Please Me Daddy (Gracie) novel Chapter 118

**Across Distant Skies Lies Hope Waiting To Be Found by Kade Rowan Flint 118**

I missed him.

—

Grace

“The PR team will take care of the publicity aspect, while we focus on sales for the day. Does that sound alright to you, Aiden?”

Sarah, the head of the sales department, was a vision of poise and beauty, her confidence radiating effortlessly as she spoke. I recalled her from the welcome party, where her smile lit up the room, making it feel like she owned every corner of it.

Aiden nodded in agreement, his voice steady and professional. “That’s a more efficient approach. It will save us valuable time.”

As they continued their discussion at the front of the conference room, the rest of us remained seated, scribbling notes or pretending to do so, lost in our own thoughts.

I sat a few seats away, positioned near the window, with a small notepad open before me. My pen danced aimlessly across the page, tracing lazy, meaningless lines that mirrored my scattered thoughts.

Three days.

It had been three long days since Apollo had left the country.

Isn’t it curious how time can slip through your fingers without you even realizing it? One day seamlessly flowed into the next—morning coffee that felt more like a ritual, office banter that faded into the background, evenings spent with friends and the twins, and yet, everything felt so muted. Those three days had passed in a haze, each moment blending into the next.

Work itself wasn’t as unbearable as I had anticipated. After the whole Charles debacle and that ridiculous picture that circulated like wildfire, I had braced myself for the inevitable whispers, the side-eyes, the usual venom that often permeated office spaces. But to my surprise, nothing of the sort occurred. Sure, I could still hear the gossip when they thought I wasn’t listening, but no one had the audacity to confront me directly. Instead, they seemed to turn away when I entered the room, offering smiles that were just a tad too polite as I walked past.

I couldn’t quite fathom what was going on with them. Perhaps they had simply grown bored of the drama. Honestly, I lacked the energy to delve into their motives. Curiosity about such matters was the last thing on my mind.

Eleanor and Wyatt seemed to have picked up on my mood, making earnest attempts to lift my spirits. However, a persistent emptiness gnawed at me each time I stepped into the office. I knew the source of this feeling all too well.

I just didn’t want to face it.

With a slight turn of my head, I glanced out the window. The sunlight streamed through the glass, illuminating the edge of my reflection, a reminder of my own inner turmoil.

I missed him.

Apollo Reed.

There, I had finally acknowledged it, at least in the confines of my mind.

I longed for the soothing cadence of his voice, the way it could somehow quicken my heartbeat. I missed the intensity of his gaze, which lingered just a moment too long, as if he were peeling away my layers with his eyes. I missed his infuriatingly collected demeanor, the way he always seemed to have everything under control. I even missed the warmth of his touch.

How ridiculous was that? He was my boss. Cold, commanding, and maddeningly infuriating, and yet, here I was, missing him.

A quiet sigh escaped my lips as I rested my chin on my hand, feigning interest in my notepad while Sarah and Aiden continued their back-and-forth.

Three days shouldn’t feel this interminable.

Three days shouldn’t feel this hollow.

Eleanor’s words from earlier that morning echoed relentlessly in my mind.

I turned my head anyway, and there she was—arms crossed, that annoyingly smug expression plastered across her face. Someone seated beside her shot her a warning glance, but Piper merely shrugged, as if she were doing everyone a favor by speaking her mind.

“What?” she asked innocently, still smirking. “I’m just stating the truth. She wasn’t focused on the meeting. I honestly don’t understand why people think she’s smart to begin with. She’s always distracted.”

I could feel the weight of every gaze on me once more. For a brief moment, I almost apologized, as the old version of me would have done. But then Eleanor’s voice echoed in my mind.

You might be catching feelings for him.

Maybe I was. Maybe I wasn’t. But one thing was certain: if I could handle Apollo Reed, I could certainly handle a snake like Piper.

I smiled, tilting my head slightly. “Then what did you learn, Piper?”

Her face drained of color instantly, as if all the blood had rushed away. “W-what?” she stammered.

“I said,” I repeated calmly, maintaining my smile, “what did you learn from the meeting? Since you’re so smart, why don’t you enlighten us?”

Piper swallowed hard, her confidence wavering. She let out a nervous little laugh, forcing a grin that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “You’re delusional; I know what you’re trying to do. You’re just trying to divert attention away from yourself and onto me.”

Straightening her shoulders, she attempted to regain her earlier bravado, adding, “Tell us first, and then I’ll share what I learned.”

Aiden let out a heavy sigh beside us, rubbing the bridge of his nose in exasperation. “This is completely unnecessary. Do we really have to do this?”

“Yes, we must, sir,” Piper said quickly, seizing the opportunity. “This is a crucial discussion. Any employee who doesn’t take this seriously should be reprimanded. Especially when the boss has such high expectations for her.”

She turned back to me, chin held high. “So, Grace, what did you learn? Or do you have a better idea for how we can approach the event?”