Total pages in book: 73
Estimated words: 67973 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67973 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
The meeting wrapped quickly after that. Parker practically bolted for the door. I rose to leave as well, but Samuel’s hand landed gently on my arm to stop me.
“I want to thank you for all that you’re doing for the company,” he said with a warm, fatherly smile. “I can feel us moving closer to success every day. I also wanted to invite you to my home for a dinner party this Saturday with the family. My wife, Faith, would love to meet you. GalvaTech has always been a family business, and now that you’ve invested your time and money into it, I guess that makes you an honorary member.”
He chuckled, and I was touched by the thoughtfulness of his invitation. Most of the other companies I’d worked with kept things formal and transactional, and I appreciated the way he valued me as part of the company.
“I’d love to come to dinner,” I said.
Samuel smiled again, genuine and grateful, and as I walked out, I realized I wasn’t just invested in GalvaTech anymore. I was invested in the people. In Morgan. Maybe more than I should be.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Morgan
I stood inside my walk-in closet, staring at my options like they might suddenly arrange themselves into the perfect outfit.
It was just dinner, I told myself. My father had invited Liam as a gesture of appreciation and gratitude. A completely casual and thoughtful overture…except nothing about the way I was starting to feel for Liam felt even remotely neutral anymore.
Sighing, I pulled out a simple and classic black dress, then put it back. Too formal. Tried a sweater and jeans. Too relaxed. A silk blouse and tailored pants. Too professional.
Ugh. “Get it together,” I muttered to myself.
This was ridiculous. I’d never had trouble picking an outfit before. But then again, I’d spent the past few weeks in a constant state of anticipation, wondering when Liam and I would finally cross that line we’d been dancing around since that night in his car. Tonight, I wanted to feel that spark between us a little more.
We hadn’t kissed again. Hadn’t touched beyond the occasional brush of hands or his palm at my lower back when he’d walked me to my car like a gentleman after a late night at the office. Whatever we were developing felt easy in a way I hadn’t expected. Like we’d skipped past the awkward getting-to-know-you phase and landed somewhere deeper. Somewhere that mattered and felt real.
My cellphone buzzed on my dresser. I picked it up and saw a text from Whitney.
Please tell me you’re not overthinking what to wear.
I laughed, because only a best friend would know me that well after learning I was going to be seeing Liam at a family dinner.
I typed back, I have no idea what you’re talking about.
Liar. Just wear the red dress. The one that makes your boobs look so damn good they should come with a warning label.
I grinned and shook my head. It’s a family dinner.
With a man you’re clearly into. Wear. The. Dress. You’ve been doing the slow burn thing for weeks now. Maybe it’s time to turn up the heat a little.
I bit my lip, staring at the red dress hanging at the back of my closet. It was one of my favorites. Fitted to my curves, but not too tight. Sophisticated and subtle enough for a family dinner, but tempting enough for Liam.
Fine, I finally responded. The red dress it is.
That’s my girl. Now go ruin his self-control.
I pulled the dress from the closet and laid it on the bed. I took a deep breath. It was just dinner with my family…and Liam. Who looked at me like I was the only person in the room even when we were surrounded by people. Who made me feel things I wasn’t sure I was ready to name yet.
I slipped into the dress and looked at myself in the mirror. Whitney was right. My boobs looked fantastic. And the fit was perfect, hugging my curves in all the right places without being too much.
I looked good. More than that, I felt confident and beautiful.
I left for my parents’ house, and when I arrived Parker and Becca were already there, but Liam’s car wasn’t in the driveway yet. My stepmom, Faith, greeted me at the door, her kind brown eyes lighting up as she immediately pulled me into a warm hug.
When my father married Faith just three years after my mother’s death, I wasn’t exactly thrilled. It wasn’t just that a short period of time had passed, that had worried me. I’d been eleven at the time, and I’d been afraid of how the family dynamic would change. I had a close relationship with my father, and he was all I had. I’d been wary that Faith would come between us.
But that didn’t happen. She wasn’t the evil stepmother that Disney movies had taught me to fear. Faith was kind and patient with me. She didn’t try to replace my mother, but she filled the emptiness that was left behind in the best way she could. She became my friend and mentor, someone that helped me through the difficult years of puberty and all of the drama that came with growing from a girl into a woman.