Chapter 12
Colin
It’s past two a.m. on Monday morning when I finally walk through the front door of my condo. The storm meant I spent two more days on the island, so my plans of spending the last two days with Honeybee went out the window.
I haven’t talked to her in hours because it was too late to call by the time I landed after the four-hour flight. Instead of spending the night with her, I’m here alone with only six hours to sleep.
The good news is, my new home is across the street from the office. It’s already furnished, but I resist falling face-first on the couch. I manage to crawl upstairs, pull my toothbrush out of my bag, and brush my teeth. I never sleep with clothes, so I strip naked and climb into bed. I check my phone one last time, and the last text was from Honeybee telling me to text her when I got home.
Me: Home.
I fall asleep with visions of her sweet face and innocent smile.
“So, there are some things we need to discuss,” Uncle Milton says hours later. It’s been a while since I had to dress for work. My previous firm was casual, but my uncle is more old-school. He’s in a tailored suit with a tie. I didn’t bother with the tie, but my suit is as nice as his.
I let out a deep breath before taking a huge gulp of my coffee. I love my uncle. He’s been there for me my entire life, which is more than I can say for my father.
My father was Uncle Milton's older brother, and my mother was my dad's second wife. His kids from his first marriage were grown when he married my mother and had me and my sister. Because of that, I'm not close with my older siblings. My relationship with my older sister is cordial. She’s the mother of one of my nephews, who I adore.
My relationship with my brother is a lot more complicated. He’s never liked me, and the feeling is mutual. He’s done everything to make me and my sister, Lisa, feel like outsiders, and I've avoided him over the years. I haven’t seen him in three years. I have no desire to see him now. This move isn’t about him. It’s about me, and for once, the universe is rewarding me because I met the perfect woman on vacation, and she lives five point three miles away from me.
“What’s that? Do you have an official retirement date?” He hasn’t told his employees. He wants to guide me for a few months before he retires.
“No, but I’ve done a thing.” My uncle scratches the back of his neck. That’s a nervous tick he has, and I wonder what he could have done. We’ve signed a contract for this job. The position is mine. He’s assured me every day for the past few months that the position is mine.
Then I remember my sister, Lisa, always describes our uncle as a genie. He’ll grant us any wish. He’s always spoiled us. He was the uncle who showed up for every event, every holiday, and every graduation, but he’s also a known troublemaker in the family. He always maintains that trouble finds him, not the other way around. He’s a good person, so it’s never bothered me, but one year, he asked me what I wanted for my birthday, and I told him I wanted a bike. He got me the bike, but it came in pieces, and I had to put it together.
When I was at Berkeley, he surprised me with a brand-new sports car. Then I learned that it was the car he had just taken back from his current girlfriend. When she found out he gave it to me, she flew to California to try to get it back. I had to get the police involved.
Another thing about Uncle Milton is that when the trouble comes, he’s usually not around to deal with the aftermath.
“Don’t tell me you promised this job to someone else,” I say with a chuckle. When he doesn’t laugh back, my stomach sinks.
“The job is yours. That won’t change, but—” He stops mid-sentence and stares out the office window.
“But what, Uncle Milton?”
“I have an employee. Brynne,” he begins. “She’s worked here for six years. She’s the best employee I’ve ever had. She’s smart and talented, and I’ve not only mentored her, but I’ve played a kind of father figure.” None of what he says surprises me. He only hires the best, and he loves to teach the secrets of the trade. He’s been my mentor my entire life because my father was too busy and too old.
“Okay—” I say. “I’ll take good care of her. You said her name is Brynne?”
“Yes. Brynne Barber.” The hairs on the back of my neck start to stand up. “See, the thing is, I kind of intimated that she would be the one replacing me. At the time—”
“Brynne Barber?” I ask, raising my voice slightly. I feel goosebumps at the mention of the name, but not in a good way. Brynne Barber. It can’t be.
It’s not. Barber is a common name, and her name is Brynneka. I’ve been calling her Brynneka for almost two weeks, and she never once told me to call her Brynne.
