Caleb rubbed his hands together. “You got us here with ten minutes to spare before the meeting.”
“Well, you know how much Hattie despises lateness,” Landon said, chuckling. It wasn’t unlike their grandmother to call someone on the carpet if they weren’t on time. And she didn’t play favorites either. She would do it to her ownflesh and blood in a heartbeat. He winced at the memory of having been late to one of her meetings. Ouch! She hadn’t spared his feelings one bit. Landon knew firsthand that no one in this world wanted to be on the receiving end of Hattie’s sharp tongue.
As soon as they entered the building, they were greeted by abundant signs of the holiday season. A huge Christmas tree sat in the foyer, adorned with brightly colored bulbs and beautiful ornaments. Garlands of tinsel hung from the stairwell. Festive wreaths were all around them, and strings of candy canes decorated the check-in desk.
“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas,” Landon said, nodding approvingly.
“Thanksgiving was just two days ago,” Caleb wailed.
The brothers wasted no time heading to the conference room. The side table was laden with a large tray of breakfast pastries—croissants, bagels, Danish. About a half dozen of their colleagues were already in the room, talking to Xavier, who was in the middle of the group answering questions about his honeymoon.
“Athens was amazing,” Xavier gushed. “We almost didn’t want to leave.” He let out a holler as soon as he spotted Landon and Caleb. Within seconds they were being swept up in a huge bear hug from their older brother.
The Three Musketeers back together again. For Landon, this was the lure that was pulling him toward making the decision to stay in Moose Falls. Being around Xavier and Caleb on a daily basis never got old. Working at the same company as them and alongside Hattie almost made up for not being able to work in a research lab.
Just before the meeting’s start time, Hattie came whizzingthrough the door on a mobility scooter. Jacques, her romantic partner and majordomo, was two steps behind her.
“Take it easy,” Caleb heard Jacques say in a low voice.
“No time for that,” Hattie quipped as she steered herself toward her position at the head of the table. She clapped her hands together. “Just in the nick of time. If it hadn’t been for a huge moose in the road, I would’ve been here fifteen minutes ago. That’s Alaska for you. Always expect the unexpected.” She let out a throaty laugh. “Let’s get down to business, shall we? A wonderful idea came to me last night, and I cannot wait to share it with all of you.” She wiggled her eyebrows and looked around the table, pausing to send Landon a pointed look.
Landon had no idea what Hattie was up to (he usually didn’t), but he knew instinctively that her plans somehow involved him.
