In some ways, it wasn’t even a decision. It was a simple fact of life. I wouldn’t take the money. I couldn’t take it—doing so would seem too much like what my mother had done before, when she’d had us both sign documents that meant the payout she collected came with all kinds of stipulations.
“I just can’t,” I said. “It doesn’t feel right.”
His mouth dropped open. “Why?”
“My family received a lot of money from yours a long time ago, and it…I can’t. We’ve been down this road once, and I don’t want to repeat this mistake. I won’t do this again.”
“But I’m not going to make the kinds of demands that my father did. I promise you that.”
His hand covered mine. As he did, his touch sent a spark of heat pulsing through my body. It made me aware of everything about him—like the way a lock of his hair fell from a cowlick on the top of his head, how one side of his mouth always seemed on the verge of a smile, and how his eyes had a pleading eagerness behind them that never seemed to go away.
“Please, Samantha. I’m offering you this because I want to, and because I can,” he said. “And I want to give you this money without any stipulations.”
I looked away. “I can’t get it out of my head that this—this reminds me too much of the other time when attorneys for your father showed up with a big payout and all kinds of promises.” I returned my attention to him. “Besides, what you are saying is crazy. No one just gives someone over three quarters a million dollars.”
“I do.” He laughed once. “And I can.”
“I know we need a way out of this mess.” I still studied his face. “But I don’t think becoming further indebted to your family is the answer.”
“It’s not a debt.”
“How can it not be?” I paused. “I don’t think you can give someone money like that without there being legal consequences.”
He shrugged one shoulder. “That’s why I have Aaron. He’s the master at figuring shit like that out. I’m the one who comes up with all of the excellent ideas.”
I stared at him for a long time. Oh, how I wanted this to be real. How I wanted to snap my fingers and accept this bailout. Plenty of other women would, especially since it would take care of the over $300,000 we owed, plus leave more than half leftover for any of Mom’s upcoming treatments. Hell, I could even head back to college with that kind of money. Resuming school at Florida State might not be possible since I needed to take care of my mom, but I could at least enroll at Palm Beach Atlantic or Florida Atlantic.
But even after all that, doing this still wouldn’t feel right.
“I know you want to help,” I said. “I know your heart is in the right place. But I can’t accept the money.” I stood from the chair. “Listen, I need to finish getting ready for work.” I had forty-five minutes until I had to start, and I wasn’t sure how I’d get my heart under control in that time. He wants to gift me seven hundred thousand. It’s too surreal. I presented the folder to him.
Davis followed my lead and stood, too, but he didn’t take the folder from my hand. “I know this is sudden. It’s a lot to consider, but what I’m asking you to do today is just think it over. Just…just don’t make any hasty decisions.” He brushed a few wayward strands of hair from my eyes and I shivered at the warmth of his touch. “Can you do that for me, please?” He whispered his last question.
And he was right. I could at least think about it, even if I knew that I wouldn’t change my decision.
“Okay, Davis, you win,” I murmured against my better judgement. “I’ll consider it.”
He closed the space between us and my breath caught in my throat. I wanted him to kiss me again, and I held on to the edge of that possibility.
“I’m not the enemy. I’m your ally,” he said, his voice still low. “And I need you to remember that, Samantha.”
“I haven’t forgotten.”
“Good.” He cupped my jaw between his thumb and index finger. “And on that note, I’ll let you get to work.”
Davis gave me a quick, deep kiss then moved to the front door, taking wide, leisurely steps as he went. “I have a party tonight to attend and meetings all day tomorrow.” His gaze remained locked with mine. “But how about we meet for dinner tomorrow night? My grandfather is heading to Miami for a meeting, so we’ll have the house to ourselves. What do you think? How about you come over around eight?”
I considered what my mother had said to me earlier in the hospital. She was right, even if I didn’t want to admit it. I had stopped having fun a long time ago and stopped doing things for myself. I knew she was sick, and she was my top priority, but I had to do things for me too.
And a night with Davis sounds so tempting…
“Sounds good,” I said before I could stop myself. “I’ll see you then.”
We said goodbye, and I floated to work, barely able to believe what had happened. This was a dream, right? Luck like this didn’t happen to a woman like me.
But maybe it did.
