Love Me Last

by Parker, Weston

  And it would help me out, too.

  I bit my lower lip. “Do you think there’s any way you could talk to Hayden about coming back to the winery?” I asked Ace.

  Ace grinned at me, but not in a mean way. “I thought you didn’t need his services,” he teased.

  “It’s not that we don’t need them,” I finally sighed. “I mean, I’d love to keep things within the business, but I just don’t think that Charlie and I can handle this on our own, not and keep our sanity. And keep the rest of the business running smoothly.” I frowned and shook my head. “If I’m already this stressed out, while we’re still a month out from the audit, I can only imagine how much worse it’s going to be once we get closer to our deadline.”

  “Good call,” Ace said approvingly. “I’ll see what I can do.” He paused. “But Mallory, you have to remember, Hayden isn’t like most professional people. He doesn’t play the game. If things don’t go his way, he’s not going to stick around. Just keep that in mind.”

  I rolled my eyes. “What a glowing review for your brother,” I said.

  Ace laughed. “Hey, I call it like I see it,” he said. “I mean, there’s something admirable about a guy who refuses to kiss up to people, isn’t there?”

  “I guess so,” I grudgingly admitted.

  “And here,” Ace said, handing me a business card.

  “Another date?” I asked skeptically.

  “Not unless you want it to be,” Ace said, looking amused. “But my friend Jen is a great massage therapist. You know, if you want to explore other ways of getting the tension out. I feel like this gym session isn’t doing it for you, and while I’d love to suggest you go have a good time with my brother, that clearly isn’t in the plan.”

  I laughed and slipped the card into the back of my phone case. “Thanks for the recommendation,” I said. “But see what you can do about getting Hayden to come back to the vineyard. If he can help me out, maybe I won’t even need the massage!”

  After the gym, I still felt like I was uncertain and at loose ends. The last thing I wanted was to go back to my lonely home. I knew I would spend the night worrying about the problem with the books. Worrying that maybe Hayden would refuse to come back to the vineyard. That I was solely responsible for destroying everything my grandfather had worked so hard to build.

  I had worked so hard over the years to perfect my work-life balance, but I could feel all of that rapidly slipping away from me as we sank further and further into this problem. The last thing I wanted was to spend the whole evening going over the books.

  So I headed to Mom’s house. It wouldn’t be much of a respite because I was sure that we would still talk about the vineyard. And she’d probably even bring up that date again. But at least she’d be a little company for me. At least she’d keep me from spending half the night trying to figure out what to do.

  I slipped into Mom’s house and found her in the living room as usual. This time, she was reading a book. She raised an eyebrow at me as she slipped a bookmark in to mark her page. “Did I know that you were coming over?” she asked tartly.

  “No, I just thought I’d drop by,” I said.

  Mom frowned. “You know, I don’t need you to check up on me every day,” she said. “I get enough of that with the nurse.”

  “I’m not here to check up on you,” I protested but didn’t know how to tell her that I was here more for me than for her. Were you allowed to say something like that to a cancer patient?

  “You’ve got plenty of more important things to do than muck around here,” Mom said. “How’s the business going anyway? You figure out what’s wrong with those books?”

  I shook my head, trying not to take the prodding personally. I knew that she was just in one of her moods tonight. There were definitely times when Mom and I didn’t see eye to eye, times when we barely even got along, but at the end of the day, she was my mother, and I knew that most of her tongue-lashings these days were because she was scared of what was going on. Who wouldn’t be?

  She didn’t want to face the reality of her own demise, so she tried to turn things around on me. That was all.

  “Didn’t Charlie have some hotshot coming in to meet with you?” Mom asked.

  “Something came up,” I lied. “I think he’s going to come in some other time, though.” I sure hoped he would. If Ace couldn’t get Hayden to come around, I didn’t know what we would do.

  I wasn’t ready to tell Mom the full story about that, though. The idea that I had let my personal life mess up my ability to do what was right for the winery was too much. That was no way for the head of a company to act, and I knew Mom wouldn’t stand by without reminding me of that.

  “Doesn’t sound like this guy is very professional,” Mom said, but when I didn’t respond, she let the matter drop. “Well, what are you going to do, now that you’re over here?” she finally asked.

  “I guess maybe I could read a book as well,” I said. Mom and I didn’t really have the same taste in books, but I knew that going back to her reading would appease her slightly, and maybe reading would take my mind off my current problems. I was willing to try anything that might help with that.

  In answer, Mom harrumphed and opened her book again, a tacit sign of approval. I headed to the bookshelf to try to find something of even mild interest, then settled into Dad’s old leather armchair to read.

  Chapter 9

  Hayden

  I watched as Ace tucked away the last bite of his breakfast. “What?” he said, around a mouthful of food.

  “Eew gross!” Booker said, pointing at Ace’s mouth. He tugged on my sleeve. “Dad, he talked with his mouth full.”

  “He did,” I agreed, fixing Ace with a mock stern look.

  He rolled his eyes, swallowed his food, opened his mouth for inspection, and then repeated, “What?”

