by Kahele, J
“A pleasure to meet you. Why don’t we sit over here and talk,” I said, waving my hand towards the sofas.
As everyone got comfortable, I walked towards the bar, grabbing a few water bottles. I placed one in front of Christopher as I sat down. “I have looked at your designs and I have to say they are excellent, you have a keen eye for detail.”
He took a swig of his water bottle. “Designing is my passion, I have been doing it since I was a child.”
“Well it shows, Christopher, and we are happy that you took the time to meet with us,” David added.
Christopher laughed. “I didn’t have much choice, my sister is very insistent when she wants me to do something.”
I raised a brow. “Your sister was the one who suggested you meet with us?”
He nodded. “Suggested? You mean told, bitched and screamed until I said yes. She has a lot of respect for this company and felt like it would be a perfect fit for me. If you ask me, I think she is using me to further her career.”
David chuckled. “She is very eager to learn all there is to know about Alexander Enterprises. When I interviewed her for the assistant position she had a lot of questions, wanting to know right down to the last detail about exactly what we do.”
“You don’t have to be nice when speaking of my sister, David. I know she can be annoyingly pushy. But she is a very hard worker and you are very lucky to have her as an employee,” Christopher murmured.
“Indeed.” David crossed his leg and sat comfortably back on the sofa. “So tell me, Christopher, what will it take for you to join our team? All bullshit aside, give me a price.”
“A price?” He laughed. “David, it’s not about money, it’s about control. I like to have control of what I am designing, without any outside interference,” Christopher answered.
I waved my hand. “What exactly do you mean by that?”
“I mean I want complete control of my work.”
I thought on his words for a moment, before commenting. “But what if we find something we feel may need improvement?”
His eyes thinned. “Mr. Alexander, with all due respect, my designs are unique and designed according to what is needed. I guarantee that no improvement will be needed.”
There was always room for improvement with every design. Christopher Blu was a little more arrogant than I liked and it was obvious I would have to put him in his place. If he was going to be using my company name, I most definitely wanted the capability of making changes to designs if I felt it was needed; it was my name at stake here, after all. I glanced over at David and he raised his hands up, indicating to me to be calm.
“Christopher, I think what Chain is trying to say is that we here at Alexander Enterprises work as a team in everything we do. You will, of course, work only with Chain as he is the top architect here. So what I mean by that is that you will be expected to take any suggestion that Chain may have on changes to your designs.”
He chuckled, shaking his head. “Whoa, stop right there before you get ahead of yourself. I haven’t even accepted the position yet and you are already giving me guidelines. Tell me what your offer is before we talk about what I need to do.”
David cleared his throat. “I am offering you a two hundred and fifty thousand a year salary, quarterly bonuses, a complete benefit package and ten percent commission on all designs you create, but we get to change the design if needed.” I could tell that Christopher was not happy.
“The salary sounds fair, but I want twenty percent commissions on my designs.” David’s eyes grew as large as saucers and I could tell he was shocked and pissed. No one had ever challenged David before and that was exactly what Christopher was doing, challenging him.
“Twenty percent! You’re out of your blasted mind.” Christopher seemed to draw off of David’s anger. He slid his foot over his knee and steepled his hands and smiled.
“That’s my offer, take it or leave it.” David glanced up at me and I could see the infuriation in his eyes.
The door opened and in walked Sandy, carrying a platter of croissants and three cups of coffee.
“I thought you all might need a snack,” she said as she placed the platter on the table. I reached for a cup of coffee and a croissant. “Thank you, Sandy, that was very thoughtful of you.”
David ignored her and pressed on. “Look, I will offer you fifteen percent and no more.”
“Twenty and you have a deal,” Christopher stated firmly. He turned to look up at Sandy, who was standing with her arms folded, glaring at him. “What?”
“We talked about this, Christopher, you can’t freelance for the rest of your life, and eventually someone will come along and be better than you. Take the job,” she said, clenching her fists at her sides.
“Sandy, this is my business and my life, you need to stick your nose out of it,” Christopher mumbled as he looked away from her. David grinned and sat back comfortably, enjoying the argument between the siblings.
“I’ll raise your salary to three hundred and throw in five weeks of paid vacation, that’s my final offer.”
Christopher rubbed his forehead. “Can I still sell my designs on the side?”
“Absolutely not. If you work for Alexander Enterprises, all of your designs belong to us.” Christopher scratched the back of his head and glanced up at Sandy, who nodded at him.
His shoulders slumped as he mumbled, “Fine. When do I start?” We all stood up and shook hands.
David slung his arm around Christopher’s shoulders. “Why don’t we go into my office and we will go over all the fine details.” Christopher threw a wave as they left, with Sandy in tow.
I was sitting at my desk signing paperwork when David walked in.
“Well that went well.”
I grinned as I looked up at him. “It’s funny those croissants came from your favorite bakery, Vito’s.”
He smiled. “Yep, I brought them in this morning.”
“So you purposely planned for Sandy to walk in at that time.”
