Love Redesigned (Lakefront Billionaires #1) by Lauren Asher

“You don’t know what I’m about to ask of you.”

“Doesn’t matter. You’ve done a lot for me, so I’m up for whatever.”

I blink. Dahlia seems equally shocked as her gaze bounces between the two of us.

Ryder continues, “Before you hired me, I was struggling with returning to civilian life after my last tour. When I interviewed for the job, I was living out of my car and struggling with PTSD.”

I hide my flinch. “I didn’t realize it was that bad.”

Dahlia reaches out to give his hand a squeeze before she sinks back into her chair.

“You’re not the only proud man in town, boss,” he says with a small smile.

“No, but he is the proudest,” Dahlia says.

I shoot her a stern look.

Ryder’s soft laugh doesn’t match his harsh features. “I owe you a lot, so if you want my help, I’m more than happy to offer it.”

Dahlia’s bottom lip trembles.

Shit.

I battle between shyness and gratitude before landing somewhere in the middle. “You don’t owe me anything.”

“Do you want my help or not?” he asks.

“His asking is evidence enough.” The expression on Dahlia’s face is worth every ounce of pride I forfeit as I do the one thing I trained myself to avoid.

“Yeah, I want your help.” My shoulders loosen as the tension drains from my body.

“Tell me what you need.”

“Between us, something came up that requires me to move next month, so I need to restructure the company in a way that allows it to operate without me being present.”

His brows rise while Dahlia’s scrunch.

“You’re moving?” Ryder asks.

“Yes. Even though I’ll attend meetings virtually and fly back every two weeks to physically check on everything, I need your help with the day-to-day operations and keeping an eye on things.”

Dahlia’s lips part.

Ryder nods. “Of course.”

“Great. Here’s what I was thinking…” I review my idea with Ryder while Dahlia watches. He gives his input and offers plenty of useful advice, and I adjust my plan based on his expertise. Dahlia gives a few pointers I take into consideration.

After an hour of restructuring Lopez Luxury’s operations, Ryder stands and claps me on the back. “I never thought I’d see the day you finally decided to do what was best for you rather than the company.” He glances over at Dahlia. “And I probably have you to thank for the promotion and raise.”

Her cheeks are tinged a soft shade of pink. “I didn’t have anything to do with this.”

“Right.” Ryder nods.

Stubborn, I mouth.

Ryder gives me a thumbs-up.

We both know Dahlia is the only person who could convince me to change the entire structure of my company, yet she won’t accept the possibility because it would only threaten her weak argument.

Ryder walks out of the conference room, and Dahlia gets up to follow him, but I cage her against the door before she has a chance to escape.

“I’m not done with you.”

She makes a show of dragging her eyes up toward my face. “What do you want?”

“Your opinion is a good start.”

She fidgets with one of her rings. “You’re really thinking about moving to San Francisco?”

“Did the last hour give it away?”

She glares.

I sigh. “How long do you plan on fighting me on this?”

“For however long it takes to convince you that this is all a big mistake.” Her glassy eyes are full of uncertainty, and it wrecks me to know how much she silently suffers from her anxiety.

“You want to talk about mistakes? Fine. Let’s talk about them.”

Surprise flashes across her face.

“There were a few reasons I pushed you away all those years ago. Grief. The stress of running a struggling company. My fear that we would never survive long distance and all the other obstacles standing in our way. But the biggest mistake I made was believing you were better off without me because I wasn’t good enough. I let my low self-esteem and insecurities stand in the way of what I wanted with you, and I’ll be damned if I let you make that same mistake. In fact, I forbid it, because I refuse to spend another ten years waiting for you to come to your senses.”

She blinks a few times.

“I will always fight for what’s in our best interest, even if it means fighting you in the process.” I kiss the top of her head and exit the room before I find myself unable to, leaving the woman I love behind to come to terms with what I said.





CHAPTER FORTY-SIX


Julian


I decide to stay away from the office and the Founder’s house, both because I want to give Ryder a chance to run Lopez Luxury’s daily operations without me micromanaging, and so Dahlia sees I’m serious about taking a step back.

I try to burn some nervous energy off by working out, making a few playlists, and having lunch with my mom, but relief doesn’t last long, especially after Dahlia sends me a message with her San Francisco travel itinerary.

Soon enough, I find myself pacing the long halls of my house while my thoughts spiral.

When I told Dahlia I would always fight for what’s in our best interest, even if it means fighting her, I meant every word.