The CEO's Second Chance

Chapter 19

"I didn't expect to see you back in the office so soon after your little Grecian getaway."

"And a good morning to you too, Drake," Ryan replied, not looking up from the papers on his desk. He could see Grolnic's reflection in the windows out of the corner of his eye, stroking the thin, wispy goatee Ryan wondered why he bothered to grow in the first place.

"I suppose you have a lot of work to do, landing that deal with Stavros Shipping and all," he said. "Congratulations, by the way."

"Thanks." He wondered if it hurt Grolnic to get those words out. Ryan continued to flip through the contract he'd been reading, hoping Drake would take a hint and skulk away somewhere else. Normally, he would at least pretend to be polite, but he was in no mood for thinly veiled insults today.

He should be happy, having just sealed the biggest deal of his career. He'd finally conquered his previous failure. He'd surpassed one more obstacle in the way of the CEO position. He should be able to ignore anything Drake Grolnic had to say.

Yet his usual patience failed him this morning. All he could think about was how Sara had shut him down the night before. The frustration of trying so hard not to think about it was putting him on edge. He'd actually thought they were getting closer, that she was developing feelings for him beyond the friendship they shared. Must have been the whole fake relationship scheme playing tricks on his mind. After last night, he knew exactly where he stood.

If only all second chances worked out as easily as the Stavros deal...

"You know, several of us in upper management were quite concerned when Ms. Clarke gave you this assignment, especially considering how it turned out the last time." He took a seat on the small office sofa and kicked his feet back as if he had no intention of leaving anytime soon. It only served to annoy Ryan more.

He released his clenched fist, unconsciously wrapped around the pen in his hand. "I'm sorry to hear of your concerns," he replied, summoning every ounce of patience he had left. "But I guess I've learned a few things since my last go-round with the Stavroses."

He took a deep breath, vowing not to take his already bad mood out on Grolnic. It wasn't his fault Sara was planning to leave him. Again.

He wished he'd never seen that text. It had only flashed on the screen for a moment, but he'd caught the gist. She'd gotten a job offer from someone named Maggie. It had taken a while for him to recall, but it finally clicked. She was Sara's friend in LA. who worked for an organization like Breakthrough. She'd mentioned it when they'd gone to dinner all those weeks ago.

Was Sara really going to leave Breakthrough behind and move across the country? After all she'd done to try to save it?

And leave him behind in the process?

It just didn't make sense. But the more he tried to wrap his head around it, the more frustrated he became.

He'd hoped getting back to the office would distract him from thoughts of her, but so far it hadn't worked. And an early morning encounter with Drake was not going to improve his mood.

"You have made a stunning amount of progress, and in such a short time too," Drake said. "Your mother must be proud. And she must be touched that you'd hurry back from Greece so fast to check on her."

"I came back from Greece because both Sara and I had work to get back to," Ryan snapped. "Why would I need to check on my mother? What are you talking about?"

"Oh, you didn't know?"

His smug tone made Ryan want to punch him, right between his beady little eyes.