IT IS NO big deal. After all, it is only temporary.
The excuses crowded into Sage’s mind as she made a spot for Happy on the couch in her office. It wasn’t like they could trust just anyone to make sure Happy didn’t chew his stitches. Thankfully he wouldn’t have them in very long. And hopefully there would be no need for the cone the vet had sent along with them—just in case.
Happy put his head down between his paws and his eyes drifted closed. He’d had a big day and it was only lunchtime. Trey had volunteered to run downstairs to the restaurant and grab them some food. In this instance, she wouldn’t make a fuss over the restaurant’s exorbitant prices. That way they could have a working lunch and make up for some of the time they’d missed that morning as well as keep an eye on Happy.
As it was, she still had big news to share with Trey. And this adventure with Happy had shown her a different side of him. She’d admired the way he’d not only taken in a stray dog but also cleaned him up, bought supplies and cared enough to risk bringing him to the office.
Trey cared a lot more for Happy than he was willing to let on. She noticed how he asked the vet all sorts of questions. And then again when he grew protective when they attempted to take Happy home.
As though sensing that she was thinking of him, Trey breezed through the doorway. He smiled at her. “I picked something a little different.”
She made a point of having a salad every day for lunch. “What did you pick?”
“Quit looking so worried. I think you’ll approve.” And then, as though he wasn’t so sure, he added, “And if you don’t, I’ll get you a chicken salad.”
She smiled. If she ever thought of having a family, she would want someone like Trey. He was sweet and thoughtful but not afraid to push boundaries when the need arose. He definitely would make some woman a good husband. She could imagine him with a baby in his arms.
She gasped. What in the world had gotten into her? He was her assistant. Not boyfriend material. No matter how attractive she might find him. She had to keep these wayward thoughts at bay. Maybe all the long lonely nights at the office were catching up with her.
“What’s the matter?” Trey stared at her. The concern was written all over his face. “Is it Happy?”
“No. He’s fine.” She swallowed down her discomfort. “Why do you think something is wrong?”
“You gasped.”
Oh, yes, that. Hmm... “I just remembered that I have something important to discuss with you and we’re running out of time.”
He continued to stare at her as though not sure if he believed her or not. Even Happy had lifted his head and was staring at her. She was going to have to work harder at keeping her thoughts in line. And if she did have an errant thought, she would not—could not—react.
“Are you going to serve up that mystery food? I’m starving.” She cleared off space on her desk so they could eat there.
Trey quickly served up the food. When he lifted the lid on hers, he said, “It’s citrus grilled salmon with rice noodles and vegetables.”
She was quite pleased with the selection. “But how did you know that I love salmon?”
He retrieved his lunch from the bag. “Truth?”
She nodded, wondering if Louise had been his source of information. If so, she was going to have to say something. She couldn’t have Louise going around sharing all her personal information—no matter how well intended.
“I guessed.” He sent her a smile. She refused to acknowledge the way the twinkle in his eyes made her stomach dip.
“Good guess.”
“And how’s—” Trey nodded toward Happy “—he doing?”
“You wouldn’t even know he didn’t belong here all along. He’s made himself right at home.”
“You know the longer he’s here, the harder it’s going to be to give him up.”
She didn’t want to think about parting with the dog. “How about we cross that bridge when we get to it?”
Trey looked as though he were going to say something else, but then he nodded in agreement.
After they were halfway through their meal, Sage glanced over the glass desktop at him. “Is your passport up to date?”
His brows rose high on his forehead. “It is.”
“Good. I have exciting news. We’re attending the Cannes Film Festival.”
The lack of expression on his face surprised her. “And you’re looking for an escort?”
He didn’t have any idea just how appealing that sounded to her. In fact, it surprised her quite a bit. She prided herself on being self-sufficient and not needing someone in her life. After her father’s funeral, she’d felt profoundly alone. She’d foolishly thought Elsa would feel the same way and that they could lean on each other. She couldn’t have been more wrong.
Her stepmother had taught her that the only person Sage could count on was herself. Being reduced to Elsa’s maid after her father’s death had been jarring, but then to be kicked out of her childhood home on her eighteenth birthday drove home that lesson. Sage had never felt more alone—more betrayed.
And it reminded her not to get too comfortable with Trey. They’d shared a moment of friendship today as they helped Happy, but it needed to stop.
“Sage? Hey. Hello.” Trey waved his hand in front of her face. When she focused in on him, he asked, “Where did you go?”
“Sorry. I just got lost in my thoughts.”
“Not happy ones, I take it.”
“Was it that obvious?” She really didn’t have a poker face.
He nodded. “If you don’t want me to go to France with you, I’m fine with that.”
“No, it’s not that. I was just thinking about my stepmother.”
“Thinking about going to France with me makes you think of your stepmother? I’m confused.”
