Chapter 15
King
My shoes created a steady beat on the pavement as I wove through the quaint streets of historic Starlight Grove. I usually ran on the longer trails along the beach and woods, but today’s tight morning schedule meant I had to resort to burning off my energy as best I could before my meeting.
I pushed myself harder. I needed my lungs and legs to burn until the pain was all I could focus on.
I turned a corner and almost tripped over a fluffy creature sprawled in the middle of the sidewalk. My steps stuttered as I fought to avoid stepping on what I realized was a cat. The creature gave me a dirty look as if I had inconvenienced him, and I shook my head as I took off running again.
This stupid fucking meeting.
Negotiations hadn’t even started and I was already tired of it all. The exhaustion was familiar—it had been my constant companion this past decade since my parents deteriorated and I had been forced to step in as CEO of their company.
I couldn’t believe they’d been gone for two months.
It would be a lie to say we’d been a close-knit family, but their absence still left an ache in my chest. Especially since their passing meant I was officially alone in the world.
At forty years old, the family company was the only thing tethering me to their legacy—the family company I wasn’t sure I wanted to keep.
I took a turn out of the neighborhood and the ocean opened up in front of me.
My New York apartment had a wall of windows overlooking the Brooklyn waterfront, but it wasn’t the same as being here by the water, the salt clinging to my skin.
The ocean brought me back to the idealistic dreamer I was in my twenties when I was living in a shitty studio apartment, doing ocean conservation advocacy for pennies.
I’d thought the past decade had killed off that version of myself, but maybe there was a bit of him left.
I grinned as old memories of long hours in the nonprofit’s shabby office flitted through my mind.
It was easy to romanticize the late nights and packages of ramen a decade removed, but at least I’d felt like I was doing something meaningful back then.
I reluctantly turned away from the ocean and jogged back to the house I was renting.
There were no hotels in Starlight Grove—apparently their mayor had banned any chain businesses within town limits—so the only thing my assistant had found was a short-term rental owned by a woman named Ms. Ito, who had decided to travel in her retirement.
The furniture might not be my style and there were a bizarre number of boxes filled with weird-ass socks stacked around the rooms, but it was fine for a short stint and only a block away from Main Street.
The door creaked as I stepped inside. I was pressed for time and needed to make this a quick shower, but once the hot water was pelting my back, I found it hard to get moving. Everything felt so empty these days, like I was just going through the motions of my life. How had I ended up here?
“The recent storm made a mess of the coastline, which is why our housing developer has a plan for high-end luxury homes that balance aesthetics with durability.”
“That’s right. There are a lot of couples and families in Boston and New York who need a quiet retreat like this.”
My dress shoes shifted on the sand beneath me.
The real estate development company had insisted we come down to the beach so we could better visualize its plan for luxury homes on Maine’s coast, but I felt like I was surrounded by a flock of overeager gulls in suits.
Not that I could judge. This business meeting was my first time not wearing a suit since I started at the company.
My assistant, Caroline, had forbidden me from bringing a suit or tie, saying it would be good for me to wear normal people clothes for once.
As if suits weren’t normal.
“What are the plans to mitigate the environmental impact of the development?” I asked.
“Our firm has a strong record of compliance with the minimum standards set out by our federal and state environmental laws when it comes to air and water quality, along with the soil contamination,” one of the gulls said.
My eyes wandered down the coastline. It was wild and rugged, one of the rare untouched areas of this part of the state. And I was responsible for deciding what happened to it.
“This is one reason we consistently attract luxury clientele. They love hearing about our innovative green building practices.”
“Complying with the minimum standards set forth by environmental laws is innovative?” I asked.
Another gull piped up. “We find strong messaging largely relies on cohesive branding. There are no laws that prohibit us from using the terms ‘eco-friendly’ and ‘green construction.’ ”
How inspiring.
I held my tongue as they continued their pitch, ending with a presentation in their office with blueprints and renderings of their proposed home designs.
“We worked closely with your parents to create these plans.” The man’s tone was friendly, but I sensed his underlying irritation.
