Chapter 57 Callan
CALLAN
“Bye, Daddy. Love you!” Darcy blows me a kiss before skipping out the door under Mum’s watchful eye.
“Thanks, Ma. I’ll message you if I’m going to be late back.
” Usually, I drop Darcy to school before work, and Ma picks her up when school is over, taking her to her place.
I try to finish my day by five so I can collect my daughter and spend a few hours with her before it’s bedtime.
But today I’m meeting the consultant I’ll be working with on the resort remodeling, and we have a lot to discuss, so I’m not sure if I’m going to make it home in time for dinner.
“Don’t stress it, son. You know how much we love having her around. Darcy can sleep over if necessary.”
“I don’t think I’ll be that late, but we can discuss it later.”
Darcy reappears in the doorway, clutching the straps of her pink backpack and wearing an impatient face I’m familiar with. “Nanny! Come on, slowpoke. I don’t want to be late for school!”
My daughter is obsessed with being on time for things. At weekends, when we regularly head out on adventures, I can guarantee she’ll be downstairs before I’ve even woken, showered, and dressed with the beginnings of breakfast already on the table.
Although the way she entered this world was in the most horrific circumstances, I love her with my whole heart.
She brings me so much joy, and at times when it felt like I couldn’t go on, she gave me purpose and a reason to fight to reclaim the things that bitch took from me.
It’s still a work in progress—I’m still a work in progress—but as long as I have Darcy, I know I’ll be okay.
“School doesn’t start for thirty minutes, love.” Mum smiles at her granddaughter. “You won’t be late.”
“I like to get there early so I’m first in the classroom.”
“I know, honey.” Mum takes her little hand in hers before lifting her head to look at me. “Bye, love. Have a great day at work.”
“Yes, Daddy.” My smile stares back at me from Darcy’s cute little face. “Have an awesome day at work.”
“Have a great day at school, princess.”
“I always do,” she sing-songs, her giggle trailing after her as they leave the house.
“What time is the meeting at?” Travis asks me thirty minutes later when I’m seated at my desk in the Garner Hunt Construction Limited office on the main street in town.
“Midday. We’re reviewing the plans over lunch, and then I’ll give Melissa a tour of the resort.”
“Should I come too?” Travis swivels in his chair to look at me.
“No need. I’ve got it covered. Thought you had that meeting with the potential new client at one?”
Travis handles sales and marketing for the company we founded together at twenty-two, while I run operations and have high-level oversight of projects on the ground.
Our on-site supervisor has handled the work at the resort for the past twelve months, but I’m acting as the project manager and scheduler for this final phase to ensure everything runs smoothly.
This is the biggest project we’ve undertaken in our six-year history, and we have ambitious growth plans off the back of it.
Almost overnight, our workforce doubled, and we’ve recently hired additional subcontractors to ensure the finish is to a high standard and that we deliver on time and within budget.
The opening of the front door claims both our attention, and we watch as Riley enters carrying a paper holder with four coffees. Alicia, our receptionist and administrator, beams at our newest recruit. “You’re the best, thanks.”
“Not even on the job five seconds, and he’s already sucking up,” Travis quips.
“So, you don’t want this?” Riley holds out a cup and smirks.
“No point letting it go to waste.” Travis swipes it from his hands.
“I think your first duty is to purchase a decent coffee machine,” I suggest, taking the cup he offers me. “Thanks, mate.”
Things have been piling up these past six months as we both struggle to manage our workload.
Travis is bringing in tons more new business, and I’m stretched to the max with the number of projects we’re juggling right now.
Hiring an office manager who can take over some of our responsibilities made sense.
Riley worked as an office coordinator at a busy architect’s firm in Burly, so he has the requisite skill set to do what we need him to do.
Having seen the job posted online, he approached us, and after much thought and discussion, here we are.
“I’ll add it to the list,” Riley says as I show him to his desk just behind Alicia’s.
“We’ll go through some things this morning, but I’ll be out for the rest of the day,” I explain as he drops into the seat.
“I’m used to being thrown in at the deep end. I’ll be fine.”
