by Skylar Hill
“The best luck,” Maddy said. “How old is your sister?”
“Olivia’s seven,” Carter said, laughing when he saw the surprised look on her face. “I know, big age gap between us. My mom was sixteen when she had me. My bio dad ditched us before I was born. My real dad, the one who raised me… he came into our lives when I was a little older. They brought me up, and they thought they were done raising kids once I was off to New York, but then Olivia “pulled a fast one,” as my mom likes to put it.”
“That’s adorable,” Maddy said with a little smile.
“Oh, God, I am so fucking relieved.” This quiet confession to her, the rumble in his voice, the way his eyes went a little bright, like the emotion he was feeling was almost too much, made her stomach twist and her heart thump.
This time, she couldn’t stop herself from reaching out and placing a hand on his shoulder. “I understand,” she said quietly. “My little brother—well, Jackson isn’t so little anymore. He’s graduating college next year. But when he was little, he had leukemia. He’s cancer-free now, but it was a long time, six years, before he got there.”
“Fuck,” Carter said. “That’s a long time to deal with that.”
Maddy nodded. “It shaped all of us. My entire family. I’m sure you can relate.”
“Yeah,” he said. “That’s why I’m here,” he said, gesturing around the break room. “That’s why I moved the company here. I didn’t want to be too far away from them. My parents… you always read about how couples who have a sick child can break up. The stress and all. I wanted to alleviate as much of that as possible for them.”
God, this man… he was killing her. Not only was he handsome as sin, but he was a loving son and brother. Devoted to his family.
She understood that, on a level that many people would scoff at or think was extreme. Her ex had never understood her family’s closeness. David hated that she had standing dinner date with her parents—and with Jackson if he could get away from school—every other week. He told her it was infantile to see her parents that often.
Maddy understood not everyone’s family was great, and that some people were way better off without their blood family, but she had been lucky enough to grow up in the kind of family you wanted to devote yourself to. She knew Jackson’s illness had bonded the four of them closer than they might have been if he hadn’t gotten sick, but she wasn’t going to change that for anything.
“I’m sure your parents are really happy to have you home,” Maddy said. “It’s always a little strange when you come home and you’re an adult, and they have to let go of the reins a little.”
His mouth tilted into a lopsided smile that made her heart flutter. “My mom is terrible at letting go of the reins.”
“She’d probably get along with my mom, then. But Momma Bears like that? They’re the best person in the world to have by your side when you’re a sick kid. They don’t let anything fall through the cracks.”
“That’s true… she’s basically a grizzly at this point.”
She laughed. “Sometimes you’ve got to go full grizzly. Really commit.”
He looked down for a moment, silence—but not the uncomfortable kind—falling over them. “Thank you, Maddy,” he said.
“For what?” she asked.
“For being jumpy,” he said. “For breaking your coffee cup and yelping loud enough to get me to come running. For letting me talk. For giving me hope that once my family gets through this, once Olivia gets through this, we can have some kind of normal back.”
“It won’t be like before,” she said. “But it will be new. A new normal.”
“A new normal,” he echoed, his green eyes shining with a warmth that went straight to her head. “I like the sound of that.”
Chapter Eight
Carter
“I don’t see why this retreat needs to happen now, of all times.”
Carter tried hard not to let his annoyance show on his face as he stared at Dillon from across his desk. The man had been waiting in his office when he’d arrived this morning, and had instantly started in on the retreat and how it was a bad idea and bad timing.
“I’ve explained, the move was stressful, everyone is finding their footing and the New York and Portland office is now one. Which means I want our employees to get to know their new coworkers in a relaxed, team-building environment. River Run Lodge is the perfect place for that.”
“Our employees need to work, they don’t need to socialize,” Dillon sneered. “This is just costing us money.”
“Rhett, the owner of River Run is a good friend,” Carter said, keeping his voice level. “He’s given us the family discount. And this is the kind of company that needs to foster a friendly, safe environment, Dillon. Ninety-eight percent of our office work-force is women, but sex is the topic du jour because we’re in the business of sexual pleasure. I don’t want my employees to ever feel like they can’t voice an opinion, a criticism, or a blunt call-out if a boundary is crossed. The Portland warehouse team had their retreat last summer, and it went great. The retreats and the team bonding that happens at River Run are a crucial part of fostering a safe, open environment. ”
“Next thing you know, you’re gonna be talking about safe spaces and trigger warnings,” Dillon said, rolling his eyes.
“There’s nothing wrong with those things,” Carter said, the edge in his voice finally coming out. “Have some empathy. Just because you haven’t had anything happen in your life that has affected you that deeply doesn’t mean others haven’t or don’t struggle.”
“You sound like a therapist,” Dillon said, the contempt clear in his voice.
“Maybe because I worked with several psychologists to come up with plans to deal with this kind of office culture,” Carter said, barely resisting rolling his eyes at the surprise in Dillon’s face as his barb didn’t fall like he planned. “With the nature of our business, our employees are in a unique situation. It can be a charged atmosphere. They deserve to feel safe. And they deserve to feel like a team. If you’d bothered to ever get to know the Portland team, you would realize there will be a office culture adjustment on both sides as they become one. ”
“What, you’re worried about the old biddies in the Oregon office being intimidated by their hot young New York replacements?” Dillon asked.