That’s because you call her Honeybee most of the time.
“Yes, and—”
“What does she look like?” I ask. I’ve suddenly turned cold, and there’s a sudden throbbing behind my eyes.
“What’s it matter? You’re the boss. You better not diddle any of your subordinates, boy.” He has the audacity to point his finger at me even though I’ve heard stories of him having relationships with his past assistants. He was even sued once, but she dropped the lawsuit after he paid her off.
“That name sounds familiar, is all,” I say. I lower my voice, but my pulse has picked up and so has my heart rate.
“Well, she’s about to be here in two minutes,” he says while he types something on his phone.
“What?” I yell. I tell myself there is no way this can be. Tonight, when I’m with Brynneka, I’ll tell her this story and have a good laugh before I take her to bed. My Brynneka is an artist. I’ve framed the sketch she made of me.
Architects tend to be good at sketching, moron .
I tell my inner voice to shut the hell up. There is absolutely no way the universe can fuck me over like this. Not after the disaster that was Esme. Not after moving cross country. Not after finally meeting someone with whom I want to spend quality time. There’s no way she would be the one person on this planet who not only works for my uncle, but was promised the job he handed to me.
Now, I’m kicking myself for not getting a background check, but I wanted to learn about her from her. I didn’t want to get a report on her. I craved the sound of her voice, and I wanted to lie in bed with her at night and, under the cover of darkness, learn everything about each other.
“Is she black, Uncle?” I raise my voice, and he arches an eyebrow.
“I’m not going to dignify that with a response. What kind of question is that?” His voice sounds accusatory as he lowers it and looks around the office as if we’re not the only two people there. “What the hell is the matter with you?” He grumbles something else under his breath before snatching his coffee cup and bringing it to his lips.
"Can you please just tell me?” I beg as I run a hand through my hair, but there’s no time left for answers. The conference room door opens, and I whip my head in the direction away from her.
I close my eyes for a brief second and say a short prayer that it’s not her. There’s no way. What are the odds? It can’t be because no one is that unlucky. Not even me.
“Sorry I’m late, Milton,” the voice says, and I’m doomed. I would know that voice from anywhere. I hang my head in defeat but still don’t open my eyes. Of all the ways I expected today to go, this didn’t make the list.
The sound of heels on the hardwood floor gets louder with each step.
Under any other circumstance, I’d stand to greet her, but if I stand now, my knees will buckle. I open my eyes just as she gets to the head of the table, and instead of shaking hands with my uncle, they hug, and she giggles. She still hasn’t noticed me, but her laughter is like music. It also confirms my damnation and the end of any hope that today will end well.
“Vacation looks good on you, Milton,” she says. She clears her throat, and I hold my breath while I wait for her to notice me. It doesn’t take long. Our eyes lock, and she gasps, putting a hand to her chest. She also takes a step back, but then her eyes light up, and she smiles at me.
Knowing her, she probably thinks this is some surprise, but the only one surprised at this moment is me. The smile doesn’t last long. It drops. Uncle Milton snaps his fingers at me like he used to do when I was a kid.
I get my wits about me and stand before extending my hand to her, and she shakes it without saying a word.
“Brynne, this is my nephew, Colin Kincaid,” Uncle Milton says.
“Kincaid?” she repeats the word as if it’s foreign. If she’s known my uncle for six years, she knows about the Kincaid family. “Your nephew?”
“Yes. He’s been living in San Diego for way too long. Please, sit,” he says. “We have much to discuss.”
Brynne sits, but she looks from me to my uncle, and I wish I could read her mind right now. I know she must be as confused as I am.
Uncle Milton loudly clears his throat and rubs the back of his neck so hard, I’m afraid he’ll rub his skin off.
“Is everything okay, Milton?” Brynne asks. She still looks from me to him.
“Here’s the thing,” Uncle Milton begins. “Well, actually, let’s talk money,” he says. His pivot doesn’t surprise me. When I was a kid, he told me the only universal language was money and that everyone, even the super-rich, has their price.
