Remember the birthday lunch when I said someone should marry you? I remember. I'm going to be honest with you. I did not think that was going to work out as well as it worked out. Darius looked at him.
Nothing has been announced, brother. Marcus spread his hands. You don't need an announcement. I have eyes. He pushed off the door frame.
I'm very proud of myself for the record. That was some of my best work. Get back to work, Marcus. Already. He paused.
Congratulations, man. For real. All of it. Darius nodded once. Thank you.
After Marcus left, Darius sat at his desk for a moment in the quiet. He thought about 14 months ago walking into this building with his daughter's tie and his mother's advice and the desperate private need of a man rebuilding his life from the bottom. He thought about a hallway and spilled coffee and a woman whose strand of hair had come loose at the temple. He thought about a birthday lunch and a folded note and an elevator that went 40 floors up to a life he hadn't known existed. He thought about Amara at the farmers market.
Holding Victoria's hand, walking her to the strawberries, he thought about what it meant to choose something, not because it was safe, but because it was real. His phone buzzed. A text from Victoria. Board approved the new audit committee structure. Your first formal committee meeting is Thursday.
Eleanor Marsh says she's glad you're officially in the room. He typed back. Tell her I've been in the room for a while. Three dots. Then she said she knows.
She also said, and I'm quoting, "Hold on to that one. " He smiled. Typed, "Smart woman. She had dinner with my father last month. They agreed on you before I did. " He stared at that sentence for a moment. Then before you did, a longer pause this time.
Then I said what I said. He was still smiling when he put the phone down. That evening, he picked Amara up from school and she talked the entire drive home about a project on ecosystems and her strong opinions about which biome was the most interesting rainforest. Obviously, the ocean was too cold and deserts were too dry. And when they got home, she immediately wanted to call Victoria to tell her about the rainforest.