by Eva Scott
A breeze ruffled the long grass, sending a whisper through the flowers and into her heart. If only they could suspend this moment in time. Ed, relaxed and as sexy as ever, leaning back propped on one elbow, laughing at the story she told him about the one time Mel asked Annalisa to help her dye her hair blonde. It had turned out an alarming shade of orange and then green when they’d tried to cover it with another dye. Things might not have been so dire had it not been the afternoon before their school dance and Mel’s first official date with Garry. Nonna had grounded her for a week for her part in the disaster.
She couldn’t take her eyes off his mouth as he bit into a brownie, declaring it the best he’d ever had. She wanted him so badly it burned.
‘Nonna acted like a mother to you?’
Like a bucket of cold water, the question doused the flames of her desire. ‘We are super close,’ she said. ‘I usually talk to her about everything but lately I’ve been feeling guilty about, well, you know.’
‘About letting her down, am I right?’
Thoughts of her inadequacies cancelled out all the thoughts of a naked Ed. Not necessarily a bad thing.
‘Yeah,’ she confessed. ‘You know my hang-up about being the last Cappelli.’
‘I think it’s a pretty fair issue to have, for a moment at least. Look at it like this: you’re starting a new chapter of Cappellis. You’ve stopped selling hardware and now you’re selling dreams to little kids. Not a bad exchange, if you ask me.’
She could have kissed him right then and there.
‘Thank you for saying so,’ she said. ‘I sometimes feel as if the ghosts are crowding me out. All my ancestors, my grandfather, my parents and even Ben. It’s hard to live when you’re anchored down by the expectations of the dead.’
He nodded slowly as he absorbed her words one by one. ‘My father casts a long shadow. I feel him every time I enter the office or see Rosie and Oliver. I’m reminded of what I owe him.’
‘And what do you owe him?’ This was a side of Ed she hadn’t seen before.
‘I made a promise not to break up the family business.’
No one had ever made her make such a promise. The assumption that there would always be a Cappelli running the store, that blood was thicker than any other substance on earth, had been with her since the day she was born.
In the end, she’d been the last Cappelli standing. She’d shouldered the responsibility alone until she couldn’t any longer.
‘How about the family itself?’
Ed grinned. ‘I think Dad was less concerned with family relations. He put more faith in profit than in love. I suspect both his wives would be happy to back me up on that one.’ He picked a grass stalk and chewed on it thoughtfully. ‘What about you? What do you owe the dead that it weighs you down so heavily?’
An image popped into her mind of her feet encased in concrete boots as she drowned in a sea of obligation. Some days still felt that way.
‘For generations my family kept this business afloat, through world wars, rebellion, racism and recessions. I know their names, I’ve seen their photos, I’ve heard their life stories and they’re real to me. Then I get my hands on the store and now I’m going down in history as the Cappelli who lost the family legacy.’
‘Why do you care what history thinks?’
He asked such a simple question, startling her into silence with the truth behind it.
‘I honestly don’t know,’ she admitted.
‘There you go then.’ He lay back with one hand behind his head, waving the grass stalk like a magic wand. ‘I hereby banish your ghosts and free you to follow your own path unencumbered by guilt.’
‘Just like that?’ She raised her eyebrows, doubtful. Could it be that easy to let go?
‘Why not?’
Another good question. She lay down, watching the small, fluffy clouds scurrying across the sky, herded by the wind like sheep. Could things be so simple? Could she make the decision to step out from under the shadow of her family history and stand in the light of her own future without the guilt?
Speaking of shadows …
She rolled towards him so she could see his handsome profile outlined against the golden grass. ‘How about you?’
Ed tilted his face towards her, blue eyes quietly assessing her.
‘Can’t you step sideways out from under your dad’s shadow?’
‘Sideways? Now, there’s an idea.’ He turned back to contemplating the sky. ‘I could. The problem is the confrontation it’s going to take. Not fond of confrontation as a rule.’
‘Who is?’ She rested her head in her hand, content to watch his thoughts flit across his face.
