Chapter 11
“Hey, Dad.” Tierney tried to keep the weariness out of her voice as she sat at attention in her father’s office. Two nights of disturbed sleep were taking their toll, but she’d been unable to avoid the inevitable any longer.
“Good morning, Tierney. I’m glad you could finally make it.” He lowered himself into his high-backed leather chair.
Tierney felt like a child sitting opposite him. She’d hoped Megan would be here, but she’d called off, citing work pressures.
“Are you present, Tierney?”
Shit, she’d drifted off before they’d even started. She sat up. “Yep. All present and correct.”
Her dad’s raised eyebrows cooled her smile, and she focused on the conversation. If she could share the important parts first, she might be able to convince him she’d done everything he’d asked of her. “As I said on the call, Kasia is keeping things afloat. I sent over the accounts, and you can see she’s doing a good job. She’s worked her ass off all summer, running the place with minimal help. She’s doing everything she can to maximize the profits.”
“What profits? I’ve seen the books.”
“She’s broken even.”
“And that’s the most we should hope for?”
Tierney was surprised by her enthusiasm to support Kasia, but there was so much they should appreciate. “She was employed in front of house, and to do all the things Granny couldn’t. Since Granny’s been gone, Kasia’s kept things going, and she’s even managed to improve the star ratings on travel websites. I don’t think we should underestimate that. She shouldn’t have the motivation of a business owner, but she’s worked as if it’s her own.”
Her dad folded his hands on the desk. “It’s called hard work, Tierney. It’s what people do when they want to get on in life.”
She ignored the personal jab. “But will Kasia get on? What have we got to offer her? At the minimum, we should increase her salary to reflect the added work, and try to get her some help.”
“And did Desmond and Anto offer any suggestions with that?” His mouth twisted as if he already knew the answer.
“They don’t want to assist in any way or let family members help out. We need to advertise for staff.” There was no point sugarcoating the truth, but Tierney’s stomach twisted, knowing she couldn’t give her dad more positive news. His knuckles showed white against the red of his clenched fists. He rarely expressed much emotion, but she knew the signs. “I think they’ve all got so much going on it’s just not feasible for them to be able to help.”
“Bullshit,” he hissed. “They must be so happy, anticipating my failure. What was Mammy thinking?”
“You could just sign it over to them, Dad. Wash your hands of it.” Then perhaps there was a chance of a future. For the hotel, and for Kasia.
“And they’d love that too, wouldn’t they?”
She ran her hand over her face. “Why don’t you invest in it, then? Give it a complete makeover. You can afford it and with the right changes, the Waterside could be great once again."
She was taking Kasia’s word for that, but the suggestions she’d made for the longer term sounded like good business sense. Visitors’ expectations had changed over the years, and the Waterside needed to reflect that.
“I haven’t decided if I want to keep it yet.”
Tierney sensed the uncharacteristic hesitance in his voice. “You could go back to Inishderry and see for yourself. It’s been a long time.”
He watched her for a moment, blinking slowly. Then he straightened his shoulders, stood, and walked to the coffee pot. “Coffee?”
“Yeah, why not?” She sipped the strong, hot liquid slowly, wondering what would come next.
“So how did you leave things with this Kasia?”
She almost spat her coffee back into the mug and reached for a serviette, coughing. Her dad did not want to hear the answer to that question. “What do you mean?”
“Does she plan to stay indefinitely? Do we have her for the winter, anyway?” He shook his head. “Did you manage to sort anything out when you were there, Tierney?”
“You didn’t ask me to. You wanted my opinion on whether we should continue to employ her, and I’ve told you she’s very good at her job.”
“In which case, we need formal arrangements for the next few months, until I decide what course to take with the hotel. Does she have a contract?”
Tierney shook her head. “I don’t think so. She manages the books and pays herself the salary she agreed with Granny.”
“We need a contract in place with employees. I might not want it, but it is now my business.” He sighed. “I should’ve sent Megan.”
Of course you should’ve. I can’t be trusted with anything. Her eyes stung, and the mug clunked heavily on the glass table as she jumped up. “I’ll speak with Kasia and formalize things.” She turned as she reached the door. “And can I advertise for a housekeeping assistant?”
“No. If you think it’s needed, you could go back there and oversee things for a few months. I imagine you know how to make a bed and do the laundry? And God knows, you spent enough time there over the years. You must know how it all works.”
