71

“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