  I shrugged. “I was just thinking that for a personal trainer, you don’t really stick to any of those health-food diets, do you?

  Ace snorted. “Do you think I need to?”

  “No, it just always surprises me that you’re not one of those protein shake kind of guys,” I said.

  “Have you ever tried one? Protein shakes taste awful,” Ace said. “I prefer the finer things in life.” He paused. “Anyway, I figure that if the Ancient Greeks were able to get their Olympians in that fine of shape eating whatever the hell they normally ate, then I can probably stand to eat proper food and still be in pretty decent shape myself. There is a bit of a science to it, but a little bacon here and there isn’t going to kill me.”

  “Fair enough,” I said.

  Booker tugged on my sleeve. “Can we play the pay game?” he asked, now that everyone was finished eating. He loved when the three of us went out to breakfast like this, but one of his favorite parts of the meal was the pay game. Ace had started it years ago, challenging me to a game to see who would have to pay. It wasn’t exactly fair since two of the three chances were that I would be the one who ended up paying, but Booker loved the game, so I continued to put up with it.

  I grinned at Ace this time. “You ready to lose?” I asked.

  Snorting, he said, “Not a chance.” He smirked at Booker. “You remember the rules, Booger?” he asked.

  “Course I do!” Booker chirped.

  “Then that means no cheating this time!” Ace retorted, and Booker giggled.

  For the next couple minutes, there was no more talking, just laughter and the occasional shriek from Booker as he nearly lost. A couple of the waitresses probably looked over a few times, and the other customers, since we weren’t exactly quiet. But everyone knew our routine by now. We kept on playing, heedless, until, “Shoot,” I muttered, as my coin flipped off the table and skittered across the linoleum floor.

  “Ha!” Ace crowed triumphantly, giving Booker a high five. “Nice job, Boogs. We got him!”

  “We got him, we got him!” Booker chanted. “Sorry, Dad.”

  I snorted and shook my head in amusement
. “That’s all right,” I said, reaching over to pluck the bill off the end of the table.

  “Thanks for breakfast, bro,” Ace said sweetly.

  I rolled my eyes. “One of these times, I’m going to make you pay me back for all the free-loading you’ve done over the years,” I joked.

  “Hey, if you’re short on cash, I know of a certain winery-owner who would be interested in having you come work for her,” Ace said, all-too-casually.

  I gave him a look. “Mallory made it pretty damn clear that she didn’t want my help,” I told him.

  “Well, I just talked to her late yesterday,” Ace admitted. “She came into the gym for a session.”

  I groaned. “You never know when to quit,” I said. “Seriously, Ace, I’m not interested in dating her, nor is she interested in dating me. Now would you please quit with the match-making?”

  Ace held up both hands. “Hey, I’m not trying anything like that,” he said. “We were just talking about the date thing, and she just said you weren’t her type. But then she mentioned that work was pretty crazy for her at the moment. It sounds like she could really use you. You know the only reason she came into the gym yesterday was to try to work off some serious tension. And it didn’t exactly work. She can’t keep doing that to herself for the next month or more. It’s just not healthy.”

  “Well, it’s none of my business if she wants to work herself to death,” I said, even though I felt a pang of guilt just thinking about how much she must have on her plate at the moment. Sure, we might not have gotten off to the best start, but that didn’t mean I wanted her to suffer. Especially since I was sure I could figure out the problem with the books pretty easily. I had experience with this stuff, after all. And I didn’t have to worry about running the winery at the same time.

  “I’m not telling you what to do,” Ace said, shaking his head. “But I don’t think it’s like you to turn your back on someone who needs help.”

  I sighed and glanced over at Booker. I knew that Ace’s words were designed specifically to appeal to the ‘new me.’ The person I was trying to be since I’d become a father. I was still a long way from being any kind of saint, but I did try to be better, to set a better example for my son. I wanted Booker to grow up to be kind and unselfish, all the things that I’d never really been before.

  And that meant if someone needed my help like Ace seemed to think Mallory did, I couldn’t just turn my back on them. That would be sending exactly the wrong message to Booker. Besides, what did I have to lose? I didn’t have any other projects lined up at the moment. I could drop Booker off at school this morning and then swing by the winery. If Mallory didn’t want me there, she could tell me so. Again. And I would leave for good this time.

  But if there was a chance that she wanted me there, that she needed my help, then I should probably go and offer.

  Besides, I thought, at least she couldn’t be after me about my punctuality, or lack thereof, this time. We didn’t have a scheduled meeting, and she didn’t even know that I was showing up. So I couldn’t be late. Maybe this time, she would actually let me get to work before she sent me off again.

  I sighed. “All right,” I said, conceding defeat. “But I swear, this is the last time. If she doesn’t want me there, she doesn’t want me there. Understood?”

  “Sure thing,” Ace said easily. “Hope you can help her, though. She really seems to need it.”

  “Yeah, we’ll see,” was all that I said.

  We finished up breakfast, and I took Booker to school before heading to the vineyard. This time, I didn’t stop to admire the view, even though it looked even more beautiful than it had the last time, with vines both old and new reaching up towards a brilliantly blue sky. But I didn’t want to get too attached to the place if Mallory was just going to turn me away again.

