Her car was parked in its usual spot, to the left of the main door. He’d gotten used to checking if it was there every morning. The sun was reflecting off the red hood, making him squint.
Sandy smiled at him as he walked through the sliding glass doors. “How was Charleston?”
He inhaled deeply. “Charleston was… interesting.”
“Well it’s good to have you back.”
“Is my mother in today?”
Sandy nodded. “Her driver dropped her off this morning.”
“And is there anything else I need to know?” Like whether Becca Hartson is feeling as fucking confused as I am right now?
“One of the stills stopped working, but Joe got it up and running half an hour ago. I heard Becca say we’d be running it until late tonight.”
The sound of her name danced through his ears. He curled his fingers, giving no other visible sign that it affected him. “What time did Miss Hartson get in this morning?”
“Just after ten. She said she’d been running errands for you.”
“Yes, that’s correct.” He nodded. “I’ll be in my office if you need me.”
“Sure thing.”
There was no sign of Becca in the still room as he walked through. He’d stopped to talk to Garrett Rhys about the broken still, and authorized the overtime it would take to meet today’s production numbers. Then he walked into the administration wing, glancing at the kitchen to see it empty, and pushed through the door to the executive corridor, stopping to look through his mother’s door.
“You’re back. How did it go?” Eliana stood and walked over to him, turning her head so he could kiss her cheek.
“As expected.”
“How were Lawrence and Nina?” She walked back to her black leather chair, taking a seat, and gesturing to him to sit on the chair opposite.
“Again, as expected.”
She looked at him carefully. “And Melissa?”
“Was there.” His voice was short.
A smile played at her lips. “I can always rely on you to regale me with a story.” She lifted an eyebrow to let him know she was joking.
Daniel ran his finger along his jaw. It was freshly smooth from his morning shave. “Nothing was decided. I have to go back for the weekend. I agreed to go to Lawrence’s ball.”
“I know. His assistant called me this morning and asked if I’d mind you sitting at my table.”
“You’re going??
? Daniel asked, surprised.
“I always do. You haven’t been here to notice. And don’t look so shocked, it’s for charity. I can sit there and deal with Lawrence’s glares for a couple of hours. And he likes my donations too much to turn me away.”
“I’ll never get why you put yourself through all this family bullshit.” He only had last night and that was already enough.
“The same reason you do. Pride.” She glanced at the paper in front of her, then back up at him. “You’re bringing a plus one, they said?” Her voice was even, but he could tell from the spark in her eyes that she was desperate to know more.
“I was thinking about it. But I’ll probably go alone.”
“Becca Hartson?” She wasn’t letting it go. Daniel sighed heavily.
“It’s a long story. And as I said, it’s likely I’ll go solo.”