Sage shook her head. “Don’t mind me. I guess I’m just tired. But in answer to your question, no, I don’t need an escort. I do, however, need an assistant to stay on top of things both here and there.”
He hesitated.
“Is that going to be a problem?”
He shook his head. “I can handle it.”
“Good. We need to find out which Hollywood stars plan to be in attendance and then we have to research what’s going on in their world that they might want to talk about—a new house, a vacation, an upcoming film project or a charity. Or whatever is of interest to them.”
“So you want to provide a platform for the stars to share with the world something of their choice.”
“Exactly. If the celebrity is excited about a subject, it will come across in the article and hopefully the readers will get excited, too.”
“And you plan to do all these interviews at the festival?”
She shook her head. “As nice as that would be, it’s not practical. We’re going to be there to generate connections and set up interviews for a later date.”
He stared at her for a moment. “Is that how you’ve gotten all of those interviews that have changed the entire platform of the magazine?”
“You read them?”
He paused as though considering his answer. “After our interview, I wanted to make sure I was on top of things. So I read a bunch of back issues.”
“Including the scuzzy ones that got the senior Rousseau in trouble?”
He nodded. “What exactly happened there?”
She knew some of it and had pieced together other parts, but she wasn’t in a position to reveal details. “It was the board’s decision to change the direction of the magazine.”
He arched a dark brow as though hoping for more information.
“Don’t look at me like that. I can only say so much.”
“Fair enough.” He took another bite of food. A few moments later, he said, “And this trip, it’s important to you?”
“It is.”
He nodded. “It’s been a while since I’ve been back to France.”
“I take it you grew up there.”
“I did, but then I moved away.”
“You mean for work?”
“Yeah. Something like that.”
So she wasn’t the only one holding things back. The part that surprised her was that she wanted to know more about him. She wanted to know everything about him. Maybe this trip to a romantic, seaside town wasn’t such a good idea, after all. But it was too late to back out. She truly needed the help. And to tell him that he would no longer be accompanying her would only arouse his curiosity.
* * *
He was going home.
Trey worked hard to mask an emotional response. He’d had the house closed up after his mother passed away. He’d moved his business to the States—San Francisco to be exact. But to go home again, it filled him with a rush of conflicting emotions.
And when he did go back—when he faced those painful memories—he didn’t want an audience. He wanted to do it on his terms.
“You don’t look happy about this opportunity.” Sage took a bite of her lunch.
His gaze met her puzzled look. “It’s great.” He searched for a way out. After all, there were other employees who could accompany Sage. “When did you say we’d be leaving?”
“I didn’t. We don’t have plane reservations yet. I was hoping you could work on it.”
His thoughts immediately turned to the private jet he’d recently acquired. With it, there wouldn’t be any problems flying whenever they wanted to. But that was another part of himself that he couldn’t share.
“I’ll work on it. What day would you prefer?”
“The festival begins next Wednesday.” She glanced at her day planner. “I’d say Monday. Tuesday at the latest.”
He made a note on his phone.
Just then Happy woke up. He sat up on the end of the couch. He yawned and then shook his head.
Sage smiled. “Looks like someone had a good nap.”
Happy jumped down and with his tail wagging ran over to Trey.
“Hey, boy.” He pet him. “Looks like you’re starting to feel better.” Trey lifted his gaze to meet Sage’s. “Thanks for letting him stay here with us.”
“What’s the point of being the boss if you can’t bend the rules every now and then?” As though Happy sensed she was talking about him, he moved around the desk to visit her. “But of course when you’re all better, you’ll have to stay home.”
Arf!
Trey laughed. “I don’t think he agrees.”
And then a thought came to him—a way to get out of traveling with his beautiful boss, who made him forget his mission and made him long to take their relationship to a much more personal level.
Trey cleared his throat. “I really should stay here with Happy. With his condition—” which wasn’t that serious but it could have been “—Happy shouldn’t be left alone.”
“Does someone need a babysitter?” A familiar voice came from the doorway.
They both turned to the door to find Louise standing there with a stack of files in her arm and a smile on her face. Happy ran over to her. His tail moved so fast that it was nothing more than a blur of motion. Louise knelt down and fussed over the dog. He stood up, pressed his paws to her knee and licked her cheek.
“I think the answer to your problem just walked in the door.” Sage smiled at Happy’s antics.
The dog sure had won over Sage. He hadn’t had as much luck with Sage. The woman was stubborn and resistant to any sort of help he might offer. Which just made the idea of them going on this trip together a very bad idea.
“I’m sure Louise has other plans,” Trey said.
“Plans for what?” Louise straightened and stepped farther into the room.
Before Trey could say anything, Sage launched into an explanation about the trip. Instead of looking put out by the idea, Louise smiled. She liked the idea of dog-sitting?
“I wouldn’t mind watching over the little fella,” Louise said as though she could read Trey’s thoughts. “Would you like that Happy?”
