Saved (A Standalone Romance) (A Savery Brother Book)

by Naomi Niles

  “Yeah, but I could’ve been a little tougher on her. I could’ve–”

  “You could’ve, yeah, but who is to say that she still wouldn’t have left us like that? All it takes is one time, and as long as I’ve known Sarah, she has partied a lot, but she never did anything like that before. You taught her well, but who is to say that this wasn’t just one of those times? You can’t allow yourself to carry that burden because that is a weight that no one can hold. No one.”

  She gently rubbed my hand as she sat next to me. I didn’t want to believe what she said. I wanted to direct my anger for her death at something or someone and right now, the only person I could point the finger as was myself. If Caroline wasn’t here for me, only God knows how much more damage I would have done to my body. I may have even taken my life as repayment for her death, but Caroline stifled any suicidal thought from entering my mind. “And just like that, you cannot blame yourself for last night. I started everything, and I started it because I could not feel comfort from any place outside of you. I never meant for us to cross that line, but sometimes, things just happen. Caroline, you are a beautiful young woman. Intelligent. Funny. Business-minded. You are the complete package, and I know that my emotions got the best of me. I am sorry.”

  She had waited a few seconds before she lifted her hand to my cheek. “Don’t apologize. I understand. I know this may seem crazy, but I had a long talk with Sarah last night and even throughout this morning. The funny thing is that she helped me see exactly what she told me. If she was here, I know that we wouldn’t have had sex, but when she left, it seems like she knew we would find comfort with each other. I felt like I backstabbed her, but in the end, she wasn’t upset. At least, that’s the conclusion I came to.”

  “No,” I said, relieved that she wasn’t holding onto any anger towards me. “I understand. I don’t talk to her, but,” I pulled out my cell phone and showed her all the messages I had saved from Sarah. “I listen to these a few times a week. It helps calm me whenever you aren’t around.”

  She laughed as she heard one of the messages. “Wow. You see, you guys had a good relationship. I don’t think I could have ever joked around with my father like that. You did a lot of things right with her, Harrison. A lot of things.”

  She kissed me on the cheek as we sat and reminisced about Sarah. She told me that she was going to accept the job and she would be there bright and early Monday morning. That was the best news I had received in a while, and from there, I knew that she would be around for at least six more months to help me cope with Sarah’s death. In the back of my mind, I felt like there would be more between us. Caroline wasn’t something temporary for me. I saw her in my life for the long run.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Caroline

  I woke up Monday morning after an emotional weekend. I stayed in the house all day Saturday and Sunday because I didn’t feel like going out. When Harrison came by to talk to me, it helped me feel a little better about what we did, but for the most part, I was still confused. I considered calling to let him know that I wasn’t going to take the job anymore. I felt that the awkwardness would be too much to bear, and on top of that, I didn’t want to imagine what things would be like if word got out that I slept with Sarah’s father. I couldn’t risk it, though. I needed the money so I could move to California, so I figured I would keep the job and see what things would be like before I jumped to conclusions.

  The traffic was minimal on my way to the office. I arrived at Harrison Construction just after 9:30 am. Harrison’s truck was parked in a spot near the front of the building. Next to his, there was a black, two-door sports car with black rims. I wondered if the owner of the vehicle was the guy that Harrison tried to hook me up with when I first visited this building. Now, as I thought about it, maybe he wasn’t trying to hook me up, especially since we had slept together a few days ago. I didn’t know what to make of it. I pulled the visor down and looked in the mirror. My makeup was painted on lightly. I didn’t want to look like some kind of hooker on my first day, so I made sure to keep things to a minimum. My dress stopped just above my knees, and I left the top button undone on my long-sleeved shirt. I wanted to look professional, especially since I was going to be around a bunch of men.

