“I mean, we are offering a competitive package, but even I’m not sure I could afford one of the homes here in London.”
“Yeah, I was browsing places to live, and I would be renting for sure,” I tell him, thinking about the two-bedroom flat I looked at that was being sold for over 1.3 million pounds.
“I think once you move here, you will see why most of us commute from outside the city to work.”
I smile. “I see what you did there. I’m not sold on the job, you know. Besides, I thought this was interviewing me.”
“Oh, we know we want you. We have seen the things you have done. I have had my eye on you for quite some time. I’m sure you don’t remember, but we actually met once before. I didn’t work for Astor Conglomerate back then. I was a young lad looking to get my foot in the door. I thought Maximilian was the man to talk to, but you put me in my place. I realized then that no one got to Maximilian without first passing your test. I knew you would amount to way more than the assistant position on your résumé.”
I think back to when he is talking about, but he’s right, I don’t remember. The number of people who try to get to Max is astronomical. I don’t have to deal with that much anymore, but in those first few years, it was crazy. Everyone thought the best way to get in with The Williamson Group was to visit the first established hotel and put in some time.
Under Max’s father and grandfather, that might have been true, but when Max and Mason took over, they changed it up. Sure, you could still promote into the group from the hotels, but more often than not, you still had to start at the ground level once transferred over. It made the playing field even for everyone.
“I’m surprised that I impressed you. I was only doing my job.”
“You did more than your job. I saw what you were working on that day. I watched you for several minutes before I got up the nerve to approach. You were the woman behind the scenes.I knew then that I would kill to work with someone like you,” he says.
“Or for you,” I mutter.
“Not at all. We would be equals. You would be the head of liaison between the hotel and guests. We would be partners. I would be handling the behind the scenes, and you would be the woman out there showing your face. It does require travel, but if you ever cannot take a trip, I would step in and cover you. We would make mutual decisions about the team,” he promises.
It is much like what I do with Max now, except I wouldn’t have to handle the financial aspect. I wouldn’t be responsible for making sure no one was stealing from the company and that all the numbers added up.
I could do what I love. Visit all the properties and make sure things are running smoothly. I would help with design aspects. Hire all the people who make it magical for our guests.
It’s my favorite part of the job without having to do the other stuff.
It’s tempting. So tempting.
“I’m still not sold,” I admit.
“Well, how about I give you a tour and we talk to some people? We can even go out tonight and do karaoke with a few. What do you think?”
I mean, I did stay to give them a shot, so I should do that. Shouldn’t I?
“Show me what you have,” I tell him, knowing that I am walking a dangerous line.
MAX
“I’m surprised you are here,” Mason tells me as he takes a sip of his beer.
Truth is, so am I.
I was meant to be in New York, but when I arrived at the airport, leaving Iris behind, I paid way more than I should have to switch to Boston. I texted Chad and told him to rearrange all of my meetings and that if anything was pressing, to change it to a video call.
I needed to be home. With my family.
“I wanted to visit. Is that a crime?” I mutter.
“Oh no. It isn’t, but it is still a surprise. We usually know when you are coming into town. Instead, you sent out the bat signal to get us all here,” Brantley jokes.
Herehappens to be our favorite bar. The place where we go when we need to get away and be guys for a little while.
Some days I miss when we were barely old enough to drink. We spent many nights at this bar talking about our future. Brantley was planning to go pro. He wanted to play hockey, not own a team. An injury ended that dream, but here he is. Still finding a way to be part of his passion.
Eli wanted to be the math genius he is. He never wanted to be anything but a CFO. I don’t think he realized that he would end up the CFO at the foundation under his girlfriend, but he seems happy. I have never seen the grump smile as much as I do when Adrianna’s name comes up.
Then there’s Mason. He always wanted to be CEO of The Williamson Group. Hewasthe CEO. He had everything he wanted, but then his dream changed. Now he has the girl and theprincess. I couldn’t be happier for the guy, but him getting his new dream meant me not getting mine.
