There was no doubt in my mind that she wouldn’t be getting her way with me.
Dialing my brother, I toed off my shoes under the desk and undid the top button of my shirt, flexing my back against the hard back of the chair.
There were distant sounds of a baby crying when he answered.“Hey, Sam.How’d the first meeting with the staff go?”
Mostly well.With one exception.“Acceptable.”
“Acceptable?”He didn’t believe me and sounded happy about it.
“For the most part.Tiffany will be a handful.”Instinctively, I looked over at the empty chair, still seeing the ghost of her.Unique and bold.She was as magnetic as she was frustrating.
“She always is.”
“Only because you let her walk all over you.”
“Brother, you’ll soon find that you don’tletTiffany do anything.”
It was easy to believe that.Already she’d shown how quickly she was provoked, telegraphing her every feeling.How emotionally driven she was.It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, but passion did not make for good business decisions.It was exactly why I prided myself on my planning and strategy.
I liked things that made sense.And Tiffany was illogical.“Actually, I think you’ll both find I can be quite immovable when I want to be.”
“That, I can believe.”
“How are Imogen and the baby?”
“Good.We’re still working on night feeds, but it’s easier now that I’m home more.Thanks again for taking the bar off my hands so I could do this.”
“It was an easy decision.You and Imogen have been through so much with the IVF.I know how much it meant for you both to finally have a family.”We both knew it had more to do with my circumstances than his, but he was kind enough not to say anything.
“Thank you.It means a lot.You should come over and meet your niece now that you’re back.”
“I will.I’m still waiting on a few boxes to arrive from over west, not to mention all this paperwork I need to work through.You know, for an accountant, you have a hell of a way of being disorganized, Harry.”
His throaty laugh was all too familiar and something I hadn’t heard in a long time.It twisted the guilt and nostalgia that had been building in my gut since I’d stepped off the plane two days ago, reminding me of how long it had been since I felt close to him.The last decade of my life had been lived on the other side of the country, focused entirely on work and very little else.Due to my lackluster efforts, we’d barely seen each other outside of special occasions and, unfortunately, our parents’ funerals.
“Can’t do much about it from here, I’m afraid.Besides, anything outside of the money was Tiffany’s realm.You’ll need to work with her to wrap your head around it.”
I grimaced.“I was afraid you’d say that.”
“Don’t be like that.It was a good thing.I didn’t know what I was doing, and the bar wouldn’t have made it without her.”
Harry confirming her statement was not what I wanted to hear.No wonder she was so insufferable.She’d been right.
Not that I would ever tell her that.
As I let out an unimpressed hum, Harry chuckled.“Welcome back, baby brother.A lot has changed since you were here, but it can’t be worse than what you left behind.”He didn’t need to remind me twice.
Nine years.It had been nine years since I’d packed a bag for the other side of the country and taken a chance on my future.I’d left my family behind and gone as far as I could go, convinced I could make something of myself.
And I had.
It had been a long shot, but over time, I’d learned that I quite liked disproving other people’s expectations.Of putting in the work to move beyond the “shoulds” that everyone else had thrown at me.
Years of hard work, long hours, double shifts, and pushing myself beyond what I was getting paid for, all in service of my goal.
Until I’d finally had my own bar.Then two.Then three.
And now I was back at square one.
