Chapter 187: The Morning After: Hannah
After a much-needed sleep, Roman and I got up and pattered our way down to the kitchen.
Geoffrey had of course prepared coffee and breakfast for us. I was delighted to see French toast with seasonal fruit and cream cheese.
As we settled in, I noticed a stack of papers at the head of the table. I scooted the pile closer and asked, "What’s all this?"
"Must be the receipts and ledgers from last night. I had one of the guys run it to my accountant to compile for you," Roman replied before taking a long sip of his coffee.
I drummed my fingers against the top folder excitedly before I finally opened it. The prices of each art piece sold, the dresses, and all donations were put onto a spreadsheet. The cost of the catering and everything else was then subtracted. My eyes scanned over all the details before I finally had to flip the page and found my way to the bottom.
I gawked.
"What’s the prognosis?" Roman asked.
"We..." I began, but my voice died in my throat.
"Is it bad?" he asked, his voice a little more cautious.
Shaking my head, I slid the folder to him. "We made one point two million dollars. In a single night."
Roman’s eyes widened in surprise, but then smiled and looked back down to the paper. "That includes subtracting the cost of the event?"
I nodded. "From where the auction items were donated and you own the event center, the only things we really paid for was catering and staffing for the venue for the night. And security."
"That’s amazing," he grinned. "Imagine doing this seasonally. They normally decrease in attendance and such after the first one, of course, but it would likely be enough to make your business fully self-sustained."
"You think so?" I asked with a nervous smile.
He nodded with a big grin. "Absolutely. I think you have some serious potential here. Great job, Hannah."
"Thank you," I beamed.
As I began to eat my breakfast, I looked down to the pile of receipts and flipped through. It seemed like most of the large donations were purely cash donations, and the next being the paintings. That made sense, though I was still in awe so many people were generous with their donations. So many people dropped tens of thousands of dollars, entrusting me with their money, to do the right thing by the women I was aiming to help.
"I think we are going to be able to start way sooner than we thought," I breathed.
He nodded and closed the folder. "Definitely. Just a matter of staffing now, and getting feet on the ground to find these women in need. I would use a portion of those funds towards ads, just a couple of days before launch. That way, the word gets out. Start building a brand, it’s how people start to trust you."
"It’s all a little overwhelming," I breathed.
After just another moment, I tucked the papers away, needing to let the information soak in rather than sit and stare at it. My foundation had not even launched yet, and it was already worth more than a million dollars. I just couldn’t believe it.
While I knew it wasn’t my money to spend on things like food and shopping for myself, I had never been in possession of so much money that I had earned for myself. It felt good. No, it felt amazing that every time I needed various supplies or anything else, that I wouldn’t have to slide Roman’s card. Finally, there was something that was completely mine.
Roman’s hand reached across the table and squeezed my hand.
"Take it one step at a time. Maybe now is a good time to look into getting an assistant."
"An assistant? Do you think that’s necessary?" I asked.
He shrugged. "I don’t think it’s absolutely necessary, but it makes things easier. They’ll be able to help with scheduling, daily office tasks, and things like that. We also need to get you someone to do payroll."
"There’s so much more than I realized that would go into this," I muttered, trying to sort through it all in my head. I nodded, though. "I think you’re right. An assistant will help get things started. Maybe make it a temporary position that may be permanent?"
"That’s a good approach," he nodded. "I can help you make the job posting."
I beamed and nodded. "Let’s do that after breakfast. I’m so excited."
"I’m excited for you," he smiled.
We resumed eating our breakfast and drinking our coffee. As we did, the night before began to lose its rosy tint. The glam, the lights, the laughter and dancing all sort of fell to the wayside.
There was one glaring moment that we had managed to forget about all morning because of the love and excitement that we had been experiencing.
Someone unexpected had been at the gala, and he was driving a car that I recognized from following me around. Security was going to yet again crack down. Marcus and Ed were supposed to be by today.
Yup, there it was—reality.
Getting up from the table without a word, I went to get some more coffee. If I was going to make it through whatever that day had planned for me, I was pretty sure I was going to need all of the help I could get. Liquid or otherwise. I realized in that moment I wasn’t hungover and was forever grateful for that. It was the last thing I needed for the day. I found myself thinking maybe there was a God and, while he couldn’t be bothered to smite the members of the Auction House, he could spare me from a hangover after all the wine and cocktails so that I could have an easier time dealing with the aftermath of the Auction House.
As I stirred in enough sugar to give me a cavity, Roman hugged my waist.
"Remember what you told me. This is going to pass," he said in a low tone.
"Is my mood that noticeable?" I asked, giving him a wry smile.
He nodded and smirked. "I just know you too well. Could tell by the tension in your shoulders."
He then started to rub my shoulders, his thumbs gently massaging into my flesh. I let out a sigh of relief. "Careful, treat me any better and I might get the impression that you’re trying to romance me or seduce me or something."
"Oh, forgive me," Roman chuckled. "I would never ever want you to get that sort of idea. I’m only a gentleman, and nothing less."
"Is that right?" I giggled.
"Oh, Lord. It’s first thing in the morning and this is the kitchen," Lori called from behind us.
We both turned, and I crossed my arms. "Aren’t you in our house though?" I questioned playfully.
"I like to consider this a communal meeting place at this point," she stated, grabbing a cup for coffee of her own. We watched as she made her own coffee as well. "So, are the numbers in?"
I nodded excitedly. "Nearly one and a quarter million dollars."
She gaped at me and then sat her cup down to clap her hands and then throw her arms around my neck.
"That’s so fantastic!" she squealed. "Oh, that’s more than I could have dreamed of. You must be so excited."
"I definitely am," I nodded. "Have enough to pay the staff we’ll need, any additional supplies, advertisement, and so on for at least a year or two. Roman suggested making it a seasonal thing. Maybe fall and spring would be good."
"That’s a fantastic idea, and I hope you look no further than me to help plan," Lori beamed.
"Of course not. Without you, this one wouldn’t have been possible. So thank you," I assured her, stepping closer to hug her once more.
We all went with our fresh coffees and moved to one of the family rooms to be more comfortable.
I pulled out one of my laptops so that Roman and I could make the job listing when possible. However, I knew we first needed to fill Lori into what happened last night.
Taking in a deep breath, I looked at her.
"So, I guess we need to tell you what we saw at the gala last night," I breathed.
"What? Stunning art? Beautifully coordinated dresses? A stuffed donations box?" she asked, batting her lashes at me.
"Yeah," I breathed, but held her gaze to try and get her to see that I was being serious. "But something else, too."
"What is it?" she asked, looking between the two of us.
"We saw someone there but couldn’t get a good look at them. I followed them outside and while I didn’t see them, I saw their car. They are the ones who were following me a few weeks ago. We think it’s likely the Auction House."
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