“I nodded at him. And as much as I hated it, I knew anything less would be making a mockery of the sacrifice he was making for us. But it did make me change gears. I switched my focus. My goal became to make so much money that my grandfather would never have to choose between the roof over his head and a decent meal.”
I swallow and look down at her. Subconsciously, I brace myself for the pity in her eyes. But it wasn’t there. Instead what I saw was awe or even pride. Her eyes were watery, but she wasn’t feeling sorry for me.
“Justin, you gave up your dreams for your grandfather.”
That was not the point of the story. The point is… I’m not sure why I told her that story. She asked about my relationship with my grandfather and that’s the part I wanted to share with her. I’d never told anyone about that night. Not my brother or cousins, not Michael or Denver. It was a private moment between my grandfather and me. So, she may see it as easy-going or over accommodating or whatever. That’s not how I see it. Love is about sacrifice. If you love someone you support them. Make sure they have what they need.
“I didn’t really,” I counter her statement. “Not permanently. I did what I needed to do and now I can do what I want to do.”
“Are you though? I mean you said that you wanted to go into city planning and now you’re buying apartment buildings and renovating them to be off-the-grid.”
I shake my head. “This is the inner city. They’ll never be completely off-the-grid. It’s just not practical or cost effective.”
Angela smiles at me. “So, you’re not some philanthropist out to make the world better and save the poor.”
“Fuck, no.” I smile at the notion. “Why would you think that?”
“You just don’t seem too concerned about making money. You’ve made millions developing apps and you’re willing to give it all up to develop low-cost housing that saves the planet.”
Raising her brow, I can't help but tease. “Firstly, I’ve made a little more than millions developing apps. And secondly, the dream was to make a living building things. Or at least conceptualizing and letting others do the building. Yeah, I have the resources to adjust the dream, so I do some good in the process. But it would mean nothing if I can’t make a living from it.”
“I think I get it.”
“The thing you need to understand is that most people don’t want a handout.” That is the one thing I know. Despite raising four active kids with different interests, my grandfather never wanted any charity. That’s not to say he didn’t accept some from time to time. Sometimes he didn’t have any other choice. “People want to earn their keep in this world. I’m just trying to make that a little easier for them.”
Angela was silent for a long time. “I understand wanting to earn your keep. I mean, I’ve been staying with my parents for a few days, and I already feel like I’m mooching off them.”
Yeah, she would. “You’ve been on your own since you graduated high school. Of course, it’s an adjustment having to rely on the people who care about you. But needing help temporarily while you figure things out is not mooching.”
“I suppose you’re right. But I do need to find my own place.” She sits up and straddles me. I don’t think she's aware of what she’s doing because she doesn’t look like she’s about to seduce me. “Seriously, this time. Are there any vacant apartments in this building?”
“I have a few actually.” My mind turns. I had plans for those apartments. “If you’re willing to apartment hop as I have each one renovated, I can charge you a reduced rate. We’ll keep it on a month to month basis, until things are finalized.”
“How reduced? I don’t want you to undercut yourself.”
I smile at her. “We’ll work something out.”
A small smile lifts the corner of her mouth. “Will you help me move in?”
My shoulders relax in a way they haven’t in weeks. “Of course. Under one condition”
“What?”
I figure if she’s letting me in, I should let her see more of my life. “You come with me to check out the retirement village my grandfather wants to move into.”
Angela
Working for Wyatt Crawford is… interesting. He’s pretty organized and has an accountant handling the bookkeeping. I spent most of my first day sitting around waiting for things to do. Slowly he’s started handing over responsibility to me. I now handle his calendar and the filing. The filing was a big deal. He had a system already in place and didn’t want anything disturbing it. He also gave me his own to-do list each day. I was learning what he needed for each item on his list and could draw up my own to-do list from there.
It was nearly five in the afternoon and I’m busy finishing up for the day. Wyatt is sitting across from me at the makeshift desk he’s set up for me. “What do I have for tomorrow?”
I open the shared calendar I have on the laptop he provided me. “You have a meeting with a new client in the morning. She requested to meet at a coffee shop, I’m busy emailing you the details now. Then after lunch, you’re meeting with Justin to discuss the plans for the Starview building. That’s an onsite meeting.”
I was excited about that meeting and not just because Justin would be there. Starview was the building we were staying in. Justin planned to do the renovations to the apartment I was staying in last, so as not to disrupt too much.
