by Juniper Hart
“Everly? Spoiled? That doesn’t sound much like the sweet girl I always knew,” Michael replied, surprised. “It’s probably a big adjustment coming home after living in the city for so long.”
Kevin scoffed slightly. “She didn’t come back to visit, not one time! I think she got it in her head that she was going to stay out east.” He scoffed at the idea. “As if that was ever going to happen.”
Michael looked at him dubiously. “She wouldn’t do that!” The thought appalled him as a pack leader. “She knows where she belongs.”
“I thought so, too, but Cynthia warned me about letting her go. I should have listened. I don’t know what appeals to her about New York—especially when her pack is here.”
Michael peered at him for a long moment. “What do you think the problem is?” he asked. “Is she restless?”
Kevin threw his hands up in exasperation. “How the hell should I know what goes through a twenty-two-year-old’s mind these days? When we were her age, we were career and family-oriented. We didn’t sit around glued to our computers, hoping that the job fairy would land us a steady income under our pillows. We got our own jobs, found wives, and had kids like normal—”
Kevin stopped speaking abruptly as he remembered his companion.
“You know what I mean, Mike,” he mumbled, humiliation coloring his face. “I’m just saying that kids aren’t the same as we were.”
Kids, Michael thought, shuddering slightly. She is a kid. She’s the same age as Carter.
But he couldn’t reconcile his nephew and Everly Castle being anywhere near the same in any way. Everly seemed more refined, more mature. She was a woman, while his nephew still seemed to be a petulant little boy.
That’s because you’re turning into a horny old man. Stop thinking about her like that! He couldn’t.
“She needs a job,” Kevin said, and Michael focused his attention on his best friend. “She needs a distraction to keep her from thinking about things she can’t have.”
Swallowing his shame, Michael nodded understandingly. “I’m sure something will come up. It’s growing around here.”
The words sounded as insincere out of his mouth as they did in his head, but he did not know what else to say to placate Kevin. There was no major growth in business in their town.
That still didn’t mean that Everly could leave. She has to know that, Michael reasoned, but the thought still made him uneasy.
The bartender placed their beers and bourbon chasers on the bar, and the men nodded in thanks.
“I don’t want to talk about my daughter,” Kevin sighed. “She causes me enough grief at home. Let’s just drink like old times and forget our woes.”
For some reason, Michael found the statement bothersome. If Everly is struggling with some inner demons, he should be supporting her, not trying to block her out, he thought, but he said nothing.
After all, who was Michael to dole out parenting advice? That was precisely the reason he had never married or had children.
I suppose every father gets fed up with his daughter at some time or another. Let the man vent.
“Sounds like a good plan,” Michael replied, holding up his drink in toast.
Kevin clinked his glass to his friend’s, and the men turned to look into the gradually filling bar.
It’s a Sunday night, Michael thought, shaking his head. Don’t these people have to work in the morning?
“Look! Cheryl Silver is eyeing you,” Kevin said, nudging him in the ribs. “Didn’t you two used to date a few years back?”
Michael shifted his russet eyes towards where Kevin indicated, and he gulped back his repulsion.
“Oh, no,” he muttered. “She saw me.”
Before he could pull his eyes back, Cheryl made her way across the bar, half stumbling in her semi-intoxicated state.
“Hi, Mike,” she cooed, hanging off his arm. “Long time no see!”
That wasn’t true, of course. Michael had seen her many times in town, but she was trying to be flirtatious. She was failing terribly.
“Hey, Cheryl,” he replied shortly. “This isn’t really a good time. Kevin and I are discussing business.”
“No, we’re not!” Kevin chortled, relishing his friend’s discomfort, and Michael scowled at him in anger.
As he opened his mouth to serve another excuse to the fleshy blonde, he felt his head turn as if pulled by a string and froze. Everly was standing at the front entrance, her blue eyes adjusting to the dimness of the club.
Michael pulled his gaze from her to poke at Kevin. “Hey,” he said, subconsciously pushing Cheryl away from his body. “Look who’s here.”
Kevin followed his stare, his mouth forming a fine line of anger. “There really is no escaping that dark cloud, is there?” he moaned, and again, Michael was filled with annoyance. “In all the bars she had to come to tonight… and why is she even in a bar? Spending my money…”
That is your daughter, Michael thought angrily. I don’t care how much she drives you crazy, you don’t call her a dark cloud.
“Come on,” Kevin muttered. “Let’s get out of here before she sees us.”
Michael stared at him in disbelief. “Seriously? You’re going to sneak out of here like Everly’s some scorned lover?”
He looked at Cheryl. “No offense.”
Cheryl frowned. “I don’t get it,” she replied, and Michael could tell that she truly didn’t.
He remembered yet another reason he and Cheryl had not lasted. She never was the smartest female in the pack, was she?
“Can you give us a few minutes, Cheryl?” he asked. “I want to talk to Kevin.”
“But honey—”
“I am asking as your pack leader,” Michael snapped. “In fact, I’m not even asking.”
He stared at her coldly.
A look of contrition instantly crossed over her face. “Yeah, okay,” she mumbled, backing away. “I’m going.”