  Outside of that, I cared about Harrison’s impression of me. For some reason, I felt like there could be more between us. When he came out to my place on Saturday, I felt that he went out of his way to explain himself to me. I could be foolish to think that what we had could somehow turn into something long-term. In my mind, that was completely out of the question, but I couldn’t stop myself from wondering. After a few minutes passed by, I exited my vehicle and headed through the double doors of the building. My heels clicked against the hardened floors as I made my way down the hall and to the elevator.

  The beeping noise echoed throughout the silent building as the elevator came to a stop. The door slid open, welcoming me onto the platform moments before it lifted me to Harrison’s floor. Calm down, Caroline. Calm down. My fingers jittered as I lifted closer to his office. I had no idea what to expect, but I hoped for the best. The last thing I wanted to experience was awkward stares and uncertainty. I knew I wouldn’t be able to function if that was how things were going to go while I was employed here. Finally, the elevator stopped and let me off on Harrison’s floor. I took a deep breath and made my way to the office.

  “Come in,” I heard Harrison say from the other side after I knocked on the door. I steeled myself, then entered the room confidently. Harrison stood by his filing cabinet, talking with Brian. They both smiled in my direction. In my mind, I couldn’t help but wonder if Harrison told Brian what we did together. Their ambiguous smiles led me to believe that Brian knew the details. “Well, good morning, Caroline,” Harrison continued as he extended his hand.

  I put my hand into his. His shake was firm, yet gentle, and it completely caught me off guard. “Hello, Harrison,” I said, maintaining my smile. “Good morning to you and Brian.”

  “Are you ready for your first day?” Brian asked, propping himself onto the corner of Harrison’s desk.

  “I believe I am. I mean, after all, I went to school for it, so I should be ready.”

  “Yeah,” he smiled. “And the good thing about that is that the knowledge should still be fresh. Let me tell you, I got my associate's degree years ago and I stumbled through everything from day one. I handled it the best I could, but I am glad to know that someone more qualified is now in the position.”

  Harrison shoved his hands into his pocket. It was a fight to keep my eyes off him as I spoke to Brian. “Yeah. Well, I can’t speak for the job you did, but I hope I can perform up to everyone’s expectations. I am just nervous because now it is like I have to prove that I didn’t waste the last five years of my life in school.”

  Harrison laughed. “Nonsense, Caroline. You will do a great job. I know you will.”

  His smile comforted me, and so far, the uneasy feelings that I thought would be present between us were nowhere in sight. Brian clapped his hands together as if a thought just popped into his head, “Right, California. So,” he turned to Harrison, “are you going to go with me on the trip out there? I think we have a good chance to close on it and lock in the account.”

  “Yeah, I’m game. I don’t have much going on during the weekends, so I may as well take the trip with you. I haven’t been on the coast for a while anyway. I could use the semi-vacation.”

  “Awesome!” He shifted his attention back to me, “See, that is another thing about working for this company. This man right here,” he tapped his hand on Harrison’s shoulder, “is the best man to work for. Business trips are covered under the expense account, and we literally pay for nothing because he covers it all. Bonuses are amazing, and as long as you do your job, you can get away with anything. Hell, I’ve taken more days off than I had available, but he still pays me like I haven’t missed a shift.”

  Harrison accepted the gratitude with a smi
le. “Kind words, Brian. Very kind words. I appreciate that.”

  “It’s all you, man. It’s all you. That’s why I am willing to break my back to make sure this company stays afloat. It’s worth it.” He stood up. “And speaking of, I need to get to my office and get some layout designs ready for our guys. You two have a nice day, and Caroline, welcome to the team.”

  “Thank you, Brian.”

  He nodded his head towards me, then made his way out of the room. “Well, I see that you have made quite an impression on him.”

  He smiled. “Brian is a good guy. He is practically the reason why this company brings in new clients every other month. He works his ass off, and he deserves everything he gets.” He opened his drawer and pulled out a name tag. “And this here is for you.” My name was on the front of the pin so I could clip it on my shirt. “Sorry. We don’t have any badges or anything like that. All of our office hands wear those just so we can call everyone by their first names.”

