by Lily Kate
“Can I come in?” I push past him through the doorway. “Thanks. I’d say next time you should ask me in, but there won’t be a next time.”
Leo might be a rat, but one thing he’s not is stupid. He lets me through. To the layperson, Leo’s muscles might look bigger than mine, but we both know who would win in a fight.
The muscles he’s got on his arms are finely tuned things made from lifting dainty weights at the gym. Our gym. I’m taller than him, and I’m not very dainty. I come from years of getting battered on the ice, pressed against boards, shoved around by men even bigger than me. Not a whole lot scares me. I can’t say the same for Leo.
“You know why I’m here,” I say, turning to face Leo. “Why? Why couldn’t you drop things?”
“I didn’t chase after anything. It fell into my lap.”
“Right.”
“Imagine my surprise when a real estate agent shows up talking about this hot new property my business partner wants for his gym. For our gym.”
“It wasn’t going to be our gym.” I parrot his words back. “It was going to be my own damn gym.”
“Ours wasn’t good enough for you?”
“It was until you went and stole from us.”
“Stole? Right. You know, man, if you’d just asked me, I would’ve told you where the money came from.”
“I know exactly where it came from.”
“You think you do, but you never bothered to ask.” Leo tsks in annoyance. “I saw you eyeing the car, the toys. Yet, not once did you ever ask where it came from.”
“I don’t make a habit of prying into the personal lives of my friends and business partners. Business is business. Until you make it personal.”
“My grandmother died. It’s an inheritance.”
A flicker of hesitation stirs inside me, but I recover quickly.
“I can read you like a newspaper, Brad” Leo says, my name dripping with sarcasm. “You don’t have a shred of proof. You’re blowing smoke.”
“I was hoping you’d come clean before I brought in the lawyers.”
“Come clean about what? Blowing the inheritance money I got from my grandmother on some toys? Sure, maybe it wasn’t the smartest thing to do—hence the reason I didn’t outright tell you. But it’s not illegal, and it’s certainly none of your business.”
“We’ll pretend you’re not lying about the inheritance. Here’s what we’ll do: let’s split ways,” I offer. “You keep the gym, the original location. I don’t want anything except my half—buy me out, and I’ll set up shop elsewhere. And this should go without saying, but I expect you’ll leave Lexi’s business alone.”
“Ah, now we’ve finally reached the meat and bones of the issue. I was waiting for this to come around.”
I cross my arms and take a moment to survey the too-neat entryway that belongs to Leo. He lives in a museum of dainty vases and flashy artwork on the wall—probably fakes, unless he’s stolen enough money for those items, too.
“You only confronted me because I dragged your girlfriend into this.”
“I was looking to end things quietly, peacefully, until you fired a cannon at me.”
“No cannon’s been fired.” He raises his eyebrows with a smug smile to match. “This ball dropped right in my lap.”
“Shame it didn’t drop a pair of ‘em.”
Leo barely notices the insult. “Everything that I’m doing, everything happening to Lexi, all started with you. If you hadn’t gone to Bill in the first place, he wouldn’t have come to me with an interesting proposition.”
“You didn’t have to listen.”
“Tell me you wouldn’t listen if a real estate agent came to you with a deal for your business...that you had no idea about.”
“We both know that’s not what happened. I told Bill I wasn’t interested. He sensed there was a gap between us. He brought you an under the table deal that was supposed to belong to me.”
“Us. We are business partners. Yes, even now. Don’t forget, my friend—the gym is half yours, too. Are you really interested in ruining it for both of us?”
“Drop the deal with Bill, Chris, and the new property. I’ll leave quietly and hand over the reins to you. Nothing will have to change.”
“You’re the one breaking the contracts. You want out? You’re forfeiting your half. We signed a five-year agreement. If either of us wanted out within five years—for personal reasons—the other keeps the gym.”
“It’s not for personal reasons.”
“I’d call that little hooker of yours a personal reason.”