While I did understand his frustration—they were having to repitch me after almost having a closed deal—I wasn’t going to sign off on the sale just because my parents had agreed to it.
This deal had nothing to do with the company.
After my parents passed, their lawyers had notified me that they owned a large piece of land on Starlight Grove’s coast. They’d held on to it for forty-five years, but when Blackthorne Ventures approached them to buy it, they’d pursued the sale.
They’d passed away before the final contract could be signed, so now it was up to me to approve the sale.
It should have been a no-brainer. The land alone was valued at close to ten million dollars—enough money to be set for life.
Enough money to retire.
Dreams of no longer being the CEO of Empire Enterprises were tantalizing. I’d dedicated the entirety of my thirties to the company in a sad effort to win my parents’ love. Something I’d never achieved and now never would.
I mulled over the sale on the short drive back to Starlight Grove’s downtown. The faster I closed this deal, the faster I could head back to the city and to my normal life. But somehow, that didn’t loosen the tension in my chest.
I slid into a parking spot in front of the coffee shop.
When I first arrived in town a few days ago, I’d been a pretentious ass, assuming a shop named Beans ’n Bliss in a tiny town like this would have shitty coffee.
I was wrong. I’d come every day so far—twice yesterday—and gotten whatever ridiculous latte the barista had suggested. I had yet to be disappointed.
My phone rang as I stepped inside. I glanced at the screen, planning to send the call to voicemail before I saw it was Caroline. I groaned internally before answering.
“Yes?”
“Oh good, you’re already grumpy.”
“What is it?”
Ella waved at me as I got to the front of the line. I fished a twenty out of my pocket and handed it to her. “Surprise me.”
“You want me to surprise you?” Caroline asked. “Great, because that’s why I’m calling.”
“I wasn’t talking to you.” I stepped to the side as I waited for my drink.
“Too bad. There’s a last-minute event in Boston tonight that you need to attend.”
I frowned. “Caroline, I distinctly remember you yelling at me to take time off.” I lowered my voice so no one around me could overhear. “You’re the one who rented me this house in this bizarre small town.”
“Yes, but this event is for charity.” She pushed on before I could interrupt her. “It’s a gala to raise money for childhood cancer research.”
I clenched my jaw to stop myself from letting out a string of curses, because my assistant had me.
She knew exactly what to say to manipulate me into saying yes, because I hadn’t always been alone in the world.
At one time, I had an older brother. My chest squeezed tight.
Saint spent years of his young life in and out of the hospital before cancer took him from us, leaving my parents cold and broken.
I had only been four when he died, so I barely remembered him beyond the pictures that had lined the halls of our home and the pointed comparisons my parents made between the two of us.
“Why can’t I just send a donation?” I gritted out.
“Okay, so here’s where it gets tricky.”
I scrubbed my hand down my face. I wasn’t going to like this. Ella called out my name and I picked up my latte—iced this time—and took a cautious sip. Sweet, fresh strawberry flavor hit my tongue, and I gave the barista a thumbs-up, juggling my phone and drink as I headed for the door.
“The event is an auction.”
“Okay? I still don’t understand why a donation wouldn’t work. Cash donation or a weekend at the vacation house, whatever they want.”
The cafe door swung open before I could reach for it, putting me face-to-face with a man with golden brown skin and dark curly hair.
He arched an eyebrow, a teasing grin on his lips, and I realized I was blocking his way.
I half stumbled as I moved to the side. He was a touch shorter than me, with lean muscles and a faint scent of something warm and spicy that identified him as a beta.
He headed to the counter, and it was only as my lingering gaze trailed down his strong, broad shoulders and arms that I realized he was walking with a cane.
I blinked to clear my dazed mind and exited the coffee shop.
“That’s why you have to be there. And I know you’re going to say you don’t want to do it, but it’s for an important cause and will be good press. But you would have to leave Starlight Grove in the next three or four hours.”
I glanced through the cafe window, catching one last look at the beta. Ella was handing him a full bottle of flavored syrup, which seemed odd.
“I don’t have a tux with me,” I said distractedly. “Wonder whose fault that is.”