“Sure, she asked me to help her out and make her brother get a job, so we worked together to make sure that happened.”
“Why would she want him to get a job if he is making a lot of money freelancing?”
David shrugged. “She told me that he has too much freedom, that he needs more structure.” I could tell from the way that David looked away that there was more to the story that needed to be told.
“David,” I egged on. His shoulders slumped. If there was one thing David was bad at, it was keeping a secret from me.
He sucked in a breath. “He has an alcohol problem. Sandy said that he has been trying to get sober for a while now. She feels like him being able to sit around in the house and work when he can only feeds his boredom, hence making him drink more.”
“What caused it? There has to be a reason why he drinks.”
David looked down and I could see he was struggling with his thoughts. “A woman caused it.”
Shit. Now I knew why he was so hesitant. I should have let it go, but I couldn’t, I wanted to know what happened.
“What did she do?”
“Nothing really. They were high school sweethearts and married right after they graduated. Sandy said he was crazy about her. His whole world was her. After three years of being married, she told him she had made a big mistake and wanted her freedom, wanted a divorce. He was devastated by it and fell into depression. That’s when he started drinking and freelancing. This went on for a few years, until he got his first DUI. That’s when Sandy decided it was time to intervene. She moved into his house, forced him to go to AA meetings and hired a live-in housekeeper to sit and watch him when she went to work,” David explained.
That was definitely not what I was expecting.
“This won’t affect his job here, will it?”
“Sandy reassured me that when he works he doesn’t drink. It’s the time when he is alone that he does it.” He exhaled. “She thought him getting a job might he
lp him to build his self-esteem, help him get over her—she says he still isn’t. I really want to help him, Chain, I really do. We could make a difference in his life.” David was a hard-ass on the exterior, but on the inside he had a heart of gold. I wasn’t a bit surprised that he wanted to help Christopher Blu.
“We?”
“Come on, Chain, you know I can’t do this without you.”
I smiled. If there was one thing I could never do it was turn David away when he needed me. Plus, I really didn’t mind helping someone out. I felt sorry for Christopher; I knew what it was like to feel for a woman you couldn’t have. I folded my hands. “What can we do to help?”
“Sandy said he has a very dominant personality and has absolutely no people skills. It’s why he never dates—women seem to run away from him. She is hoping that we can help mentor him and show him that he doesn’t have to be so hardcore. She wants us to soften him up a little.”
I laughed. “She wants us to turn him into a woman? Well she definitely picked the right person for the job when she asked you!” David had no problem pointing out my faults, so when I had a chance to take a stab at his, I did.
He stilled me with a look. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
I was laughing hard. “I’m sorry, David, it was just a joke.”
“Haha, very funny, asshole.”
“All jokes aside, what about his family?”
“Sandy says their father was never really in their life. He sent money and made sure they had everything they needed. But other than that he was non-existent.
“What about his mother?”
“After Sandy turned eighteen the mother took off, stating she needed to live her own life. They see her once in a while; she has been married almost ten times. Sandy says they can tell that her mother is with a new man because she disappears for months at a time. When she reappears in their life, she can tell that the relationship is on the rocks. Their housekeeper, Nan, raised them and she passed about three years ago.”
I felt nothing but compassion for Sandy and Christopher. I knew what it was like to not have parents and knew it had to make them feel a little lost and unloved. But at least they had more than I have ever had, they had each other.
I tilted my eyes up to David. “That’s really nice of you to go out of your way to help Sandy and Christopher out.”
He shrugged. “Not really going out of my way, Chain. We just hired one of the best architects in the country. And we got him for half the price others were offering him.”
“What? You acted like he was trying to take us to the cleaners when he asked for twenty percent.”
He grinned. “That’s my job, to manipulate someone into thinking they got a good deal. How do you think we got the land in Minneapolis so cheap?”
I shook my head. “So you would have given him twenty percent?”
“I would have given him thirty, but lucky for us, it didn’t come down to that.”
We both laughed.
He leaned forward. “Honestly, I really want to help them. I think it would be good for all of us to do something good.”
I smiled. “Yeah, you’re right.”
I felt now that David was in a good mood, this might be the perfect time to talk to him about Violet. David’s friendship was important to me and I didn’t want anything affecting that. I had already lost one person I loved, Violet, and I didn’t want to lose another. “Hey, David, I wanted to talk to you about Violet.”
He raised his hands. “Not now, Chain, I’m still fucking pissed at you about that.”
I retreated. “I’m sorry, I know you’re disappointed in me.” Did he hate me? Had I screwed up and lost David’s friendship?
He smiled as if he sensed my vulnerabilities. “We will always be best friends, brothers. No matter what happens, I will always be here for you, okay?”
I let out a breath with relief. “Okay.”
Chapter 6.5 - Violet
The last person on earth I wanted to see was Lonnie, so you can imagine my anger and frustration when I walked into my office and found her leaning against my desk.
“What are you doing here?” I scowled. She smiled, like she always did, as if unaffected by my irritated demeanor.
