“I’m really sorry, Lilly,” Tessa says gently.
“Thanks. But it’s definitely for the best.”
“Well, in that case, this is actually going to be perfect,” she says, her tone brightening again. “Because the position comes with accommodation. It’s a complete change ofscenery. Fresh air and mountains. A literal fresh start.”
Fresh start.
My grip tightens on my phone. “When do they need someone to start?”
“As soon as possible.”
“That works.” I laugh a little. “Because I have nothing keeping me here.”
We go over the details, including the name and address of a remote mountain town I’ve never heard of. By the time we’re done, the hollow feeling in my chest has eased enough to let in something else. Hope and even a little bit of excitement for the future.
Before we hang up, Tessa’s voice softens again. “Lilly, I don’t know what happened, and you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to. I never thought Barrett was good enough for you. But I’m really glad you’re not marrying him.”
A surprised laugh escapes me.
“Me too, Tessa,” I say. “Me too.”
Chapter Three
Luke
For the thirdday in a row, I can’t find the file I need. Not because it’s not here. Iknowit’s here. I just don’t know where.
I’ve torn my office apart, and I still can’t find it.
Tessa’s voice has started to play in a constant loop in my head.Piles aren’t a system. It’s chaos.
Worse, I’m starting to believe she might be right.
The amount of time I waste looking for the files that should beright where I left themis starting to become problematic. Even if I hate to admit it.
And I do.
Ireallydo.
“Dammit.” I straighten, take a deep breath, and scan the chaos again. “I don’t need help.” I scrub my hand over my face and tug my beard, not really sure who I’m trying to convince. Myself or the mess that once again isproving I’m a liar.
I built this company from the ground up. When I was still in the service, I started investing some of my own money. Twenty dollars here, fifty there. I liked the challenge of doing something so different. Something that involved researching the companies I wanted to invest in, crunching numbers, and taking educated guesses.
Something where it was just a few dollars on the line, and not someone else’s life. It felt less risky, and somehow that made it kind of fun. For the first time, my decisions weren’t life and death; they were just financial. And that felt a whole lot less important.
Even after I started increasing the amount of money I was investing, it still feltsafer.After all, it was just money. Maybe it was the fact that I didn’t feel the pressure of investing that helped me make those good decisions early on? Maybe I just had a knack for it? I’m still not sure what it was, but whatever it was, it worked.
Soon, my military brothers were askingme for help with their money. With a few good decisions, and maybe a little bit of luck, I turned our meagre investments into something substantial. That first big windfall was when we bought all the land out in Iron Peak. It felt like we were buying the whole mountain, and between the five of us, we almost did.
We were young and idealistic, and our time in the service hadn’t damaged us…yet. We were full of plans to retire with our pockets full of money, build our dream houses, and move our pretty little wives up to the mountain and raise families together.
We were such idiots back then.
I shake my head with the memory. Life hadn’t worked out that way. Not at all. What we hadn’t counted on was how our time in the service would harden us. Turning us into grumpy, withdrawn versions of those young men full of hope and excitement for the future.
My marriage with Cheryl had fallen apart, some of the other guys didn’t even bother trying to find women who would put up with them. Those who didn’t have any better luck than I did. When we did finally get discharged and move out to the mountain, we’d all done it alone.
All but Sawyer, who’d stayed.
