Demise of a Self-Centered Playboy

by Piper Rayne

  “Sure. How about six o’clock at Terra and Mare? I want Rome in on this too.”

  “Okay.”

  “See you then.”

  “Denver?” Her voice holds that soothing tone she uses when she fears something is wrong.

  “It’s all good. Just need some advice.”

  Another few seconds of silence. “I’ll see you tonight.”

  “Thanks.”

  We hang up and I file out of the truck, my feet crunching on the snow as I make my way to the office doors. I lose my traction but recover before falling on my ass, which brings back memories of Cleo’s fall from hours earlier.

  Maybe she’s not the only one who needs to get new shoes.

  At six-fifteen, I walk through the back doors of Terra and Mare. Rome is in the kitchen wearing his chef jacket and hat, looking professional. It still takes me a second sometimes to remember that he’s done a lot of growing up over the past couple of years.

  “Where’s my favorite niece and nephew?” I ask, stealing a piece of beef and sliding up on the counter.

  Rome eyes where my ass is on the counter and rolls his eyes. “They’re upstairs with Harley. Did you forget you said six to everyone?”

  Colin returns from the walk-in refrigerator and I fist-bump him.

  “It is six,” I say around the piece of beef.

  “It’s six-fifteen,” Rome says.

  I look around for a clock and find one over the doorway to the dining room. I shrug. “Close enough.”

  Rome blows out a breath and Colin chuckles as he cuts peppers. I snag a piece of red pepper and Colin slides a pile over to me on the corner of the cutting board. Colin’s good people.

  “Let’s go. Sav and Austin are already here.” Rome grabs a plate with beef and a potato dish on it. “You good, Colin?”

  “Yeah,” Colin says, and Rome looks back at him with gratitude.

  I jump off the counter, smack Colin on the back, and pick up a few more red peppers. I shouldn’t have skipped lunch.

  The dining room is three-quarters full, and my oldest sister and brother are in the corner table by the street, talking to one another.

  “What’s up?” I ask, sliding into a chair next to Austin.

  “Isn’t that the question we should ask you?” Austin says.

  Savannah sips her wine and leans back in her chair. She’s dressed as though she came right from work, and Austin is in his classic jeans and button-down after teaching biology at the high school. Rome places the dish down and holds up his finger to go to the bar.

  I should be thankful I can call a last-minute meeting and my family comes. They’re the only ones I can ever count on.

  Rome returns with a beer for me and water for him. He dishes out food while Sav and Austin focus on me.

  “Chip left me half the company,” I blurt.

  Savannah blinks in surprise. “And what about his daughter?”

  “She got the other half.” I take a pull off my beer.

  “Oh.” She sighs and sips her wine again, looking over the rim of her glass at Austin.

  “And?” Austin asks.

  “And I’m not sure what to do. She comes from that rich family and I know she wants to buy me out. We all know I can’t buy her out. Not that I’d want to run a company on my own. But I don’t even know if I want to run a company at all, let alone with her.”

  Rome finishes dishing out the food and is surprisingly quiet, putting his napkin in his lap and positioning his silverware on either side of his plate.

  “Well, let her buy you out then,” Austin says and eyes Savannah.

  She shrugs. “If you don’t want to do it, then sell it to her.”

  I have to admit, I thought there’d be some pushback. They all have their opinions on my life, wanting me to strive to be more responsible, to do something more. I thought maybe this would be the ideal opportunity for them to push me.

  “Rome?” I ask.

  He stares at me with eyes that match my own. “I’m not sure why you want any of our advice. We’re not the ones who’ll have to live with the decision.”

  That’s not the answer I thought my twin brother would give me. I get that parenthood has changed him, but since when doesn’t he have an opinion?

  “Hey, how is Holly feeling?” Savannah asks out of nowhere. “She looked a little pale the other night.”

  Austin cringes. “She’s fine. Maybe it was your cooking.” He laughs, tipping back his beer bottle.

  “Funny, jerk.” She picks up her fork and stabs a piece of meat.

