Chapter Fifteen #2
He left the celebration for a moment to get some bottled waters and passed by the study on his way. Caleb and Xavier were in the room, talking in hushed tones. Sensing they were discussing something important, he stepped into the room.
“Hey, guys. What’s going on? Is something wrong?” Landon asked, looking back and forth between his brothers. He could tell by the tension hovering in the air that something was up.
“We didn’t want to pull you from the reception when you were having such a great time,” Xavier said, stroking his jaw, “but we can’t leave the decision about the company to the last minute.”
“Things are moving really fast now,” Caleb said. His usually jovial expression was now somber. “Time is running out.”
Yukon Cider. Despite having been given almost a year to make a decision, Landon still felt undecided. “I know you want me to have an answer, but I’m torn.” He almost wished his brothers would just make the decision for him. Toss a coin. His head was starting to pound just thinking about it.
“So how does Bailey factor into your decision about Yukon Cider?” Caleb asked. “No pressure, just trying to get a feel for how we’re leaning since our year is almost up. And with Hattie being so ill, we really do need to have our heads on straight.”
“I was actually wondering the same thing,” Xavier admitted. “Things change a little bit when you’re in a relationship. You and Bailey seem really solid.”
Landon wanted to laugh out loud at Xavier’s assessment. His and Bailey’s relationship was fairly brand-new, and although the feelings were there, so much was up in the air. Every instinct told him she loved him, but he still hadn’t heard those words from her.
He hadn’t even told her that he might not be staying in Moose Falls or about the conditions of their legal agreement with Hattie.
Notoriously private, Hattie had asked her three grandsons not to share the details.
Although everyone in town assumed they would inherit the company and remain in Moose Falls to run it, they also had the option to sell.
Whatever they did, it had to be unanimous.
He’d always felt that she wanted to preserve their brotherly bonds by having them stick together regarding the outcome.
“Your situation is a little different, though,” Caleb added. “You have to decide if going back to California is your main focus. I know you’re working with some of your colleagues to make Abbott pay for what they did to you. And if that’s still the case, we would support you and sell.”
Suddenly he felt as if he couldn’t breathe.
This was where he felt conflicted. He was in love with Bailey and feeling emotions that were brand-new to him.
Yet he would never feel whole if he didn’t go back to California and seek justice.
How could he roll over and play dead regarding his entire life’s work?
Especially now that Sonali and Griff had dug up solid evidence to support his case.
“I can’t imagine selling Yukon Cider,” Landon said, running a shaky hand over his face. The very thought of it made him sick to his stomach. It would be like turning their backs on their family legacy. “Hattie would haunt us from the Great Beyond.”
He couldn’t really wait on making a decision because it was so important to all three of them.
So vital to Hattie’s legacy. Xavier and Caleb both had families now, and even though he knew they wouldn’t pressure him, it was clear that they didn’t want to sell.
For the life of him, he still didn’t know what he wanted to do.
As the months had ticked by, Landon had continued to agonize over the decision.
Giving up Hattie’s company and her legacy didn’t feel right.
But how could he stay and run the company when he still hadn’t gotten closure with Abbott Laboratories.
All of a sudden he couldn’t take it anymore. He exploded.
“Listen, I don’t need this kind of pressure.
I don’t know what I want to do. I haven’t made up my mind.
Stay or go, go or stay, sell or run the company.
It’s all I’ve thought about for the better part of the year.
I can’t think about it anymore.” Landon sucked in a breath.
“And all I know is that Hattie is slipping away from us. And I’m in love with a woman who is tempting me to plant roots here instead of going back to California and making those folks at the laboratory pay for what they did to me. ”
He drew in a ragged breath. “If it wasn’t for Bailey, I would do what I need to do and fight for justice.
I have two former colleagues who I’ve been in constant contact with, and something is about to break with Abbott Laboratories.
But I need to be there helping. And I can’t.
Our agreement with Hattie made our options clear.
Stay and run Yukon Cider or sell. I can’t leave and still keep the company. ”
Xavier and Caleb looked at him with wide, shocked eyes.
Now he really did feel like a jerk. He hadn’t meant to blow up at them like that, but emotions were boiling over. His brothers were thinking about his long-term future in Moose Falls, taking Bailey into consideration. He knew their hearts were in the right place.
“Just breathe,” Caleb instructed him. “Everything will work out the way it’s supposed to.”
Xavier placed his hand on the back of his neck and looked him in the eyes. “Listen to Caleb. This situation is stressful, but at the end of the day we want your happiness to come first, which means that we support you unconditionally.”
“We’ve got your back,” Caleb said, placing his hand on his shoulder. “Whatever you decide, we’ll roll with it.”
Emotion crashed over him. The fact that his brothers would sacrifice their own desires for him made him feel like the luckiest man in the world.
He knew they meant every single word. No matter what happened, Landon knew that they would be there for him.
The Three Musketeers. It highlighted what was most important of all.
Like Hattie and his brothers, he would always choose love.
He chose Moose Falls. And he chose Bailey.
Bailey hadn’t meant to eavesdrop. She’d been looking for Landon, and by the time she approached the doorway of the study, it was too late to avoid overhearing their conversation.
If it wasn’t for Bailey, I would do what I need to do and fight for justice.
She had staggered away just after hearing him say those shocking words.
Our agreement with Hattie made our options clear. Stay and run Yukon Cider or sell.
Her head was spinning. The Stone brothers had an agreement with Hattie that put the decision to run Yukon Cider squarely in their hands. If they chose not to, they could sell. Clearly the situation had been confidential among the parties.
Landon wanted to leave Moose Falls. In actuality, he needed to leave Alaska so that he could recover his good name.
And deal with Abbott Laboratories. The fact that he even mentioned her as a consideration broke her heart.
All this time she’d wanted a man who was noble and loving, and by some miracle she’d found him.
But he wasn’t really hers, couldn’t be hers.
The man she loved had this huge, dark cloud hanging over his head.
Landon deserved justice, and he deserved to clear his name.
If he stayed here in Moose Falls for her, Landon would always resent her, and she wouldn’t be able to stand that.
No, she thought, she couldn’t allow him to do that. Not for her. At this point there was only one thing she could do to stop Landon from throwing away his dreams. And even though it might kill her to do so, Bailey only had one choice. She needed to break things off with Landon.