My apartment is far too nice for the salary I make, but our family owns the building, and wanted me to have somewhere safe to live.
I drop my keys off by the front door and look at my face in the mirror above the entry table. There’s still some redness on my cheekbone, but it doesn’t look too bad.
But then I look at myself, really look at myself, and I hate what I see.
I know I’m beautiful with long honey blonde hair and blue eyes. A simple classic structure to my face, and clear skin. Butbeing beautiful isn’t enough to make someone love you, I should know, seeing as I don’t even love myself.
I wallow around to my bedroom, just stripping out of my clothes and climbing into my luxurious bed.
Now that I’m alone, I finally let my tears flow freely. I’m not sure what hurts worse, the fact that Jameson physically assaulted me or that Lincoln was able to read all my insecurities so clearly.
All I know is something has got to change before I’m broken for good.
2
FIXER UPPER
My assistant,Marie, brings me my preferred coffee. She places it on the same leather coaster every morning, just as she starts going through my scheduled day.
I’m the only one who had any interest in the family business. It doesn’t help that I was urged by my father and uncle for this path. It’s not that I hate my job, or have aspirations for anything different, I’m just on auto-pilot. I don’t find the same joy in the company that I used to, I suppose that extends to everything else in my life. Every day feels like a gloomy day, even in the bright disturbing sunshine that haunts me outside my office window.
“Krystal will be here this evening to discuss the conference in the fall to determine who from the team is going and what arrangements need to be made.”
“Fuck, already?” I complain. The trade show features the same assholes every year followed by a circle jerk awards ceremony to measure dicks and strangle our pockets.
“Things book up quickly, and we need to finalize which employees are going to be nominated and who has a reason to go to the show.”
Marie is no bullshit, efficient, and effortlessly in love with her husband. She makes my life easier, and there’s literally not a flicker of sexual desire between either of us. I do my best to keep her happy so she doesn’t leave me to work with someone with a better disposition.
I’d never had an interest in any of my employees before, and I don’t plan to start anytime soon. There’s work, Avalon, and my family. I don’t need anything to fill the spaces between that.
“The forms are in your email about the categories. I’ve already filled out who I think would be the best nominations in sales, marketing, and we will need to submit for design of the year. Krystal will handle the hotel and corporate events while in Vegas.”
“Thank you, Marie.”
“Oh, and your dad called. He’s picking you up to go to lunch.” She drops that bomb before turning away and leaving my office.
Typical.
He stepped down and had me take over Carlson Commercial Enterprises, yet the old man can’t seem to let go.
I open Marie’s email and scrub my face; I was half asleep when Penny texted me last night and I couldn’t fall asleep after. I knew I was being too hard on her, but I was so fucking angry.
It’s frustrating watching her never reach her potential. She’s smart and capable but dates the biggest losers you could imagine, but more than anything, that man putting hands on her nearly sent me over the edge. I’ve always had a slight protectiveness over my cousin. Maybe it’s because we always felt like the odd ones out.
My oldest brother, Aiden, had his sights on professional baseball early on and it was his life. My younger twin brothers, Gavin and Benjamin, have been connected at the hip since birth. So it left me the ornery middle child, and the cousin who took a significant amount of time to piece together with the family.I’m seven years older than my twin brothers and Penny, so I remember watching her slow evolution into getting comfortable around all of us. Well, mostly.
I should text her, make sure that she’s alright, and that she doesn’t go back to that dick bag lawyer’s house. But she’s a grown ass woman, and it’s none of my business what she does with her life.
Marie’s email is thorough and I add a few employees in for awards, in total, twenty of us will be attending the event in October. I forward the email to both Marie and Krystal while I look over the plans for the land we want to purchase towards the border.
The day flies by as lunch time hits and my dad comes strolling into the office like he owns the place—technically he does.
“Pizza sound good?” he asks, looking over the space that used to be his corner office, which is now mine.
“That works,” I tell him as I shut down my computer, grab my phone and wallet, and head outside into the sweltering fucking sun that seems to spite me.
My dad drives because he’s a control freak who can’t let go—maybe it’s genetic.