I have him by the throat in seconds, pinned against the wall. I don’t even remember acting, don’t remember lunging for him—everything happened so fast.
He warbles some sort of apology, his face turning red. His feet are barely on the floor, and ironically, those perfectly grown gym muscles aren’t doing him a whole lot of good.
I release him, just enough so that he can breathe. My hands hold him up by the scruff of his collar as his eyes go wide and fearful. I didn’t want to do this, I didn’t want to react without thinking.
But there’s no turning back now, and nobody is going to talk about Lexi that way in front of me. They never have in the past, they never will in the future—at least, they will be damned sorry they did.
“What did you call her?”
“Sorry,” he groans. “I didn’t realize...”
“Realize what?”
“That you liked her—”
“That’s where you’re wrong, asshole. I don’t like her, I love her. And you aren’t going to go around talking about any woman like that, let alone the one I hope to marry.”
He gurgles another response, and I let up the slightest amount.
“I’m waiting,” I growl.
“Sorry,” he mumbles. “I didn’t mean anything by it.”
“Good. Then go apologize to her and tell her you’re leaving the real estate deal behind.”
“But—”
“Tell her that you’ll never interfere with us, or her, again. Not our personal lives and not our businesses. When I leave today, the only thing I want from you is a check and a signature that finalizes our business separation.”
“You can’t get out of our contract.”
I sigh, relaxing into the truth I’ve had in my back pocket this whole time. Really, I’d wanted to see how far he’d take his lies, the web of them, the depths to his attempted deception. Even I’d been impressed with how far he’d gone this evening. He’s a bigger piece of crap than I’d ever expected.
I reach into my pocket and pull out a few carefully folded slips of paper with all the evidence I’ll need to get out of our contract. Enough line items of him skimming from our company, enough proof to win a court case in five minutes.
“Take a look at this,” I tell him. “At your leisure. I believe you’ll find everything you need in there.”
“What is this?”
“Here’s what’s going to happen.” I let him go and take a few steps toward the door. When I reach it, I face him again. “You’re going to give me the investment I put in, and half the profit we made together. Exactly split down the middle. You can subtract what you already skimmed from your half. If you don’t, I’ll know.”
“But—”
“For a hockey player, I’m not half bad at math.” I give him a crooked smile. “Unfortunately for you. I even made it easy. There’s an amount on the bottom, there, and if you have a check to me by tomorrow, I won’t even get the lawyers involved.”
“But—”
“Underneath that number, you’ll find another contract I had drawn up that releases us each from obligations to one another, and will leave us free and clear to pursue our own interests. No more penalties.”
“I’m not paying you money when I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Think about it overnight,” I tell him, resting a hand on the doorknob. “I’d think long and hard about it, and then I’d revise you
r lies. Just in case it turns out that money wasn’t coming from Grandma.”
Leo’s line of expletives are enough to tell me it’s time to leave. I yank the door open and stride through his front lawn as he stands in the doorway watching me go.
When I reach the boulevard, I turn to find him still glaring holes in the back of my skull. “One more thing. I expect a full apology to Lexi. After Lexi comes the check made out to me. If any of that doesn’t happen tomorrow, your grandmothers, your lawyers, and everyone at the gym will find out what happened here.”
“You can’t threaten me!”
“Just cut me loose, Leo. That’s all I’m asking. That and an apology to a woman who is owed one. That’s hardly a threat.”
“Your clients will follow you to your new gym.”
“Should’ve built a better client roster,” I say. “But I’m not going to steal your clients. I’ll leave quietly. Nothing has to change, unless you insist on misbehaving.”
He’s fuming as I turn the corner and disappear from view. It should feel good to know that my suspicions were right. It should feel great to know I’ll be a free man tomorrow if all goes well, and it should be exciting to think of the new opportunities an influx of cash and a wide-open horizon will bring.
