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“I’m sending Rocco.”
“Oh,” I said, not bothering to cover my disappointment.
“Between you and me,” Mr. Seeger said, “Florida is a dead end. That resort is a well-oiled machine, and there’s not much to be done. You are exactly where you need to be, and I expect great things from you.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“Now, if that is everything, I have a one o’clock golf outing with some investors.”
“That is all.”
“Great. I look forward to seeing what else you do. Have a good day, Ms. Hodge.”
“You too, sir.”
He clicked off and disappeared from the screen. I slumped into the chair and took a deep breath. Part of me was happy to stay in Vine Valley longer than I had expected, but the other part of me, the part that wanted to run at the first sign of conflict, was terrified.
I glanced at my phone, expecting to see one missed call from Laurent. Instead, my phone blew up with notifications. Oddly, they were all coming from social media. Strange, since I barely used the site. I clicked into it, and my eyes practically fell out of their sockets and rolled across my desk. I almost wish they did. At least then I could play it off like I didn’t see the shitstorm Marion just brewed.
“Oh god. No. No. No. This is not happening.” I grabbed my bag and dashed out of the conference room. I smacked the button for the elevator, but it was taking too damn long. I hurried to the stairs, taking them as fast as my heels would let me.
My phone continued vibrating in my hand. I tapped the screen and into the app. Yup, this was happening. The picture of Laurent and me from the engagement party was still there, and so was the caption.
Hank and I are happy to announce that our other daughter is also engaged. Phoebe said yes to her college sweetheart, who recently rekindled their romance. We are pleased to welcome Laurent Grasso of Vine Valley Vineyards into our family.
Not only did she tag me and Laurent, she tagged the vineyard as well. Not surprised now that she knew how much the vineyard was worth. It was just another feather in her hat that gave her the look she always had been so desperate to achieve.
And now the wrong people knew about our fake engagement.
Laurent was going to kill me.
In the lobby, I called over to Lewis.
“Y-Yes, ma’am?”
“I’m heading out. Any issues, please call my cell.” Lewis was not a personal secretary, he was only a desk clerk, but the kid had become a lifesaver, balancing the two positions. He’d be happy when his next paycheck hit, or at least I hoped he would be.
His lips moved, but when words didn’t come, he pointed toward the sitting area in the lobby. I spun around, and my breath caught. There, in the flesh, was Parker. Her blonde hair was pulled into a sleek ponytail and she had on a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt that made her look much younger than twenty-three.
“Phoebe!” she exclaimed.
“Parker, what are you doing here?” I asked as she launched into my arms.
“Surprise!” she said. “Are you surprised?”
Words evaded me for a second, but unlike Lewis, pointing wasn’t going to help me. “Yes.”
“I should have called. I knew I should have called.”
“No, no, it’s okay. I’m just really surprised. Is everything okay? Dad?”
“Fine! Everything and everyone is fine. But you said you’d come to Boston to go dress shopping, and I thought that was so sweet, but you have a job here, and then I thought why don’t I come to you? Besides, Mom already picked out my dress, and you know her. Anyway. There’s this place I follow called The Cakery, and she makes the most beautiful cakes I have ever seen. So I made an appointment to meet with her for a tasting and was hoping you’d be free.”
“Now?” I did not have time for this. Yes, it was sweet of Parker to want to include me, if that’s what this was, but my entire life was minutes away from catastrophic meltdown, and I needed to do damage control.
“Oh no. I wouldn’t spring that on you.”
I bit my tongue at her words, wondering if she picked up on the irony.
