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Gage set his items on the table while the movers and Mia worked around him to set up the comfiest play corner for the kids. He took the sheet from Andrew, his full lips forming a rare smile as he took it in.

God that smile—it was like the sun breaking through the clouds on a stormy day. It transformed his entire presence from intimidating to exhilarating. My breath was shallow and my heart beat faster as I watched the interaction between Gage and my son.

Gage held up the sheet, pointing at Andrew’s carefully sketched image. “You drew this?”

Andrew nodded, biting his bottom lip just like I did when I was nervous.

“There’s no way.” Gage looked at Cora. “You’d tell me if he snuck an adult in here to draw this, right?”

Cora giggled. “He drew it!”

“This is amazing,” Gage said, sounding completely genuine. “Mia, can I have the tape, please?”

Within seconds, my friend had a roll of scotch tape in his hand.

“I’m going to hang this up, right where I work, so I can look at it every day. Is that okay?” Gage asked.

Andrew nodded, bouncing up and down with a giddy smile on his face.

My eyes burned with tears as my boss stripped off pieces of tape with his strong hands and hung the paper up on the wall, right by his side of the conference table for everyone to see.

One of the movers said, “Anything else, Ms. Baird?”

Mia scanned the room, already perfectly set up for the kids to be comfortable here. “It looks great, guys. Thanks for your help!”

The movers left, and Mia looked briefly at me before facing Mr. Griffen again. “Lunch is set to arrive at eleven thirty, and the children’s art instructor will be here at one.”

“Great work, Mia,” Mr. Griffen said. “Be sure our coffee bar is stocked for my meeting with Jason Romero.”

She nodded. “And then you have a press interview at four.”

“Thank you.”

Mia sent me a brief, confused smile and then left the room, her straight blond hair swinging behind her.

“Mr. Griffen,” I said over the emotion in my throat as my children played with their new toys. “Can I speak with you for a moment? Privately?”

He nodded curtly, his intense mask back in place as if his heart hadn’t just grown three sizes.

I walked out of the office and checked once more on the kids before closing the door behind us. The sound of the door closing echoed over the cement floors, and I looked up at Mr. Griffen, trying to understand what had just happened.

“Art instructor?” I asked.

He nodded. “I thought it would be fun for Andrew to have some focused drawing time. And Cora too.”

“Fun?” I asked incredulously. “I didn’t even know that word was in your vocabulary.” God, why was I being such a bitch? “I’m sorry. I’m just a little... surprised is all. That was really kind of you, but you really didn’t have to do all that for the kids.”

A distant look seemed to cloud his eyes, making them a foggy day instead of crystal skies. “Yes, I did.”

“And why is that?” I asked, my voice almost a whisper.

His throat moved with his swallow. “Because, Farrah. You and your children are a package deal.”

6

Gage

When I left The Retreat, Andrew and Cora were in the middle of their paint lesson with Fredricka Aimes, one of the best artists in the area. Farrah thanked me again, giving me a heartfelt smile that did strange things to my stomach.