“Good. Then it’s settled.” She sounds victorious, leaning back in her leather chair.
I sigh. “This place isn’t so bad.”
Her smile lights up her eyes and it makes her look younger.
“It reminded me of where I lived when I was little. I told you about my brother who still lives in the area. I thought it would do you good to get back to my family’s roots for a while.”
“The mysterious uncle I’ve never met? What a fun reunion.”
“Kenneth is a good man. He’s excited to meet you.”
“Why hasn’t he visited if he wants to meet me so much?”
My mother’s face contorts with regret and apologies.
“Let me guess, father dearest didn’t approve.”
Why am I not surprised? Family ties were not relevant in my father’s eyes. Sometimes I felt he’d leave me behind without a second thought if I weren’t his heir.
I’ve done more rehab and check-ups than necessary, but it still wasn’t enough for my mother. The only reason I’m willing to follow her insane timeline for going backto work is because my father passed away three years ago and she’s afraid she’ll lose me too. I see it in the way she looks at me like she did when I was lying in the hospital bed four months ago.
I can’t bear to break her heart or be the reason she goes through months of sleepless nights again. Losing my father almost killed her too and I won’t let shatter again.
Still, she can’t expect me to put my life on hold. This has been my path since the day I was born. My father trained me relentlessly to take over the family business. This is my sole focus and my purpose.
I didn’t leave or rebel even after the horrible graduation gift he gave me. My mother begged me to stay. I loved her but she was blind to the real him. He didn’t do it to protect me. But to control me so I’d never step outside of the lines he drew.
He was prospecting the field for a suitable wife to birth the next heir, right before he died. I had no choice in the matter, and I couldn’t get out of it if I wanted to inherit the company. What was the alternative? His dreams were my dreams, his goals my own.
Thankfully, the company is in good hands in my absence. Jackie was always a willing student. Passionate about finances and tech, even though our father never saw her as more than a future socialite wife. I didn’t understand this side of him. He allowed her to shadow us just so she’d stop pestering him.
This is something I can control. The breath out every time my feet hit the narrow uneven path along the lakeshore. The rhythm I set under the shadow of the pines bordering the way. I burn through my frustration with each mile. After months of slowly regaining my strength and endurance, I’m back to my running routine. And I don’t intend to slip up.
A sense of satisfaction drives me for the last yards to the cabin. I’m drenched in sweat, my T-shirt and running shorts clinging like a second skin.
Eliza is already back, with her laptop on the couch, biting her nails. I hate that habit on people. She didn’t hear me and it gives me a few seconds to notice the delicate slopes of her profile.
“Why are you here?” It comes out harsher than I meant. It’s the default mood I can’t shake off.
She jumps in her seat but instead of answering, her mouth forms a silent “Oh”. Her eyes travel along my body and it’s amusing to witness her reaction. It gives my ego a boost it badly needs. Dating wasn’t a priority during recovery.
I clear my throat and she shakes out of her trance. The top of her ears redden and the way her neck contracts when she swallows uncomfortably hypnotizes me for a moment. I get the surprising urge to trace the movement with my thumb and press on her pulse point to feel it thumping against my skin.
“It’s been a short day.” Her voice is low, bordering on husky, and for the first time in months my lower abdomen twinges so lightly I could have missed it. It’s a relief that comes at the worst time. I don’t want to get hard for this messy woman. So I turn on my heels with a curt nod and head straight to the bathroom for a shower.
Eliza’s voice stops me. “Where did you go running?”
“It doesn’t concern you.”
She’s stuck on a silent word that fizzles out, then her arched eyebrows knit together making her nose scrunch.
“I get that you’re a private person. You don’t have to repeat it like I’m a toddler.” She tucks her hair behind her ear, her mouth a hard line. “I thought you’d want to know how to avoid bears around here. But suit yourself.” She turns back to the laptop and hate-types, hitting the keys with unnecessary force.
“Bears? Really?” I ask incredulously.
“Feel free to Google it. Or don’t. The cabin’s been paid for three months, so I don’t care.” She doesn’t look at me and I deserve her cold shoulder. It’s not her fault my body remembered I haven’t had sex in months.
This version of her is quite entertaining. Not afraid to say what’s on her mind. Feisty.
