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Oh yeah. She had suggested I bring in someone else to assist Elianna until the end of the year, and had even recommended someone she knew with a lot of experience. I wasn’t aware he had actually arrived.
“What happened?” I still don’t have any answers.
“Your little Elianna made a very big boo-boo. Didn’t properly record the correct date or time the hotel group from Maine was coming. Sebastian, they came today. They’re all here. And there’s no CEO to be found.”
“No.” This looks bad. So bad. This company is a big deal. The acquisition is a big deal. I was supposed to be there to instill confidence in them—to show them how we run our company and that we’ll be good stewards over theirs.
Rowena clicks her tongue. “Oliver’s with them, but they only had the one day scheduled here, so even if you were to fly back now, you’d be too late.”
“I’ll get them on a video call right now. We can still do this.”
“You can try, but they’re not happy. Sebastian, Elianna isn’t equipped for this job. I’ve got the new guy on clean up, but I have to say, when Elianna started crying today, it really made those Home Away from Home guys uncomfortable.”
My chest sears with apprehension, with concern for Elianna. But there’s also anger and fear. I ache for her. I know she feels terrible. But how could she have mixed up the date?
“I’ll take care of Elianna.” A protective surge goes through me. “And just so you know, for how little experience she has, she’s done a phenomenal job.”
“For how little experience . . .? Sebastian, defending her isn’t going to get those clients back. You hired me to get you to the next level. And you can’t do that with her here. Get rid of her. Keep my guy on and hire someone else if you have to. But you have to listen to me because I get people the results they need.”
“I appreciate all you’ve done, Rowena.” She has provided insights about our inner workings I never would have been able to see on my own, and being accountable to her has helped me refine my processes. “But this is my company. You let me take care of the hirings and firings, okay?”
I hang up and try calling Oliver and Alec, with no luck.
I need to call Elianna. I need to reassure her that it’s okay. I don’t want her to be in pain over this. But there’s a lot I have to sort out in my mind, too. And I am angry I’m not there. I have to figure out how not to lose Home Away from Home’s properties.
I pace the hall, my head aching, my hands sore from balling them up so tightly. I send Elianna a text, not sure at all of what to say, but having to say something to help her out.
It’s okay. We all make mistakes. Please try not to worry about it.
The thing is, it isn’t okay. And while we all make mistakes, of course she’s going to worry about it. We all are until this gets resolved.
I try calling Oliver again and this time he picks up.
“This is not good,” Oliver says.
“I know. Can you hold them off? Ask them to stay another day there at the resort free of charge? Maybe if you comp a motorboat and some skis, they’ll be okay with staying. And then I’ll get back and we’ll figure it all out.”
“I have asked them to stay, but they can’t. They have a family wedding tomorrow. It’s not going to work out, Sebastian. Now look, I’ve given them a tour of the place, and they’re about ready to eat at The Summit. I’ve been the charismatic leader you hired me to be—” He pauses to laugh. “But they keep saying how they’ll have to revisit the idea of an acquisition later.”
“But we’re already so far into the process. They can’t do this.”
Oliver breathes heavily. “They had some changes to their terms and wanted to discuss it with you in person. They’re shy about this, and having you miss this has made them even more skittish. It’s a family company, so it’s hard to sell it to someone else, you know. They said they want to try to get it done—if they still want to—next quarter.”
My heart squeezes closed. “But that’s next year. It has to be this year.”
“Why?”
The frustration of all these years culminates. I’m sick of this. Of hanging on to this dream that was dumb to begin with. It comes tumbling out like gag peanuts out of a can. “Because we have to reach the Deca Arete list, Oliver. It has to be this year—our tenth in business. I’ve already applied, and they’re already looking at our numbers. Dad did it, so we have to.” He starts to respond, but I interrupt him. “I know. I know it’s not healthy. I know it doesn’t make sense. But it has to be done.”
Oliver waits a beat. Then two. “Why didn’t you tell me about this sooner?”
“I didn’t want to drag you down. I wanted to keep it to myself. It’s a goal for me and about me, no one else.”
“But you could have told me. I could have been more supportive instead of thinking you’d never be satisfied with all that we’ve done. All this time, I thought you just had a big stick up your—”
I’m pacing. “Okay, okay. I get it. I’m sorry I didn’t mention it. I didn’t want to burden you with it.”
“I gotta go. Our table at The Summit is ready. I’ll try to get a feel for what they’re wanting to do, but it’s probably best to let this one go.”