He opens a manila folder and slides a piece of paper to Brynne. He slides one to me too, and I see a letter detailing her position at the firm, her current salary, and her new salary once her raise goes through Human Resources.
It’s a substantial amount. Way more than someone in her position would get.
“That’s very generous, but there’s a typo. This still has my old position.” She gives me the side-eye. “And why are you sharing my salary with your nephew?” She looks away and shakes her head. “And I’m sorry, but you never mentioned a nephew named Colin. You’ve always talked about Paddy.” She gives me the side-eye again.
“Well, that’s him. Colin Patrick Kincaid. We called him by his middle name because my brother was a narcissist. He was named Colin, and both his sons were named after him.”
She points at me in total disbelief. “ This is Paddy Cake?” she asks, referring to my childhood nickname. Even as I grew into a teenager and adult, Uncle Milton never dropped the childish nickname. “I thought you were referring to a child. Like a grandnephew or something.”
“Nope. That’s him, and you should know that I’ve been trying to get him to come here for years. He’s always turned me down, which is why I trained you as my protégé, and I was ready to hand over the reins to you, but then Paddy called and begged me for the job.”
I shake my head at him. I did no such thing. He called me and offered it to me. He stressed that a Kincaid should run Kincaid Architecture, and since my relationship imploded and I was desperate for a change, I agreed—especially when he said the firm would be mine to run as I see fit.
“How come in all our conversations over the years, you never mentioned having an architect nephew? Not even when you talked about him to me.” I can tell she’s doing her best to remain calm, but her voice gets slightly higher with each word. Her left cheek also twitches, and despite the situation, I find that sexy.
Uncle Milton is now red in the face. I stare at him, eager to hear his reason. I already know. He didn’t want her to know a family member could come into the company. In his mind, if she knew that information, she might not work as hard, knowing her limited promotional probabilities.
“I’m sure I mentioned it,” he lies.
She doesn’t believe him, and neither do I. She glares at him with her nostrils flared.
“Does this mean you’ll give him my old job?” she asks. She’s flustered now. Her calm manner is gone, and in its place is a simmering fire.
“See, that’s the thing. I think it’s best if you keep your job, complete with a huge raise, and Paddy will replace me. It’s always been important to me that a Kincaid run this firm.”
I plant my hand on my forehead and shake my head. It’s barely nine o’clock on my first day of work, and it’s already one of the worst days of my life. As soon as I leave this conference room, I plan on pouring myself a drink.
“So, I can’t have the job because I have the wrong last name? I just want to be clear because you’ve never mentioned this little detail before.”
“It’s not that simple,” Uncle Milton says with a throat clearing, but he’s lying. It’s exactly that simple.
“Then why did you promise it to me if you wanted a Kincaid in charge? Why did you lead me to believe this was a done deal only to bring him in?” She points at me but won’t look at me anymore. “Because of nepotism? I’ve been here for six years, and before today, I’ve never heard of Colin Kincaid.”
“Well, you have,” I remind her. “Only as Paddy.” Even to my own ears, I sound like a pompous ass. She finally looks me in the eyes, and I hold her stare, letting her look for whatever she’s searching for. I hope she’ll see the guy she spent those few days with in paradise and not let this impede our plans.
Idiot .
She looks away and waits for my uncle to speak. He’s as red as a tomato.
“I want you to give him a chance. In fact, I want you to help him in this transition. The other employees will follow your lead if you show you’re on board.”
She stands and glares at him. “You want me to train the man who stole my job?” she asks, clearly outraged.
“Whoa,” I interject. “I didn’t steal a damn thing.”
“You let me handle this, Paddy,” Uncle Milton says. He has the nerve to glare at me like he did when I was a little kid acting up. “Hush.”
“I’ve heard enough,” Brynne says.
"You still got the salary. I gave you ten percent more than we talked about. I don’t want to lose you, Brynne. And we also have a non-compete clause. You can’t work anywhere else for a year,” he reminds her.
I close my eyes and shake my head slowly.
My uncle has always believed everyone has their price and knowing him, he knows something else about her. Something about her makes him think she won’t quit on him.