Chapter 2

“You’re Oliver James’s son, aren’t you?”

The question startled him. He’d been in Chicago for less than six hours. The only people he’d spoken to were the leasing agent for his new condo and the usher at the door when he’d arrived for the fundraiser. He hadn’t even called the local charity branch; he’d simply assumed he’d seek them out here.

But years of experience smoothed his surprise, hopefully unnoticeable to the woman and the young man now frowning at him. “Yes. I’m Grady.” He held out his hand, enveloping hers in his grip. “And you are?”

She laughed. “Oh, nobody.”

“Mom.”

“Well, I’m not anybody he’dknow, am I?” She squeezed his fingers. “Elaine Braugher. And my handsome date is Colin.”

Grady slipped his hand free to extend it to the now slightly red-faced Colin. It was hard not to grin wider. The blush was adorable. “Well, if you ask me, I think you both have rather exceptional looking dates.”

Colin’s grip was firm, his long fingers brushing against Grady’s wrist for a tantalizing second before he pulled away. “There’s going to be a few very surprised people here tonight. Everybody’s been in a tizzy getting ready for tomorrow.”

The only item on his agenda for tomorrow was living through his first day at the new office, and the only way for Colin to know that was…“Are you affiliated with the charity somehow?”

“Yes.” Colin angled Elaine away from Grady. “Let’s get a drink. I’m parched.”

“You’ll join us, won’t you?” Elaine seemed oblivious to her son’s momentary flash of irritation.

“I’m sure Mr. James probably has other people to meet tonight, Mom.”

“You said it yourself. Nobody’s expecting me, which means my dance card is completely clear.” He took the place on her other side, ignoring the frown Colin shot at him, when he leaned down and added in a conspiratorial whisper, “And call me Grady, please. There’s enough stiff upper lips in this room already without tossing me into the mix.”

Grady couldn’t prove it, but he was sure he heard Colin mutter, “oh please.” He looked up sharply, but the other man was smiling innocently. He had a nice smile. It had probably fooled many people. Even Grady, who had very sharp ears, felt disarmed.

“I doubt your dance card will be clear for long, Grady. Your imminent arrival has been the talk of Chicago for the past month at least.”

He waved off Elaine’s assessment. “People in this town need to find better topics of conversation, then. I’m not nearly as important as getting Chicago’s numbers up to where they should be.”

“You’ve certainly got no problem with modesty, do you, Grady?” Colin said. There was an edge to his voice, and it sliced through Grady’s name until it almost sounded like an insult.

For the sake of Colin’s mother, Grady kept his smile even, his tone bright. “If you’re good at something, and people know it, what’s the point in denying it? Everyone has skills.” They came to a stop at the end of the line at the bar. “Elaine, I’ll bet you can tell me exactly what Colin’s good at.”

“Computers,” she answered promptly. “He’s magic with computers. Ever since he was oh…how old were you, Col? I think you tore your father’s laptop apart when you were six.” Elaine’s eyes were full of motherly pride. “Of course, he put it back together after that. We never would have found out if he hadn’t bragged…”

“Confessed,” Colin corrected. “I wasn’t bragging, I was confessing. And I didn’t tear it apart. I knew how to put it back together, I just wanted to see what it looked like on the inside.”

“At six?” Grady was duly impressed. He still had to ask for help every time they upgraded the systems back in New York, because he could never remember where the stupid settings were in his email program. “And you’re working for us? It sounds like we’re the ones who should be bragging then, not you.”

“I’m volunteering for the charity. And I spend most of my time resetting passwords and merging Word documents.”

“Don’t forget all the Excel emergencies you solve,” Elaine added helpfully.

“Yes, that too.”

“There’s got to be a better use for your talents,” Grady argued. “Who are you reporting to?”

Colin’s already reserved manners turned downright frosty. “Gwen Smith. And my talents are being well used. I know you probably don’t think much of what we’ve accomplished here, but we work hard.”

“I’m sure you do.” He hadn’t meant to push Colin even further away. Why did everything he say have the opposite effect he wanted with this man? “But maybe I should talk to this Gwen about getting some more positive reinforcement in the office. Because it doesn’t look to me like you know how to recognize a compliment when you hear one.’

“I’ll let you know when I hear one, shall I?”

“Colin, really,” Elaine said reproachfully. “He didn’t mean to criticize Gwen.”

“That’s why he’s here, isn’t he?”

“I’m here because the charity can use all the donations it can get,” Grady said, his jaw suddenly tense. “Because that’s what I do. And yes, I’m good at it. I’m not ashamed to admit it. Someone has to be, or the charity would have folded years ago. Now, if someone with your skill set is satisfied being a glorified secretary, fine. All the power to you. In fact, I’m glad you’re happy. Happy volunteers make us stronger. But I’mnot happy accepting ‘good enough’ when I know I can do more. That’s why I’m here.”

He hadn’t meant to rant, but Colin’s assessment pierced deeper than he was sure the other man expected it to. He’d spent his whole life being judged by standards that had absolutely nothing to do with the man he was, but instead with who people expected him to be. In his fantasies, Chicago had been different. It was going to be a fresh start for him, the chance to prove himself on his own merits, not his father’s. But Colin’s assessment shattered that dream. Because if he felt that way, the entire Chicago branch probably did.