Instead, I feel quiet. Oddly calm. Somewhat off-kilter, and a little antsy. It’s not over until it’s over, they say. Unfortunately, it’s not quite over.
Chapter 32
BRADLEY
“Another order of waffles, please.”
“You can’t be serious.” Lexi drops her rag onto the counter and watches me for any sign of a joke. “That’ll be your fourth one today.”
“I have been here all day.”
“What’s going on?” She leans against the counter, oblivious to the rest of the diner as she sets her laser focus on me. “You’ve been fidgety all afternoon.”
“I’m just hungry.”
“No, you’re eating yourself into a coma.” She gives a smile, and then tries for a joke. “How are you supposed to carry me to the bedroom tonight if you’re too full to move?”
I try for a smile back, but it’s clearly not working. The thing is, I’ve been here all day waiting for Leo to show up. When I left his place last night I figured that surely he’d crumble to my demands and drag his ass here this morning.
After all, my demands are hardly unreasonable. Fifty-fifty split, just like we went in, and I’d leave quietly. He gets to keep the gym and the customers, and I’m out on my own. That, and an apology.
I figured it would be a no brainer. Neither of us would win if we got lawyers involved, especially not him. So why the hell hasn’t he shown up yet?
“You’re not fooling me, Brad. What’s going on? I told you not to worry about the other stuff,” Lexi whispers. “It’ll take care of itself. Or, we’ll figure it out together and move on. Until I get kicked out of this place, I’m just going to keep making my waffles, and you are going to keep eating them. No sense stressing when there’s nothing we can do.”
“I told you I’d take care of it.”
“That’s what I’m saying! You don’t have to! We’ll be fine.” She reaches out and squeezes my hand, giving me sympathy it doesn’t feel like I’ve earned. “Maybe it’s a sign. Maybe we’re supposed to move to a new, bigger and better location.”
I’m spared a response by the entrance of three new arrivals—Lucas, Kitty, and Sasha. Judging by the box in Sasha’s hands and the coffee cups in the others’ hands, they’ve come from next door.
“Sasha’s is closed for the day,” Kitty says. “Time for dinner. Can we get some poutine tonight? I’m feeling fat.”
“Oh, I haven’t had poutine in forever,” Sasha says with a nod of agreement. “Let’s make it a super-sized order.”
“Jumbo-sized,” Lucas agrees. “I’m starved.”
“Yes, your highnesses,” Lexi says, looking over my shoulder. “Get in line behind this guy. It’s his fourth order of waffles for the day.”
I get a quick round of applause and some raised eyebrows from the group as I force a smile and return their greetings.
“Eating for two?” Lucas says, elbowing me in the gut. “I thought you’d been putting on some weight.”
“Isn’t he glowing?” Kitty agrees. “He just has that sheen about him.”
“That’s called the food coma sheen,” Lexi says. “He’s stress eating.”
“What’s the stress?” Kitty asks. “Your therapists have arrived. Dish.”
“Forget about it,” I say. “Maybe I should switch my order and share the poutine.”
I’m not hungry. I haven’t been hungry since my second order of waffles, but I’m not particularly excelling at making conversation today, and I needed a reason to stay at the diner for as long as it took to see Leo’s apology. If he apologizes. The chances are getting slimmer and slimmer as the daylight wanes.
“He’s worried about my rent going up,” Lexi says. “But we’ll figure it out. Customers will follow, even if we move locations. It wouldn’t be so bad.”
“Not at all,” Sasha chimes in. “I’d have to move too, and maybe we could just combine shops. Save on real estate. I’ll do the baking and coffee, Lex takes on the rest.”
“Not a bad idea,” Lucas says. “Where do I fit in?”
“Right where you are,” Kitty says. “Which is the same place I fit in. On the eating side of things.”
Lexi turns away to get their order started when the door opens and another figure walks into the restaurant.
I don’t bother to turn my head because I’ve been swiveling my neck all day, and I’ve got a crick in it. One disappointment after the next as the bridge team came in, then the grandmothers, then Barb and her water aerobics group, and then...half the city.
