Due to work commitments and his mother’s health deteriorating, Millen and I have only been able to catch up on the phone over the past two weeks. He spent two days with me after that night at his house but had to get back to San Francisco for meetings. I don’t doubt his commitment to me—to us—during that time. It’s just that the less he talks about the wedding plans and the steps he’s taking to stop them, the more anxious I become.
It’s now ten days out from the wedding and there’s a slow-growing knot in my chest that gets bigger and tighter as each day passes. There’s been no public announcement, Millen hasn’t said anything about it—I haven’t asked either—and the closer it gets to the wedding date, the more my anxiety threatens to overwhelm me.
It’s because of this that I’m in a daze and on autopilot when I go into work early Thursday morning to catch up on paperwork. I don’t realize the office door isn’t locked when I turn the handle and open it, freezing in place in the doorway at the sight of Harris Mason sitting behind my desk.
“Um…”
He looks up at the sound of my voice, his eyes crinkling as he smiles at me. “Kenzie, hi,” he says. Pushing the chair back, he stands and walks over to where I’m standing, his arm outstretched.
As I was raised to never forget my manners, I shake his hand, quickly letting go and dropping my arm back to my side. “Hi…” I reply, not hiding my confusion.
He shakes his head as his grin widens. “I guess you’re wondering why the normally absent owner is sitting in your office.”
“You could say that.” I walk over to the brown leather tub chair facing the desk and drop my purse on the seat. “You’re probably the last person I expected to see, to be honest.” My tone is flat, not overtly disdainful but given the history between my family and this man, he shouldn’t expect a friendly welcome. He may ultimately be my boss, but he was also instrumental in the destruction of my parents’ marriage. It’s been years, but even still, he doesn’t deserve a raucous welcome in any way, shape, or form.
Then again, am I really in a position to judge the actions of someone who chooses to be romantically involved with someone promised to another? Fake or not fake, an engagement is a promise, is it not?
I take a moment to study him. He’s aged well, his face definitely older and more refined, his hair an even mix of salt and pepper.
“So what can I do for you, Mr. Mason?” He chuckles and takes a few steps back to lean against the desk.
“Kenzie, you’re not a child anymore, and we effectively work together. Harris will be fine.”
“Okay, Harris. What can I do for you?”
His smile falters as it must dawn on him that there will be no niceties or catching up of any kind between us. He’s not only my boss, he’s also the father of the woman expecting to marry the man I love, and it may be a cliché, but the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree when it comes to Harris and Lana. They’re both ruthless in business by all accounts and—if recent events and relations are anything to go by—in their personal lives too. Lana may not have lived in Davis for a few years but she visits often and reports from mutual friends have her using men for her own personal gain. When it comes to Harris, he’s now married to wife number four, having divorced from Lana’s mother once news of his affair with my mother came out.
“I just wanted to check how things were going. Keeping tabs on my investment, so to speak.”
Standing stock-still, my fingers threaten to turn white as they tightly grip the chair. I struggle with my fight-or-flight reflex, the need for self-preservation winning the war over whether I value my employment at this bar.
“What do you think of your investment then?” I nod toward the books on the desk, mentally patting myself on the back for the even tone of my voice.
“The takings are good. The restaurant is doing extremely well, and I can tell that you run a tight ship. I’m very happy with how it’s all going, Kenzie.”
“Good to know. Does that mean you’ll go back to being the ‘silent’ in silent owner?”
He studies me, his brows furrowed as he looks down to the desk for a few moments before lifting his eyes to meet mine. “I’m trying to redeem myself for the sins in my past,” he says quietly. My head jerks back and I frown at him.
“Why now? The damage was done years ago. You should’ve done something about it back then. You didn’t apologize when it happened—you never wanted to try and fix what you and Mom broke. Maybe if you had, then she wouldn’t have—”
“Kenzie, you were young. There were things you didn’t know, things you don’t need to know. I may have played a part in it, but—”
“You had a five-year affair with your best friend’s wife, Harris. That’s more than a part—that’s a god damn leading role.”
“It’s not something I’m proud of and it’s not something I’ve done or will ever do again.”
“Well, your first effort was rather spectacular.” In this moment, he’s not Harris Mason, my boss—he’s the man who destroyed my father’s world hand in hand with my mother. It wasn’t just Dad’s life that he altered. It was mine too, and all the anger I’ve felt toward Harris and my mother is boiling over.
