Chapter 2
Chapter Two
Logan
A man always has two reasons for doing anything:
a good reason and the real reason.
– J.P. Morgan
“Thank you. I’m flattered.” I close my eyes since no one is looking, and I savor the moment. “I’m honored to have the opportunity to contribute my experience to a company as well-respected as yours.”
I got the job.
I. Got. The. Job!
“We’ll see you first thing Monday, Logan,” my new boss, Darwin, says. “ Just stop by HR when you arrive.”
“Thank you. I will.”
“We’re looking forward to what you’ll add to Barnes Marketing. You come highly recommended as a digital marketing specialist. Your boss at Omnipresent said he tried everything short of bribery to keep you.”
“I loved working there. Jim understands that I’m ready to relocate out of Boston.”
I don’t take the situation I’m in for granted. Two prestigious companies vying for me—it’s a marketer’s dream. I had maxed out my potential for advancement at Omnipresent. The management positions were filled with qualified people who grew up in Boston and had no intention of relocating anytime soon.
Rumor in the industry has it that a position at Barnes might be opening up in management. I’m almost overqualified for the position, but it will be a step up into the managerial ranks and one more move in my career toward something I hope to do before I retire—owning my own marketing agency. Once I prove myself to Darwin, I’ll shoot my shot for the management opening when it’s officially announced.
“Thank you, again,” I tell Darwin. “I’m looking forward to being a part of the team.”
“We’ll see you Monday.” Darwin, hangs up.
I stand up from the chair in my home office and pump my fist. And then I break out into an uncharacteristically full-blown dance, alone, in my apartment, ending with a slide across the wood flooring in my socks.
Actually, I’m not completely alone in my historic brownstone. My Boston terrier, Rhett, is lying in his dog bed, staring at me with a look that says, If only I had a camera, we could go viral . His eyes are expressive. And that’s exactly what he said, in not so many words.
Normally, I’m known as reserved. Some people mistake me for being proud, hypercompetitive, even ruthless. But those people haven’t seen me in years. Actually, there’s really only one person who seems to be offended by my very existence. To say she thinks the worst of me would be merely scratching the surface of her obvious repulsion. Somehow, no matter what I do to impress her, she always bristles around me.
She’s feisty, stubborn, and driven. But also soft, deeply compassionate, and loyal. I’ve achieved everything I ever set my mind to. Everything but convincing Olivia Pennington that I’m not the devil incarnate.
I look down at Rhett. “She’ll see. This time, she’ll see. I’m not a monster.” My tone shifts to the babyish talk I often affect when I speak to Rhett in private. “I’m not a monster, am I? No. I’m not.” Rhett stands and barks in affirmation. His entire rear end wiggles from side to side. He’s got so little tail he has to move his hips to show he’s happy.
“That’s right, Rhett. Shake what your mama gave you. Good boy. I’m not a monster, and Olivia will know that in time. I won’t mess it up this go-round.”
Rhett literally drops to his mat and covers his nose with his paws.
“So little faith, buddy?”
He rolls over so I’ll scratch his belly. I oblige him, squatting and wondering if my dog is a psychic. Maybe he’s just a realist. I’ve known Olivia since we were kids. We were in every school activity and club together. We share common interests. We even both pursued marketing degrees at BU. You’d think with all that overlap, we’d be best friends—or at least allies. But Olivia steered clear of me like she was avoiding the next pandemic.
It’s been six years since we graduated from college. Six years of me living in Boston and only coming home to Serendipity Springs over the holidays to see my parents. They moved to the most affluent neighborhood in town during my elementary school years. But they kept me enrolled in my old school district for consistency.
I would have had to go out of my way to see Olivia when I was home over the past six years. Her parents still live in the same house where she grew up.
But now? Now we’ll be working and living in the same town. I’m bound to see her at some point. And maybe, after all this time, we can bury the hatchet once and for all.
And not bury it in my person, as I think she has wanted to on more than one occasion.
No. This time I want us to declare a truce from whatever invisible war she’s been waging against me. I’d like more than that, but at the very least, I’m hoping to strike up a friendship.
My phone pings with a text from Gilbert, my best friend back in Serendipity Springs.
GIL
Hey! What’s the verdict?
LOGAN
I got the job! They were incredibly positive about me. Said I was their first choice by a long shot.
GIL
Aren’t you everyone’s first choice?
LOGAN
Not everyone. But thanks for the vote of confidence.
GIL
So, you’ll be coming home!
LOGAN
Yep. Just put an application in on an apartment. Spoke to the owner of the building this morning. Looks good.
GIL
Can’t wait to see you.
LOGAN
I’ll be there this weekend. Start work Monday.
GIL
Awesome. The guest room is cleared out. Maisy bought all your favorite foods. She was sure you were coming. By the way, she never goes out of her way like that for me. Consider yourself privileged. She even bought dog treats for that mutt of yours.
LOGAN
She’s the best. I was going to take you two out to thank you. And I won’t tell Rhett you called him a mutt.
GIL
No need to treat us. You’re family. Just get yourself home to Serendipity Springs.
LOGAN
That’s the plan.
I set my phone down and check the clock. The moving company should be here any minute. As if I summoned them with my thoughts, there’s a firm knock at the front door. Rhett gives the obligatory wheezy bark and then he trots behind me, curious and eager but still cautious.
“Hey,” I greet the two men at the door.
Rhett barks and then spins in a circle.
“Mr. Alexander?” The guy holding the clipboard asks.
“That’s me.”
“We’re here to move your stuff.”
Was I slightly ambitious by hiring a moving company before the final job offer was firm? Yes. But I figured if Barnes didn’t hire me, I’d get another job. I’m ready to head home. Boston has been great. I can’t explain it, but I feel a magnetic tug to return home. It’s persistent and relentless.
I wave the moving guys in while Rhett dances around their feet, begging for attention.
Four hours later, all my belongings are safely packed into a moving van, and Rhett and I are on the road out of Boston, heading to our new life in Serendipity Springs.
I’m pulling into Gil’s driveway when I get a call from an unknown number with the Serendipity Springs area code. I push the Bluetooth connection on my steering wheel to take the call.
“Mr. Alexander?”
I don’t know how old I’ll be when I finally adjust to being called by the name I associate with my dad.
“Yes?”
“I’m calling on behalf of Archer Gaines.”
“Archer Gaines?”
The name rings a bell, but I can’t place it.
“From The Serendipity. About the apartment?”
“Oh. Yes. Yes.”
“Your application was approved. The apartment is empty, so you can move in as soon as we receive your deposit. You’ll be in 2B. The one you preferred when you toured. The one with the park-side view.”
“That’s great news. Thank you.”
“I’m emailing you the links so you can finalize everything online.”
“Okay. Thank you again.”
“Welcome to your new home, Mr. Alexander.”
My new home.
I hang up the call and smile over at Rhett.
“Well, big guy. We got our apartment. Everything is falling into place better than I could have wished for.”
Rhett snorts. It’s a good snort. The kind that means he’s happy that I’m happy.
Maybe this is a sign. With things going this smoothly, I’m sure to get a chance to make a good impression on Olivia. I have no doubt.