He watched as she sashayed away, and he exhaled a sigh of relief.
Kevin eyed him. “You have no idea what it’s like to live with someone like Everly,” he complained. “You’re lucky you never had kids.”
Michael gritted his teeth together. “Kevin, you need to cut her some slack,” he started, but suddenly, he realized that they were not alone. Everly had made her way across the small bar and stood in front of them.
“Hi, Dad. Hi again, Mr. Vanier.”
Michael turned to look at Kevin’s daughter and smiled.
“What are you doing here?” Kevin demanded. “This isn’t exactly the kind of place I would expect to see you in now that you’re all New York fancy. Especially since you’re unemployed and have no money.”
She pursed her lips together. “I need to talk to you about something,” she told him.
“Now? You’ve been at home for months sitting on your ass. Whatever you want to say can wait. Can’t you see I’m trying to catch up with my friend?”
Michael felt himself grinding his teeth as he noticed the look of defiance cross over Everly’s face. “I’ll leave you two—”
“No!” Everly interjected. “No, I need you here, too, Mr. Vanier.”
Oh, how I wish she would stop calling me that, Michael thought mournfully, but he wisely held his tongue. Maybe the next time I see Everly alone, I will ask her nicely to stop calling me that. I wonder what it would sound like to hear her call me by my first name. I bet it would roll right off her tongue.
“Everly, this is not the time for a discussion!” Kevin snarled, slamming his beer onto the bar, but Michael could see that she was not relenting.
“I’ve applied for a job in Texas and there is a good chance I will get it,” Everly blurted out.
Both men stared at her, their mouths agape.
Kevin shook his head. “I knew you had stupid ideas in your head when you went out east!” he yelled, his face growing red with fury. “But I thought, ‘Everly knows the deal. She won’t get caught up in the hype.’”
> “Well, I guess my stupid, incompetent, moody self won’t be in your face anymore,” Everly shot back, and Michael felt a surge of pride as he watched her lash out at her father. “Seriously, Dad, what do you expect? Ogden has no jobs, yet you can’t quit chastising me for not getting one. But now that I may have a job, you won’t let me leave. You’re making this impossible.”
She certainly has changed since she left here. The time away from her father did her good.
“Everly, you know what being part of this pack means,” Kevin retorted, spinning to look at Michael. “Aren’t you going to say something about this?”
Michael stared from father to daughter, and he was conflicted like he had never been before.
Why does she really want to leave? Because of the job? Because of her father? Or because she doesn’t want to be part of the pack?
The reason didn’t really matter; he couldn’t give his blessing, not technically. Everly belonged in Ogden, and she knew it. But if she chose to go, he could not restrain her.
“Mike!” Kevin screamed. “Say something!”
“What do you want me to say?” he asked calmly, trying to summon his reasoning skills. “It sounds as if Everly has made up her mind. Have you, Everly? You have already decided to take this job?”
She stared at him, and it became immediately obvious that she had not made up her mind. Her demeanor changed, and her shoulders fell, obviously not expecting that response from him. Everly seemed to be the same confused girl he had known.
She doesn’t know what to do. Her mind is split in a dozen directions right now.
A stab of empathy pierced through him, and for a fleeting second, Michael remembered exactly what it was like to be her age and overwhelmed with choices.
“I… I need a job,” she murmured. “Dad keeps telling me I need to do something. And this opportunity in Texas is a good job. I should take it.”
Michael nodded understandingly, and he glanced at Kevin, who seemed to be seething at the revelation.
“I think you know what I meant when I said you need a job, Everly. You need a job here. That always went without saying. Don’t try to pin this decision on me!”
“At least I’m making a move! I asked for your help finding a job here, and you got upset! Frankly—” She stopped speaking, as if she knew she was going to say too much.
“There are opportunities here,” Michael said slowly. “You just have to know where to look for them.”
Everly rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her chest. She had obviously heard the argument before. “I don’t expect you to understand, but I’ve been looking for a job since I got back. There are no jobs. I know what it means if I go, but I think I should take this.”
“You’re willing to give up on your pack?” Michael asked quietly, and she lowered her gaze downward.
A long silence ensued, and he felt a flood of relief flow through him as he realized the answer.
She doesn’t want out of the pack. She just wants to be away from her father.
“It’s not the way I want it, but it seems to be the only way to do it,” she whispered. “I’m sorry.”
“If you do this, Everly, so help me—” Kevin started to yell, but Michael held up a hand to silence him.
“There is another way,” he told her, and she glanced at him warily.
“How’s that?” she replied shortly.
Michael inhaled sharply. You’re about to open an entire can of worms here that you won’t ever get back in place…
He studied her face carefully and made his decision. “You can come work for me.”
Chapter Four
A nervousness that Everly had never known grew in her gut.
She had been uneasy in the past, but this was something different, a worried excitement that she’d been nurturing for days. It felt like a strange creature lived inside of her stomach and was slowly gnawing its way out.
“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?” Sydney demanded through Facetime as she watched her get dressed for her first day at Behemoth Marketing and Publications. “I thought you wanted to get out of Ogden.”
