Sarah took several steps away from all of them.

Luke watched them, tempted to go over and make the man not stand so close to her.

Abby knocked her elbow into his arm. “Don’t worry. That’s Jim. Our CIO. He’s had a thing for her forever. He’s mostly harmless. He’s not stupid enough to do anything to jeopardize his job. No one who works for Sarah would do that. She’s made all of the original employees millionaires. Not to mention that we all worship her.”

“I certainly do.”

Abby turned to look at him. “Keep treating her well, Luke. It’s about time someone did.”

“I have every intention of doing just that.”

Abby gave him a nod.

Sarah returned to them. “Sorry. Just some business stuff to sort out.”

“We’ll meet you both inside,” Luke’s mother said, before his family headed into the ballroom.

Abby stopped Sarah before she followed. “You can’t go in yet. They want to announce your arrival.”

Sarah and Luke waited outside the doors.

Abby held Sarah’s forearm. “Um, Sarah, you know how I surprised you with the press conference earlier. Well, I kind of gave the organizers a list of your most recent personal charitable donations.”

“You did what!”

“You deserve to be recognized for everything you do for others.”

“You’re lucky I don’t have time to replace you.” There was no sting to Sarah’s words.

“You love me,” Abby said, all confidence.

“I do. And I need you to get the six new people I hired started on Monday.”

Luke squeezed her hand. “Then maybe we can sit down and make some definite plans for our future.”

“We will. I—”

Abby cut her off. “It’s time to go in. They’re announcing Sarah and you, Luke, right now.”

Which meant everyone in the room would know they were together. He liked that.

The doors opened to a crowd standing and applauding as they made their way into the room.

Luke led her up to the podium at the front of the ballroom, where he handed her off to the head of the organization honoring her.

Luke went to take his seat at the long family table the organizers had set up for both her family and his. Her dad and stepmom both smiled at him, then stared up at Sarah. They’d do the introductions later.

Sarah took her seat next to the podium with the members of the Rockford Charity Organization.

The head of the awards committee spoke first. “We’re here today to honor Sarah Anderson., CEO of Spencer Software and chairperson of the Spencer Foundation. It’s a pleasure to have her join us today, because as many of you know, she rarely grants interviews, and if you’ve ever hired her, you’re more likely to have a conference call than an in-person meeting. Not only is she the head of two growing and already highly successful software companies, she’s also someone who believes in helping others. She may not like to call attention to herself, but she absolutely caught the attention of our organization for her outstanding charitable work.

“Sarah and the Spencer Foundation have helped many individuals and charities, including a school and retreat for the deaf and blind, shelters for homeless mothers and their children, food banks, other organizations that feed the hungry, and free STEM summer programs for underprivileged girls in underserved communities. Wherever Sarah travels, she is likely to discover where the greatest need for help is and fill it, most of the time anonymously. She takes advantage of business trips to identify charitable opportunities. In several communities hit hard by wildfires, she donated new fire engines to replace the ones lost. With two young sons, it is no wonder she’s known to support Little League baseball teams by providing them with new uniforms and shoes. During the holidays, she donates turkeys to charity organizations to pass out to families in need. Homeless shelters also receive new blankets and coats. When she drove past an underfunded school in a low-income neighborhood that didn’t have a play yard for the young children, she made sure they got one. When an employee told her about a nephew’s disappointment that his high school didn’t have enough instruments, she not only donated thirty new instruments, Sarah also sponsored the choir’s trip to New York City to attend three Broadway musicals.”

Luke had no idea Sarah had done so much for others. She sat there listening to the list of what was probably a fraction of all her accolades with her cheeks pink with embarrassment. She clearly didn’t want or need the praise for all she’d done to help those less fortunate. She did it because she knew what it was to go hungry and want for what you needed most.

Her father stared up at her, pride in his eyes for all her accomplishments.

“Sarah is an outstanding example of what can be accomplished through hard work, determination, and dedication to helping others. Please help me celebrate Sarah Anderson.”

Sarah stood, shook hands with the head of the Rockford Charity Organization, then faced the crowd and waited for the applause to die down and everyone to take their seats again.

“Thank you to the Rockford Charity Organization for this amazing honor. Nothing pleases me more than giving to others and encouraging others to give. I especially love helping young people have access to the things they need to achieve their dreams.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank a few of the many people who have helped me help others. First, I’d like to thank my amazing assistant, Abby Garner, for helping to organize the fundraiser for the Spencer Foundation, in which we raised over three million dollars at our benefit this year to help with the many charities and community needs mentioned here tonight. I’d also like to thank the Thompson family for their generous donation. The money they’ve provided will benefit countless people.” Sarah winked at Luke.

Luke watched Jason raise a glass in salute to Sarah’s thanks. Luke leaned over to his brother. “How much did we generously donate?”

“A hundred grand from the entire family, which turned out to be chump change because Abby told me Sarah donated the huge bonus she earned for completing the Griffin Worldwide Financial project. She donated the entire six hundred K to the Spencer Foundation.”

“She gave up her bonus?”

“According to Abby, all of her bonuses for finishing on time are donated to the foundation. It’s another way she raises money without calling attention to herself because the funds are donated by whichever company she earns the bonus from. She seems to think there are more important things in life than money. She cares about people. Especially you. Why she fell in love with your ugly mug, I don’t know.”

Luke jabbed Jason with his elbow.

Michelle tapped the back of her hand to Jason’s shoulder. “Pay attention. Sarah is speaking.”

“I’d also like to thank everyone for coming tonight. As you know, there will be an auction toward the end of the evening. Please dig deep and give generously to the causes we are supporting tonight. They need your help. Let’s all do good for others.”

Everyone rose to their feet and erupted in applause. Sarah’s shy smile made her all the more beautiful as she stood in the spotlight and gave the room a deep nod to show her appreciation. When her gaze landed on Luke, clapping for her, his heart full of pride and appreciation for the generous woman he loved, she touched her hand to her chest and that smile turned megawatt just for him.