Total pages in book: 144
Estimated words: 134830 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 674(@200wpm)___ 539(@250wpm)___ 449(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 134830 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 674(@200wpm)___ 539(@250wpm)___ 449(@300wpm)
I think Dani’s father not giving her the restaurant might’ve had a lot more to do with protecting her from the all-consuming nature of owning a business and less to do with Dani’s gender, and she seems to be realizing that now too as her father hugs her, patting her back gently.
“I will always worry. It’s what a father does,” he says, but then a coughing fit overtakes him. I think saying so much was a big ask of his lungs.
As we wait for him to stop coughing and find his breath again, I think about what he’s said because I understand what he means. I do worry about my guys as much as I worry about my bottom line. I make a commitment to them and to myself every single day, with every single project, and I’m responsible for making sure those commitments are met.
I’m also suddenly realizing the similarities Mom says she sees in me and Dad. Our businesses might be on entirely different scales, but I have absolutely skipped out on family stuff in favor of completing a job so that my crew’s bonus checks were available on time, as promised. That doesn’t mean I forgive him for doing it so many times, but I have a deeper understanding for why he made the choices he did and respect him a bit more for making those hard calls.
As Mr. Becerra settles, he glances around the table. I feel like he’s a man looking at the final grains of sand in his hourglass, worried about the legacy he’s leaving behind and wanting to make sure that he’s done enough to care for those he loves. For him, it’s not about money. It’s about the life those dollars and cents provide.
I look at Dani, who seems to be hearing the same thing. I don’t brag or boast or need some sort of validation based on my income and bank balances. I don’t tell anyone how much I make per job or discuss my savings strategies, which I consider to be my own private business. To me, money is no big deal.
To Mr. Becerra, it’s peace.
So I do something I otherwise never would. For him, and for his daughter.
I pull my phone out, open my banking app, and log in. I wait for the screen to load and then give him a pointed look. He dips his chin, understanding the enormity of what he’s asking of me, and it’s that recognition that has me turning my phone around so that only he can see the screen.
His eyes widen at the number and then they tick up to me. I nod, affirming that he saw what he saw, and he lets out a shaky breath. He nods back, and like that, I have Mr. Becerra’s stamp of approval.
“I told you that you’d find a nice boy one day,” Mrs. Becerra says, bumping Dani’s shoulder with her own. “And so handsome.”
Dani’s eyes haven’t strayed from me. She doesn’t know what her father just saw, but she appreciates my willingness to give him what he needed, nonetheless. She comes around the table, wraps her arms around my neck, and places a kiss on my cheek, much the way Mara did to Xavier.
“You’re right, Mama. I did find a nice boy,” she repeats, her eyes sparkling with laughter that I presume has to do with the idea of my being nice or a boy.
But with the elephant in the room addressed, we’re able to have a nice lunch and even Xavier and I are getting along by the end of it, bonding over the new BMWs that’ll come out soon.
As we leave, he shakes my hand. “Thanks for the tip about the cruises. I wouldn’t have thought that’d be cheaper than flights and a hotel for our vacation.”
I nod. “They can be, depending on where you’re going and when. Worth looking into, at least.”
While we were eating, he mentioned their family beach vacation again and I remembered Mom and Dad taking us on a cruise once. Though we weren’t worried about finances, I remember Mom laughingly saying the all-inclusive nature was great for five boys who could eat a week’s worth of groceries in one sitting and suggested that Xavier look into that as a possibility.
As we pull out of the driveway and wave goodbye to everyone, Dani sighs happily, her head laid back on the headrest of my truck as she looks at me.
“I think they liked me,” I say, flashing her a cocky smirk.
She snorts out a laugh. “Are you kidding? I think they like you more than me.” More seriously, she says, “Thank you for doing that with Papa. I don’t want to know, and it’s not my business, but whatever you showed him gave him a comfort I didn’t know he needed.”