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I almost burst into tears as I stared over at Rhys. “Thank you.” I pressed my palm to my chest. “I know this is a big change for me in the company, but I’m looking forward to taking on more responsibility.”
His eyes crinkled with his smile. “I completely support it.” Just then, there was a knock at his door. “Come in!” he called out.
Before the door fully opened, I knew it was Griffin walking in. I forced myself to take a slow breath. I did not need to react to my boss’s brother. So what if we kissed? It didn’t matter. I was having a baby and moving and starting an entirely new phase of my life.
Griffin stepped into the office, his gaze instantly locking with mine. Heat rose swiftly into my cheeks, and I had to force my eyes away from him.
“Hey there,” Rhys said, hopefully oblivious to my reaction to his brother.
“Hey,” Griffin said. “I was just stopping by to see if you’d be going to locals’ night.”
Rhys’s eyes shifted up to the clock. “That’s the plan.”
My brain felt filled with static. I lost track of what Rhys was saying until he said, “…and Tish will be transitioning to the new management position for the Willow Brook location.”
“Oh?” Griffin prompted.
My eyes swung to him. I cleared my throat as heat suffused my entire body. I felt fidgety and restless.
“Yes. It’s a great opportunity for me,” I squeaked.
Chapter Thirteen
Griffin
“I thought Tish was irreplaceable as your assistant,” I said to Rhys.
He spun his bottle of beer in his fingers on the table, nodding in agreement. “She’ll be difficult to replace, that’s for sure. But she wants this new position and she’ll be excellent at it. She deserves the salary increase too.”
I literally had to grit my teeth to keep from suggesting he just bump her pay to match it. That I even contemplated that train of thought was ridiculous. I didn’t completely understand it, but it was clear Tish wanted to keep her distance from me. I would have to respect that.
“Hey, hey!” I glanced over my shoulder to see my twin brother Wyatt stopping beside the table. He tugged a chair out and sat down beside me.
“Hey, yourself,” I replied, as he nudged me with his shoulder.
“What’s up? You look a little—” Wyatt tipped his head to the side as he studied me.
“Tired,” I offered.
I didn’t doubt Wyatt likely knew there was more to it than that, but he let it slide. “Sure, tired.”
Before he could say more, a waiter arrived at our table. I was relieved for the busyness of the evening. As usual, my whole freaking family was there. There was lots of chatter, and Rhys broke the news that Tish would be moving to Willow Brook.
Haven smiled over at him. “I hope for all of our sakes that she finds a good replacement for herself as your assistant.”
“She will,” Rosie, Wyatt’s wife, chimed in. “Tish is really good at her job. She can find someone else who’s really good at the same job. I have faith in her.”
“When is she moving?” Haven asked.
“I’m going to put her in touch with Archer and Chase. Probably within the month. If they can help her find housing, which I’m sure they can, she can do her job here remotely as we start the search to fill her position here. We’ll make it work,” Rhys explained.
I found myself glancing around the restaurant a few times, wondering if Tish would actually be here. I never saw her that evening.
Two weeks later
* * *
I rounded the end of an aisle in the grocery store, glancing up to see Tish perusing the vitamin section.