  “Oh, no problem. I just thank you for the opportunity, Harrison. I really appreciate it. I thought things would be weird when I got here because–”

  “No,” he said, interrupting me. “Nope. We will not discuss that. From here on out, we will leave that where it happened and go from here. I don’t want anything to throw you off during your time here. Clear minds perform the best, and I certainly want your best.” A warm smile escaped his lips, and at that moment, it was like the fog cleared and showed a bright, shining sun from above. “Now, if you don’t mind,” he continued, “I will show you to your office.”

  “I would love that, Harrison.”

  He winked at me, then led me down the hallway. My office was about 20 feet away from his. He unlocked the door, then handed me the key. It looked like one of the janitor’s rooms was converted into a small office. The desk sat against the wall, and in about 10 feet, I could walk from one end of the office to the other. He flipped on the switch and the light shined down on two filing cabinets, a computer, and two chairs adjacent from the desk. “Now, I know that it is a bit cozy in here, but don’t feel like you have to stay locked inside these walls.”

  He opened the drawer to the desk and pulled out a laptop. “I purchased this yesterday. Whenever you don’t feel like being cooped up in this office, you can take your work anywhere with you. Outside, home… or even my office. I would love the company, trust me. It is about time that we got someone in here who was easy on the eyes. I’m about tired of looking at all of these ugly mugs every day, so your presence will be appreciated.”

  He placed the laptop on the desk next to the computer. “Well, thank you. And, for the record, seeing you will make it a lot easier for me to come to work every day. I think I would rather spend the day catching glimpses of you rather than doing my work from home just to look at the same walls I see every day.”

  His eyes cautiously bent around the curves on my body like he was traveling on a mountain road. “Likewise, Caroline.” I found myself enamored with his physique, and before long, my mind replayed scenes of us naked on his living room couch. The noise from him placing the laptop on the desk snapped me out of my lust-filled daydream.

  “How is your hand?”

  It was still bandaged. “Oh, it is fine. Still hurts a bit on contact, but for the most part, I am good. Thank you for asking.”

  I wanted to talk to him more about Sarah. I knew he still felt like it was his fault that she died and I wanted to comfort him. I wanted to put my hand on the back of his neck and guide his lips softly onto mine, so I could ease his pain. I was his drug, and I didn’t mind getting him high. “No problem, Harrison. If you need to talk about anything, just let me know. Maybe we can go to lunch or something one day.”

  “Yeah. I’d like that. I’d like that a lot.” He stepped towards the door. “Well, I should um, let you get settled. Let me know if you need anything. All of the numbers are inside the cabinets, and I believe our company information is stored on one of the folders of the computer. Here,” he said, leaning towards the keyboard, “let me find that for you so you can–”

  “No, I’ve got it.” I tapped his hand like a mother correcting her child. “It would be a pretty sad thing if I couldn’t identify the accounting program knowing that I just graduated less than a month ago. I’ll take care of it. You go and take care of what you need to. I’ve got it from here… boss.”

  “Boss.” He laughed. “Yeah… I’ll um… I’ll let you settle in. Happy to have you on board, Caroline.”

  “Likewise.”

  Our glances had lingered in the air before he left the office. I exhaled. A smile plastered onto my face like wet paint on the side of a building. I thought about the number of places we could have sex while we were at work together. I quickly shook the idea out of my head and sat down in front of the computer. Alright. I guess I should get to work. I pulled Sarah’s picture from my bag and propped it on my desk. Her smile reflected like rays of sunshine off a diamond. Shut up, Sarah; I am not thinking about your father. I had paused for a second before I chuckled. Alright, maybe I am, but only a little bit! Only a little bit.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Harrison

  Caroline had been working at the office for a few days now, and from all accounts, she had been doing a great job with our numbers. I was interested to see how she would pan out, but once Brian and I went over the numbers, everything matched up. The books were a lot more organized than they were before she came along and so far, I had no complaints. If she kept it up, I was going to have to find a way to lure her into staying here a long time and skipping out on her move to California. I arrived at the office by 9:44 am. We were just a few days away from the trip to California, and I was looking forward to the getaway. Brian was stoked about the trip, but it was more so due to the fact that we were closing a big account than it was anything else. My mind was on relaxing, but his was on business. He was a pitbull, and I loved that about him.