Everly glanced at the screen, biting on her lower lip. “I have no idea what I’m doing,” she confessed, keeping her voice low. Since she had accepted the position with Michael Vanier’s company, she felt as if her father was watching her every move.
“What about coming to Austin?” Sydney demanded, her southern drawl deepening with annoyance. “I already forwarded your resume to the big bosses and gave you a glowing recommendation!”
Embarrassment filled Everly’s face, and she reached for the phone, staring into Sydney’s confused face. “That could take weeks,” she reminded her best friend. “And I should do something in the meantime.”
It was an excuse, and Everly knew it.
Of course she had seized the opportunity to work in Ogden. In her heart she knew she belonged with the pack, and leaving would only bring with it the same stabbing yearning she had carried for years in New York.
Moreover, she was excited to be working for Michael Vanier.
She had to continually remind herself that Michael was her dad’s best friend. Everything she did would be reported back to him. It was the only reason he had offered her a job in the first place, she was sure of it.
Dad probably put him up to it as a plan to keep an eye on you. You better watch yourself.
But Everly knew she wasn’t imagining the way the older man looked at her, and to say she didn’t feel an intense attraction to him would be a complete lie. Something deeper was blossoming between them and she wanted to pursue it. Didn’t she?
No, you don’t want to pursue it, she lied to herself. You want to keep your head down, do your work, and stay off the radar. Forget about Michael Vanier.
“Everly!” Sydney barked. “If you aren’t taking this job offer seriously—”
“I am!” Everly protested. “I really am! But I can’t sit around twiddling my thumbs, Sydney. Keep me posted, okay? I promise to check my emails and voicemails often.”
Sydney didn’t seem convinced.
Everly suddenly felt the urge to get off the phone. “I have to go,” she told her best friend. “I’ll message you later, okay?”
“Whatever,” Sydney sighed. “Don’t make me look bad in front of my bosses, Everly.”
She blew Sydney a kiss and disconnected the call, her palms slightly sweaty.
Turning back to the full-length mirror, she studied her reflection critically.
I look ready for the part of intern, she told herself, eyeing her gray suit. She looked simple but elegant, wearing a pencil skirt and matching blazer. The white silk blouse lightened the charcoal outfit, so she did not seem overly rigid.
Sydney taught me all about that, Everly thought, reaching for her pale lip gloss. She knows everything about fashion and design. I miss her so much.
She dabbed the gloss on her lips, pursing them together, and studied herself once more.
Do I look demure? Alluring? Will Michael Vanier think I’m sexy?
“Honey? Your dad is leaving in a few minutes!” Cynthia called from outside her door. “Are you almost ready to go?”
Everly jumped with embarrassment, as if she had been caught doing something she shouldn’t have been. She blushed furiously and turned away from the mirror.
And hopefully I will be able to afford my own car soon, Everly grimaced, wishing she did not have to drive to work with her father.
“Yeah, Mom. I’ll be right down.”
She grabbed her cell and dropped it in her purse, pausing to slip on her black stilettos before stepping into the hallway.
“Oh! You look so professional, dear,” Cynthia gasped, stepping back to admire the younger version of herself. “You are going to impress Michael so much!”
I hope so, she thought, but she only smiled and nodded as she turned to slip down the stairs.
“Everly?”
She turned back to look at her
mother. “Yeah, Mom?”
Cynthia closed the space between them, her own blue eyes bright with worry.
“I heard you were thinking about leaving Ogden once and for all,” she murmured. “That was just something you said to upset your father, right? You’re not going anywhere, are you?”
Everly plastered a fake smile on her face. “Of course not, Mom,” she sighed. “No one ever leaves the pack.”
Cynthia’s eyes seemed to cloud over. “I heard what you said to your friend on the phone just now.”
“You were eavesdropping? Seriously, Mom?” she said sternly, trying to keep her frustration under control.
Forget about the damned car. I need my own place. This is awful. First Dad, now Mom. I have to get the hell out of here.
“You weren’t exactly being quiet, Everly,” Cynthia replied, but Everly knew she wasn’t being loud, either.
Still, she knew arguing the semantics of volume was invalid at that point.
She bit on her lower lip and peered at the older woman. “I have to consider my options for the future, Mom,” she said slowly. “Dad is constantly harassing me about getting a job, and moving to Texas seemed like a good solution. I can’t work for Mr. Vanier forever. This is just a stepping stone in the right direction.”
“You must know that it isn’t feasible for you to leave Ogden, Everly,” Cynthia’s mother insisted. “If you go—”
“I know!” Everly snapped with more anger than she intended. Cynthia looked taken aback by her tone, and Everly immediately lowered her voice.
She patted her mom’s hand. “I’ve got a job now, and maybe there is room for growth. Who knows?”
Cynthia nodded, but Everly could see she didn’t seem reassured.
“How much longer are you two going to be gossiping up there?” Kevin yelled from the base of the stairs. “Some of us have to get to work! Some of us have jobs that we earned, not ones that were handed to us.”
A familiar throb of anger seeped through Everly’s mouth, and she ran her tongue over her gums to steady her incisors.
“Coming,” she muttered, willing herself to say nothing else.
Her father grunted in response, turning to walk out the front door.