“What the hell is he doing here?” Lucas’s voice is low. “He here for you, Hamilton?”
My head jerks up, and I’ll pay for that tomorrow. I’ll be lucky if I don’t need a neck brace by the time this day is over. But this time, it’s worth it.
Leo’s eyes meet mine as he walks through the door, a hint of surprise at finding me here. Then dismay takes over as he scans and finds an audience watching him. Kitty, Sasha, Lucas—everyone but Lexi, who’s busy humming and tossing some fries.
Leo glances behind him, probably calculating how quickly he can get out of here. If we hadn’t all turned to look at him, he would’ve slunk away like the skunk he is, but now, it’s too late.
Stepping the rest of the way through the door, he strides across the room and stops next to me at the counter. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”
“I was just about ready to throw in the towel,” I say. “Didn’t expect you to show.”
“I didn’t expect to find a show.”
“If you’d arrived earlier, you wouldn’t have.” I scan him over. “Don’t let us stop you from doing whatever it is you came to do.”
He fishes in his pocket, drags out two slips of paper, and hands them over. My eyes land on the top one first, the signed contract. His signature is on it, releasing us from our duties to one another and the gym.
My chest constricts as I flip it upward and peer underneath at a check. The check. These two slips of paper are my future. They’re closing old doors, opening new ones, and setting me free from the garbage of these last three years.
My exhale is somewhat shaky. The time has finally come to move on. From business, from the accident. From the ugly fog that took over afterward, and the ensuing years of silence and quiet.
Glancing around, surrounded by old and new friends, resumed and improved relationships, I look at Leo and nod. I have no ill will toward him, no anger or resentment. Just a whole lot of nothing.
“Lexi,” Leo says, clearing his throat. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”
Her shoulders straighten at the sound of his voice, and she spins slowly from her place at the stove. “What the hell are you doing in my diner?”
“I’d like to
speak with you in private.”
Lexi glances at me, then at her friends. “Whatever you need to say, you can say it right here.”
“But—”
“Okay, then goodbye.”
I look down at my empty plate, hiding a smile. If I’d ever thought Lexi couldn’t handle herself, I’d have been dead wrong. The iciness in her voice sends shivers down my spine, and I’m the one she likes.
Leo attempts another throat clear, but he botches this one like a teenage boy. When he speaks, his voice cracks. “I’m sorry.”
“For?” I jump in, but I’m silenced by Lexi’s glare. I quickly apologize and fall silent.
Lexi fixes her stare back at Leo. “What are you apologizing for?”
“For using you to get back at my business partner,” he says, his knuckles gripping the counter so hard they go pale. “I wasn’t interested in your space until I realized it would hurt Brad.”
“And?” she presses.
“And what?” he asks.
“And you left my assistant a five percent tip last time you were here!” Lexi folds her arms. “Give Sasha another five bucks. Don’t be a cheapskate. She’s amazing, and you were insulting.”
Leo blinks in awe at her, and I can’t hide a laugh either. With the amount of money I have in my hand from Leo, five bucks is a drop in the bucket. I can see him thinking this is a joke.
Which is a huge mistake.
“You think this is funny, huh?” Lexi rounds the bar and comes face to face with him. “Well, it’s not. I don’t care if you owe her thirty cents or a thousand bucks, it’s the principle of it. Give her the rest of the tip she deserves, and I’ll accept your apology.”
Leo gives a stunned shake of his head, then pulls out his wallet and smartly forks over a ten-dollar bill. “Are we good?”
“I’d say good is overkill,” Lexi says. “We’ll call it even.”
Leo takes a step back, looks at all of us, and spins on his heel. He tries his best to exit with whatever shred of dignity he has left... and it’s not much.
“That settles that.” Lexi hands over the money to Sasha with a wink. “Be careful not to spend it all in one place.”