“I wanted to let you know that I am withdrawing my campaign from your company. I have found a company that can do the same thing for half the cost.” I walked behind my desk, throwing my purse on it. She and Chain saw each other and all of a sudden she was dropping her campaign because of costs? Who was she trying to fool?
“Well you should be talking to my father, not me, I don’t handle stuff like that.” I couldn’t even look her in the eye because I knew deep down inside she had a lot to do with the breakup between Chain and me. My first instinct when I saw the way they looked at each other when they met in my office was that she and Chain had something going on behind my back, but for some reason I just couldn’t find any truth in that. Maybe I was the dumb girlfriend, still believing that my boyfriend would never cheat on me. Whatever it was between the two of them, it didn’t matter anymore. Chain made it perfectly clear he didn’t want me and trying to find out about his relationship with Lonnie would only make me more miserable and that was not something I wanted to deal with right now. I was having a hard enough time dealing with living my life without Chain in it.
Her hand leaned on the desk and I tilted my eyes up at her. “You know, you’re better off without him,” she murmured.
“I’m sorry, I have no clue who you are talking about.” Of course I knew who she was talking about, but I was hoping she would take the hint that I didn’t want to talk about it, or him, and drop it.
“Chain—Chain Alexander. He would only have hurt you in the long run; you’re better off without him.”
Her comment pissed me off and I stood abruptly. “I don’t care about your opinion, so do us both a favor and keep it to yourself.” This woman had a lot of gall to tell me who I should and should not be with.
She let out a snicker. “Okay, if you want to hide from the truth, feel free.”
I looked back down at my desk. “Hide from the truth? Listen, Lonnie, I don’t know why you think what happens between Chain and me is any of your business, but it isn’t. And I refuse to discuss it any further. So I would really like you to leave, NOW!” I said angrily. I’d had enough of this woman and her comments.
She slid her clutch purse under her arm. “I know when I’m not wanted.” She walked to the door and stopped, turning her head back towards me. “I did you a favor, you know, some day you will thank me.” I glared at her silently and watched as she turned and disappeared.
I hadn’t really realized how much Lonnie had shaken me up till I sat down at my desk and noticed my trembling hands. I rubbed my head, closing my eyes, trying to calm myself, and tears welled up in my eyes as I thought of him—Chain. Why did he do this? Why?
***
Harrison had heard about my breakup with Chain and as funny as it may sound, I had leaned a lot on him over the last few weeks of being without Chain. He had been a very good friend, listening and not judging when I went through my rampages. Who would have known that I would be confiding in a man who had, like Chain, broken my heart at one time.
I expected the breakup with Chain to get easier, but as the days passed it only got harder. I was just not getting over it; I was just not getting over Chain. Sure, Harrison was a nice distraction, we would go to dinner, hang out after watching movies and he never tried to kiss me or touch me in any inappropriate manner. It was when he left that it was hard. When I was alone, Chain’s memory would surround me. I could almost smell his musky scent, feel the taste of his lips on mine. When I settled in my bed to sleep, that was when I missed him the most. His arms pulling me into his chest, the gentle kiss on my head and the way he would cuddle me the whole night long. I loved him, truly. I missed him completely.
My family was affected deeply by our breakup. My brother Vince had a hard time even sayin
g his name without choking up and my parents were so disappointed and hurt for trusting him, especially my father. He had never felt a connection to Harrison like he did with Chain. We were all fooled into thinking that Chain and I would be together forever and never did any of us expect him to end things without an explanation.
It was the not knowing that irked me. I had given him my heart, my life and he left me without uttering a word, without giving a reason. Maybe that was why I was having such a hard time getting over it, moving on, because he gave me no closure. Everyone deserves closure. Even Harrison gave me closure; there was no better wake-up call than catching your fiancé with another woman. But Chain left me with nothing, empty.
Callie wasn’t too fond of me hanging out with Harrison—she was afraid that we would reconcile and Harrison was not who she wanted me to be with. I reassured her that I had nothing but friendship in mind with Harrison. And that was the truth. The attraction I had felt for Harrison flew out the window when he cheated on me.
Vince walked into my office and plopped down on the chair, interrupting my thoughts. “So, did you hear the news yet?”
“News?”
“Seems as though your brother Victor is on the list of potential fathers of this bimbo’s kid.”
His words shocked me. “What? Who?”
“Just some girl from the bar, no one special. He’s down at the clinic giving his blood for a paternity test as we speak.”
“Vince, this is terrible. Does he think he’s the father?”
“He swears he used protection with her, but I don’t know, Vi. I live with the guy and I remember that girl being at the condo.”
“So you think he didn’t use protection?”
“Well that night was crazy; we had taken home like three women. I was feeling a little sick from drinking all night, so I hit the sack. When I woke up there were naked females all over the living room—obviously Victor had made sure to please all of them that night.”
My stomach churned. “Vince, I don’t need to know all the horny details of my man whore brother’s exploits. You could have left the last part out.”