Chapter 9

Brayden

I woke up on my mother’s couch with an aching back and a pounding headache. I checked my watch to find that it was seven o’clock in the morning—a full hour later than when I usually got up. I sat up and rubbed my eyes, regretting it as it only made my head hurt more. I reached for my phone on the coffee table to see six missed calls from Drew, all in the last forty minutes.

“Great,” I mumbled, bracing myself for the worst as I returned his call.

“Brayden.” Drew breathed with relief as he answered on the first ring. “I’m sorry to call, man. I know you have your hands full. But we need to talk about the Morgan deal.”

“What about it?” I asked, running my hand over my face. I really needed to shave.

Drew stuttered on the other end. “Well, I don’t really know how to put this, but they pulled out.”

“Pulled out?”

“Of the deal. They called last night and canceled everything.”

I moved closer to the edge of the sofa and pinched the bridge of my nose. “Who’s been dealing with Mr. Morgan?”

“Me.”

“Since when?”

“Since he called last night.”

“All right. Who was he negotiating with beforehand? Jonah?”

“Uh…”

“Drew. Come on. You said you could handle this shit. If he was dealing with Jonah, then Jonah fucked it up somehow. He’s done this before with Regal and Continental. Both of which I managed to save by calling them personally. I’ll do the same with Morgan if you can’t bring him back on the deal by tonight.”

“I can handle it,” Drew said hurriedly. “You’re right. He was dealing with Jonah. I’ll ask for Jonah’s records of communication with him and see where he misstepped.”

“Good. And a tip, Drew?”

“Yes?”

“Start with his emails. If there’s a sign of where shit went south, forward them to me. I’ll be firing Jonah when I come back.”

“Alright. Will do. Hey, Brayden?”

I paused as I was about to end the call. “What?”

“I hope you and Bella are doing okay. And your mom. I’m thinking about you guys.”

The hardness and anger in my chest disappeared. “Thanks.”

“Sorry for calling,” Drew said, and then he ended the call.

I tossed my phone on the other end of the couch and buried my face in my hands. Drew was a good friend and a loyal employee. I trusted him to handle the situation with Morgan, but the potential of losing one of my biggest clients set me on edge. Now was not the time to have to deal with these kinds of situations. I needed to be present here for my mother.

I stood and stretched, trying to ease the kink in my neck, and then made for the bathroom, where I showered and brushed my teeth. I changed into a T-shirt and jeans and went to the kitchen, where I found my mother sitting at the table. Bella was sitting with her and eating a bowl of cereal as my mother completed a crossword puzzle in the newspaper.

I remembered sitting in Bella’s place as a boy while my mother did the same thing.

“Morning,” my mother said cheerfully as I set to work on making coffee.

“Morning,” I said. “Coffee?”

She shook her head. “No, thank you.” She closed the paper and crossed her legs. “I heard your phone call earlier. Everything okay with business?”

“Yes. Don’t worry about it.”

She narrowed her eyes at me. “You know, you sure have changed since moving to Florida. Since this job. That city did something to you.”

I put my back to her and braced myself on the kitchen counter. “I don’t need a lecture right now.”

“I didn’t realize I was giving one. I was simply making observations.”

“Yeah, well, how astute of you. I have changed. It’s been ten years. More has happened than business, you know?” I didn’t like the way my own voice sounded: angry, hard, dismissive.

“I know,” my mother said, bristling.

I finished making coffee and burned my tongue on the first sip. I scowled down into the cup and wished it would cool faster.

“There’s no need to stay cooped up in this house with me,” my mother said. “Why don’t you take a breather and go into town with Bella today? The sun is out for once. It’s a nice day to wander around. There’s a nice art gallery that opened above the grocery store.”

“An art gallery?” I asked, arching an eyebrow.

My mother nodded. “It’s quite nice. I think Bella would like it.”

“Can we go, Daddy?” Bella asked, looking up at me from her cereal bowl.

I frowned at my mother and then looked to my daughter, who was bright eyed and eager to go on an adventure. “Yeah,” I said, “Sure thing. An art gallery sounds… exciting.” It sounded anything but exciting.

“Yay!” Bella cried, pushing her chair back from the table.

“After you finish breakfast,” I said.

Bella blushed but tucked back into the table to finish her cereal. I caught my mother smiling at me.

“What?” I asked.

“Nothing.” She shrugged, looking back down at her crossword. “Just reminds me of someone, that’s all.”

“Of Dad?”

My mother smiled wistfully. “Yes.”