  In my head, I tried to come up with something to say to Mallory. I didn’t really want to tell her that Ace had urged me to come back. But at the same time, I also didn’t want to tell her that I was back because I was sure she was in trouble and needed my help. I could tell both from the date and from the meeting with her in her office that she took pride in being a woman in control. I didn’t want her to get the impression that I thought she couldn’t handle herself.

  Because there was no way I would ever dream of insinuating that. No, I could tell that she was capable. She had probably poured her heart and soul into this vineyard over the years, and she knew everything about the vines, the wine-making process, the distributors, and everything else. There was just this one little error somewhere in the books.

  But I also didn’t want to seem too desperate for the job. I didn’t need this, and I still resented the fact that she’d acted like I did. Sure, I might not dress in the fanciest clothes or drive the nicest car, but that didn’t mean that I didn’t have money. I just didn’t see the point in spending on frivolous things. And I was comfortable with the way that I dressed. I hated the assumptions that she had made about me before she had even gotten to know me.

  So, try as I might, I couldn’t think of any way to approach the idea of me coming to work for her after all. But still, I knocked on the door to her office.

  “Come in,” she called, not a hint of puzzlement in her voice. And in fact, her expression melted into one of relief when she saw me. “Hayden. Good to see you,” she said.

  She must really be in trouble; that was all that I could think. Not that I would ever say that to her face. I nodded and had a seat across from her at her desk, rolling up my sleeves. “Why don’t you tell me what you need?” I suggested.

  Chapter 10

  Mallory

  To be honest, despite Ace’s assurance that he would try to get his brother into the winery again, I didn’t have very high hopes. I kept thinking about what Ace had said about his brother before, about how he worked on his own terms and wouldn’t be willing to do anything otherwise. I had blown this guy off not once but twice already, first during our date and then again the first time that he had come into the winery to review our files.

  And yet, despite all my misgivings, here he was.

  He sat down across from me as though he had every right to be there. And I guess he did, really. I had to assume that Ace had said something to him, and that was the reason he was here now. I knew that I was going to need to apologize to him for the way I had acted before. I needed his help, and I was so happy to see him that I practically could have kissed him. He hadn’t even started trying to solve our problems yet, but I already felt as though a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders.

  Hayden raised an eyebrow at me. “I assume you’re still looking for someone to go over your books?” he asked.

  I nodded slowly and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. For before. I know it wasn’t fair, the way that I judged you. Charlie tells me that the only reason you were late was because he gave you a tour of the property. I should have given you a chance to explain.”

  Hayden snorted. “Actually, I was a little bit late, even before Charlie gave me the tour,” he said. “Not that late, mind you, but definitely late. Is that going to be a problem?”

  I stared at him for a moment, taken aback by his honesty. But then again, what did he have to lose? As for me, I had everything to lose—the winery, the land, my employees, and everything else.

  “It won’t be a problem,” I said slowly, “as long as you get the job done.” I cleared my throat. “It’s not the way that things are usually run around here. I expect a lot from my employees. I always have. And it’s true that not everyone can cut it.” I trailed off, suddenly realizing just how that sounded. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to imply—that is, it’s just that—”

  I couldn’t help feeling flustered. It wasn’t often that I admitted being wrong about anything when it came to running this business. I knew the way that things were supposed to work, and we all worked together to make sure that everything that we did was the best for the business.

  Hayden grinned bro
adly at me, cutting off my bumbled apologies. “Don’t worry about it,” he said grandly. “Now, what exactly is the issue?”

  I frowned. “We’re not sure exactly,” I admitted. “There’s just some sort of problem with the books. Something is off in the last eight years.” I paused. “Whatever it is, it isn’t intentional.”

  “How do you know that?” Hayden asked in surprise.

  I knew that it wasn’t that unreasonable to think that someone might be cooking the books on purpose. Skimming off a little profit at the top. Most companies that Hayden worked with probably at least admitted to the possibility of that. But I was sure that wasn’t the case here, and I wanted to make that clear to him before he felt the need to start investigating my staff.

  I shrugged. “We’re a small mom-and-pop kind of company,” I said. “I mean, I guess we’re not that small anymore. We have distributors worldwide. But most of the people working here have been here for ages. Some of them, like Charlie, even worked alongside my grandfather. They’re not the kind of people to suddenly start skimming off the top.”

  Hayden looked like he didn’t believe me, and it was another thing that made me want to kick him out of there. I didn’t need him hounding my employees, and I didn’t want anyone to get the feeling that I didn’t trust them. Part of how you built trusting relationships with your employees was to make sure they knew just how much you valued them. An investigation into any of them would send the wrong message.

  But Charlie had been the one to bring Hayden in, and I had to assume it was because Charlie knew Hayden would use tact while going about his business here. I had to trust him, now.

  “Anyway, as Charlie might have mentioned,” I continued, “we’re trying to get this sorted out as soon as possible, before the IRS audit which is one month away.”