Page 2 of Say You Remember Me
“Thank you,” I said. “You really are the best.”
My younger sister lived in New Haven with her husband, which was only about five minutes from the high-rise office building I’d be working in. But since they were expecting their first baby in November and had already set up quite a few baby things in their spare bedroom, I’d felt weird asking if my eight-year-old son and I could crash with them for an unknown length of time.
Sloan, on the other hand, had a nice little house in Eden Falls with a pretty good-sized backyard for Grant to run around in and get all his energy out. So even with the twenty-minute commute to work each day, it would be perfect.
I just hoped it wouldn’t take too long to find an apartment of my own so that Grant and I could get the fresh start we needed.
“So do you know anything about this high-powered executive that you’ll be assisting?” Sloan asked. “Is it one of the Hastings boys? Or one of the other executives?”
“It’s one of the Hastings,” I said, stirring my drink with my black straw. “I originally thought the CEO was looking for an assistant since I didn’t realize there were multiple ‘Mr. Hastings,’ but the woman who interviewed me told me it was actually one of the CEO’s sons.”
“That sounds about right.” Sloan smiled. “I mean, Joel is cool, but I would’ve been shocked if he was looking for a new assistant since I’m good friends with his current assistantand he’s always gushing about how much he loves working at Hastings Industries.” She took a quick sip of her margarita. After setting it back on the square napkin with the club’s logo—a tree that resembled the tree of life from the Garden of Eden—she asked, “Do you know which son you’ll be assisting? Is it Ian or Carter?”
“I think it’s Ian,” I said. “Maybe?”
The HR lady who had interviewed me had referred to him as “Mr. Hastings” so much during our interview that I had only caught his first name maybe once. But the name Ian sounded more familiar than Carter, at least.
“You’re assistingIan?” Sloan gasped, her eyes going wide.
“Yes…” I narrowed my eyes, wondering why she said his name like that. “Do you know him, then?”
“Oh, I know Ian all right.” Sloan chuckled. “It’s pretty hard not to know who Ian Hastings is when you live in Eden Falls.”
“Because his dad is a billionaire?”
“Well, yeah, because of that too,” she said, a sly smile lifting her lips. When she noticed my puzzled brow, she added, “Let’s just say IanHeartbreakerHastings is quite popular around here…especially among the ladies.”
“So he’s a player?” I groaned, a sense of apprehension filling my chest. I did not need to work closely with another rich, playboy-type guy.
“Oh, he’s definitely been a player in the past,” Sloan said. Then seeming to sense my sudden unease, she added, “But he’s a good guy. And an awesome businessman. I’ve never heard of his bad attention span with women ever interfering with his work. So I’m sure it will be just fine working with him.”
“Yeah?” I asked, slightly wary since getting mixed up in someone’s relationship drama was not something I needed. Not when I was still recovering from the carnage my own previous relationship had put me through.
But hopefully, Ian would be pleasant to work for.
Though really, I was desperate enough to get a fresh start far from all the drama with my ex in Ridgewater that even if Ian turned out to be a tyrant, I’d probably still want the job.
I mean…I could always find another job if I needed to once Grant and I were settled, right?
“Someone’s popular,” Sloan remarked, glancing at my phone when it buzzed for the third time in a row. “Who’s blowing up your phone? Some secret lover you haven’t told me about?”
“You wish.” I chuckled. “But sadly, no. It’s just Lexi teasing me about something.”
“Lexi’s teasing you?” Sloan’s blonde eyebrows knitted together. “About what?”
I shrugged and, in the most bored voice I could muster, said, “She’s just trying to get me to do something dumb…”
“What kind of dumb thing are we talking about here?” Sloan leaned closer, curiosity evident in her green eyes.
“The kind of dumb that involves me‘kissing a hottie’tonight,” I said, using air quotes to emphasize the absurdity of the text I’d just received.
“What?” Sloan’s eyes sparkled with amusement and intrigue.
I slid my phone across the table so she could read the text from Lexi.
Lexi:Have you kissed a hottie tonight? Time’s ticking.
“Why is she asking you this? Did you tell her you were planning to make out with hot guys while we were here or something?”
