Caleb hands the folio bag to Beth to set up her boards while I pull my laptop out of my oversized bag and fire it up, hoping I remember everything we’ve gone over. I’m used to meeting with clients who have already been signed on with Caleb’s company, Heart Assets. They’re handed to me when the fun stuff starts: colours, styles, vibes. Bringing their branding vision to life is where my creativity goes into overdrive. Caleb and I fiddle with the cords and settings, testing the presentation on the projector screen as I remind myself I do actually know what I’m doing.
Beth clears her throat. “Excuse me, big brother.”
“Yes.” Caleb and Gage both answer at the same time.
I pause, looking up at the scene. Beth stands at the middle of the table, with three boards facing the chairs at the end, the perfect view for our intended guests to see the interior and exterior designs of Gage’s new whiskey lounge.
It’s an intimate and decadent aesthetic that Beth and I worked on together. I wanted the logo to look masculine and sensual. Beth used my colour palette for the website as inspiration for the design, with aged brass and a rich, earthy green.
“We’re both your big brothers. Was there someone in particular you were after, Beth?” Caleb asks.
“Yes,” Beth says, pointing her nose in the air. “The one sitting on his arse doing nothing, even though this is his business we’ve all travelled to the other side of the country to help him with. And to the High Rollers! I’m sweating through my Chanel right now.”
And she still looks like a goddess. Her acorn brown hair hangs straight down her back, and a pressed black pant suit fits her slender body perfectly.
I look over at Caleb, who’s wearing his usual ensemble of a vest with the sleeves of his dress shirt rolled up to his elbows. His tie today is black, and his glasses are tucked into his breast pocket.
Gage, however, is wearing a black T-shirt that is so tight against his jacked-up arms and torso, it’s criminal.
I love that Caleb lets his staff dress in their own style at the office, which is why I didn’t hesitate to put on my favourite pair of white wide-leg jeans and a beige kimono cardigan. Little white and mustard flowers cover the fabric that almost touches the floor, and there’s a matching dark yellow scarf wrapped around my hair.
Not long into the flight over here, Gage escaped to the bed cabin that was on board. Beth and I chatted for a bit before Caleb insisted we go over our presentation.Again.An hour before landing, Beth announced we needed the bathroom to get ready for the meeting.
Gage walked out, looking all rumpled and soft from sleep, and when Beth ushered me into the bedroom with her, it smelled just like him. Then she promptly dragged me into the bathroom, and my jaw dropped. It was fancier than the one in my apartment.
“Remind me why you couldn’t just buy the old Heart City theatre from them?” I ask, attempting to diffuse the tension amongst the siblings.
“Because that part of the land is included in the casino’s property deed,” Caleb says. “They’d have to apply to rezone it before selling it to us. Losing a portion of land will lower the value of the property the casino’s left on. Not to mention, it stops them from using the land later on down the track. As a business move, it wouldn’t make sense for them to limit their potential to expand or further invest. That’s why we want to give them a business to invest in. We then take over the property, and all they have to do is sit back and reap a little of the benefit without really doing anything.” Caleb pulls the clicker for the laptop out of the bag and hands it to me.
I’m nodding my head and popping the connector piece into the USB port when Gage blows out a breath. “Besides, Buttercup,” he starts, and my eyes widen.Was that to me?“The High Rollers are exactly the kind of men who don’t want something until they know someone else does. We’d never get our hands on this space unless we proposed working together.”
Agitated energy emanates off Gage in waves. It’s not the same grumpiness I picked up on through our early phone conversations, or the hesitant approach I’ve noticed since the airport back in Heart City. This feels like worry and doubt. He really wants this to happen. It can’t be from a financial perspective—he and his siblings are worth billions. Something about the whiskey lounge is personal. Sentimental. It makes him that much more alluring. My curiosity is piqued yet again. He’s so different from Beth and Caleb. Why?
Gage leans his elbows on the table and runs a tattooed hand through the long dark brown waves on top of his head. I find myself wanting to reassure him, aching to make it better.
“Don’t worry, Gage. It’ll be fine. I’m sure of it,” I offer.
“Yeah, Henry. Have some faith in us,” Beth says with a cheeky smile.
Caleb drops his head back with a groan that I suspect has something to do with the name Beth just called Gage.
“Caleb Heart.” A voice interrupts us from behind.
Caleb straightens next to me, tugging on the ends of his vest before crossing the room and greeting the man who just spoke. I think I was right to be nervous about this. The four men standing just inside the door definitely give off ‘don’t mess with us’ vibes.
“Jackson King,” Caleb says, extending his hand out to him. “Thanks for meeting with us.”
Beth comes to stand by me with Gage on her other side, and Caleb makes the introductions.
“This is my brother, Gage Heart. He’s the main proprietor of Smoke and Barrel.” Gage steps forward to shake hands with the man Caleb called Jack.
“Our sister, Beth Heart, who has developed the interior and exterior design.” Beth steps forward at the call of her name, offering her hand much the same as Gage did, but at the last second, Jack twists her palm, bringing it towards his mouth. He keeps his eyes on her while he places a barely there kiss on top of her hand. “A pleasure to meet you,” he says.
“Likewise.” Beth pulls her hand away and stands tall, adopting a professional stance.
“And Isabelle Asher, the marketing manager appointed to Smoke and Barrel through Heart Assets.”
“Isabelle,” Jack croons. “What a beautiful name, and so fitting.”
