“Nah. She works a lot. But she bought a new dress last week because she’s goin’ to a wedding for my cousin. It’s a black dress. We thought some bling would look nice with her new dress.”
“Okay.” Sasha tapped her bottom lip. “You know, you could make her something. Last week I was helping some of the others make jewelry and there’s some nice stuff upstairs. If you make it yourself, it means so much more.”
They looked at each other doubtfully. “Make it? Us? Fo’ reals?”
“Um. Yeah. Fo’ reals.” She held back her smile. “I’ll help you. I’m pretty good at that. You can pick the beads and I’ll help you.”
“Well…okay.”
The two boys were indecisive when it came to choosing what they wanted and she spent some time helping them design the necklace, bracelet and earrings they wanted to make. Then she showed them how to get started.
“The guys gon’ think we got suga in tha tank,” Caleb muttered as he threaded beads onto the cord.
Sasha didn’t know what that meant and wasn’t sure she wanted to. “You’re doing great,” she said. “A few more beads and you’ll be done. I’ll show you how to use these little crimpers.”
They finished up and she helped crimp the end beads. She fastened the finished necklace around her neck, the bracelet on her wrist and held the dangling earrings to her ears to model for the boys.
“Sweet,” Caleb said.
“That is off da heazy,” Isaiah added. They both flashed wide grins at her.
“Now, use your twenty dollars to buy her a nice card and some pretty paper to wrap these in and she’s going to love it,” Sasha said. She had to admire their work; it really looked professional and glamorous.
“Sasha?”
She turned and saw Nick scowling at her. Shit.
“Can I talk to you? In my office.”
She followed him downstairs. “Go on in,” Nick said with a gesture.
She preceded him into his office and her body brushed his as she edged by him. A little electric frisson shimmered over her and she felt him jerk back. A little befuddled by that, she sat down on a chair.
Nick took a seat behind his desk and the look on his face made her insides tighten up.
“Nick,” she said, standing and sauntering behind his desk. He rolled his chair back from the desk and away from her. His hands gripped the arm rests. “Why wouldn’t you go out to dinner with me the other day?”
“I think that’s pretty obvious,” he said in a choked voice. “It’s never a good idea to get involved in a relationship that’s business.”
“It’s not like I work here. Or work for you. I’m just a committee member.”
She perched on the edge of his desk. He couldn’t get much farther away from her unless he wheeled himself right out the window.
“Look, you’re a nice girl, Sasha,” he said. “But you’re just not my type.”
She blinked at that. She had never in her life heard those words from a man. “What type am I?” she asked slowly.
Nick heaved a slightly desperate-sounding sigh. “You’re rich,” he said. “That’s enough for me.”
“You have some kind of prejudice against rich girls?”
“Look, I was married to a woman who was, um…very ambitious. All she wanted was to be rich, associate with other rich people, shop and travel.”
Sasha’s eyes widened. He was describing her life.
“Yeah,” he nodded. “When I took this job here, she thought it was a step down for us. She didn’t want me to do this. The money wasn’t good and it wasn’t a prestigious job like my old job.”
She knew he used to be a lawyer at one of the biggest firms in Santa Barbara.
“I see,” she said slowly. “Is that why she left you?”
“Yes. Although she didn’t exactly leave. We mutually agreed to end the marriage. We wanted different things from life.”
She studied him. “What do you want from life, Nick?”
“Really…this isn’t…”
“I’m interested.”
He sighed. “I want to do work that means something. I get to use my skills here to do big things, but I also get to see the impact of what we do right at the street level, when a kid who’s at risk comes here and ends up making something of his or her life.”
“Don’t you want to get married again? Have a family of your own?”
He met her eyes. “Sure. Maybe some day.”
She nodded. But she could see why he wasn’t interested in her. Hell, it was pretty clear she wasn’t good enough for him, with his lofty goals and desire to serve, to do good things.
Disappointment flooded her again, along with a familiar sense of self-loathing. Disappointment because she was so used to getting whatever she wanted. If she wanted a guy, she got him. She wanted a new car, she got it. But she couldn’t deny this particular man was out of her reach. She was nowhere near good enough for someone like him, someone so…worthy.
She flashed a high-wattage smile at him and slid off his desk. “I understand completely. I’m glad we had this talk.”
He gaped at her momentarily, then recovered. “Sure,” he said.
More than anything she wanted to fling herself into his arms, wanted to feel those strong arms around her, wanted to kiss his handsome face. She wanted him to want her just as much as she wanted him. But that wasn’t going to happen. He was way too good for her.
She walked around back to the chair in front of his desk. “So what did you want to talk to me about? Plans for the fundraiser are going well.”
He lowered his gaze to his desk. “It’s not about the fundraiser. The thing is, you can’t just show up here and do things with the kids.”
“Why not?”
“Our leaders all have to go through security checks. We need a criminal records check, we need to make sure anyone who works with the kids hasn’t got any record of child abuse…things like that. It’s for the safety of the kids.”
“I don’t have a criminal record!”
“I know you don’t, but there are rules and policies we have to follow. If anything happened, I’m responsible.”
“So.” She blinked at him. “You’re telling me I can’t come help here anymore.”
He pressed his lips together. “Yes. That’s what I’m saying.”
Tara was actually waiting in Joe’s office after his lunch with Cole Sotello, impatient for him to return to find out what Joe wanted to meet with him about. She sat there and chewed on her index fingernail. Why hadn’t Joe called her? She hated that Joe was out schmoozing with one of their competitors and she had no idea what they were talking about. She could not believe that in the short time Joe had been there, word was out he was in charge.
He wasn’t in charge. They worked together. Dammit.
In the time he’d been there, he’d developed an interest in the business that seemed genuine. He’d connected with the staff, apparently had a photographic memory because he remembered every little thing she’d told him, no matter how fast she threw it at him, not to mention all the things he’d learned at the ranch and the mill. And he did have impressive knowledge of supply chain management and lean manufacturing methods. He’d taken on work that had lightened her own load, and truthfully, there were some things he’d taken on she didn’t miss. That included pretty much anything to do with finance, although she was still inclined to try to keep everything for herself. But since he was a numbers man, he seemed happy to handle those things and she had to admit, he hadn’t screwed up anything yet.
She sighed as she waited and forced herself to keep her fingers out of her mouth.
“Waiting for me?” Joe walked into his office with his cell phone in his hand.
“Yes,” she said. “Tell me what happened.”
He sat behind his desk. “Hang on,” he said mildly. “I’ve got to check my voice mail.”