“Because I never know if he’s doing it to make me train them or not. He’s done that quite a few times before.”
Gavin clasps Pete’s shoulder. “Only because I know you’re good. But I bet you didn’t do much training with Pascal.”
“Nope.” Pete grins.
I smile, thrilled that at OWM, people I report to will actually praise me and value my contribution. I can’t think of a time that happened at SFG. That puts a damper on my mood, so I push it aside. No gloominess. That’s all in the past. I don’t have to deal with Dad as a boss, only as a parent. It’s been an awkward transition, but I’ve slowly been working on it. I’m pretty sure it’s same for him, too, because since that dinner where Court and I walked out, I haven’t seen him.
More people from the office join us until we have twelve. We go to a restaurant Gavin chose—a steakhouse.
“What would you have done if Pascal didn’t like red meat?” Pete jokes.
“They have great seafood and chicken. If not, there’s always bread,” Gavin says, then winks mischievously. “It’s apparently gluten-free.”
Another coworker from my floor teases Gavin for watching what he eats, and Gavin says he only does it because his wife wants him to stay svelte. I giggle. There’s not an ounce of fat on the man.
“Your wife must be very pleased,” I say.
“Oh, yeah.” He preens.
The lunch starts with a toast to welcome me to OWM. It’s relaxed. Nobody says a word about work or the markets. Gavin seems to know about everyone’s personal life, asking after their significant others or kids by name. He turns to me. “You have a boyfriend, right?”
“Yup. I’m living with him,” I say, not about to hide it like I might’ve at SFG.
“Great.” Gavin’s eyes twinkle. “Hope he’s good to you.”
“Very.” I grin. “He’s amazing.”
“Tell him to keep it up,” Pete says jokingly. “Happy homes make productive workers. I’ve become ten thousand times more productive after I started dating Brooke.”
“You mean leave by six every evening like the lazy bum you are?” Gavin says with a mock scowl.
A woman next to me leans over, rolling her eyes at the men. “Don’t mind them. They do this all the time. But Gavin doesn’t care as long as you deliver results.”
I smile. “Thanks. Good to know.”
When the server clears our table of the main entrées, I make a quick run to the bathroom before dessert and heading back to the office. As I walk out of the bathroom and make my way to our table, I bump into Cristiano.
“Pascal! What a surprise.”
“Hi, Cristiano. Good to see you,” I say.
“I thought… Are you joining us late for lunch?”
Us?
He shifts, and I see Dad coming up behind him and freeze. The irony of seeing Dad at the restaurant where Gavin’s hosting a lunch to welcome me into OWM is pretty intense.
“Actually, I’m with the people over there.” I gesture, slightly uncomfortable. Cristiano has no reason to know I left, but I don’t want it to look like Dad couldn’t muster up loyalty from his own child. Regardless of our differences, SFG has provided for the family, and its workers are good.
Cristiano’s narrow-eyed gaze sweeps them. “Is that Gavin Lloyd?” He sounds stunned. And utterly baffled.
Dad turns slightly red, and the lines around his eyes are tight as he smiles. “Pascal isn’t with SFG anymore.”
Cristiano stares at me. Guess I look like a traitor to go work for Dad’s competitor. But I’ll be damned if I feel bad about that.
I straighten my spine. “A better opportunity came up.” The kind that doesn’t require me to be regressive to suit my dad’s antique outlook on how things should be.
“In that case, I’m happy for you,” Cristiano says.