Chapter Four

Meredith pulled into the underground parking at a luxury condo complex in Arlington, not too far from Ethan’s. Kerri checked her text messages. “Ethan’s trying to teach Eric how to play golf.”

“That won’t end well.”

Eric had stayed behind in Maryland to spend more time with her family while she returned to Virginia with Kerri. Ethan had promised to bring him back later.

Kerri nodded as they got out of the car. “No kidding. Your brother’s great at a lot of things, but golf is not one of them.”

“Why isn’t Barron teaching Eric?”

“He’s apparently too busy romancing your mom.”

Meredith made a face. “I soooo did not need to hear that.”

“You perv. They’re too old to do the things you’re thinking.”

They took the elevator to the penthouse on the top floor. It belonged to Alex and Natalie Damon, the latter of whom was Kerri’s best friend and Meredith’s second business advisor. But as the three women worked together, their relationship had evolved into something more…almost like a support group of sorts. Meredith was grateful; since Judy’s death she’d felt bereft of the support that could only come from really good friends.

They rang; the door opened, revealing a beautiful Asian woman with a sweet smile and an even sweeter personality. She didn’t have any makeup on—not that she needed it, given how clear her skin was—and the simple fitted navy blue sweater and black jeans made her look down to earth. Nobody would’ve known she was the daughter of a former U.S. senator and married to one of the wealthiest men in the country from the way she dressed. She welcomed them into her home. “Coffee, tea…anything?” she said, padding barefoot to the kitchen.

“Coffee please,” Meredith said, while Kerri asked for juice. Natalie’s Pixie-Bob cat Matto came over, bumping into Meredith’s legs insistently. The animal was huge, coming up to her knees, and had upswept ears that somehow reminded her of Batman. Meredith scratched behind them and Matto purred his approval.

The women sat around the coffee table. The penthouse was quite large, but obviously decorated by people without children. Shiny chrome, glass and fragile-looking figurines dominated the place. Meredith knew from experience that nothing stayed shiny and smudge-free with kids around.

“Kerri texted me you had a meeting with Daniel Aylster. How did that go?” Natalie said, nursing her tea.

Meredith brought them up to date. “I don’t know why he’s so unreasonable about it. It’s not like the construction’s totally off track.”

“Hmm. You know what, though? I don’t like it that the only thing you have is verbal reports,” Kerri said. “The guy who’s managing things right now was hired by Simon Caldwell.”

Meredith’s face scrunched on auto-pilot. “Seriously?” Abusing his position as CFO, Caldwell had embezzled a substantial amount of money from The Lloyds Development. She’d been so busy with other things that she’d missed the connection between Simon and the construction manager. If the man was anything like Simon… She shuddered.

Natalie nodded. “I was thinking the same thing. I don’t trust that man. His reports are sort of…generic. He rarely mentions specifics, and it’s hard to tell exactly what’s going on.” She rifled through some papers and pulled something out. “Look at this one. It was prepared by somebody who retired recently. Much more thorough and full of specifics that give a clear picture of the progress.”

Meredith took the paper and looked at it, biting her lower lip. Sure enough, she could see exactly how the project was progressing. “I’m getting a bad feeling about this. Daniel might’ve been right about us.”

“Don’t worry. The good news is that Daniel’s giving you a chance to fix it. You should go to St. Cecilia and see what’s going on. If the project’s doing worse than the guy makes it sound, you’ll be able to tell when you’re there.”

“And then you can fire his ass,” Kerri said.

“But what if I don’t really notice anything wrong?” Meredith had thought it was a bit strange that the reports were sort of generic and sparse, but she’d assumed that was normal. She was out of her depth here.

“Take a few experts from the company with you. They’ll be able to tell.”

A loud chirp interrupted Kerri. Natalie checked her phone and winced. “Sorry. It’s my mom. She wants to discuss our great-aunt’s weird fatalistic mood over picking out her final resting place.”

“Doesn’t she already have one picked out?” Kerri said.

“Apparently she changed her mind. Now, anywhere west coast just won’t do. It’s got to be Virginia where the rest of the family is, and she wants me to pick her plot because she’s convinced I can see dead people and gauge their moods.”