Carter gritted his teeth. You cannot punch this guy, he reminded himself.
“Dillon, you need to drop the sexist, ageist attitude or you will not be welcome here. I won’t tolerate that kind of shit in my company. Do you understand?”
He watched as red crawled along Dillon’s cheeks as the younger man’s mouth dropped, gaping at him. “Are you kidding me?”
“I don’t joke around about my employees’ well being,” Carter said, deadly serious. “Every person in this office deserves to be treated with the utmost respect. This is not some frat party. Our employees are the reason we’re as successful as we are. They’re passionate about their work, and they thrive in the company environment that Nat and Renee and I have created. I will not have you come in here and be offensive to my employees. I’m not going to let you spout off sexist stereotypes and not call you out on it. I won’t have that kind of bullshit in my business, and I won’t make excuses for you. I’m not your daddy.”
“You’re not my boss,” Dillon hissed.
“You seem to be operating under the idea that you are somehow in charge,” Carter said mildly. He knew his calm demeanor was making Dillon even more pissed. The red that stained his cheeks had crawled to his ears, his eyes bugging out a little as he breathed hard. Carter wondered if anyone had ever called him out before.
Well, there was a first time for everything.
“I own part of this company,” Dillon blustered.
“Your father owns part of this company,” Carter corrected him. “That is the only reason you’ve been allowed to step inside this building. But I am the CEO and majority shareholder. And I will not let your toxic shit n
ear my employees. So I want you to take some time. Take the whole retreat, in fact, to stay in whatever hotel you’re overpaying at and think about your behavior and what it says about you as a man. Because a real man doesn’t put women down like you do. A real man recognizes the strength in women. He honors it. When I get back from River Run, I’ll be making some calls to discuss your continued involvement in your father’s investment.”
Dillon rose at his final words, the anger radiating off him in waves. Carter didn’t even flinch, staring up at him, totally unthreatened, which clearly stoked the other man’s ire.
“This isn’t over,” he spat.
“You should go calm down,” Carter said. “You’re acting hysterical.”
“Fuck you.” Dillon spun on his heel and stalked out of Carter’s office, nearly running into Zoe when he yanked open the door. He didn’t even offer an apology as he brushed past her, practically jogging out of the building.
“You okay?” he asked Zoe.
She shook her head. “Can I talk to you?” she asked.
He frowned as he took in her stressed expression. “Of course. Come on in.”
His assistant closed the door behind her, coming to sit in the leather chair set across from his desk.
“Zoe, what’s wrong?” he asked, concerned. Zoe had been with him for two years now. She’d shown up at the NYC Purely Pleasure office with no resume, no college degree, and no experience. But she was determined and she was brilliant. Later on, after he hired her and got to know her, Carter would find out she’d dropped out of her first year of college. She dealt with anxiety and the rigorous STEM program she’d been enrolled in had gotten too much for her.
One of these days, he was going to get her back in a lab, where her exceptional mind belonged. But he wasn’t going to push her—not until she was ready. He looked on Zoe more as a mentor than a boss, and he hoped she felt the same.
“I need to talk to you about Dillon Palmer,” she explained.
Carter waited, a knot of dread forming in his stomach. Zoe was visibly upset.
“So I didn’t bring it up in New York,” Zoe said. “Because I figured he wasn’t coming back since he was just an investor’s son, but there was an incident, when Dillon visited the New York office with his father.”
His suspicions confirmed, Carter leaned forward, keeping his expression gentle and open. “What kind of incident?”
“He spent those two weeks being his typical self,” Zoe said. “It wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle. But the day before he left, I was in the toy closet, setting up the Pearl Line prototypes. And he cornered me in there.” Zoe’s voice was shaky and a little quick, like she was afraid if she didn’t get it all out now, he might not believe her. It broke Carter’s heart.
“At first, it was just his normal pick up artist negging bullshit,” Zoe said. “But when I tried to exit the conversation and the room it just…the energy changed. He seemed angry. And he wouldn’t let me leave. He kept shifting so he was in my way. And he’s a lot bigger than me. I mean, everyone is a lot bigger than me. It was very intimidating. So I grabbed the biggest dildo in my reach and told him I was going to brain him over the fucking head with it if he didn’t get out of my way. He got out of my way, then and I just kind of ran out of there.”
Anger simmered in Carter’s chest. The only thing keeping him from going and seeing if Dillon was still in the building so he could throw him out, was knowing he needed to be here and listen to Zoe.
“Zoe, I’m so sorry you had to go through that,” he said. “I believe you. And I will make sure he’s not around anymore.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before,” she said in a rush. “I didn’t want to be a bother. You’ve given me so much, Carter. More than anyone else would have. And I really thought it would be a non-issue, since he was leaving and we were moving the company. But now he just seems to be around all the time.”
