“I sure as hell hope not because if that’s what kind of person you’ve turned into, I did a shit job of raising you.”
Ouch. That would really sting if let it. I make fists and jab them into my hips. “You know what? You should bethankingme. He’s not suing us over his injuries,andhe’s already told me he’s going to have this place booked solid for years to come.”
“Is that how he got you into bed? By promising to pimp out our resort to his rich friends in exchange for a little action?” Harrison’s face twists in disgust. “And what exactly aretheygoing to expect when they get here, huh?”
“Okay, first of all, he has no intention of pimping me out to anyone. In fact, I’m certain he’d be highly insulted by the idea,as am I. Second, are you really accusing me of prostituting myself?Seriously?!” I whisper-yell. “I wouldneverdo that, so for you to stand there and…” I stop mid-sentence, unable to string together the rest of that thought as rage courses through my body. “You know what? Fuck you, Harrison.”
“You’re actually mad atme?You’rethe one in the wrong here. You know that, right?”
“What’s going on between Pierce and me isnoneof your business. All you need to know is that he offered to be an influencer for usbeforeI started sleeping with him. The rest is private.”
“But it’snotprivate, Emma, because he’s a paying guest and I’m your boss.” Harrison sighs deeply and closes his eyes for a long second. When he opens them, his expression is grave. “Do you know why I sent you out here? Becauseyou'rethe person I trust the most in this world—other than Libby, of course. You arethe most importantchef cooking forthe most importantguest we will ever have.You’rethe difference between us being able to provide a home for ourselves and good jobs for the entire staff, and having to hand it all over to the bank and walk away with nothing. And you’ve risked everything for…for what? If things go bad between you two, we have no way of forcing him to keep his word. He can do whatever the hell he wants, includingruinus.”
His words feel like they could very well crush me and I look down to avoid the grief in Harrison’s eyes. I chew on my lip for a second, then say, “He wouldn’t do that.”
“You aresonaïve.”
“I am not,” I say, my anger flaring again. “I know exactly what I’m doing. And no matter what you think of Pierce, he’s a man of his word.”
“Oh yeah? Did he promise to break your heart? Because that’s exactly what he’s going to do.”
“My heart isn’t involved in this, so don’t worry about it.”
Running his hands through his hair, Harrison shakes his head. “That doesn’t make it better, you know. I can’t believe you would put a bit of fun ahead of the needs of everyone who works for us, ahead of your family…after everything I’ve…” He stops himself, but I know he was about to say ‘after everything I’ve done for you.’ “I’ve never been as disappointed in you as I am right now.”
And there it is. I've done the very last thing I wanted to do—I’ve disappointed my big brother. I feel my eyes fill with tears. “I'm sorry, Harrison. I didn’t expect this to happen. I was trying to do the right thing for you, and for the resort, but then…I just got caught up…but I can fix it, okay? I’ll make sure when he leaves, it’s on a good note. It’ll be all right, I promise.”
“You can’t promise that.”
“I’ll do whatever I can to make it right,” I say, wiping the tears from my cheeks.
Harrison gives me a long, hard look, then sighs, but says nothing so I take the opportunity to try to smooth things over. “He’s leaving in like…thirty-six hours. I’ll help him finish his book, then we’ll part ways like two mature adults, and everything will be just fine. You don’t have to worry about anything. Seriously. I know I’ve been reckless, but I’ll make sure everything turns out okay.”
Rubbing the back of his neck, Harrison says. “I don’t have any choice but to say yes, do I?”
“Not really.”
“Fine then, but we arenotdone with this.”
We walk back around the house, neither of us saying anything. When we turn the corner, I see Pierce, who is now standing on the deck with a towel around his waist looking very uncomfortable. Will, however, is stretched out on a lounge chair sipping a beer and wearing an expression of delighted amusement that makes me want to slap the smile off his face.
Harrison ignores Pierce and looks at Will. “We should go.”
Will stands and says, “Great to meet you, Pierce. See you tonight!”
Tonight? WTF?“Umm…what now?”
“You guys are coming to Rosy’s for my welcome home dinner,” Will says with a broad grin.
No effing way is that happening. Shaking my head quickly, I say, “I don’t think so. Pierce is under a seriously tight deadline and—”
“Oh, well, he said he’ll definitely finish in time and he didn’t want to make you miss a big family get-together,” Will says, pointing back at Pierce with his thumb. “Good guy, this one. You picked a good one, Em.”
My mouth hangs open as I watch Will stroll closer. He gives me a light punch on the arm. “Six o’clock. Don’t be late.”
25
So, This is What a Normal Family Dinner is Like…Maybe
