“Wouldn’t it be easier to leave me here? I just showed you we work well long-distance,” she states, her voice cold.
It’s like the past few minutes while she confided in me were a figment of my imagination. Hayes is right. She might not get past the anger.
“For who?”
“Everyone,” she answers, and it’s like she turns on the switch.
“I’m not here to make your life easier, Ms. Aragon,” I snap. “If I order you to be in Baker’s Creek, you should be hauling your ass down here.”
“You had me fooled for a minute, Mr. Aldridge. It’s always about you.”
No, it’s about you.
Sophia
The days go by faster than I expected. After all the tests the doctor runs, she gives Mom the green light to travel and even suggests she take on swimming if there’s a pool nearby. Once I tell my siblings and cousins that I’m going to take my parents with me for a few weeks, they are delighted. It upsets me because they can’t even pretend that they’ll miss her for at least five minutes.
I understand we’ve been taking care of her for a long time and having a small break might be nice, but fake it in front of the woman. She already feels like a hindrance to all of us, which she’s not.
My brother interviews for the position just for kicks. He has a good job, with a great salary. Even though that’s the case, Merkel would be a better fit for him. Henry offers him the job and when he refuses, I’m not surprised to hear my boss say, “Name your price.”
Needless to say, my oldest brother, Santiago, is now the director of human resources for Merkel Hotels & Spas. We still have a few spots open. We haven’t yet found the right candidates for them, but we’re not in a rush. With the help of Beacon, Henry recorded himself giving an explanation about his absence.
How much the death of the late William Aldridge affected him and his brothers. Not a lie. The man literally turned their worlds upside down once he died. How they are dedicating their time to the town that his ancestors established. When I asked who wrote the statement, it appears Beacon knows more than how to just play music and post pictures on Instagram. He can write speeches too. No wonder it was so moving that I almost shed a few tears. Henry would never create something like that.
As far as the plan to make sure no one misses him, well, he liked my idea of opening a corporate office in Portland. It’s not just about Merkel, but also about his family.
As I explained to him, Hayes is going to stay in Baker’s Creek. Pierce plans on setting up a law practice somewhere close to the town. He’s still unsure of what he’ll do once the eighteen months are over. Mills lives in Vancouver, Canada. It’s only a few hours north of Oregon, and Beacon lives in Seattle. Vance… Well, we have no idea what he does for a living so we can’t plan around him.
What matters is that if he has offices close to his brothers, he can see them often. That idea backfired because searching for a building where we can set up the offices is part of my to do list. Once we set it up I have to decide who will be transferring from New York to Portland.
With Leyla’s help, I buy the furniture for both houses. My parents’ house is ready so they can move in. Mine won’t be until the Thursday after I arrive. Monday comes too soon, and with that, my sentence begins. The movers wrap the few pieces of furniture I own with plastic film. They pack my shoe collection which is already packed up in bigger boxes.
I’m leaving most of my clothes. Just taking the necessities to keep me clothed for the first week or at least until my new wardrobe arrives. On Saturday, I felt like it was time to get brand new attire and spent a few hours in my favorite stores on Fifth Avenue trying on clothes and having them ship everything to Baker’s Creek.
During my shopping spree, I tried to hurt Henry through his wallet, but once I was done I realized that more than a hundred thousand dollars in clothing and accessories is spare change to him.
My parents aren’t taking much since this is a vacation. Mom made me promise her that I wouldn’t move her out of New York. I swore that would never happen, and I told her that for now they’re just visiting me for a couple of weeks—or less if that’s what they prefer. They flew earlier today, using the company’s jet. Santiago flew with them. He wanted to make sure that I truly amtaking them to a safe place.
To piss off Henry, I decided to take a commercial flight. I’ll arrive when and however I choose to do so.
When I get in the car service, I receive a text from him.
Henry: Have a safe trip. Vance will be waiting for you.
I stare at the screen unsure of how to answer his text.
Henry: Your parents and brother have arrived. A heads up would’ve been nice.
“So, Merkel is going under,” Vance says as he picks me up and looks at the luggage. “You travel light. I drove and brought Pierce’s truck thinking you’d have boxes with you.”
“The movers are bringing most of my stuff, and I shipped the rest,” I smirk.
“Something tells me you did something to piss off my brother, and I approve.”
I grin. “So far, I think I’ve scored three points today. It’s my privilege to make his life as miserable as possible.”
“Three?” He counts and then laughs. “Of course, your brother and your parents arriving separately was the first one. I wish I had come with him just to see his face.”
“Me too,” I agree, getting inside the big SUV.
Once we take the highway, he asks me about Merkel’s situation and the inappropriate behavior of the executives. “Sounds like a big deal.”
“Somehow, I think you want to ask something else,” I say.
“Has Henry been inappropriate with his employees? I know that before you he was going through assistants as fast as he drank his coffee.”
“You might’ve noticed that he’s not an easy person to work for.”
“The understatement of the year,” he retorts. “He’s never been an easy person to deal with, but…he’s been better.”
I glance at him wondering what that means, but instead of asking I stick with the conversation. “Exactly, but he’s never taken advantage of his employees. He is an asshole who doesn’t tolerate mistakes, so he tends to fire people on the spot—at least he tries. I make sure to keep the people employed.”
“How about you?”
“Me?”
“Has he been inappropriate with you?”
I study him. He looks a lot like his brother, but Vance is about two inches taller than Henry. His skin is darker, and he has a few more pounds of muscle on him. Those green eyes though, it’s the Aldridge signature. This guy is quiet, and this conversation is uncharacteristic of him. Yet, that last question explains everything.
“The last Sunday I was here, as I was leaving town, I wondered if the cameras you installed were functioning,” I say and then explain, “I was drunk, horny, and lonely. Evidently, I wasn’t thinking and…nothing more than what you saw in the video happened. He’s never taken advantage of me or…you know.”
My cheeks heat up thinking about what he saw and now wondering if all the brothers know what happened between us.