Arf! Arf!
Sage smiled. “Good. Problem solved. Thanks, Louise.”
“Yes,” Trey said, still trying to accept the inevitable. “Thank you. If I can ever repay the favor just let me know.”
There was an ominous twinkle in Louise’s eyes when she said, “I will.”
He didn’t even want to consider what it might mean for him. Something told him that it wouldn’t be as simple as picking up coffee or donuts. No, Louise was a sharp lady. When she called in that favor, it would be something meaningful.
“Before I go,” Louise said to Sage, “I was wondering if you had the profit and loss statements for the past five years?”
Sage gave Louise a strange look. “Why would you want those? Isn’t human resources enough for you? You want to expand into accounting, too?”
“Heavens, no. I ran into Ralph in the hall.”
“Ralph, huh?” Sage had a funny tone in her voice and a goofy smile on her face.
Trey had obviously missed something. But it was better that way. The more he got involved in their lives, the harder it’d be when it came time to close the magazine.
“It’s not like you think.” Louise’s voice lacked its normal tone of conviction. “We’re friends, is all. I’ve been married already. And so has he.”
“And now you’re both widowed. Why not keep each other company?”
Trey chanced a glance at the unusually quiet Louise. For the first time, he witnessed the bold and forthright woman blush. Maybe Sage was on to something.
Avoiding eye contact, Louise said, “Like I’d started to say, Ralph stopped to speak to you and found your door closed. I told him I’d ask you for the documents when I spoke to you.”
“Is this for the upcoming audit?”
Louise shrugged. “You’re asking the wrong person.”
“I wonder why Ralph thinks I’d have those statements,” Sage stated, opening and closing desk drawers as though searching for the missing documents. “You’d think those would be kept in the accounting department.”
“Mr. Rousseau liked to be in control of everything,” Louise supplied. “Have you looked through those file cabinets?” She gestured toward the wall-to-wall line of four-drawer file cabinets.
Trey couldn’t help but think that it sounded like his controlling father—always wanting things his way. And when his mother refused, his father didn’t care to compromise and just up and left them—left him. The man didn’t even give them a backward glance.
Sage turned to Trey. “I hate to give you this task, but could you go through those file cabinets and see if the P&L statements are in there. It’s really important that we do well on this audit.”
He nodded and set to work. The metal file cabinets were old and the papers inside them were even older. Drawer after drawer, file after file, he searched. And then he opened a drawer that lacked any papers. He was about to close it when a photo caught his attention.
Trey was drawn to the image. It was a photo of himself when he was two or three. He reached for it. The fact that his father had it...should it mean something to him? A spark of hope ignited. In the next breath, he acknowledged that it had been discarded in an old file cabinet. That should be all the answer he needed.
“I see you’ve found Mr. Rousseau’s photos,” Sage said from behind him.
Photos? There was more than one? He peered back in the drawer to find his parents’ wedding photo and one of him as a baby.
“They were on his desk when I got here. I think he left them because he thought he’d be back once the lawsuit quieted down. I considered messengering them to him, but I didn’t want him to read anything into the gesture like I was pushing him out—not after everything he’s done for me.”
His father had these photos on his desk? But why? Was it for show? That had to be it. No other answer made sense.
“I thought he was estranged from his family?” Trey returned the photo of himself to the drawer. As he did so, he found himself curious about his parents’ wedding. Had they been happy at the beginning? He withdrew the framed photo. His father had been smiling like he didn’t have a care in the world and Trey’s mother...he’d never seen her look happier.
A lump formed in the back of Trey’s throat. If they’d been this happy at the start, was he the reason the marriage fell apart?
“I don’t know the details.” Sage’s voice reminded him that he wasn’t alone. “I just know that he talked highly of his son.”
Highly? Really? Trey found that so hard to believe. Trey took one last look at the photo. His mother had been so radiant and full of life, nothing like the woman his father had left behind. The broken, lonely woman that Trey had tried to care for.
Trey returned the photo to the drawer. He choked down the rising emotions and closed the drawer, warding off the unhappy memories of his childhood.
“Would you like me to help you search?” Sage offered.
“I’ve got this.” He kept his back to her, not wanting her to read into the expression on his face. “Besides, don’t you have a meeting with circulation in ten minutes?”
Sage glanced at the clock. “You’re right. I totally forgot.”
“No problem. That’s what I’m here for.”
She grabbed her digital tablet and rushed out of the room.
He was actually grateful for a little time alone. It would give him a chance to shove all those unwanted memories to the back of his mind.
He had no idea why his father had all those photos, but it wasn’t because he loved his family. No one that loved their wife and child walked away.
That’s why Trey had avoided any sort of committed relationship. He didn’t want to be like his father and realize too late that he wasn’t cut out to be a family man. No child deserved to be discarded like he’d been.