Present Day

“Coming up at seven, news from the Middle East...”

I clicked the TV off. I had exactly fifteen minutes before Logan was supposed to arrive. Butterflies danced in my stomach, and I couldn't keep the smile off my face as I slid on my favorite cotton sundress. It was a deep red that darkened to purple as it descended to just above my knees. I had no reason to look forward to dinner with Logan, but I couldn't help it. My body and brain remembered two very different Logans, and right now, my body was remembering harder. I could almost feel his fingers on my skin again, the way his body had felt pressed against mine. I wanted to believe he hadn't meant to hurt me, that all the heartache had been an accident. I wanted to believe that it could turn out better this time.

My cellphone started to ring on my nightstand. Since this was a business trip, I had left it on. I was intending to leave it in my room for dinner, but as I still had a few minutes to wait, I picked it up.

“Olivia? It's me, Susan,” the voice on the other line said. Susan was my best consultant and the manager of the other five home consultants. She was in charge of running things while Maddy and I were on vacation. My smile faded. She was only supposed to call if there were problems.

“Is something wrong?” I asked, hoping that she was just overreacting to something that didn't matter.

“I'm really sorry to bother you on your vacation, but...” Susan hesitated, and I could practically hear her biting her lip.

“What is it, Susan?” Panic was starting to rise in my throat, and the butterflies in my stomach were now dancing to a very different beat.

“Four of our consultants just quit,” she blurted out. It took me a moment, but my knees figured out this was bad news before my brain did and I sank onto the bed.

“What?” I asked, not because I didn't hear her, but because I couldn't believe what I’d heard. “Why?”

“I asked, and they said they weren't supposed to say, but I leaned on Melissa, and she spilled.” Susan took a deep breath. I knew I wasn't going to like what she was going to say. “They were offered positions at Travel, Inc. Same job, but way more money.”

“Are you serious?” This couldn't be happening. I couldn't wrap my head around it. I paid more than average because I wanted to retain the best travel consultants. I couldn't believe Travel, Inc. would stoop this low.

“Yeah. I wasn't sure if she was telling the truth, but then I got a phone call about thirty minutes ago offering the same thing to me. The pay is substantially more, and they wanted us to start right away. No two weeks’ notice or anything,” she told me. I could hear the stress in her voice. “I want you to know, I didn't take it. You have been the best boss I've ever had, and I didn't feel right about it.”

“Thank you, Susan. I really appreciate that,” I replied mechanically. I was reeling. This couldn't be happening.

“I know you’re on vacation, but I figured you should know. I'm really sorry, but I figured this fell under the 'call you if there's an emergency' clause. I sent you an email with all their notices.” Susan sounded dejected. She knew as well as I did that this would be a devastating blow to my business. Without consultants, I didn't have the concierge personalization part of my travel agency. It would take weeks to hire and train new ones.

“You did the right thing.” I took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of my nose. “Who left?”

“Lisa, Joan, Amber, and Stacy. Diane said they called, but she turned them down.”

“Shit,” I whispered. Joan and Amber were my best up-sellers. “This is bad. I'll be on the next flight home.”

“What about your vacation?” Susan asked, surprise in her voice.

“If I don't have consultants making these bookings, then I don't have a business. Without a business, no vacations.” I stood up and grabbed my empty suitcase, throwing it on the bed. “This is low, even for Travel, Inc.”

“I'm really sorry, Olivia,” Susan said. I knew she meant it too.

“It's not your fault. I'll call you once I have a flight,” I told her. Clicking off the phone, I stopped and stared at my suitcase, my vision blurring with tears.

I couldn't believe Logan had done this to me…again. I was about to spend an wonderful evening with him, and he’d already managed to ruin it. Again. I wondered if he was even planning on telling me what he had done or if he was just looking for a good time.

I angrily threw some clothes in the suitcase before getting distracted and instead turned to my computer to open up the email from Susan. All four resignations were there. I hit print and called Maddy.

“Maddy, Travel, Inc.'s trying to ruin us. I have to get home. Will you get me on the next flight back? I don't care how much it costs.”

“Sure,” Maddy answered. “I'm actually at my computer now. What's going on?”

“Four of our consultants just quit. They have jobs at Travel, Inc. now,” I said softly. It felt horrible to say it out loud.

“What?” Maddy squawked. I heard the phone hit the desk and then the scramble for her to pick it up. “How is that possible?”

“I don't know, but I'm going to get to the bottom of it.” Shock had now graduated to anger.

“The earliest I can get you is a flight out at nine tomorrow morning,” she said. I could hear her clicking on her computer. “There are warnings that it might be delayed due to weather, but you're all booked.”

“Thanks. I don't care as long as I can get home to fix this mess. I'll forward you what's happening,” I said, picking up the freshly-printed letters.

“Do you need me to come too? Tyler and I can be packed and ready to go in no time,” she offered.

“No,” I told her. “I can handle it. No reason for all of us to suffer. Besides, this vacation has been so good for Tyler. You two stay.”

“Okay,” she said with a hint of relief in her voice. “Weren't you supposed to have dinner with Logan tonight? I thought Tyler said something along those lines...”

“We were. I'm going to go ask him about this now.” My hands shook with fury. I couldn't believe he would do this me.

“Don't kill him,” Maddy replied, only half-joking. “But if you do, I'll help you hide the body. This storm will make the perfect cover.”

I smiled quickly and hung up the phone. With proof of what his company had done, I stalked out in the hall to confront Logan. It felt like a strange repeat of the past, only this time, I'd let him know just how I felt.