Page 72 of Just The Way You Aren't

An older gentleman with silver hair looks up from where he's slumped in his chair. "Volunteer work?"

"Damien has been working with Silver Hearts," I begin, feeling the weight of everyone's attention. "We're a nonprofit that serves our local elderly communities. Damien’s been... well, he's been amazing."

I catch Damien's eyes widening slightly, as if he can't believe I'm here, in his conference room, talking about his volunteer work.

"How so?" Ben asks, his voice carrying a note of skepticism.

"He helps deliver meals," I say, smiling. Damien looks down at the table, and I swear I see a hint of color rise in his cheeks. But I won’t be deterred. Not now that I’m here and I have the full attention of the room. "Last week, he spent an hour fixing Mrs. Baumgartner's stove so she could cook her own food instead of relying on delivery services. And he calls bingo for our seniors—you should see him with them. He's patient, kind... He really listens to people."

"Damien Langley can fix a stove?" someone echoes, looking incredulous.

"Mr. Langley does a lot more than people realize," I continue, finding my rhythm. "I've watched him spend hours listening to our clients' concerns, helping solve problems that seem small but mean everything to them. He brings the same attention to detail to Silver Hearts that I'm sure he brings to all his projects."

The room has fallen completely silent. Damien looks like he's torn between pride and embarrassment.

Ben straightens in his chair. "You mean he actually listens?"

"For as long as it takes," I confirm. "I've seen him sit with Mr. Fitzgerald while he explained why a particular chair placement mattered for his arthritis. Damien took notes, adjusted the room layout, then checked back the next week to make sure it was working."

Damien's expression shifts from embarrassment to something I can't quite read—maybe pride mixed with surprise that I noticed these details.

"That's... not what I expected," Ben admits quietly.

"May I ask what you're working on here?" I venture. "Damien's mentioned Guardian Productions, but I don't want to overstep."

"Sound studio acoustics," Ben replies. "I compose most of our scores, but the current design won't produce the quality we need. I've been trying to explain, but..." He gestures helplessly at the screens.

"Could you show me?" I ask. I see Damien lean forward slightly, his business instincts kicking in as he watches Ben respond positively to me. "I might not understand the technical aspects,” I tell him, “but I'd love to hear your perspective."

Ben's face lights up—it's the first genuine expression I've seen from him. He stands and moves to the display, pointing at various elements as he explains the acoustic challenges. I listen intently, asking questions not about the technicalities but about his vision, his goals, his concerns.

"You see what I mean?" Ben says after explaining the issues. "The reverberation patterns just won't work for orchestral recording."

I nod, then turn to Damien. "What do you think? Is there away to adjust the design to meet Mr. Walt's needs while staying within the project parameters?"

Damien straightens in his chair, and for a moment, I see his CEO mask slip back into place as he considers the problem. He’s processing, putting pieces together. "Actually," he says slowly, "if we modified the wall treatments here and here..." He stands and begins pointing at the screen. "Would this help with the reverberation issues you mentioned?"

Ben studies the screen, then breaks into a smile—the first I've seen from him today. "That could work. And if we adjusted this acoustic panel configuration..."

As the two of them begin collaborating, the energy in the room transforms. Other executives chime in with questions and suggestions. Fred Walt reaches for the plate of cookies Rhonda had brought in earlier.

"These are incredible," he says, taking a bite. "Homemade?"

"Rhonda made them," Damien pipes in, smiling. And damn if that rare, incredible smile doesn’t create its own brand of magic in the room.

"Your assistant made cookies for our meeting?" Darlene Walt asks, looking surprised and delighted.

"Rhonda's the best," Damien says, glancing up from the screen where he and Ben are now deep in discussion. "She's been with the company since my father started it."

"Loyalty like that is rare," Steven observes, looking at his family members meaningfully. “It says something about a company, as well as the people working there.”

Nods and warming expressions make the rounds at the table, while Damien catches my eye and holds my gaze. His lips silently form the words “Thank you” before he returns his attention to the business at hand.

Darlene Walt invites me to take one of the empty chairs,pushing the tray of cookies toward me. I can’t resist indulging while I watch as the meeting continues for another hour. Whatever the mood in the room had been when they started, the atmosphere has completely changed now.

Ben and Damien work through the acoustic challenges together, finding creative solutions that satisfy both the technical requirements and the budget constraints. Steven and Darlene weigh in now and then with ideas and suggestions, which get Damien’s patient attention and thoughtful consideration. By the time everyone prepares to leave, handshakes are warm and genuine.

As the Walt family prepares to go, Ben pulls me aside. "Willow," he says softly, "thank you. I haven't felt heard in a professional setting in years."

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