Tierney made her escape and waved to her dad’s PA as she passed. Much as she really didn’t want to be banished to Inishderry for the winter, part of Tierney wished there was a little more truth in her dad’s statement. In reality, even as an adult, she’d spent her summers on Inishderry playing. The games had changed as she got older, and she’d spent the summers of her twenties bumming around with the surfers who ran the surf school and the lifeguards who came to avoid the Australian winters. She’d often convinced Joey to take time off work to entertain her. She’d had very little interest in how her granny ran the hotel. Now she wondered if she should have been more involved. Helped out, even. But it had been her vacation time, hadn’t it? She shoved open the door, eager to be away from the office.
“Ouch.” The door stopped suddenly as it collided with what she could only assume was a human body part.
She pushed it again more gingerly. “I’m sorry, I was?—”
“In your own world, as usual.”
Joy flooded through her as she recognized the voice, and she opened the door fully to see her godfather, Gabriel, rubbing his knee. He straightened and enveloped her in his arms.
“I’m so happy to see you. Dad didn’t mention you were here.”
“That’s not like Kevin and his love of small talk.” He hugged her close. “I’m pleased to see you too. I wasn’t sure if you’d be back in the old country still.”
“I just got back. Want to get a coffee?” More coffee was the answer to everything today.
“I’ve got a lunch appointment with your dad at twelve.” He pulled back and checked his watch. “You know what? He’ll cope with me being a little late.” He steered them to the elevator. “Tell me, how are things in Inishderry?”
Tierney had always wondered at the relationship between her dad and Gabriel Ryan. As charming and affable as her own father was abrupt and businesslike, Gabriel had been his best, and perhaps only, true friend since they’d met on their first day of school. Perhaps their shared history of leaving their tiny island and making it big on another continent had kept them close, but Gabriel had been a regular presence her whole life, despite living in Australia.
“Not so good. Dad won’t make any decisions about the hotel, and the manager’s there on her own trying to keep things going. I feel a little powerless.”
“He’s never going to find it easy to make a decision about that place. He’ll be torn between finally cutting all ties with the island and gloating about being chosen over his brothers to inherit the hotel. And you, the wider family, and that hotel manager, will all be caught up in the forty-year-old feud between them.”
Tierney appreciated Gabriel’s insight into the situation. “Are you here for long?”
“The usual flying visit. The US is a lucrative market for our wine. And it’s always good to catch up with Kevin.”
They perched at the counter of the small coffee stall in the foyer and ordered. Gabriel checked his watch again. “I’ll have to drink this and run, but I’m free for lunch tomorrow before I fly back, if that works for you?”
“That would be wonderful. I am free, as it happens.” Freer than she wanted to admit. Now she was back home, she felt adrift, more unsure than ever about what she wanted to do next.
“How’s the photography going?” He sipped his coffee.
“I love wildlife photography, but I’m not sure I can make a living from it.” She hadn’t said it out loud before, but that didn’t make it any less true.
“When did you ever need to make a living? Your dad makes enough money for both of you.”
There was nothing judgmental in his tone and yet, Tierney wondered if everyone thought she was just a freeloader who skipped from hobby to hobby and called them jobs. Maybe there was truth to it. “I want to be independent from Dad, but I’ve never found anything fulfilling that made enough money to go it alone.”
“Enough money to live the lifestyle you’re used to? That would take a real job.” He nodded and drank the last of his coffee in a quick gulp. “Are you ready for that?”
“Photography is a real job.” She suddenly wondered if Gabriel could be her lifeline out of here. “Don’t you need a photographer? Grapes are kind of like wildlife. I’m pretty good at food and drink photography too.”
Gabriel laughed as he stood. “You’re welcome to come and stay anytime, but I draw the line at employing you. You need to find your calling and go with it.” He kissed her on the cheek. “Do you think you’ll head back to Inishderry to keep an eye on the hotel over the winter?”
“Dad wants me to, but I’ve got commitments here.” She tried to sound credible, but she wasn’t even convincing herself. She had a couple of leads for small jobs, but she’d probably end up doing work for her dad. Or worse, wedding shoots.
She and Gabriel said their farewells, and she promised to call about lunch the following day. She sipped her cooling coffee and tried to ignore the lethargy that pulled at her limbs. What was she going to do all winter? Megan was so busy with work, and now she’d met some guy called Al who she talked about all the time. Should she go back to Inishderry? She’d have a purpose there. But the thought of facing the situation with Kasia made her stomach clench. It was too complicated; that was part of the reason she’d left. Or run away, if she was being honest.
Her attraction to Kasia was real. Her intensity was magnetic in a way Tierney found both thrilling and terrifying. Their night together, hazy as the memory was, had been on another level. But sleeping with employees wasn’t right. She would just make things worse if she returned.
