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“Oh. No. I’m rich,” he says nonchalantly. “I don’t need to fish for a living.”
Right. He’s rich. He’s Harrison’s grandfather.
“How about you Walt?” I ask. “You rich too?”
I shouldn’t be surprised when Walt nods, but I am.
“Yep. Ed too,” Walt says. He holds out a hand. “Walter Ambrose. Ambrose Industries.”
I take his hand. Jesus.
“And I’m Edward Parks,” Ed says. “Parks Financial Services. I’m not as rich as these two, but I do okay.”
I have no idea what to say to that, so I just look back at Sam.
He grins. “Samuel Reed. Reed Investments. And other things. That’s what I started with though.”
“Were you ever going to tell me that I was playing chess with my boyfriend’s grandfather?” I ask.
“You would have figured it out eventually,” he says, unapologetically. “At the wedding, if not before.”
I groan. “Sam! I mean,Mr. Reed?—”
He frowns now. “Don’t you dare get all ‘Mr. Reed’ on me. We’re friends. It’s just Sam to you. I didn’t know who you were when I invited you to sit down and we played those first few games. And I didn’t tell you who I was because I didn’t want you to treat me differently. If you start now, I’m going to be disappointed.”
“But you’re Harrison’s grandfather,” I protest.
“So what?”
“So you should have told me,” I say, pretty sure that’s true. “What if I’d complained about him to you?”
“I’m sure you would have had a good reason,” he says. “From your point of view, anyway.”
“But wouldn’t giving me advice about my relationship with your grandson, without me even knowing who you are, been a conflict of interest or something?” I ask, feeling confused.
Sam scoffs at that. “I would have never given you advice about your relationship with Harrison. I’ve been in that kind of love with exactly one person in my life. I married her the second she said yes, and never let her go. But that’s the only relationship I know anything about. Who am I to tell you what to do in yours?”
I study him. Then I look at Walt and Ed. Excuse me,Walter and Edward. But they simply shrug.
“So you don’t give business advice either, since you’ve only ever had the one business?”
Sam laughs. “Oh, hell no. I give business advice all the time. I’ve donelotsof business. I also give advice about chess, where to vacation, movies, books, and pizza. Because I’ve had a lot of all of those.”
I nod. “Okay.”
“But people aren’t pizzas or movies. They’re exceedingly complicated and ever-changing and the same one that makes you happier than you’ve ever been will also have the ability to rip your heart out, so…I’m just grateful to have mostly figuredoneout. I would never try to advise on another.”
“That’s actually…” I sigh. “Not that helpful right now.”
Sam laughs.
“Especially because I’m in love withtwopeople. And there arethreeother people in this relationship.” I wait for their reactions.
They all just nod.
“Isn’t this where one of you says ‘love will find a way’ or ‘if it’s meant to be, it will be’?” I ask.
Ed shakes his head and Sam just shrugs.