Chapter 30
THIRTY
I meet Rowan at his hotel bright and early Monday morning, a week after opening.
According to Sutton, he arrived at the fancy hotel I was staying in late the night before.
When he walks out of the hotel room, giving me a wide grin, I understand what Sutton was talking about.
He’s been dating Josie for about a year now, but I never really noticed the way he smiles more, the way he looks lighter and less stressed, something that, to my knowledge, is a testament to Josie.
I wonder if that’s how I look these days, lighter and happier, thanks to June.
“Hey, Rowan,” I say, smiling as I approach, offering a handshake.
My boss wanted coffee and a Daytrip tour before the staff arrived.
I agreed eagerly, telling him I’d pick him up, and we’d walk to Seaside Coffee together.
As June would say, walking the boardwalk is the best way to experience Seaside Point, and although he’s been here before, I want Rowan to love this town as much as I have started to.
“Graham! Good to see you,” Rowan says.
“How was your flight?” I ask. He shrugs.
“It was a flight, but we got in late, so Josie’s still out like a light.
” Josie had a mission in California, and she didn't get the intel she needed until the very last minute. I don’t know much about what Josie does with the Mavens, mostly because I never felt it was my place to ask, since Rowan and I were coworkers, not friends, but something tells me that as soon as June meets the woman, she’ll find out everything. “How are things here?”
Quickly, I fill him in on everything that’s been going on over the last week.
While I sent him a recap email on Monday after the opening, there’s so much to expand upon, ideas and discoveries I believe will make Daytrip a runaway success.
While my job is technically just to get a business going, I'm so motivated by this location.
It could be the start of something amazing.
Eagerly, I tell him about the newest idea I’ve been turning over in my mind: transforming the interior into an event space in the winter, when we might need to get creative with income streams. While the outdoor areas will be relatively unusable in the cold winter, the giant windows facing the beach and ocean would make a gorgeous backdrop for weddings or other events.
The idea came to mind when June mentioned in passing that the high school might need a location for its homecoming dance this fall, and I’ve been turning it around ever since.
“I’m thinking we can offer the school a discount.
It’s good publicity and lets the community know Daytrip will be available for events.
Integrating with the community is vital, and it’s working—this week, a quarter of our visits were from locals, trying to have a more relaxing beach day away from the rush of tourists. ”
“I’m impressed. Honestly, the more Sutton told me, the more worried I was this wouldn’t be a sound investment, but you’ve identified the needs here and made it work seamlessly.
” I lick my lips, clearing my throat before continuing.
It feels like I’m in the spotlight, an unexpected proposal of my own.
“I think it’s all about tailoring it to what the town needs: during the summer, it needs revenue, and it needs somewhere more upscale to bring in a fresh set of tourists.
At the same time, there has to be some kind of cohesion with the community.
That’s why we started the gift shop and why I sent you the email last week about offering a locals’ discount.
” Rowan nods. “But in the fall and winter, this place doesn’t need an exclusive club.
I don’t think that will be a successful venture, and I think we should consider pivoting. ”
The original plan was to turn Daytrip into a high-end nightclub during the fall and winter months, but the more time I spend here, the more I realize that’s the wrong call.
“Seaside Point needs somewhere to continue to build community. Local events are huge here.” He nods, seeming interested in the idea, and I spill out some numbers and figures as we walk.
We pause our conversation when we get to Seaside Coffee, where I introduce Rowan to Mrs. Miller, telling him about how she’s supplying the coffee beans.
She chats with us as she makes our drinks and sends me off with an extra coffee for June, which I carry as we walk back to the office.
“You seem to know everyone here,” Rowan says with a bit of surprise, grinning as he sips his coffee. I just shrug.
“It’s a very small, close-knit town. June, my assistant, was born and raised here. She knows everyone, and she wants everyone else to know everyone, so I’ve met…well, everyone.”
“June, the girlfriend?” he asks. I can’t help but smile as I nod.
“Yeah.”
He studies me and, though I know it’s not a problem, nerves slide through me. I called him after we got together to inform him I was dating my assistant, something he was fine with, but talking to Rowan about my love life still feels strange.
“Sutton’s told me all about her, says she’s a great woman. I’m happy for you.” He grins, assessing me as we walk. “You seem settled here.”