  “Can we please get back to me?” I ask.

  They all turn my way.

  “What do you want to do? This isn’t about us. We can’t give you the answer.” Austin picks up his fork and eats.

  “Sure, you can. What do you think I should do? I mean, Savannah, running a company sucks, right?”

  Rome buries his head in his meal. What’s up with him tonight?

  Austin glances at Savannah.

  She shrugs, finishes chewing, and sets down her fork. “Rome, this is awesome. Can I order a to-go for Liam? He’s at the shop and I was gonna stop by there after.”

  “Can we please stop talking about your significant others?” My voice is loud enough that the table beside us glances over.

  It got my siblings’ attention though.

  Savannah gives me her motherly eyes. “Running a company sucks at times, but there’re a lot of benefits as well. Truth is, I love that we’re able to give people employment. That something I do affects this town in a positive way. It sucks when it’s negative and those days are hard, but as much as I sometimes hate it, I’m not sure I would do anything different.”

  Of course, she’s anal and OCD. Plus, she went into an established company. Chip let this one idle for too long and it has languished. I suspect he was sick for longer than he let on.

  “But you get to do it all by yourself.”

  Savannah tilts her head. “Have you ever heard of someone named Grandma Dori?”

  I cut into my beef. “I get your point. But if I can’t buy Cleo out, I’ll be doing it with her, and she’s just terrible.”

  Austin snickers, and when I look his way, he deflects by shoving a pile of potatoes into his mouth.

  “Are you asking us for a loan?” Savannah asks. “Because Bailey Timber can’t invest in anything right now. Maybe Wyatt?”

  “I’m not asking my brother-in-law for a loan.” I shove a piece of meat into my mouth.

  Damn, my brother can cook. This is delicious.

  “Sorry, bro, I can’t,” Rome says. “Between the restaurant and the kids, we’re strapped.”

  “Here’s an idea, maybe you guys use protection,” Austin comments with a sour note to his voice, which is weird.

  “For your information, we were using protection when both our kids were conceived. My sperm are just so powerful that they conquer anything in their path.” He looks at me. “Watch out, dude.”

  “I’ve been lucky up until now.” I take another swig of my beer.

  Austin grumbles while Rome sips his water.

  “I have to get back into the kitchen. Sorry I can’t loan you.” He stands and squeezes my shoulder.

  “Jesus, I’m not asking for a loan. I’m asking for some advice, which you all have been happy to give me until I find myself in the middle of a fork in the road.”

  Rome sits back down, and his shoulders fall. Savannah’s lips turn down, and Austin keeps eating.

  “Listen,” Rome says, “there’s a reason Chip left you half the company. I’ve seen you run away from responsibility your entire life. Maybe this is the one time you don’t run.”

  “We can’t decide this for you,” Austin adds. “Consider this a giant leap into maturity.”

  Rome pats my shoulder and walks back into the kitchen.

  I put my head in my hands.

  “Denver,” Savannah sighs, but I’m not picking up my head.

  “Excuse me?” Someone comes to
the table. “I just wanted to say how happy we are that you’ve stepped up to take over Lifetime Adventures. Chip was such an integral part of this town, I can’t imagine losing the business too.”

  I raise my head to see who the voice belongs to. I don’t know the man standing at the end of the table, but I remember seeing him at the funeral, talking to Cleo. “You knew him?”

  “I did. He was a great man.”

  I pick up my beer and raise it. “That’s for sure.”

  The man smiles. “Have a good night.”

  With that, I watch him walk out on to Main Street as if he was a mirage.

  “How did he find out?” I wonder.

  But my question gets answered when the cocked eyebrows of my brother and sister imply that I’m stupid.

  Austin pulls out his phone, hits a few buttons, and hands it over. The Lake Starlight Buzz Wheel is on the screen, and the local gossip blog has a picture of Cleo and me on the steps of Luther Lloyd’s office building.

  Which means if I turn this opportunity down, I don’t only disappoint Chip, but the entire town.

  Perfect.

