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“Amy, what are you doing here?” I ask, unable to suppress the smile that tugs at the corners of my lips.
She saunters into the room, setting the balloons on my desk before depositing the tray of goodies in front of me. “I couldn’t let my big brother’s birthday go unnoticed, now could I?” she says, flashing me a grin.
“What did you do?” I shake my head in disbelief, overwhelmed by her thoughtfulness. “You didn’t have to do all this, Amy,” I say, my voice filled with gratitude. Even though I’m not keen on celebrating my birthday, I’m grateful that she still thought of doing this.
She waves off my protestations with a dismissive wave of her hand. “Nonsense, you deserve to be celebrated. Plus, I figured you could use a break from all that work,” she adds, nodding toward the pile of papers strewn across my desk.
I can’t help but laugh at her bluntness. “You might have a point there,” I admit, reaching for one of the cupcakes on the tray. “But still, this is more than I ever expected.”
Amy grins, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “Well, you know me. I always go big for birthdays.”
I roll my eyes, but I can’t hide the fondness in my voice as I say, “Yeah, you definitely know how to make an entrance.”
She takes a knife from the tray and cuts out slices of cake for us. “I barely see you these days,” she says as she hands me a piece on a paper plate.
“You saw me here on Friday, remember?” I take a bite of the cake, placing it back on the plate. I wipe the corner of my mouth with the napkin she gives me.
“Yeah, but you never came back to the penthouse, and you haven’t been back since then.”
“I’ve been crashing at the hotel.” I take another bite. My intestines are going to make me pay for consuming so much sugar, but I can’t make Amy feel bad by not having a taste of the treats.
“Is everything okay on your end?” she asks, giving me a serious look.
“I mean... yes, why do you ask?”
She shrugs. “Dunno, you just seem like you have a lot on your mind.”
“It’s work. Why are you complaining? I thought you liked having my house all to yourself?”
She doesn’t respond as she continues to give me a strange look. “What?”
“Are you sure work is the reason you’re spending the night here at the hotel?”
“What are you driving at?”
“Are you and Lysa back together?”
I almost choke on my cake. I quickly reach for a bottle of water on my desk and take a gulp.
Amy doesn’t say sorry; she just gives me a blank stare, waiting for my response. “No, we are not back together. Why would you even ask me that?” I push my half-eaten dessert away, suddenly losing my appetite.
“I just wanted to know. Well, it’s a good thing that she still repulses you. Which makes me wonder why you still allow her to work here.”
Raking my fingers through my hair, I hiss under my breath. Amy is right—I should have fired Lysa a long time ago, especially with the way she has been nonchalant about work.
But every time I want to do that, I remember her sick dad and the mountain of medical bills that her family has to cover, and I decide to let her stay.
Her father, even though he wasn’t much of a businessman, had given me a few pro tips after Dad died, and I took over the business at the tender age of twenty-one.
“It’s not as easy as it sounds, Amy, you know how things are for her family right now…”
“I know that,” Amy cuts in. “But you do know you don't have to be her savior, correct?”
I lean back in my chair, giving what she just said a serious thought. “Yeah, I think you’re right about that.”
“You know I’m always right,” she says with a wink.
“Don’t push it,” I warn, and she laughs.