Palm Beach cocktail parties often ran through the same script, and this one could have been interchanged with the myriad of others I’d attended whenever I visited my grandfather. Small groups of people crowded around platters of champagne trying to outdo each other with stories about their yachts and trips during the summer to places like Santorini and the Maldives. About half the party guests knew my grandfather or at least liked to be seen chatting with me long enough to make it look like they did. The other half wanted something from me and wanted to be seen chatting long enough with me to make it look like they were important.
In other words, parties like this could be very boring. Especially on that night, when my thoughts kept turning to Samantha. Could I get her to accept the money? Why had she seemed so shocked and upset when I showed her the account? What was I going to serve her for dinner the following night?
“I’m sorry,” I told Aaron when I realized he’d asked me a question, and I had no idea what he’d just said. We had a rare free moment in the flow of the event with no one around us. “I’m here, but I’m not.”
He raised his eyebrow. “You can say that again. I keep wondering why you agreed to come tonight if you were only going to spend your time staring off into space like a tragic lost puppy.”
I laughed and drank some of my Manhattan, which had been warming in the glass since I’d picked it up at the bar. After swallowing the first swig, I quickly downed some more.
“I’m not a lost puppy,” I told Aaron. “Just distracted.”
“Thank God they went with that caterer out of Miami for this party,” Aaron said, a mocking, snobbish tone coating over his words. He sneered. “If they’d hired Haute Holidays, I’m sure you’d spend the entire time bothering the staff about her.”
“Whatever. I’m not that bad.”
“Speak for yourself.”
“What?” I gave him a mocking look. “I’m not as bad as some people.”
“You did just give her—” His face changed, and a fake smile crossed his lips. “Oh, Mitzy Reese, what a pleasure. I didn’t realize you were in town right now. I thought you were going to New York for Christmas this year.”
“Enchanté,” Mitzy replied before she turned to me. “And Davis, how wonderful to see you again. I’ve been meaning to reach out to you. My niece, Annabella, is coming to town later this week ahead of the holiday. She’ll be here through the new year, and I’d love for you to meet her.” She moved closer. “I think the two of you will get along famously. She just graduated the Sorbonne, and she’s starting at Sotheby’s after the holiday.”
“She sounds delightful,” Aaron interjected. “I’m sure she’s perfect for him.”
I shot him a glare. He knew better than to do that.
If Mitzy noticed my annoyance, she didn’t show it. “Well, Davis, I’m hoping we can work something out with our families. A small dinner, perhaps? Something low-key.” She gestured at the rest of the party, which had expanded with late arrivals. “After a merry-go-round of these, I’m ready for something a little less lively. Something more intimate.”
“Call the house tomorrow,” I said, more out of obligation than anything else. “Irving, the house manager, handles all of those details. We have a pretty busy calendar for the few weeks but—”
“Irving can work you all in, I’m sure.” Aaron flourished his hand. “And that’s exactly what we’ve all been thinking. It’s time for something a little less…crowded.”
Mitzy smiled at both of us. “Looking forward to it.” Then she waltzed away, gliding into a sea of well-dressed socialites.
“Great,” I muttered. “Just great.”
“What? She’s trying to set you up with her niece, Davis,” Aaron chided, a smirk spreading across his face. “You can do a lot worse.”
“You know what I want, and it’s not here tonight.” I scoffed. “No socialite in town is going to get me to change my mind.”
“Whatever you think, better is not across the Intracoastal, waiting for you in some dumpy apartment, moaning about her mother.”
I felt something harden inside me. He didn’t get it, and he never would. “Don’t talk about her like that.”
“Like what?”
“I know you’re against this, but she’s not beneath you, for God’s sake. Samantha might have lived a different life than we have, but that doesn’t make her less of a person.” It took all the strength I had to keep my voice even, and to not draw unwanted attention to us. The last thing my grandfather or I needed was another round of gossip about us floating around Palm Beach. “And although you are my wealth manager and my friend, I’m willing to reconsider the latter if you don’t edit your comments.”
He opened his mouth as if to reply then shut it.
“Just what I thought,” I said. “And on that note, I see some other people I need to speak with tonight.”
I gave him a curt nod and walked away. As I did, my steps became a little lighter. So what if Sam and I were from two different worlds? That hadn’t stopped us as kids. And back then, Samantha saw past Davis “the billionaire.”
Why would it stop us now?