Page 19 of Behind These Four Walls
“Myles?”
Holland snorted. “Hell no, Bennett. He likes the limelight.”
“How old were you?”
Holland shrugged, thinking. “I think it was maybe nearly two years ago? I was turning sixteen.”
That checked out. The magazine spread had come out late the previous year.
“It took my mother forever to get Dad to agree to it.”
Isla finally tore her eyes away, refocusing on her surroundings and the way she also felt on top of the world from her perch at the top of the stairs, overlooking everything else. She laid her hands on the top of the banister, leaning over it to peer down before her. So this was what a little bit of power felt like.
“Why wouldn’t he?”
Holland didn’t answer, shrugging instead, and stepped away quickly. Isla noted Holland’s sudden attitude shift. She was closing herself off. Seemed there were some things Holland wasn’t willing to open up to her new bestie about.
“Come on,” Holland said suddenly, her voice going higher and her spirits brightening back up. “Let’s go.” Isla was nearly pulled off her feet as Holland snatched her hand and pulled her away.
“Dad!”
Isla nearly suffered whiplash from jumping from the house tour to meeting the man himself. He was more imposing in person than on TVand in the photos. He was in deep conversation with another man, and the two of them stopped when interrupted. Holland introduced Isla to Victor Corrigan and Brian Dixon, his right-hand man and manager of operations.
All the months of preparation and waiting for the right moment had come to this. It would be her only shot. Her make or break, and she would have no other opportunity to make a lasting impression, good enough to get in, than this moment. A flash caught Isla’s eyes when Dixon buttoned his suit jacket as he was acknowledging her. Victor’s right-hand man was carrying, making Isla wonder what Victor Corrigan could be into that made his seemingly mild-mannered employee who gave off accountant vibes carry a concealed weapon. Even in the Corrigan home.
Chapter Fourteen
Holland took a few big steps toward her father. Isla followed behind with more measure. He glanced at Isla, his dark eyes assessing her in a single sweep, then moving back up to her face to study more intently. She tensed, wondering if she’d seen a glimmer of recognition in his appraisal. She readied herself for him to call her out and kick her out on her ass. But when his eyes cooled to the detached expectation of someone waiting to be told why this new person mattered, she relaxed.
Holland made the introductions. “This is my friend Isla. Isla, this is my dad, Victor Corrigan, and his right hand and go-to, Dixon.”
“Good to meet you,” Victor said politely enough, watching his daughter and her new friend with curiosity.
Dixon leaned toward his ear. “Miss Thorne is the young lady who assisted Holland last night when her car caught a flat. She helped Holland get home in a rideshare.”
Victor’s thick and commanding eyebrows rose nearly to his perfectly cut hairline. “Rideshare? When we have a fleet of cars and drivers?”
Holland rolled her eyes. “We’ve been over all this already, Dad. Earlier today when you went on and on about keeping one of the guys around and having my car checked out and not breaking phones and—”
Isla jumped in, not wanting an argument rehashed with her present. “It’s my honor to meet you, Mr. Corrigan.” She pretended not to see the way Victor and Dixon looked at each other in amusement. Had she laid it on too thick?
“What I mean is that you’re very well known around here, and I guess all over. I mean, the Corrigan Group and all its subsidiaries and interests? Your company portfolio is massive and varied. You don’t just stick to a certain type. Your asset management company. Commercial real estate like the shopping center in Los Angeles. You have a shipping company that coincides with the trucking company. Your research and development arm vets the ventures you’re interested in taking over.” She’d only named a few, though that already seemed like too much. Listing his whole portfolio too early would look too obvious, and she had to play this just right. “And the Bennett & Corrigan Foundation as well. Can’t forget that. It’s done phenomenal work.”
Victor said, “You’ve done your homework. If only some of my employees did the same.”
“I minored in international business and public relations, so the Corrigan Group business model is something the professors referenced often.”
Victor looked to Dixon again with a raised eyebrow and a hint of amusement Isla wasn’t sure was a good thing or bad. She wasn’t easily moved, but Victor Corrigan was intimidating, and she could tell that when he wanted to be, he could even be terrifying.
“Did you know we are taught and referenced often at schools, Dixon?”
“I did not, sir.”
Isla said, “You’re making fun of me.”
Victor was surprised, and for a split second, his guard dropped. Something softer and nostalgic slipped in when he looked at her. “You sound like ...” He stopped himself, shaking off whatever had just come upon him. “No one’s called me to come speak at one of their classes. Not even UVA. You’d think they’d ask a local.”
Dixon asked, “Do you want me to tell them to extend you an invitation to speak?” There was a hint of a tease.