Lukas sits up a little straighter, uncrosses his legs, and plants his elbows on his knees.
“Tal, Mom and Dad are sending you to our newest property in a couple weeks, right?”
“Yeah. I’m totally excited,” I say honestly, ready for a change of scenery, certain the mountain air and a few ski runs on fresh powder are exactly what the doctor ordered.
Our family wealth comes from owning a real estate dynasty. The Devereaux name is on everything from theme parks to Caribbean spa resorts to sports complexes. Our newest acquisition is a ski resort in Ricochet Ridge, Montana. As an avid lover of the mountains and the sport of skiing, my parents assigned this property to my portfolio, putting me in charge of all the rebranding.
“That’s your clean break. You’ll be out there for six months, yeah?” I nod. “Great. Break up with her before you leave and then get the hell out of Dodge. Use that frigid fucking air you love so much to clear your head. Hell, don’t even tell anyone outside of work your real name. Maybe you can make some connections before the money comes into play.”
“You want me to lie to someone to get them to sleep with me?” I ask, my brows shooting to my hairline.
Eloise snorts. “God, you’re so cute, Tal.”
Oh yeah, ‘cute,’that’s the other word I fucking hate.
I throw a pillow at my sister, who is now sitting on the other end of the couch from me.
Lukas scoffs. “It sounds so deceitful when you say it like that. Don’t blatantlylieabout who you are, you weirdo. Just don’t divulge your whole backstory on the first date. And if youdohappen to find someone you like, then yes, tell them who you arebeforeyou sleep with them. Jesus, why do I even have to explain this to you?”
“You’re the one who said,‘don’t even tell anyone outside of work your real name!’”I yell, clearly offended. I love my siblings, but being the youngest sucks sometimes, and that doesn’t change no matter how old I get because they get older, too.
Eloise giggles. It’s a wonderful sound when a thirty-five-year-old woman giggles with joy. “He’s right,” she says to Lukas. “Youdidsay that.”
“You always take his side,” Lukas pouts as he looks at his watch. “Shit. I gotta go. See you guys at Mom and Dad’s for dinner on Thursday.”
Eloise rolls her eyes. “See you tomorrow morning for the board meeting, dumbass.”
Lukas rinses his cup and puts it in my dishwasher. “Hey, is that any way to talk to your favorite brother?”
“I have never once called Talon a dumbass,” Eloise says, throwing me a wink.
“Oh, right. That was me,” Lukas fires back. “Bye, El. Bye,dumbass.”
“Dick,” I mutter with a grin at his retreating back.
“I should get going, too,” Eloise says, standing and stretching her arms overhead. “I have three people to fire tomorrow before the meeting. I’ll need my beauty sleep.”
“Fire? Can’t you at least wait until after the new year? Christmas is in like six weeks!” I say in outrage.
“Yes, dear brother, and these dipshits have been skimming funds from our nonprofits. So, tell me. Do they really deserve to keep their jobs through the holidays…the time of year when the majority of our donations are made?”
I sigh in defeat because I didn’t have any idea that was happening.
“No.Christ,why do people have to be so shitty?”
I know for a fact that every position in our company pays a living wage. I know our top-level managers make enough to fly on private jets and own multiple homes. If there’s one thing my parents do well in business, it’s command respect for their fair business practices. Everyone wants to work at a Devereaux property because we don’t just buy a building andslap our name on it. Weinvest—our time, our money,ourselves.
Which is why my parents are sending me to Ricochet Ridge. This is our first ski resort, and there’s much to learn. They take a very heavyboots-on-the-groundapproach, and I’ll be learning everything from the food/beverage service to housekeeping to equipment rentals, etc. Only once you understand something can you seek to improve it.
Eloise slips into her coat.
“I’m not sure,” she says, answering my rhetorical question. “It’s easy to be overcome by greed.”
“I guess,” I murmur, knowing it’s true, but also that it’s shitty.
I wrap my sister in a hug and show her out, telling her I’ll grab the coffee for tomorrow’s meeting, and then she’s gone.
As I think back over the conversation from the evening, an interesting idea jumps out at me.