  Four

  Cleo

  Phil gives Bridget a hug as my mom and I embrace, then we switch partners before we watch our parents walk onto the tarmac, out to the plane, and up the stairs. Neither of them give us a look back or one last wave. Not that I’m surprised.

  When I went to college, I was put on a plane with a suitcase and a promise that my stuff would be delivered the next day. I arrived on campus and watched everyone’s parents crying, the moms clinging to their children until the last possible second, while I pretended I was the lucky one because mine hadn’t come.

  “Just us now!” Bridget slides her arm through mine like she always does, and we watch the engines start and the plane roll down the runway. “Daddy said I can stay as long as I want.”

  Truth is, I’m not sure how long I want Bridget here. I like to do things on my own, whereas Bridget likes people to do things for her.

  “Let’s go back to the hotel and do a spa treatment and order room service.” Her eyes are already rolling back into her head and her voice lowering to a whisper as if she just dipped into the warm water.

  “I have to go to my dad’s. We can stay there.”

  Her arm slides out of mine. “I’m not staying there.”

  “Why not?” My forehead wrinkles.

  “How do you even have to ask that question? It’s dark and dirty and messy and just no.”

  I try not to get my back up. My dad and I weren’t overly close, but I’m still dealing with the loss of him and her comment comes off as insensitive.

  “And to think people say you’re snobby,” I say as we climb into the Uber I called for.

  “I’m not snobby.”

  I say nothing because we don’t lie to one another. Plus, I have bigger things to worry about right now.

  Bridget leans forward to tell the Uber driver, “Glacier Point Resort in Lake Starlight.”

  “He knows. I had to tell him when I put it in the app.”

  Bridget smiles widely at the guy.

  “Sure thing. I’m from Lake Starlight, so no worries,” he says. I look at the guy’s security uniform, and he catches me doing so in the rearview mirror. “Security at the airport and an Uber driver. I’m sorry about your father, Cleo.” He turns in his seat and puts out his hand. “Duke Thompson.”

  I shake his hand. He could’ve gotten my name from the Uber app, but he would’ve had to know my dad to know about me.

  “How do you know about her father?” Bridget asks.

  Duke chuckles. “Your dad never told you?”

  “Told me what?”

  He pulls away from the curb, but we immediately stop at a light. “Buzz Wheel. There’s an online blog that reports the town news. You and Denver Bailey are gonna run Lifetime Adventures together, huh? My bet was on Denver, but—”

  “I’m sorry, what is Buzz Wheel?” Bridget looks as if we asked her to go work in a fast food joint. Her small nose crinkles in my direction and she mouths ‘Buzz Wheel’ to me.

  Duke passes his phone to us, and Bridget snatches it before I can. She laughs and turns the phone to me.

  “You’re famous, sis,” she says.

  I take the phone from her hand, and sure enough, there’s a picture of Denver Bailey and me. Actually, I’m on my ass on the sidewalk and Denver is looking like a saint, holding out his hand for me. Great first impression.

  I start to read the article to myself, but Bridget grabs the phone back. “Let me read it. To practice for the weather girl job.”

  I suppress my eye roll. Bridget called in a favor with her dad and is going to be interviewed for the weekend weather girl down at a Texas news station.

  She clears her throat. “‘No surprise that Denver Bailey would run to a woman in distress.’”

  “Distress? I wasn’t in distress.”

  Bridget nods. “Definitely not in distress.” She glances from me to the phone, asking for permission to continue. “‘But the fact that the woman is the late Chip Dawson’s estranged daughter—’”

  “Estranged? I wasn’t estranged. I’ve been up here. Just because I don’t attend the stupid Founder’s Day parade—”

  Bridget puts her hand on my thigh to stop me. It’s then that I notice my heartbeat is at max pace.

  “Go ahead,” I say.

  “Okay, I’m going to start at the beginning. Try not to interrupt, you’re ruining my flow.”

  I roll my eyes and nod, watching the snowbanks at the side of the road whizz by.

