She ignored him. She turned to Stephen. “Mr. McDonald.”

“Hello, Whitney.”

She should probably ask them to call her Ms. Lancaster. Or they should just call her that without her having to ask. But they’d known her since Gordon and her father golfed together and she and Matt hung out at the country club swimming pool.

“This is Oliver Caprinelli, one of the new owners. Oliver, this is Gordon and Matt Perkins and Stephen McDonald.”

“Nice to meet you all,” Ollie said, shaking each man’s hand. “Thanks for stopping by.”

“Nice to meet you too,” Gordon said, taking in Ollie’s disheveled hair from where he’d been running his hand.

Ollie had put a tie on for the meeting and Whitney smiled to herself. That was a huge gesture and she appreciated it. But it was loose at the neck and his shirt wasn’t tucked into his pants tightly and his pants were, well, jeans. He was also wearing Converse tennis shoes.

It didn’t matter. Ollie was an owner of Hot Cakes and had as much, if not more, money than the Perkins men did. And he didn’t really care what they thought. In fact, Whitney would have bet her month’s salary that Ollie didn’t even notice the way Gordon had looked him over.

“Please have a seat, everyone,” Whitney said, pulling her own chair out. “Help yourself to coffee. We won’t keep you long. I know you made a special stop here today.” Whitney took her seat at the head of the table where Aiden usually sat.

She glanced at Ollie out of the corner of her eye. He was looking at his phone again.

It wasn’t rude. She knew he wasn’t ignoring her. He was checking in at the hospital. And she really wanted to know what the text said. He also wasn’t going to be presenting here today. She was fully in charge. He was here as a face for the new owners only.

Piper slipped in just then. She gave everyone a bright smile and asked, “Just seeing if you need anything, Ms. Lancaster.”

Whitney fought her grin. She loved Piper.

“This is Piper Barry,” Whitney introduced. “She’s our executive assistant.”

“Hello, Piper,” Matt said, sitting forward in his chair and giving her a big grin.

Ollie looked up at that. He frowned at Matt and looked over at Piper. He also sat forward in his chair. “Thought you were going down to Buttered Up?”

“Paige is getting things opened up. I thought I’d see if I can help Ms. Lancaster with anything before I go.”

Ollie looked at Whitney, then back to Piper. “I’ve got Ms. Lancaster covered.”

Piper didn’t quite roll her eyes at him, but it was definitely implied. “Ms. Lancaster?” she asked, dismissing Ollie.

“I’m fine, actually,” Whitney said. “But thank you.”

“Absolutely. We’ll talk later.”

“Of course.” Whitney watched as Piper slipped back out.

She was relieved to know that Paige was already at Buttered Up and that Piper was on her way.

She still wanted to get this meeting over with.

That was new. She never wanted to rush through meetings. She always wanted to be sure every T was crossed. Twenty-four hours ago, she’d been excited about this meeting and showing business associates of her father’s and her bosses what she could do. Now she just really wanted to get these men out of here and on the road to Indiana.

“Why don’t we get started?” she said. “In front of you, you’ll see the information I’d like to go over today.”

For the next twenty minutes, she filled them in on the details of the new product and her ideas for the launch and how Perkins Foods could be a part of it. But her mind was only partially on the presentation. She couldn’t stop looking at Ollie who couldn’t seem to stop looking at his phone. What was going on at the hospital? How was everyone?

She wrapped things up without going over the details for the television commercials in local markets or the Facebook ad plan.

“I’d love to hear your thoughts,” she said, closing the folder in front of her.

But just then she noticed Ollie scowling at his phone.

Dammit. What had happened?

Gordon opened his mouth, but Whitney put up a finger. “But if you could just give us one minute, Gordon?” she asked. “I need to speak with Oliver about something pressing. Why don’t we take a short break? You can refill your coffees.” She pushed her chair back and stood. “Please help yourself to more muffins. The restrooms are just down the hall to the left,” she spoke as she moved toward Ollie’s chair. She snagged the sleeve of his shirt and tugged. “Can I see you in my office for a moment?”

He looked confused and it was clear that he hadn’t been paying attention. “Uh, yeah. Sure.” He got to his feet and followed her out the door and to the right.

Once they were in her office she faced him. “What’s wrong?”

“They were going to do a bypass for two blockages. Now it’s three.”

“Dammit.”

He nodded. “Yeah.”

“You should go over there.”

“What?” He frowned. “No. I’ll wait until you’re done.”

“No. Go. You’re worried sick and they would want you there with them. I’ve got this.”

“But—”

“Ollie, what are the in-store displays going to look like?”

“Uh…”

“Come on. Are they going to have alpacas or bobcats on them?”

“Alpacas.”

“Wrong.” She smiled. “Neither.”

He sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m just distracted.”

“I know. And I get it. But I don’t need you in there. I can answer all of their questions. I promise.”

He was thinking about it, she could tell. So she pressed.

“Do you trust me?”

“Of course.”

“Then please go. Take care of your friends. And send me an update as soon as you get there.”

He finally breathed out. “Okay. I know you’ve got this. You’ll be fine without me. I just wanted you to know you were supported.”

She felt her chest warm as she realized that she already knew that. “I do know. The people who need your in-person support right this minute are in Dubuque.”

She wanted those people—all of them but, yes, one in particular—to have everything, and everyone, they needed to feel supported. Ollie being there would make them feel better. He’d make Cam feel better. Piper would too.

“Go get Piper from the bakery. If it’s too busy for Paige on her own, just close it up again. I think Piper needs to be at the hospital too.”

Ollie nodded. “She’s worried.”

“I know.”

Ollie reached out and squeezed her arm. “Go kick ass. I’ll text you.”

“Thanks.”

He left and she stood staring at a door through which someone had left her again. But this was okay. She was where she needed to be.

She rejoined the other men in the conference room. They’d just settled back in with fresh coffee. She smiled as she took her seat.

“Where’s Oliver?” Gordon asked.

“A friend’s mother is in the hospital,” Whitney said. “He left to be with him.”