Not planning ahead had always worked for Tierney in the past, fitting well with her restless energy to try new things. Now she felt as though she could easily curl up and hibernate the winter away. But even if she did, when she awoke in the spring, she’d still be in the same boat, rudderless and adrift.
Tierney stretched out on the couch and craned her neck to see Megan in the kitchen. “So, I got this real curt email to say she’d gone to Dublin. Just like that, with no warning. I thought, if nothing else, that she was dependable.”
She could pretend her annoyance was about the business, but if she was honest Kasia’s abruptness had hurt. Tierney had wanted to call. She’d missed Kasia’s voice, truth be told. But she’d chickened out and replied to the email with equal formality.
Megan appeared in the doorway, the frown lines around her eyes deep. “She seems pretty dependable to me. She kept the hotel running single-handedly all summer. If there are no bookings, isn’t she entitled to a break?”
Tierney squirmed. “She could’ve asked, I guess.”
“And what if she had? You’d have said it wasn’t your call, and Kevin would’ve ignored her request. I don’t blame her. She’s basically been her own boss since your granny died.”
Tierney sat up. “Are you okay?” Megan had been a little withdrawn since Tierney had returned.
Her shoulders dropped and she leaned against the wall. “No, not really. My mom’s been ill, and it seemed like a regular chest infection at first, but now they’re talking about pneumonia. I really need to see her, but work is pretty unrelenting at the moment.”
Tierney jumped up and took her by the shoulders. “Megan, it’s your mom. Work is just work. It’ll be here when you get back.”
“You wouldn’t understand?—”
“About complicated relationships with parents? Isn’t that what brought us close as kids?” How could Megan think she wouldn’t get it?
Megan gave her a small, sad smile. “About work commitments. And my work in particular. You don’t get why it’s such a big deal to me.” Megan pulled back. “But it is, Tierney, and I don’t want to have to drop everything just because she’s not been taking her meds again. She’s in the most amazing facility, though God only knows how she can afford it. I’m sure she’ll be on the mend soon. And then I’ll go visit when things are less busy.” She walked back to the kitchen, and Tierney followed.
“Call Dad and go see your mom. If you don’t close on that sale, you’ll be annoyed for a while, but Dad will understand, and he’ll get someone else to complete it. And when you’re back, you’ll move on to the next job. Three years down the line, you’ll never even recollect that job, but you’ll definitely remember if you didn’t go see your mom when she was ill.” She pushed Megan toward the door. “I’ll finish dinner, and you can call Dad.”
Megan nodded. “You’re right. I’ll make the call now.” She went toward her room then turned with a grin. “But food poisoning isn’t going to help my journey to Philly, is it?”
“Ha ha. Get outta here.” Tierney heard her close the door to her room and turned to the piles of half-prepared food on the worktop. She’d figure it out.
When they sat to eat, Megan chewed her first mouthful deliberately. “Wow, this is really tasty. Good job, buddy.”
Tierney elbowed her. “Don’t be patronizing. I can cook when I need to. What did Dad say?” She hoped he’d been a good human and put Megan’s needs before the business. There had been too many times when he hadn’t done that, with employees or his own family.
Megan swallowed. “It was surprisingly easy. He said I should take as long as I need.” She paused before taking her next forkful. “It was almost as if he was expecting something.”
Tierney shrugged. “Perhaps he’s developed into such an empathetic leader, he could sense it.” She let out a bark of laughter and put her fork down. “Anyway, good news, right? When do you leave?”
“He told me to go immediately. I’ve booked a flight for the morning.”
“Do you want me to come with you? Or bring the car down later? I can be there in a few hours.”
“I know, buddy. You’re always there for me.” Megan paused her eating again. “But Al is in New York for work, and he’s offered to drive down to give me some company.”
Fucking Al. “Ah, cool. It’s good you’ll have some support.”
Megan wiped her mouth. “You’re my oldest and best friend, Tierney. You and your dad gave me a family when I needed one. Al’s really hot, and I think I might even like him if he wasn’t. But nothing will ever change what we’ve got.”
“Yeah, I know. I need to stop being an asshole and accept that you’ve got a boyfriend. I’ll try.” She picked up the plates and turned to the sink, so she didn’t have to keep the smile plastered on any longer. “Go pack your bags. I got this.”
Here she was fretting about whether Al was going to replace her as Megan’s favorite person when she should be doing her best to support her. She had to try harder to put the people she cared about first.