‘You haven’t met my sister.’ His smile had more in common with a grimace than anything else.
‘No, but I’ve seen a video of her online and she seems like a handful.’
He burst into laughter, piercing the stillness of the afternoon. ‘She’s a piece of work. Come to think of it, she casts her own shadow too.’
Annalisa’s wrist began to ache from the weight of her head, or her thoughts more like. She returned to lying on her back, side by side with Ed.
Far above their heads, a herd of clouds scampered by. Tentatively, she reached out towards Ed, compelled by the understanding that perhaps they were more alike than she’d thought.
‘Maybe,’ she said as her hand found his and met no resistance as their fingers entwined, ‘we both need to step sideways into the light.’
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Ed Carpenter was a man in love. He could no more deny it than fly to the moon on a pair of Annalisa’s fairy wings. The thought did nothing to stop the roiling in his stomach. In fact, the certainty contained in the knowledge made things worse.
Spending the last few days with Annalisa had pushed him to crisis point. Action needed to be taken and he was taking it, after deliberately avoiding it for months where she was concerned and years with his life in general. Neither could be ignored any longer.
As he rode the elevator up to the Carpenter Warehouse offices, a low hum of nausea reminded him of what was at stake. The confrontation he was headed for was a sure thing, the outcome known before he even began. While the situation between him and Annalisa had less certain odds, the potential for spectacular failure loomed large.
Ed’s focus on his internal landscape meant everyone around him blurred to the point that he was only vaguely aware of people greeting him or exchanging puzzled looks when he failed to respond. He headed directly to the boardroom with the intensity of an arrow shot. It had taken him all night to talk himself to this point and nothing would stop him from following through with his plan now. Nothing.
His palms slapped flat on the cool wood of the boardroom door and he pushed it open with force. On the other side sat Rosie and Oliver, more or less how he’d seen them last. Not much had changed bar the colour of Rosie’s power suit and Oliver’s braces.
‘What are you wearing? That is not exactly business attire, is it?’ Rosie’s cold gaze raked Ed from head to heel as the boardroom door swished shut behind him.
‘You can’t come to work looking like you’ve come from a session at a beer garden,’ said Oliver, his tone weighted with condescension for both Ed’s outfit choices and beer gardens in general.
Ed looked down at his grey, rather worn Led Zeppelin T-shirt and his jeans.
‘No, you’re wrong. A session at the beer garden would warrant my best T-shirt,’ he said by way of setting the tone for what was to come.
‘You disrespectful little …’ Oliver half rose before Rosie patted his shoulder, settling him back in his seat.
‘Down, boy. Ed is clearly rebelling against his responsibility with that ridiculous outfit. Let him have his little dummy spit. It’s not like we didn’t anticipate such a thing happening sooner or later.’ Rosie regarded him with half-lidded eyes, like a sleepy lioness sizing up its prey before deciding whether to give chase.
He let the comment drop to the f
loor. If Rosie expected a bite, she wasn’t getting one.
‘I won’t take up much of your time.’ He rubbed his hands together, as if there would be some lovely surprise to follow. ‘Shall we press on?’
‘By all means,’ said Oliver, sprawling back in his chair as if he couldn’t care less what happened next. Maybe that was true. Ed looked forward to changing his attitude.
‘Say whatever you’ve got to say and be quick about it,’ said Rosie. ‘Some of us have work to do.’
‘And that’s what I’m here to talk to you about. Work, or Carpenter’s more to the point.’
‘If you’re here to tell us about your affair with the little hardware shop girl, we already know about it,’ said Rosie dismissively.
Her statement took him by surprise. Blindsided, he struggled to regain his balance. ‘How?’ He didn’t want to ask. His curiosity got the better of him.
‘I see you don’t deny it,’ said Oliver, a malicious smile creeping across his face, the kind Ed had been familiar with as a boy.
‘What’s the point?’ he said. ‘It’s true and I’ve got nothing to hide.’
