Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 22364 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 112(@200wpm)___ 89(@250wpm)___ 75(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22364 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 112(@200wpm)___ 89(@250wpm)___ 75(@300wpm)
Well, I’ll be damned. I’d put up with Mr. Seagraves’ slight creep factor for years; even seeing it as commending at times. But Gavin stood strong, respectfully but clearly drawing a line in the sand. He put his integrity above his career, and I was insanely proud of him.
I was unsure how Mr. Seagraves would react to Gavin calling him out. I couldn’t tell if the expression on his face read as anger or embarrassment. My boss had a lot of pull in the business world, even outside of our company. He could easily help or hinder Gavin.
But whatever happened, I would stand by Gavin’s side, both figuratively and literally. I side-stepped to be closer to him. I stopped myself from placing my hand on his back. It would be an innocent touch of solidarity, but I didn’t want to cross any boundaries as my boss had done.
Mr. Seagraves’ appearance finally softened. “Forgive me for stepping out of line. You seem like an upstanding young man who will be an asset to any company you join. Tell you what; next week, bring your resume to my office and I’ll look it over. Now, if you two will excuse me, I have to make my rounds.” He gave a dip of his head and disappeared into the crowd.
I blinked as I tried wrapping my mind around what just happened. “That was amazing.” Gavin was amazing. There was no way in hell I would have been so brave at his age; especially when dealing with an authority figure. He certainly wasn’t a meek kid anymore.
“Guys like that will take a mile if you give them an inch.” He looked at me and asked, “He’s never tried anything with you, has he?” The iciness in his gaze and stiffness of his jaw gave me a little thrill.
“No, nothing like that. He’s just made borderline inappropriate comments every now and then. To be fair, I’ve never told him to stop; I just ignore it.” Gavin nodded and I asked curiously, “Are you going to take in your resume?” Even though Mr. Seagraves made a shitty first impression, the company was great. If I had any qualms about Gavin’s safety, I’d tell him to run for the hills.
“I’ll think about it.”
It was fair; as much as I would like Gavin to join my company and potentially my team, the most important things were his comfort and needs. Whatever direction he wanted his career to go, I wanted to help.
So, I guided Gavin around the room and introduced him to my coworkers. A few of them asked if he was my son, which made sense, given that he was the same age as Wade. It was strange, though; the more time I spent with Gavin, the less I noticed our age gap. I chalked it up to his maturity and charm. All I knew was that I greatly enjoyed being near him.
And speaking of his charm, it was on display for everyone we met. He had each person either in stitches or hanging onto every word he said. We even found ourselves talking to a group of people which included Mr. Seagraves again. He behaved himself this time and he and Gavin held an actual conversation.
When Mr. Seagraves asked what he was looking for in his career, Gavin told him he was looking to work in a collaborative environment. He enjoyed brainstorming with both clients and colleagues to build the best campaign possible. He said it was important to capture the client's vision while applying design expertise.
His answer impressed more than just my boss and myself. Several of my colleagues told him about job openings they knew of around town, while others encouraged Mr. Seagraves to ‘snatch Gavin up’ before our competitors could. With the positive buzz going around, I had a feeling there would be a bidding war for him before he finally settled somewhere.
“Are you hungry?” I asked when we finally broke away from a chatty group.
“I'm starving.”
I led him to the long table which was filled with goodies. We each grabbed a plate and began loading up. Gavin arranged some fruit onto his dish before eyeing the watermelon. “How the hell is anyone supposed to eat this?” I chuckled at the same question I'd asked myself earlier as we went down the line.
“You don't want those,” I warned Gavin as he used a pair of tongs to reach for an egg roll. “They've served them to us before,” I explained at his curious look. “They've got crab meat in them.”
A sweet smile crossed his lips. “You remembered my shellfish allergy.”
“Of course I remember,” I shrugged. For years, I'd double checked menus and groceries to ensure his safety, and I was happy to do it.
Gavin reached out and rested his hand on my arm. “Well, I think it's very sweet.” The longer his hand lingered, the faster my heart raced. This was unlike any touch we'd shared; it felt more than friendly, especially since it was paired with a heated gaze. Unsure what to do, I just stood there staring back at him until he removed his hand, leaving my arm feeling cold. He went back to filling his plate, but it took a few moments for me to snap out of my trance and move again.