I couldn’t be happier for my bestie. She’d scored a job with the most-sought-after stylist in LA—a connection she’d made through James, Brett’s fiancée. But now, she was on the road more than she was home, traveling the world to style their clients.“When does she get back?”“Next week,” I told him. “But only for three days, and then she leaves for Paris.”He grinned. “LA has been good for her.”“No, LA has been great for her.”I quieted as Craig approached with two small plates in his hands. “Homemade pork dumplings over a seaweed, cucumber, and kimchi salad.” He placed them in front of us. “Enjoy.”Every time I ate over here, Craig’s cooking continuously blew me away. He was better than any restaurant I’d been to in this city.“Looks incredible, as always,” I told him, my mouth watering.“And it smells delicious,” Jenner added.He thanked us and went back inside the house.“Wow.” I moaned from behind my hand, chewing my first bite. “This is wildly good.”Jenner held his fork in the
“Mmm,” she yawned.For the last two months that she’d been waking up in my bed, I’d learned that mornings were her least favorite time of day. She needed time to rise, time before she was ready for conversation. But seeing her face fresh without makeup, feeling her skin extra warm, having her completely naked in my arms—this was my favorite time of the day.I couldn’t get enough of her.And I had no problem holding her just like this for the next several hours, but I was positive there was something she was craving, especially as the sun came in through my windows, casting its rays across her cheeks.“Coffee?”“Mmm,” she groaned again. “Please.”I kissed the top of her head. “Be right back.”I slid out from underneath her, grabbing my phone from the nightstand before I made my way into the kitchen. As I placed the first cup under the brewing machine, I scrolled through all the messages that had come in overnight. Aside from a multitude of emails, there was a group text that caught my
“Thank you for coming in on a Saturday,” Walter said, dressed as though this were a Monday morning press conference.I’d done the same, wearing a black suit for the occasion, his retainer ensuring that I would be on and prepared, no matter the day or time.“You asked for a digital mockup before the physical rendering,” Walter said to Jo. “So, that’s what the architect has prepared.”As excited as I was for this moment, I was also dreading it. The ideas Jo had given the architect were unique and sounded fantastic, but that didn’t mean they would translate to a design that would actually work. I was worried like hell that I was going to hate it. That Walter was going to hate it. That I would give my opinion—something I would never lie about—and it wouldn’t be in her favor.That in front of her father, I’d have to go against the woman I loved.And knowing how much Walter valued my opinion, it made me sick to think what that would do to her career.Walter pointed a remote toward the wall
“But he loved it.”“I’m honestly still in shock.” She clung to the thin stem, staring at the bubbly. “You know, I always pictured myself working for him, but I never knew what that would really look like.”Our eyes finally locked.“My parents divorced when I was ten. I lived with Mom mostly. Dad took me every other weekend, and most of those were spent flying to one of his hotels. A nanny would watch me while I played in the pool, so he could meet with the executive staff of the property.” Her fingers tightened, and so did my grip. “I heard his phone calls, I listened to him talk to his employees whenever I was in his office, and I tried to picture myself on the other end of that conversation. It’s one thing to be an alpha’s daughter; it’s a whole other thing to work for him.”“And impress him.” I smiled. “But you have.”A gentleness came through her eyes. “I can’t even tell you how overwhelming that feels.”“Baby, trust me, I know.”She placed her free hand over the back of mine, our
“Yeah …” I eyed the bread, but I wasn’t ready to put anything in my stomach. “Something like that.”“What did I miss?” Jo asked as she took her seat.“Jenner was just telling me that he’s off the market.” Walter chuckled. “Take it from a perpetual bachelor who’s seen it all; when a woman returns to your life, she doesn’t leave again. That shit right there deserves to be celebrated.” He raised his glass and clinked it against mine.Jo looked at me, her expression telling me she wanted to make a fucking run for it.My chest tightened. My hands felt unsteady as I lowered my glass and said, “Walter, there’s something I need to talk to you about.” I made eye contact with Jo again. “Something we need to talk to you about.”“I assumed that’s why we’re here.” He moved his menu to the side, leaning his elbows on the table. “What’s going on? Do you have more ideas for Utah? A change in the design? What?”I’d spent all day trying to come up with the best way to discuss this with him. How to appr
The last thing I wanted was for him to be angry with Jo, for this to hurt her career.For there to be any ramifications because of me.“You’re right, Walter. I wasn’t thinking about your brand. I was thinking about the woman I’m in love with.”His stare intensified. “You have some fucking balls.”“If it comes down to Spade Hotels or Joanna, I’m not willing to lose her.” I looked at my girl and added, “I will always choose her.”He licked across his lips, his knuckles white.The silence like nails stabbing me.“I don’t know what to say to you right now, Jenner, but I will tell you one thing: there’s no way in hell I’m about to share this meal with you.”His napkin stayed on his lap.His ass planted on the seat.He wasn’t moving.That meant only one thing.He wanted me to leave.I got up from my chair and stood across from him.I wasn’t going to make Joanna choose.I would never put that kind of pressure on her.This was her father.Her employer.So, I reached into my pocket and took ou
“That’s fine, Dad. You don’t have to be happy. You can be angry and upset. You can be disappointed. I deserve all those things. But don’t take this out on him. Jenner doesn’t deserve that.”Just as my voice faded, our waitress returned to our table and said, “Are you ready to order your meals?” She noticed our untouched plates. “Or do you need a little more time?”Without looking at me, my father replied, “I don’t think we’ll be eating. In fact, why don’t you box up all this food”—he nodded toward me—“so she can take it home?”He reached into his pocket and removed his wallet and handed her his credit card. She took it and disappeared.At the same time, we both glanced at Jenner’s card, sitting on the tablecloth between us. As I was about to pick it up, he did instead, slipping it into his wallet.“I need some time, Joanna.” He drank the rest of his scotch. “I need to process this …”“That’s fine,” I told him. “I get it.”More silence began to beat away until the waitress returned wit
“So, now what?” Ford asked. “Do you carry on like the conversation with Walter never happened? Do you put things on pause with Jo—”“Fuck no. There’s no pause,” I said, cutting him off. “Jo Spade is mine. I came clean. I did the right thing. If he doesn’t want to work with me anymore, that’s on him. But it’s not going to affect my relationship with his daughter.”“Says the dude who was never going to fall in love,” Ford joked.I flipped him off at the same time my phone vibrated, and I lifted it out of my pocket, staring at the screen.“Jesus …” I groaned. “Speak of the goddamn devil.”Walter: Let’s talk. Meet me in the bar of my hotel.“Walter?” Dominick asked. “What did he say?”I glanced up from my phone. “He wants to meet up at his hotel.”Dominick came back with, “Don’t burn the place down, please. It’s my favorite spot in LA.”I looked at my brother. “Is it?”“That’s where I met Kendall.”“Oh shit, that’s right,” I replied. The grand opening was the night he had met his girl on