“He won’t be anymore,” Carter said firmly. “I’ll make sure security knows not to let him on this floor. And I will have a discussion with his father about his behavior and keeping him away from this particular investment.” He leaned forward. “And Zoe? You telling me someone’s making you uncomfortable is never a bother. Your concerns are important to me. You feeling safe in your work environment is important to everyone here. You’re vital to our team. We would fall apart without you.”
Zoe gave him a trembling smile, her dark eyes shining. “That means a lot. Thank you.” Her phone buzzed and she looked down on it. “I’ve got to take this,” she said. “It’s the movers who lost the lobby furniture.”
“I will take care of Dillon,” Carter promised. “He will never bother you or any other employee here again.”
“Thank you, Carter.”
Zoe got up, shooting him another shaky smile, before she left, her phone already to her ear as she coordinated with the movers about the lost furniture.
As soon as Zoe left, Nat was knocking on his office window.
“Wow, you look like shit,” Nat said as she shut the door.
Carter let out a huge sigh, rubbing at his forehead, feeling a anger headache coming on. He wanted to punch something. Preferably Dillon’s face.
“Dillon needs to go. Zoe just told me that in New York, he trapped her in the toy closet so he could hit on her, and then didn’t let her leave until she threatened him.”
“What?” Nat’s eyes widened and her cheeks flushed. “Where is that fucker?” she asked, pushing up the sleeves of her crisp white button-up. “I’m gonna teach him a lesson.”
Carter couldn’t help but smile. The rancher’s daughter in Nat didn’t come out often, but when it did, she went full bad ass country girl. Especially when one of her friends was hurt.
“Zoe just told me. I’ll be making a call to Charles. Dillon is banned from this company. Security will be alerted if he enters the building. And if you hear anything, Nat, any rumblings about him being inappropriate in any way to anyone else, let me know immediately. And let Renee know, as well.”
“Will do,” Nat assured him. “Crap. Poor Zoe.”
“I wish she’d come to me sooner, but I understand if she was wary or needed to process,” Carter said.
“It can be scary to come forward,” Nat said. “Even in a great environment like this.”
“Speaking of great environments, I wanted to talk to you about something else,” Carter said, gesturing to the chair in front of his desk. She sat down, setting her tablet down on the edge of his desk and leaning back in the tufted leather chair.
“I do have some really amazing news,” he said. “We found a kidney match for Olivia.”
Nat’s face broke into a wide smile. “Carter!” She jumped up out of the chair and hurried around the desk, hugging him tight. “Oh my God, I’m so relieved. I’ve been so worried about that sweet little girl.”
“She loved the tulips you keep sending her, by the way,” Carter said. “She says they look like upside-down ballerinas.”
Nat sniffed, pulling away and returning to her chair as she wiped away the stray tears. “That’s so cute. I need to call your mom and dad. And the donor! Do you know who it is? Can we, like, throw them a giant party? That’s probably violating some sort of rule, isn’t it? Can we send them a letter?”
“Well, that is what I needed to talk to you about,” Carter said. “I am the donor.”
Nat’s eyes widened. “Oh, wow.” She seemed to need a second, to take it in. “That’s huge. That’s an amazing thing to do, Carter. I mean, I wouldn’t expect any less of you; you’re you, after all. But I am so glad you’re able to do it.”
“Me too,” he said. “It was such a long shot that we’d be a match.”
“That means it’s blessed from the start,” Nat said with a reassuring smile.
“Obviously, this throws a little wrench in our plans,” Carter explained. “I won’t be able to do the donation immediately because Olivia’s fighting an infection. The tentative timeline is four to
six weeks from now, and I’d need about the same amount of time to recover from the surgery.”
“Okay,” Nat nodded, grabbing her tablet off the desk and beginning to tap at it as she shifted into work-mode. “So projected surgery date would be sometime in November, taking your recovery time into January or February.”
“I’d like you to take over, Nat,” he said.
“Of course,” Nat said. “I can cover for you until you’re back on your feet. We might need to hire a little extra help to manage my other duties but…”
“I don’t mean temporarily,” Carter said. “I would like you to take over as CEO permanently after the end of this summer and hire a new CFO.”
He watched as several emotions filtered across his friend’s face. He and Nat had known each other for what felt like forever, even if it had just been five years. He trusted her more than anyone.
And he was sick as hell of being the CEO. Frankly, he hated it. He hadn’t been able to spend more an hour in his lab in months. He felt stifled, bogged down by paperwork and the day-to-day problems that Nat thrived at solving. At this rate, they wouldn’t be releasing a new line of toys on schedule unless he actually spent time in his lab.
Nat taking over solved so many problems, he really should have done it before. But the move to Portland had made him rethink a lot of things. He wanted to get back to his true passion—inventing—and he wanted to spend as much time with his family as he could. He had the chance to help his little sister grow up into the smart, accomplished woman he knew she would be, and he wasn’t going to miss that. Not when their family came so close to losing her.
He loved his work, and felt a tremendous amount of pride at what he and his employees had accomplished. But he wanted to build something new, something different than a business and company now.
He wanted to build a home. A family. Those were the things that were important.
“I don’t know what to say,” Nat said finally, when the shock seemed to wear off.