‘Very unprofessional conduct,’ said Rosie. ‘Had you been a regular employee, the subterfuge might have cost you your job. As a Carpenter, there will still be disciplinary action.’
‘I see where you’re going with this.’ Anger gave Ed the emotional ballast he’d been looking for. ‘You’re going to say that the payout I arranged for Cappelli’s Hardware had something to do with my relationship with Annalisa Cappelli.’
‘You exposed yourself to potential accusations of fraud or embezzlement. We all know you need the money,’ said Oliver. ‘What a silly boy.’
‘Any accusation can be easily dealt with by investigation.’ He rocked back on his heels, confident of the direction he was headed in. They couldn’t touch him now no matter how hard they tried.
‘At the risk of dragging your name and reputation through the mud,’ said Oliver. ‘I’m sure Virginia wouldn’t like that. No good for any future business projects you’re thinking of.’
So they knew about that too. How mystified him, although the fear-based work culture at Carpenter’s had meant the walls had ears. The sooner he was out of here, the better.
‘I don’t think my mother would give a flying hoot who I’m having a relationship with.’
‘A relationship, is it?’ scoffed Rosie.
‘Yes, it is.’ Ed held firm. ‘Let’s put all our cards on the table, shall we?’ He tapped the boardroom table with his index finger. ‘Right here and right now. I’ll go first.’ He didn’t wait for their response. He intended to strike first and strike hard. No more mucking about.
‘We all know you are not going to take any kind of formal action against me because that course of action would put Carpenter’s, as a whole, in the firing line. Bad press is the last thing you need. You are less concerned with my reputation than you are with your own. Not to mention the fact that none of your accusations will stand up to scrutiny.’ He folded his arms across his chest and prepared to round the corner to the final furlong.
‘What you’re trying to do is intimidate me back into my box where you think you can control me. Throw the dog a bone from time to time and keep him happy. He owns a third of the shares after all and we don’t want him meddling in the running of the business.’ Ed paused for breath. ‘Am I right?’
‘We will not have you tarnishing the reputation of Carpenter’s Warehouse with your tawdry and meaningless affairs.’ Rosie tapped the table with her talons, sending her annoyance via morse code.
‘I told you already, it’s a relationship not an affair.’ He wrestled to keep his anger in check. There was no point in prolonging things. ‘I came here today with a speck of hope that things would turn out differently with you two, but I can see nothing is ever going to change. You are always going to be hostile, condescending and downright nasty. Neither of you have grown up and both of you would have disappointed Dad.’
‘Right, this from the loser who lost his business and folded like a little flower at the first hurdle. Fucking princess,’ spat Oliver.
‘And there we have it,’ said Ed. ‘Right there. We are supposed to be on the same team. We are supposed to be family and yet you have never ever made me feel that way. Not once.’
‘Can we wrap up this whinge-fest?’ Rosie leaned in. ‘I have a business to run.’
Ed could talk all day long and he’d never reach them. They weren’t family growing up and they never would be. Nothing he could say would bring about any change.
For one blinding second, he was swamped by a sadness so deep it plunged all the way to the marrow of his bones.
‘You win,’ he said, throwing up his hands. ‘I’m out.’
‘Happy to accept your resignation,’ said Oliver. ‘Email it to HR by close of business today and we’ll make it effective immediately.’
‘Oh, no.’ Ed gave his brother the kind of grin Oliver would recognise from his bathroom mirror. ‘We are not done by a long shot.’
Rosie pushed her chair back. ‘I’ll be the judge of that and I say this little family reunion is over.’
‘I’ve sold my shares.’
Later, Ed would replay this moment over and over in his mind, enjoying the look on his siblings’ faces as the meaning of his words registered.
‘You can’t,’ spluttered Oliver, turning a nasty shade of puce.
‘Mind your heart now, Ollie,’ he said. Ed had all the power now and the worst part was over.
‘There’s a clause,’ said Rosie, on her feet now and looking less bored than he’d ever seen her.
