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Winning races and graduating with high honors were expected by his grandfather, and Quinn respected his expectations. It had fueled Quinn to work harder, as he’d always prided himself on becoming more successful than Chandler, no matter what the cost.
But being back on the island and spending time with Shelley had him wondering more and more why he felt so compelled to surpass his grandfather.
Whose praise was he trying to win?
And what had he given up to do it?
Because he sure as hell didn’t need Chandler to praise him. At least not anymore.
When another knock sounded on his door, he finally got up to pull it open.
Trent took in Quinn’s open, wrinkled dress shirt. “You taking a nap?”
“Yeah, right.” He walked back into the room, leaving Trent to follow. “I’ve got a ton of work to get through before meeting Shelley tonight.”
“You’ll have to do it later. We need to head over to Sierra’s for the five o’clock meeting. And speaking of our sister’s restaurant,” Trent added as Quinn mumbled a curse while gathering his papers and stacking them on the table, “I saw your girlfriend there earlier today.”
For a moment Quinn was taken by surprise that his brother would jump to girlfriend so quickly. But then he grinned. “I’m a seriously lucky bastard, aren’t I? My girlfriend is gorgeous, fun, and intelligent. And for some reason, she actually likes being with me.”
“She seems great,” Trent said. “Really great.”
But Quinn could see there was something more his brother wanted to say to him. “Spit it out.”
“Look,” Trent finally said, “as long as I’ve known you, you don’t have fun with women. You relieve stress, then go back to work. We all do, except Sierra—at least that I know of.”
Quinn gave him a sideways look. Sierra would always be their little sister, no matter how old she got or how strong she was, and he didn’t want to imagine her handling relationships in the same way that he and his brothers often did. Quinn grabbed his room card and shoved it in his pocket, then pulled the door open.
“And your point is?”
“We’ve all got a ton on our plates right now, and despite all that, when you’re at your busiest, Shelley’s gotten to you. But if you’re not careful...” Trent shook his head. “All I’m saying is don’t make the same mistakes I did. I put my career first with Reese, but it turns out that legal briefs are pretty cold company when they’re all you have left. I know you guys are still in the early stages of a relationship, but sometimes when it’s right—” His brother ran a hand over his face, looking terribly uncomfortable. “Hell, you know what I’m trying to say, right?”
Quinn nodded and said, “Sure,” and then mulled over his brother’s comments all the way to Sierra’s restaurant.
He hadn’t wanted to lead Shelley on by promising her something he wasn’t capable of giving, because if there was one thing he had always thought he knew about himself, it was that work came first. Except...it hadn’t for the last few days. What’s more, the thought of working all the time didn’t seem appealing anymore. Not when he was suddenly seeing, and remembering, all the things he was missing out on by spending hour after hour, day after day, locked up in his office.
And not when every second he and Shelley spent together was bringing her deeper into his heart.
No, he definitely wasn’t leading her on. His intentions were clear—in his mind, and in his heart. Now he just needed to figure out a way to make the pieces of his life fit together while keeping Shelley as his top priority.
On one hand, that was an easy task, because she was the one person who was always on his mind.
On the other hand, he instinctively knew that promising and wanting to make changes—and really making those changes—were two very different things.
But Quinn knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was up for the challenge.
At the Hideaway, Quinn sank into the chair beside his mother and kissed her cheek. “Hey, Mom. I haven’t seen you much. How’s your week been?”
“Good,” Abby said with a smile as she touched his cheek. “Full of family, friends, and glassblowing, so I’m perfectly happy.” Their mother had always enjoyed working with glass. She’d had a studio built on their property, and she sold the vases, bowls, and other items she made at the resort gift shop as well as at several galleries in town.
“How about you, honey?” his mother asked. “You’re working so hard, and you look tired. I was hoping that since you had to be back on the island, it might give you an excuse to take some time off.”
His mother never made Quinn or his siblings feel guilty when they didn’t make it home for months at a time. She was simply grateful for the time they did have together. Shelley reminded him of his mother in that way. She wasn’t demanding of his time, and she took nothing for granted. Even her bucket list was filled with sentimental wishes, not grandiose endeavors.
