10. Chapter 10
ten
U n—fucking—believable.
Max watched Willow walk away, her long red hair flowing behind her, and he wanted to scream. Why the fuck would she think it was a good idea to walk away?
He figured she’d get started right away. They didn’t have time for whatever the fuck she was off doing. Plus, she’d already ordered and had delivered all the things she’d need. So what was this all about? And why was she being so cagey?
What was she hiding?
“I’m going to get back to work,” Luis said behind him and scurried off.
At least someone was doing what they were told.
“Max? ”
He blinked, trying to drain some annoyance from his features before turning to Cara. “What?”
Her eyes lit up, and the corner of her mouth lifted. “Did you think she was going to tell you she liked you, too?”
Max rolled his eyes. It was nice that Cara was finally looking more like herself, and he didn’t mind if she was smiling at his expense, so long as she stopped feeling down all the time, but he just couldn’t stop this nagging feeling in the back of his mind that Willow was keeping something from him.
“How long does it take to brew beer?” Cara asked.
“Two weeks, give or take.”
“Well then, there’s time,” she said. “Besides, it is her brewery. If she never makes beer, that’s up to her.”
“We have a partnership, according to the contract. And if she doesn’t hold up her end, I take over.”
Cara’s brows shot up. “Don’t you think you’re being a little too . . .”
Max stared at his sister. “A little too what?”
“A little too Max about this whole thing,” she said, waving a hand in his general direction.
He narrowed his eyes. “No. I’m not being too Max, whatever that means. She needs to be working. You can’t build a business without being at that business. ”
Cara scoffed. “That’s not true. Isaac Newton was just laying around in an orchard all day and he discovered gravity. I really think this is going to be fine.”
Max shook his head. “It’s not just that. I don’t trust her.”
“Why?”
Why? Well, the whispering when he spoke to her last was the first glaring red flag. Also, she was thrilled with being there but hadn’t just taken his first offer to work for him. She seemed defensive about choosing what she was going to brew, but he’d made it very clear from the start that he wanted her to take control of the menu. That’s why he wanted to hire her, because she knew what she was doing with beer. She also just had a general demeanour that seemed very secretive. And she was fighting for control while being very indecisive.
He didn’t know what to make of her.
“I don’t know,” he said, not sure where to even start and wondering whether he was making a bigger deal of this than he really needed to.
Cara looked upward, shaking her head. “She seems nice. And normal. Far more normal than you seem right now.”
Maybe. But still. If she was staying at Monroe Manor with Chelsea, and especially Ben, he needed to know she wasn’t a criminal. For reasons he could never explain, the moment he’d met Chelsea, he’d felt a sort of protectiveness toward her, same as Cara. And he wouldn’t be able to rest if he was the reason some horrible person ended up murdering them all in their sleep.
“Didn’t you once tell me that Paul Bernardo seemed nice and normal?” Max asked, satisfied when Cara’s holier-than-thou expression dropped. He knew at some point all those useless facts she was constantly saying would pay off.
He pulled his phone out, found Adam’s contact, and hit the Call button. Better to be safe than sorry.
“Max, how’s it going over there?” Adam asked when he answered.
“Willow just got here. Something feels off. She said she’s staying with Chelsea.”
Silence. “Yes.”
Max rolled his eyes. “Did you run a background check?”
“Weird,” Adam said. “That’s the second time I’ve been asked that today.”
“Who else asked?”
“Natalie. She called me early this morning all hyper, just like you.”
“Why?”
“Apparently, Willow asked Chelsea if she could pay her in cash. Chelsea told Natalie, who freaked out about red flags and murderous roommates, and called me.”
He’d always known Natalie was smart. “And?”
“And yes, I had Uncle David run a thorough background check on her. She’s squeaky clean. Not even a parking ticket. Though I imagine people don’t get many parking tickets in Churchill.”
“She’s hiding something.”
“Maybe, but she’s not hiding being a murderer. I gotta go.”
“Bye,” Max said, hanging up, staring at his phone, wondering what the hell she was hiding.
“What did Adam say?” Cara asked.
“She asked to pay Chelsea in cash, but her background check came back clean. Maybe I should go over there and find out what the hell she’s keeping from me.”
Cara’s eyebrows shot up. “You can’t do that, Max. She’s not your employee, and even if she was, she doesn’t have to tell you all the details about her life. Maybe if you became her friend—”
Max rolled his eyes, turning to walk away.
“Do not go over there and yell at her!”
“I’m not.”
“Then where are you going?”
“I’m going to place an ad for brewers. She needs at least one person working here, and I want to make sure it’s someone hardworking and not flaky. If she drops the ball, I’ll need someone ready to pick it back up. I’m not gonna let her drag all of us down.”
“Okay,” Cara said. “I’m going to get out of your hair. Just try to be nice to her. I think she’s great.”
Max shook his head. “Where are you going?”
Cara plastered on a huge smile. “None of your business.”
Max watched her leave, annoyed that everyone wanted to keep him in the dark about everything. Whatever, he had more important things to do than worry about everyone else.
He had an ad to post.