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Mr. Carter glanced at his youngest son before meeting my eyes. “It’s done. We start the process of moving the headquarters to New York on Monday.”
Easton pounded his fist on the table. “Monday? And why the hell would we move an energy company to New York when most of our assets are in Texas?”
The man who was like a second father to me looked at his oldest son. “Those were the terms of the deal.”
“I wouldn’t know. I never saw them,” Easton spat out. I couldn’t remember ever seeing him so worked up, not that I blamed him. The whole thing was completely out of character for his father. He usually involved the three of us in every decision, creating a culture of community. Going rogue was not part of that.
“Carter Energy will operate as a separate division for the next twelve months. The three of you will run that sector.” Mr. Carter spoke robotically, as if referring to something far away from this new reality. One where Carter Energy wouldn’t exist anymore.
Drew cleared his throat and looked at his father in surprise. “What did Mom say about this?”
“Your mother supports whatever we have to do. She and I have made the decision to sell to SPE,” Mr. Carter said. His eyes always brightened when he spoke of Loretta. For all the strength the Carter men had, she was the true backbone of the family. As disappointing as it was, this truly was their choice. Carter Energy was an LLC with Mr. and Mrs. Carter as co-owners. They answered to no one.
“Oh, so Mom knew?” Easton asked, his cheeks turning red in anger. “We’ve always run this company as a family.” He pointed around the table. “Not one of us would ever take a decision of this enormity upon ourselves.”
Our gazes clashed, the sky blue of his eyes a firestorm that shook me. “He’s right. I thought we were looking at all the options. Or did something change?” I cleared my throat and looked away, unable to stand the intensity that crackled between Easton and me. After fifteen years working together, I shouldn’t react to his potency at all. Yet I did.
“We were out of options,” Mr. Carter said firmly.
“The hell we were.” Easton banged his fist against the table again. “What about our family legacy? What about the people who make up this company?”
“I did my best to salvage what I could.” Mr. Carter was one of the most decent men I knew. I wholeheartedly believed he spoke the truth.
“We should have done it.We.”
“I’m sure Dad wouldn’t have made this decision without good reason,” Drew said before turning his attention to me. “And Mulaney had to be in on it since she’s interim CEO. They know what’s best for Carter Energy, right?”
My toes curled in my shoes as I resisted the urge to wring his neck. Every single one of us should have known something. Maybe I was interim CEO, but Drew was Chief Operating Officer. Although he primarily focused on computers, mainly information technology, we all worked together and were aware of the company’s state of affairs.Normally. “I’m in the dark too.”
“Are you?” Easton’s glare was cutting with accusation. “Because you’ve been awfully quiet for a bomb of this magnitude.” He threw his hands up as he moved back to his chair.
I glared as I curled my hands around the edge of the smooth wood table. “I just said I didn’t know.”
The heat in his stare returned, but it was full of anger, matching my own. A wordless argument ensued between us. His jaw ticked. One corner of my mouth twitched. He shoved his fist into his pocket.
He didn’t believe me. It was written all over his face, and that hurt. Given the nature of our relationship over the last few months, his accusation shouldn’t have been a big surprise, yet it was.
“She didn’t know, son,” Mr. Carter said, defending me, his expression kind when he spoke. “I’m not proud we had to do this, but there was no other choice. Please understand, I would never have sold if our options hadn’t run dry. It’s good for us all; you’ll see.”
Easton’s brow furrowed as he looked back and forth between his father and me. “We just lost our family’s namesake. How are all of you sitting there like it’s nothing?” He got up from his chair, sending it rolling again as he stormed from the room, leaving a heavy silence in his wake.
“There wasn’t any other way,” Mr. Carter said, a hint of pleading in his voice for us to understand.
“Don’t worry, Dad. He’ll cool off.” Drew stood. “I’m sure you did what’s best. I’ll go see if I can get him back in here.”
He was barely out the door when Mr. Carter spoke. “You’re quiet.” The man I looked up to deflated, like he was out of energy. The weight of the decision seemed to push him lower in his seat. There had to be more to the sale than he was letting on.
“Not much to say, really. You did what you had to do. No reason to raise hell over something I can’t change, though I wish you would’ve talked to me.” I slipped off my heels under the table and relaxed into my chair as my irritation simmered.
“Easton’s so angry.”
“You would be too.” They both had a fiery temper, especially when things didn’t go their way.
He snorted as I got up and moved to the side bar, grabbing a decanter of whiskey and two glasses. I poured each of us a healthy amount and slid a drink across the polished mahogany surface.
Mr. Carter gratefully accepted, draining his glass in one swallow.
“What happens now?” I barely tasted the whiskey as disappointment sank in.