  She clears her throat again. “‘No surprise that Denver Bailey would run to a woman in distress. But the fact that the woman is the late Chip Dawson’s estranged daughter, who just inherited all of Chip’s assets, is the surprise. Rumors spread while Chip was ill that these two don’t see eye-to-eye. No one really knows why there’s so much tension between Cleo and Denver, and more rumors have spread around town today that the two of them are now business partners. Chip left each of them fifty percent of Lifetime Adventures.

  “‘I think I speak for all of us when I say that it will be interesting to see how it plays out. Denver Bailey, who can’t commit to a goldfish, and a woman who hasn’t a clue how to dress for an Alaskan winter and probably shouldn’t be the leading authority on how to survive it. At least we know one thing—it will be entertaining to watch these two from afar.

  “‘I do wish them luck. We lost Chip Dawson too soon, so the fact that his company will live on can give us all comfort.

  “‘In other news, there must be something in the Bailey genes, because pictures were snapped of Savannah Bailey and Liam Kelly making out outside his tattoo shop the other night. As lifers of Lake Starlight, they should know that even at one in the morning, there are eyes everywhere.’”

  Bridget hands the phone back to Duke but quickly pulls up the site on her own phone. “Savannah and Liam sound like my kind of people.” She leans back into her seat and studies the screen for a moment. “I want to make it in there.” She squeezes her head between the two front seats. “How do I get mentioned in there?”

  Duke laughs. “Most people don’t want to be mentioned in there.”

  “Oh, Bridget thinks the Kardashians are goals,” I say.

  Duke laughs again. “Don’t worry, Cleo. It’s only up for twenty-four hours, then it disappears and a new one is put up.”

  “Thank God,” I say. “At least there’s a small silver lining.”

  “I hate when you say that,” Bridget says.

  “I don’t care.”

  “You always look at the bad side of everything. Your dad died. That does suck.” Her hand finds my leg again and she squeezes. “But he left you his company.”

  “Half.”

  “Half with a hot guy who owns the other half.”

  I blow out a breath. She doesn’t understand. She has her trust fund.

  “I mean, you’re the baddest bitch I know. Come on.
Stop moping. Who the hell cares about this Buzz Wheel thing?” Bridget asks.

  “You seem to care.” I look at her and raise an eyebrow.

  She shrugs. “You know what I mean. Go in there and show that Denver Bailey who’s boss.”

  Bridget’s little pep talk has me feeling hopeful for the first time today.

  “Be done with the negativity. It doesn’t make up for losing your dad, but he obviously thought you could do this. We’re going to spend the rest of the day relaxing at the spa, and you’re going to wake up tomorrow ready to win this war.”

  Duke’s gaze pings from me to Bridget and back to me, a small smile tipping his lips.

  “How? He has the survival and piloting skills I don’t.”

  “Remember that time we went camping?” Bridget asks. “With everyone after we graduated?”

  “You mean when you and Miguel rented an RV for all of us to ‘camp’ in?”

  “Yeah, and we only had that one bathroom and shower for all of us?” Her body shakes a little as though she has the heebie-jeebies. “You’re the one who started our fire.”

  “With a match,” I deadpan.

  Duke swerves a bit on the road from laughing so hard.

  “And when we got lost after Miguel wanted to try hiking because he’d just bought all that new North Face gear?”

  “What about it?”

  She nudges me. “You got us out of there.”

  She has a point but being a survivalist for eight spoiled rich kids isn’t the same as being dropped somewhere deep in the woods and finding your way out. I’m not even sure I’d want to get on those small planes. “I don’t know the first thing about—”

  Her hand covers my mouth. “That sounded like negativity to me.”

  I yank my face away from her hand. “It’s the truth—” She pinches my arm. “Ouch!”

  “Every time you say you can’t, I’m going to pinch you.”

  “That’s abuse.”

  She shakes her head and her auburn hair swings side to side. It always looks as though she’s had it professionally done every day. “No, it’s sisterly love.”

  “Technically, you’re not my sister.”

  Her lips turn down and she pinches me again.