“What?” Meredith said. That sounded preposterous, but she’d seen some really spooky psychics during her travels in Europe. She lowered her voice. “Can you?”

“Of course not. She thinks I can because I’m Asian.” Natalie rolled her eyes. “Don’t ask. It’s ridiculous. Anyway, forget my crazy great-aunt. Back to the resort—didn’t you also say Daniel was coming with you?”

Meredith nodded.

“Well, there you go. He can point out what he doesn’t like, and you can discuss how to resolve the matter into a win-win situation. Aren’t you guys friendly?”

Natalie and Kerri both peered at her. “I used to be best friends with his sister Judy, until she died in a car crash,” Meredith said. “But Daniel and I weren’t that close or anything.” Not for lack of wanting on her part.

Daniel had been stunning—tall, handsome and smart—and she’d had a secret crush on him ever since she could remember. They hadn’t grown that close because he hadn’t been around much, and she’d actually been grateful for his absence. No matter how hot he was on the outside, his heart was cold.

Sadly, that hadn’t stopped her dumb hormones from noticing how gorgeous he still was. Why couldn’t people’s outsides match their insides more exactly?

“But it doesn’t matter,” Meredith said. “I have to fix this. The company can’t afford to lose a client as important and high-profile as Aylster Resorts.”

* * *

The next day, Meredith scowled as she read a text from somebody who claimed to be Daniel’s administrative assistant. This admin person sent details of the one-week inspection of the resort site in St. Cecilia. Daniel wanted Meredith in St. Cecilia later that night.

What the…? She never left town until Monday, to ensure she spent the full weekend with her son. She already spent so little time with Eric as it was. Meredith texted the admin, letting her know of the complication. Her phone buzzed with a response.

Mr. Aylster is firm on the matter. If nobody from The Lloyds Development can join him, I’ll convey the message. However, the trip will not be rescheduled.

Ugh. The admin was just doing her job, but Meredith was beginning to dislike her anyway. From the way it sounded, Daniel was looking for an excuse to fire TLD and make her look like an incompetent idiot for losing an important client.

“Hey, Mom,” Eric said from the kitchen. “You want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?”

She set the phone on the table. “Sure.”

She sat and watched her son make a sandwich for her in the open kitchen, feeling a funny little ache in her heart. He was a good boy, well-mannered and considerate. He also did well in school and got along with his friends. Any mother would be proud to have a son just like him. And Meredith wanted to spend the full Sunday with him.

But would Daniel wait?

She’d remembered how cold and insulting he’d been. He’d said it was nothing personal while at the same time implying that her family business—the legacy of her father and grandfather—was failing and that she was responsible. He must be dying to fire TLD and hire Sterling & Wilson. Thank god Justin had encouraged Daniel to work things out with TLD first.

Meredith texted Kerri about the situation, then added, Do you mind if Eric spends the night there today?

Kerri responded: No prob. Bring him over.

“Mom, here.” Eric put the sandwiches on the counter and sat on a stool.

“Thank you! They look great.” She took a bite. The peanut butter was extra creamy—just the way Eric liked it—and it brought a smile to her lips. “You’re a pretty awesome cook already.”

“Uncle Ethan said he’s going to teach me how to make grilled salmon and pasta.”

“Wow. From your great-grandmother’s recipe?”

His mouth full, Eric nodded.

“That’s amazing. I’m so proud of you.” Meredith hesitated, then sighed. “Eric… I need to be at work early on Monday. So I’m leaving later today.”

The sparkle in his eyes dimmed a little. “Okay.”

His “okay” tore at her. Why couldn’t he act like other ten-year-olds and complain? “Do you mind if you stay one extra night with your uncle and aunt?”

“Nah. They’re cool.”

Meredith managed a smile. Eric was growing so fast, her sweet boy. She didn’t want to lose even a moment with him. She hadn’t realized how much of a commitment it would be when she’d declared in front of her whole family that she’d take over the company and manage it. Her heart welled with resentment at Daniel’s high-handedness…until a little voice reminded her that she had no right.

Don’t forget where Eric came from.

She shoved the thought aside. Look how happy he was, polishing off his sandwich with a glass of milk.

He was better off with her.

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