“I’m not going to be around much the next six months as I’ll be largely working from the resort, but you’ll have Alicia and Travis, and you can reach out to me via phone or email.”
“I’m up for the challenge. Eager to get stuck in. Don’t sweat it, boss.” The fool grins. “I’ll get up to speed fast.”
After spending the morning showing Riley the ropes, I head out to the resort in my Range Rover, arriving ten minutes before Seán and Melissa are due.
Alicia pulls up beside me in her car, and we walk inside together.
She’s here to take the minutes of the meeting and attend to anything the big boss and the interior design consultant may need.
I check that the conference room has been set up per my specifications, answering a couple of quick emails on my phone while Alicia supervises the caterer as she brings in platters of sandwiches, cakes, fruit, and drinks.
The hotel hasn’t been operational during the renovation, so none of the catering team are on-site.
The hotel manager will be around to oversee this final phase along with The Devlin Hotel Group CEO, who plans to use the resort as a base a few days a week.
Security guards man the property twenty-four-seven, and groundskeepers and landscape gardeners are working to perfect the exteriors, but other than that, there are no other official staff members on-site.
Which makes it easier for our team of carpenters, electricians, painters, and plumbers to work without interruption.
“They’re here, Callan,” Alicia says, peeking through the window.
“Get away from there before you’re spotted.” I pocket my phone and smooth a hand down the front of my suit jacket.
“Wow, she’s an absolute stunner,” Alicia remarks, still spying on them. “She could be a model.”
I drill her with a sharp look, and she finally retreats. “Get over here and act professional.”
She races across the room to my side, tucking the edge of her silk blouse into her skirt and giving herself the once-over while we wait for them to arrive. “What’s he like?” she asks. “I couldn’t get a good look at him, but I’ve seen his picture on the website, and he’s hot.”
“Do not drool over the CEO.” I send her another warning look.
Alicia is a fantastic administrator. Efficient, reliable, adaptable, and a quick learner.
Our clients love her bubbly manner, but there’s a time and place for it, and right now, she needs to rein it in.
“I’ve only met him one time at the initial meeting that Travis and I attended.
” Thereafter, we dealt with senior leadership and other relevant personnel at the hotel group.
“He was intelligent and a straight shooter. Exactly what you’d expect of someone in his position. ”
Honestly, if the original contractor hadn’t pulled out at the last minute, I doubt we’d have been awarded the gig.
I remember Seán Devlin drilling us on our relative inexperience, our youth, and our ability to scale fast to deliver a project of this size and scope.
I don’t know what convinced him and his team that we were the right firm for the job, but I’m grateful they gave us the chance, and we’ve pulled out all the stops to prove their faith in us is justified.
Footsteps approach, and I fix Alicia with one last warning expression before the door swings open. Dave—our on-site supervisor—holds the door open, and I straighten up, prepared to greet our clients with a broad smile.
The next few minutes happen in slow motion and as if I’m looking down on myself as it plays out.
A flash of wavy, long blonde hair hits the corner of my eye first.
Vibrant green eyes that haunt me in my dreams latch on to my startled gaze.
Skin so flawless it looks like silk pales as disbelief scatters across her beautiful face.
My smile falters as shock renders me speechless.
I stare at the woman I still love, afraid to tear my eyes from her face in case I wake up and discover it’s all been a dream.
The last time I saw Astrid, she was only beginning to settle into herself.
Now, she’s all woman. Comfortable and confident in her skin, looking even more beautiful if that’s possible.
I can’t believe she is here, and I can’t stop staring at her.
She is still my everything, and I’m in complete and utter shock.
For so long, I dreamed of this moment, never imagining it’d ever happen or happen like this.
Words are spoken, but it’s like I’m in a bubble and I can’t hear them or even comprehend who has said them.
My heart is racing a million miles an hour, and blood charges through my veins as vitality returns to my frozen limbs, and I take a step toward her. “Astrid?” My voice cracks a little, and I clear my throat, fighting the surge of emotions swelling inside me. “What are you doing here?”