‘I know all about the clause,’ said Ed cheerfully. ‘My lawyer went over it thoroughly.’
‘You promised Dad.’ Oliver struggled to push the words out through stiff lips.
‘I promised I wouldn’t sell outside the family. Rosie, do you think Oliver might need some medical attention?’
‘What have you done, Edward?’ Rosie’s eyes narrowed to two dark slits of concentrated hate.
‘I told you, I sold my shares.’ He shrugged. ‘Do pay attention, Rosie.’
‘You’ll be hearing from our lawyers and you’re going to regret the day you were born,’ she threatened, all illusion of her control dissolving as she turned into a hissing harpy intent on revenge.
‘Don’t you want to meet your new business partner?’ he asked innocently as if his siblings weren’t busy imploding with rage. ‘Wait here.’
He ducked out of the boardroom door to find Virginia waiting patiently for him.
‘There you are, darling.’ She kissed him on the cheek. ‘I was chatting with Jeremy. Such a lovely chap. Are they ready for me? I was afraid I might have turned up too early.’
‘No, Mum. You’re right on time.’ Ed linked his arm through hers. ‘This is going to be so much fun. Oliver is already on the verge of a heart attack or something. Knowing you’re his new partner might push him over the edge.’
‘Should we get someone to call a doctor?’
‘Let’s go check on him first, shall we?’
‘Lead the way.’
As Virginia walked in on his arm, the look on both Rosie’s and Oliver’s face defied description. They both looked as if they’d woken up in the middle of a Stephen King–style nightmare. The moment proved epic for Ed. Even with the tinge of sorrow for the family they could have been had they not been pitted against one another for profit.
Rosie had fallen back into her chair as if struck by a mallet, while Oliver looked like he was fit to explode. All the while, Virginia chatted with them as if they were naughty children she’d come to take in hand.
Ed understood why a man like his father had fallen for a woman like Virginia. She might look like a shiny bauble for a rich man, but underneath lay the mind of a shrewd businesswoman with nerves of steel.
Virginia had taken her seat at the head of the table, the very same chair his father used to occupy. ‘Good then,’ she said.
‘We’re all settled. Ed, darling, you may leave us if you’d like. I know you have other places to be.’
‘Are you sure you’ll be alright?’ He eyed his siblings, trying to work out if they had any fight left in them. Rosie sat blinking at the tabletop as if she’d never seen it before, and Oliver was shouting down his phone for the company doctor.
‘I’ll be fine.’ She patted his hand. ‘You forget, I’ve been managing these two since before you were born. We’re all going to rub along famously.’
His mother looked delighted to be in the middle of the chaos and he knew she’d be fine. This venture had gotten her juices flowing again after too long in retirement. She needed a challenge and Rosie, along with Oliver, would certainly give it to her.
‘Okay, if you’re sure.’ He kissed the top of her head. ‘I love you.’
‘I love you too. Now run along before Oliver recovers. I think he’d rather like to strangle you.’
Ed laughed and took his leave, winding his way through the desks, past all the curious stares and whispering as the shouting resumed in the boardroom behind him. He was free. He had money behind him. He could go wherever he wanted and he knew exactly where that was, but first he needed to make a quick stop along the way.
GardenerGuy94 MON @ 9:25 AM
I did it. I just quit the family business.
GoldfieldsGirl MON @ 9:27 AM
You’re kidding! Just like that? I am so proud of you. How do you feel?
GardenerGuy94 MON @ 9:28 AM
AMAZING. Freedom is the best feeling in the world.
GoldfieldsGirl MON @ 9:28 AM
Are you going to celebrate? What happens next?
GardenerGuy94 MON @ 9:29 AM
I have no idea on either count. I’m going to go home and tell Ripley and work it out from there.
GoldfieldsGirl MON @ 9:30 AM
I am super happy for you xxx
GardenerGuy94 MON @ 9:30 AM
Thank you. Without you to show the way I don’t think I would have done it.
GoldfieldsGirl MON @ 9:31 AM