“Kenzie, I just want you to know how sorry I am. There are too many good things in life to look forward to. I don’t want the mistakes of my past to hold anyone back, and I’m including you in that too.”
I scoff, shaking my head at the audacity of this man to think saying sorry will atone his actions and clean the slate.
“Lana said she saw you. Did you know she’s getting married? I bet she’d love to reconnect with you properly. Once the wedding is out of the way, of course.”
My eyes threaten to pop out of my head like in the Looney Tunes cartoons. Ten days before the wedding date and he has no idea that there’s not going to be a wedding. If he was anyone else, I’d almost feel sorry for him. I don’t, though. There’s not a chance in hell that I’d ever want to “reconnect” with Lana.
Before I can tell him that he continues, as if this is a normal everyday conversation. “At least the wedding is close. We wouldn’t want her showing in her wedding photos.”
My head jerks back so fast I’m surprised I’m still standing. Glad I’m still holding on to the chair, I tighten my grip as my legs threaten to buckle beneath me.
“I’m sorry?” My voice is a rough whisper. My heart is in my throat as I anxiously wait for him to explain what he just said. It doesn’t make sense. There’s no way she could be…
“I was surprised too. Lana and Millen have known each other for years and it was only a few months ago that they got engaged. At least they’re getting married. They shouldn’t be creating a family together without a solid foundation.”
Hearing Millen’s name cross Harris’s lips is my undoing. The inner dam controlling my emotions collapses under the weight of Harris’s joyous announcement, the devastating consequences of which he would have no idea of. I lift my head, meeting Harris’s gaze straight on as I square my shoulders and make a snap decision that might just be my dumbest-one yet.
I can’t control myself or my emotions, and I don’t think I really want to. Everything I’ve been tearing myself apart about since Millen came back into my life comes to a head.
Actually, the second. The first was trusting anything Millen Ross said to me during the past three weeks, especially the part about him not sleeping with his fiancé.
“I quit,” I announce, watching the beaming smile on Harris’s face fall as quickly as the plans for my future.
He opens his mouth and shuts it again, shock giving way to confusion.
“This is me giving my two weeks’ notice.” The burning in my eyes tells me I need to get out of there. I’ve just won the fight, now my body is desperate for the flight.
“I’m taking the day and I’ll be back in at noon tomorrow to work my shift. Two weeks today, I’m gone.”
He stands suddenly, moving toward me. I hold my hand up, and he stops mid-stride. “Kenzie, you can’t leave me in the lurch. It takes time to find a good manager.”
“Gaby can hold down the fort once I’m gone. Your investment will be in good hands.” I don’t say that Gaby, Bruno, and probably everyone else will likely want to walk straight out the door with me.
“Is it money? Do you want to renegotiate your contract? I’m sure we can talk this through,” he says, sounding almost panicked. I guess the last thing he wants to deal with right now is running a bar he probably only bought as leverage against Millen’s dad.
“No, Harris. It’s time for a change. You said not to let mistakes hold you back? This bar represents a big ol’ clusterfuck of a mistake that I want—no, need—to move on from, and I have to do it now.” His expression morphs into one of resignation. Throwing his advice back in his face was the best thing I could’ve done.
Now I have to get out of here.
“I’ll be in tomorrow. I’ll get Gaby to cover for me tonight,” I rush out, grabbing my bag and moving to the open door, freedom just a few steps away.
“I hope you find happiness, Kenzie. I really do.”
I don’t say anything; I don’t even look up to acknowledge his words. Instead, I keep my eyes on the prize, in this case? Getting the fuck out of Dodge.
Sitting at home twenty minutes later, having survived the harrowing drive home through tear-filled eyes, my phone lights up and Millen’s name flashes on screen.
I cancel the call.
He rings straight back.
I cancel again.
After the fifth attempt, and three unanswered, unread texts, I send a message to Gaby, apologizing for dropping her in it at work and promising to explain everything later, knowing full well that she’ll be walking through my door the minute she’s free tonight. Then I power my phone down, hoping to escape the lancing pain spearing through my chest every call he makes.
Harris wants me to find happiness but his revelation has ensured I’m not going to find it anytime soon, a thought that detonates my heart. There’s no way I’ll ever be able to find that happy with Millen Ross. Lana Mason just made sure of that, once and for all.