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Gregory wondered when he had become two inches tall, because he felt that way as Martin spat the harsh words Gregory knew he needed to hear. “And here I am, after hearing about it, wondering why she didn’t tell me about it, as if I were entitled to know.”
“Congratulations. You win an award for self-reflection tonight. She probably would have told you, over time. When it wasn’t as fresh in her memory, and you and she continued to develop trust.”
“Trust that I broke by not throwing him out right away.”
“Trust you strained, at least. She left because she doesn’t want to jeopardize your chances with your company. The rest, I imagine you could apologize for. Starting with telling her you’ve told Dawson to fuck straight off.”
Gregory took a deep breath. “Which would lose me the company for sure. And I don’t care, as long as she comes back.”
At last, Martin smiled. “There’s the Greg I know. Between what you have saved and the inevitable severance package, you have plenty to not only live on. You could start a whole new venture. You don’tneedRussell Holdings, my friend.”
“No. I don’t need it, and I don’t need my grandfather’s legacy. I would rather make my own. With Hanna.”
“And about bleeding time, too.”
“Sometimes, I’m slow on the uptake.” He eyed the phone on his desk. “Do I call her tonight? Drive down to the hotel?”
“Tomorrow. Let her have a night to breathe.”
“What if she’s gone?”
“She won’t be. Flights are all booked up.” Martin fished his phone out of his pocket to wave in the air. “I checked. And I might have bought a few seats to ensure all tomorrow’s flights to the United States were full. At the time, I thought I might check in with the both of you in the morning. If it truly weren’t going to work out, I could give her one of the tickets so she wasn’t stuck here. If it was, I prevented a rather inconvenient travel fiasco.”
For the first time since dinner, Gregory felt like laughing. “You devious shit.”
“That’s why you pay me. Take tonight to have a breather. Tomorrow, you solve this.”
“Yes. Starting with Steve Dawson.”Which I should have done to start with. She should never have felt like leaving was the better option. I should have made it clear from the moment Dawson opened his mouth that I would choose Hanna over the company any day.“Thanks, Marty. For stepping in to give me time to fix my mess.”
“We all muck up sometimes. Friends make sure we have a chance to make it right. After they tell us we’ve been idiots.” Martin stood up. “Now, set about getting your shit together. Do you need anything from me?”
“Could you check on Gran? If she’s still awake. She’s been tired since that damned party. Tell her I’m bogged down in this and will come up so she can scold me tomorrow.” A scolding he not only deserved, but looked forward to. Gran’s wisdom was always worth listening to, even when she gave it in theI’m so disappointedtone he hated.
“Glad to.” With a final, warm smile, Martin slipped back out of the office, latch not quite catching as he tugged the door after him.
Gregory leaned back in his chair to watch Martin’s retreating shadow through the crack in the door, too thoughtful to bother getting up to close it. Since his grandfather’s death, he had given everything he could to the company he had inherited. Time. Money. Tears. Sweat. Now, as he contemplated the inevitable loss of the empire his grandfather had built, Gregory wondered why he didn’t feel worse about what most would consider a failure.
Maybe it’s because I now realize there are things Iwon’tgive to it. My morals. My self-respect.
His love. No amount of money, no tradition of business, was worth losing the thing he considered worth most of all.
The screen on his phone lit up as it began to buzz on the desk, ringer still silenced from dinner. Gregory picked it up.I don’t recognize this number. United States area code. Spam callers wouldn’t call overseas, would they? Wait, Hanna never got a SIM card for this country.
He swiped fast to answer the call before the caller could hang up. “This is Gregory.”
A male voice, older and hesitant but still trying to sound firm, replied,“Mister Pierce. I’d like to talk to you about my payment. You’re way past due.”
* * *
“Julia? What are you doing here?”Hanna said.
“Can I come in? Please?” Julia fidgeted her hands in front of her, a nervous gesture Hanna had seen more than once in her time with the Dawsons. Most often, it happened when Steven went on about topics Julia found uncomfortable.
Hanna didn’t move. “Sure. Unless you’re here to accuse me of more things I didn’t do.”
Shame weighed down Julia’s shoulders. “No. I’m here to talk, and to apologize.”
Cautious still, but curious, and dubious that the night could get worse, Hanna stepped back to allow the woman inside. “How did you know I was here?”