“I am, strangely enough,” I say, waving to the landscaper, Mark, out in front of Daytrip.
“You were pissed when I sent you here,” Rowan says as we step inside. He looks around, visibly impressed, and pride rushes through me as I lead him to the office area.
“Pissed is probably a strong word, but yes. I was disappointed to be assigned the Seaside Point project.” I furrow my brows as I open my office door, holding it for him to enter, filtering through our conversations. “But I didn’t think I told you that, though.”
“You didn’t, but you don’t hide your feelings as well as you think.”
I laugh, shaking my head. He sits in the visitor's chair, gesturing for me to sit in my desk chair.
“Okay, well, I think disappointed was the right word. I expected something bigger after the Aspen project. This seemed like a step down at the time,” I say, and he nods in understanding. “But now I see it was the right move for me. I needed this challenge.”
He leans back, sizing me up. “So, what’s next?”
“What’s next?”
“Yeah. For you. What’s next for Graham Hawthorne?”
“I, uh…” I look over, spotting a colorful art piece June hung in the hall, and it gives me the confidence to speak honestly. “I want to stay here.”
Rowan smirks, though it’s not in a rude way,but in a knowing one I don’t quite understand.
“You want to stay? Graham Hawthorne, who usually leaves right after opening? Always on to the next location, the next project?”
“I know it’s not what you wanted, not what you hired me for, and if I need to take a pay or position cut, that’s fine. But I want to stay here in Seaside Point, and see this project through.”
Rowan stares at me, and unease slides through me.
I am so getting fucking fired today, aren’t I?
I’m telling him I don’t want to work the position he gave me, that I want something altogether different.
I wonder if this is how June felt in that convenience store, the panic of knowing you can have a sure, stable job, but realizing it’s the last thing you want.
“I was hoping you’d say that,” Rowan says, breaking into my messy thoughts.
“You… you were hoping I’d say that?” The shock is clear in my voice.
“Absolutely,” he says. “You were made for Daytrip, Rowan. It’s clear to me that this is the project you came to this company to lead, and you’ve done a fantastic job at it.
Why wouldn’t I want you to stay on, make sure it continues to succeed?
” Relief moves through me rapidly, making me lightheaded, but he doesn’t stop surprising me.
“But I don’t want you limited to just this location. ”
I raise an eyebrow, heart pounding as Annette walks into the office.
Now I understand why Rowan kept glancing at the door.
He was waiting for Annette. But why is she here?
“Is it my turn now?” she asks. Rowan rolls his eyes, clearly exasperated by the CEO of Daydream Resorts and his own mentor.
“Sure, Annette, come in and derail my conversation, why don’t you?”
“I think you forgot this is my business,” the gorgeous older blonde says, sitting down on the chair beside him primly.
“I’m sorry, what...what is going on here?”
“Annette loves drama,” Rowan sighs. “Remember when she hired the Mavens to investigate The Keys without telling anyone?”
“Worked out pretty well for you, didn’t it?” she deadpans, giving Rowan a narrow-eyed look. He rolls his eyes, then turns to me.
“We’ve been using Daytrip as a proof of concept, and you’ve been on an interview for the last few months, so to speak.”
I blink at her. “I’m sorry?”
“We’re looking to create a more accessible line of smaller Daydream resorts—The Daytrip line.” Annette pulls a folder out of the bag she came in with, then slides it onto my desk. “And we want you to head it.” My eyes are wide as I reach for it, and Rowan looks at me with a shit-eating grin.
“You know, Annette told me one day, I’d have some asshole in my office telling me he didn’t want to worry about anything but work, and I’d understand why she was so worried about me.
But she didn’t tell me just how entertaining it would be to watch him fall in love and find a purpose,” Rowan says, contemplatively.
“Told you,” Annette beams. “It’s fun, isn’t it?”
“I’m sorry, what is happening?” I ask as I open the folder and see "Daytrip by Daydream" on the cover page. There’s a business card pinned to the packet of papers that reads, Graham Hawthorn, Managing Director of Daytrip by Daydream.
“I hired you because I saw myself in you, Graham. Then I gave you this place because I knew you could handle it, this challenge you clearly needed. I knew you’d be pissed that you didn’t have a traditional location, but I thought you could use something different.
Something bigger and smaller at the same time. ”