The Other Side of Greed by Lily Zante
Chapter Forty-Five
KYRA
Simona has returned to work after her week off, and I tell her and Fredrich that Brad is busy this week and won’t be coming in.
“Busy doing what?” Fredrich asks suspiciously.
“You can ask him when he gets back,” I reply. It’s not my place to tell her about what he does on those days, or to reveal about the new insights I’ve had into his life.
“How is it that we still don’t know what he does on his days off?” Fredrich persists.
He has a point, and I have been wondering why Brad has been so vague about his start-up in the first place. It’s not like it’s something to be ashamed of. It’s strange that even now that I have some answers, I’m still in the dark about other things. Just when I think I know enough about this man, there are always more questions.
But because he is slowly opening up to me, my doubts are slipping away. What I can’t stop thinking about are the unforgettable few days we’ve just spent together.
I change the conversation back to Simona’s vacation and her birthday celebration, and Simona is happy to tell us all about it. She looks all the better for it. I want to take her out for a meal, just a few of us, Fredrich and me, and hopefully Brad can make it. Somewhere nice. “Can we borrow you for one evening? We’d like to take you out for dinner.”
She seems genuinely surprised, and tries to dismiss it with a, “You don’t have to do that.” She doesn’t like being made a fuss of, but she is a prized member of my team, and this milestone birthday deserves to be properly celebrated.
“We want to,” I insist.
“You are sixty-five,” Fredrich winks. “That kind of age needs a good amount of recognition.”
She raises her eyebrow in consternation. “Stop it, young man.”
“Give us a date, Simona. Just one evening.” She has a large family and I’m aware that her celebrations are ongoing.
“I’m free all week. Whatever suits you.”
I look at the invitation in front of me. Jessica Montrose Art Gallery. That vacuous monster I met at city hall has sent me some complimentary tickets to an exhibition there.
“Can you make it on Thursday?” I ask, fingers crossed.
“Thursday is good.”
“Good with me too.” Fredrich gives me a thumbs up.
“Thursday then. We’ll have dinner at eight.”
A visit to the art gallery, which we’ll spring on her at the last minute, followed by dinner at a very nice restaurant. I think Simona would appreciate that.
Brad calls me later that night to say he can’t make it to the food night because he’s tied up in heavy meetings from Tuesday through to Thursday.
“I wasn’t expecting you to make the food night.”
“I was going to try.”
He does make an effort to turn up to those. The transformation has been amazing because I recall how uncomfortable he was the first time he came. “Good luck with your negotiations.”
“Thank you.”
“We’ve booked Simona’s birthday dinner at eight on Thursday, so hopefully you can make it to that.”
“At eight? Uh …” He hesitates. “I’m going to do my best to get out early, but I don’t want to make promises I can’t keep.”
I respect that. “See what you can do. Even if you just pass by later and can only have coffee with us at the end.” There’s no point in telling him about the art gallery invite if he’s not even sure he can make it to dinner. A smile curls on my lips. Even though I left his place only this morning, I’m missing him already and can’t wait to see him again.
He suddenly becomes quiet. “I’ll be out of state, on business.”
“Oh. I didn’t realize that.” Out of state? I was under the impression that his business dealings were all local. Now I discover something else I assumed about him that isn’t true. I’m tempted to ask him where, but I can sense he’s somewhat uneasy.
“I want to come, Kyra. I’ll try, because I really want to see you again. I’d love to be there for Simona’s celebration but there’s a good chance I won’t be able to get away any sooner.”
“That’s a shame. Never mind. We’ll take Simona out another time, just you and me.”
“We can definitely do that,” he says, and like a soppy romantic fool, I believe him.