Blaze (Heat #3)(3)

She mumbles something under her breath before she reaches to pull her travel mug from the cupboard. "I'm late, Den. I overslept."

I glance at the digital display on the microwave. "You start work at nine, don't you? You've got more than an hour."

Her gaze lifts to meet mine after she fills the mug with coffee from the French Press. "I forgot to send out an email before I left the office yesterday. I need to do that as soon as possible or Mr. Foster will flip."

"I don't understand why you're still his assistant." I butter a piece of toast before I carefully place a soft poached egg on top. I finish with a splash of Sophia's favorite brand of hot sauce. "You should be working in the design department."

"I will one day." She eyes the plate of food. "You only ever cook breakfast for me when you're worried about something."

"That's not true," I scoff. "I don't do that."

"Your anxiety may not be good for you but it's great for me." She picks up the fork I placed on top of the plate. "I can eat a few bites."

"You can eat it all," I reply as she eats a forkful. "I know you, Soph. You eat lunch at your desk most days and half of the time you don't even order anything in. You snack on those packages of crackers you carry around in your purse."

She nods while she chews.

"I can come meet you for lunch today," I offer, as much for myself as for her. I don't know what I'm going to do after I go to the station to accept the job.

The second I woke up this morning I checked my phone to see if Tyler called or texted. He hadn't. My dad hadn't either. All that was waiting for me was another text message from Brendon offering me that senior chef's position at Axel.

"I can do that." She wipes her mouth with a linen napkin. "The best time for me is noon. Can you make it then?"

"I'll be there," I say with a forced grin. "I'll pack up something for us to eat in the park."

"With that raspberry lemonade you make?"

I sip my coffee. "Two glasses of lemonade it is. I'll be at your office at noon sharp."

***

I step out of my building and into the bright sunshine shortly after nine. The temperature is already warm enough that I didn't bother with a light sweater to cover the sleeveless blue sundress I'm wearing. I know, from experience, that when it's this hot in Manhattan, this early in the day, that a thunderstorm is on the horizon. That's why I tucked my compact umbrella into my oversized purse. I'll stop at home again before I meet Sophia for lunch but I don't want to get caught in a downpour without any protection. Sophia worked too hard on this dress for it to be ruined by a mid-day shower.

I tug on my ponytail securing it in place. It not only gives me a put together look, it helps keep me from overheating. I'm too fair to enjoy the sun the way Sophia does. I burn within minutes if I'm outside without any sun protection.

"You look beautiful this morning."

I turn my head toward his voice. He's standing next to me, his hand shielding his eyes from the sun. He's dressed in a short sleeve black dress shirt and jeans.

"Tyler," I whisper, unsure of how my voice sounds. I wasn't expecting this. I didn't want to see him today.

"It's early." His brows rise. "Are you headed somewhere in particular?"

I have no desire to tell him that I'm on my way to secure a new job. He doesn't need the reminder that he fired me last night. I sigh. "I have an appointment in mid-town."

"We need to talk. I'd like to do that now."

I run my hand over the back of my neck. Barbara doesn't even know that I'm on my way to the studio but I'm not about to tell Tyler that. "I don't have time. I want to get there as soon as I can."

"Are you going to see your dad?" He stares at me for a minute. "Before he left my place he told me he wants to make things right between you two."

Did he now? That might be Sergio's intention but Asta won't let that happen.

"No." I inhale deeply. "I won't be seeing him before he leaves for Italy."

His mouth thins. "It's going to be hard to avoid him, Cadence. Sergio is back in New York for good."





CHAPTER 4


"When he called you the love of his life I assumed that you two…"

"I know, Tyler," I interrupt. "You didn't know I was his daughter."

"I didn't know he had a daughter." He faces me. "I thought I knew everything there was to know about Sergio Firi but I had no idea you existed."

I wring my hands together in my lap. After Tyler told me that Sergio is planning on making Manhattan his home base again, I'd felt all the color drain from my face. I told him I needed a glass of water and when I started back toward the front door of my building, he was right behind me. I didn't stop him. I couldn't form the words to tell him that I wanted to be alone so instead I let him ride up the elevator with me and when I walked into my apartment, he followed a step behind.

"He's protective of his private life," I explain. "He wanted his food to be the only thing associated with his name."

"I get that." He steps closer to where I'm sitting on one of the kitchen stools. It was the first place to set myself after I downed a full glass of cold water in one gulp. "There was a lot of tension between you two last night."