Chapter Thirty #3
“He’s always busy.” Robin smiled softly. “He’s upstairs in the office.”
Jeremiah made his way upstairs and paused outside of the office. It was quiet on the other side of the door. He knocked gently.
“Come in,” Percy said.
As Jeremiah opened the door, Percy, who was seated at his desk, turned around. His eyes widened, clearly surprised to see his brother.
“Yo,” Jeremiah said.
Percy blinked at him. “Yo.”
Jeremiah stood there for a second, and Percy continued to stare at him. Then he gestured to the empty leather couch by the bookshelf. Jeremiah sat down, and the brothers observed each other.
“I think I’ve been jealous of you,” Jeremiah said quietly.
Percy frowned, eyebrows lifting in surprise. “You’ve been jealous of me?”
“Yeah,” Jeremiah said. “You always knew what you wanted. You were driven. People respected you, and you didn’t have to try hard to earn their respect.
I felt like I had to overcompensate with friendliness in order for people to overlook the ways that I fell short.
You never had to worry about that. I’ve spent a lot of my life wishing I could be more like you. ”
Percy shook his head. “Little do you know, I wished that I could be more like you. Do you know how much easier my life would be if I was more personable? If I could talk to people as easily as you do? People are instantly comfortable in your presence. That’s honestly one of the reasons that I don’t think I’ll be able to fill Mom’s shoes once she retires.
You see how she owns every room that she walks into.
I’m not like that. I’m not like y’all. Or like Pop.
” Percy glanced down. “You’re more like him than I am. ”
“That’s in your head,” Jeremiah said. “We’re all like him in different ways. I might resemble him the most, but you’re a natural leader like him. You’re smart and dedicated. Amara and I couldn’t have had a better older brother growing up.”
Percy rubbed his eyes. “Thank you for saying that,” he conceded.
“But I think that’s part of my issue. You and Amara were given the freedom to do what you wanted, while I felt like Mom and Pop depended on me to hold down the fort.
Even though I loved having the responsibility at times, that doesn’t make it fair. ”
“You’re right,” Jeremiah said. “That wasn’t fair.
And the way that I left the company wasn’t fair either.
I wanted to move out of your way. I thought you and Mom were doing such a good job running things, and me being there was only making the family look bad.
I showed up, but I didn’t work hard. And that wasn’t fair to you either.
” He ran a hand over his head. The decision that he’d been subconsciously working himself up to finally crystalized.
“Working with Aaron at Good Boy seemed like a great opportunity at first, and it’s been an important part of my journey.
But Aaron doesn’t take me seriously enough, and he probably never will.
I’m not moving to California anymore. I’m gonna stay here. ”
Percy blinked, eyes widening. “Good. I support you if that’s what you think is best.”
“I’m sorry that you’ve been so overwhelmed with the company’s expansion and that you haven’t had time to spend with your family. I know that Mom wants to retire, and that leading the company on your own feels like too much. But I do think we should keep the business in the family.”
Percy sighed. “Miah—”
“What if I came back?” he asked. He was offering more than just working with his brother.
He was offering his heart on his sleeve.
“What if I came back and helped you out in any way that you needed and made it easier for you to be there for Robin and the girls and the new baby? I could work closely with Mom while you’re on paternity leave, so I’ll be ready once you’re back.
Would that change your decision to sell? ”
Percy sat up straighter and stared at his brother. “I don’t know,” he said hesitantly. “What makes you feel like you’re ready to come back now?”
“I’ve always cared about this company and our family’s legacy,” Jeremiah said.
“But I didn’t think I was good enough to be part of it, so I focused on trying to help build something else.
It took me some time to figure out where my place should be, and it’s right here with our family.
With Smith’s Sweets. And it won’t be like before.
I’ll dedicate myself day and night. No slacking off.
No laziness.” At Percy’s continued hesitation, Jeremiah added, “What will it take to prove it to you? Should I interview formally? Because I’ll do that. ”
That got a laugh out of Percy. “No, you don’t have to interview.” He drummed his fingers against his knees as he observed Jeremiah. “You’re serious about this?”
“As hell,” Jeremiah said.
Percy studied Jeremiah, brows knit together. Slowly, the corners of his mouth lifted into a smile.
“Yeah, okay. Let’s set up a meeting with Mom tomorrow.”
Jeremiah grinned, flooded with relief and the feeling of rightness. “Great.”
Working with Percy didn’t mean that their relationship would magically become perfect overnight. They were bound to have more disagreements and tough discussions. But that was true for any family. This, at least, was a positive step forward. And it was what Pop would have wanted.
Percy stood and stretched his arms. “You wanna stay for dinner?”
Jeremiah thought of the untouched Thai food on his kitchen table. “Yeah, I’m starving actually.”
They left Percy’s office and walked downstairs together to the dining room.
“How’s Noelle doing?” Percy asked.
“I don’t know,” he said truthfully. “I haven’t talked to her since Sunday. She wants space and I’m trying to respect that. Sunday was a lot for her. And you putting her on the spot like that didn’t help.”
Percy winced. “I’m sorry, Miah. For real. I will literally tell her I’m sorry every single time I see her if that makes anything better.”
“Here’s my question, When you found out that she lied, why didn’t you say anything to me or anyone else?”
“You looked happy with her,” he replied. “And I knew you were smart enough to not be involved with her if she was a real problem. When I brought it up to her last weekend, she said that she’d been honest with you, and that she was always honest with you. That was what I cared about.”
Jeremiah felt a tug in his gut. “I love her,” he said quietly.
Percy nodded. “I figured that. You look at her like the sun shines out of her pores, which is how I look at Robin.”
Jeremiah laughed, but quickly sobered again. He needed advice, and who better to ask than his big brother who’d been with his amazing wife for over a decade.
“What should I do?”
“Fight for her,” Percy said simply. “Fight for what you have. If it’s worth anything to her too, you’ll be okay.”
Jeremiah had to hope that Percy was right.