  Just as I got out of my truck, Brian drove into the parking lot. He lazily pulled himself out of his car, his body slouched over like a zombie as he walked towards the front door. “Brian? Everything alright, man? Late night?” He didn’t crack a smile as he made his way to me. “Brian? What’s wrong, man?” He exhaled. His eyes were locked onto the pavement as he shook his head. I could feel the weights on his shoulders. “Let’s go inside.”

  We both entered the building after I unlocked the door. We walked side by side, quietly, as I waited for him to open up. I knew he would let it out when he was ready, and I didn’t want to force him to speak. That’s not how we did things. We just made ourselves available whenever the other was ready to talk. That is what he did for me when Sarah died, so I gave him the same respect. “My daughter, man,” he said as we got onto the elevator. I immediately thought he was going to tell me that his little girl passed away, too. My heart nearly stopped with the anticipation of the news. I wouldn’t wish that kind of pain on my worst enemy. No man should ever have to bury his children. The elevator doors opened when we landed on our floor. “She is sick. She got sick on Saturday, and we thought it was just a cold, but it turns out that she has the flu. She has been in the hospital since Monday night. She can’t keep food down or anything, and I just feel so helpless.”

  He wiped tears from his eyes as we walked into my office. “She is just 4, you know? She doesn’t understand what is going on and she keeps asking me to make it better and I can’t. I can’t. All I can do is be there for her, and I’m scared, man. I’m scared I’m going to lose her.”

  I put my hand on his shoulder, “Brian, that is just a worst-case scenario. Now, the flu is a serious thing for young children, but she will pull through it. I know she will. We have the best doctors and medical plan that money can buy, so don’t worry about it. As a matter of fact, you need to be there with her right now. Why are you here?”

  “Well, I took off yesterday to stay at the hospital with her and my wife said she was going to take off today so I could come in.”r />
  “Bullshit. You take your ass back to the hospital with your daughter, Brian. Are you crazy?! Go. Now.”

  “Harrison, just–”

  “No, man. Your daughter wants her father, so you need to be there. I wish I had a moment like that with my daughter, and God forbid something happens to her, you will regret it every moment. So, go. Please.”

  “Alright… but, the thing is… I’m not sure that I will be able to take the trip to California this weekend.”

  I twisted the blinds on the window. The sunshine shot inside the room like an animal that was waiting for the chance to break free from its cage. “That is fine. I’ll go and handle it myself. No problem.”

  “Are you sure?”

  I narrowed my eyes at him. “I am sure. Listen, thank you for your concern, but I’ve got it. Right now,” I put my hands on his shoulders and led him to the door, “you need to get out of here and be with your daughter. I don’t want to see you back in this office until she is out of the hospital. If you come in, I am docking your pay.”

  His laughter struggled to break through his disappointment. “Docking my pay for coming to work. Isn’t that something?” Just then, Caroline walked by us on her way to her office. She wore a tight-fitting dress with high heels that placed her just inches shorter than me. Her long, bare legs flirted with my imagination. Her hair was pulled into a bun with two sticks extending from the back. I had no idea what they were, but she looked amazing.

  “Good morning, gentlemen,” she said in passing.

  “Morning, Caroline.”

  My eyes followed her down the hallway until she disappeared into her office. “How about you see if Caroline will make the trip with you? The whole reason I wanted you to come was just to keep me company because I know the ride is pretty long by yourself.”