Page 52 of Never Finished

My phone buzzed in my pocket a couple of minutes later. A trill of anticipation ran through me, but her response merely said, "Thank you."

I would not let myself read into the curt response. I had given her a heads up, but now I needed to complete the mission and get proof of her father’s deceitful acts.

Emma

"Not to sound like a snob, but is this really the fanciest restaurant in Silverpine?" Caroline asked, looking around dubiously at all the wood-paneled walls.

I shrugged. "Well, yeah, outside the resort. Why? What's wrong with it?"

"Nothing," she said quickly, still looking around. "I've just never been in a fine dining establishment that had so many… antlers."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm sorry if it doesn't live up to your fancy LA standards."

Caroline laughed. "Please, it's not like I've been able to enjoy anything LA has to offer lately. Most of my meals are enjoyed from the comfort of my office chair."

I was grateful for the opportunity to change the subject. My mind had been consumed with how I was going to approach my father for the last few days. I hoped that by the end of dinner, I would have a concrete plan.

"I'm sorry they’ve been running you ragged, Caroline. Have you decided what you're going to do about the job?" I asked her.

Her painted lips twisted into a smile. "To be perfectly honest, the decision might be out of my hands. It's very possible they're drawing up my exit paperwork as we speak."

I looked at her, confused. "Why would they do that?"

She sighed, then let out a small laugh. "The other day, after we had our powwow with Abby and you and I killed that bottle of wine, I got a text. I guess my boss didn’t notice my name was still on the text chain, so he asked if anyone had heard from me and wanted to know, and I quote, “how Caroline's mental breakdown was progressing?” It was followed by a bunch of laughing/crying emoji."

I gasped on my friend's behalf. "That's so unprofessional."

"Tell me about it. Normally I would've just taken a screenshot and sent it to HR, but I had a little too much alcohol in me, so I responded to the text… "

"Oh, no, do I even want to know?"

She rolled her eyes. "Probably not. If I was going to get fired, I wished it would've been a snappier comeback, but instead I told him my mental breakdown was progressing nicely, and I was doing better than his hairline."

My hand flew to my mouth, covering the laugh before it escaped.

She shook her head at me, smiling wryly. "I know. It was stupid. But part of me hopes they are working on that paperwork. Then I wouldn't have to make this big decision."

"You know you could start your own firm, Caroline. You're the best financial planner I know, and I'm sure we can get you the backing. If things weren't so weird with my father, I'd just give you a job at the resort."

She waved a hand at me. "Don't worry about it right now, Emma, I'm not. Being away from LA and, more specifically, away from my desk, is reminding me I have a lot of life to live and I’ve been doing a shitty job of it lately. I’ve really enjoyed slowing down and hanging out with you. It's making me seriously question what I'm even going back to."

I sighed. "I know what you mean. It's been nice being here."

I felt my phone buzz. "It's Jaime," I told Caroline. "He's warning me that Dad is in The Lounge."

Caroline shook her head. "I wish I could say I’m surprised Daddy Moneybags showed up. But hopefully, it makes you feel less guilty about taking this meeting."

"I don’t feel guilty… it just sucks it had to get to this point. I mean, he's the only family I have …"

Caroline reached her hand across the table and grasped mine. "He may be blood, but you still have a family who loves you," she reminded me, squeezing my hand.

"Why such long faces on two beautiful ladies," a voice said over us, and we looked up to see a smartly dressed man wearing browline glasses.

"Emma Carter, I presume?" The man said, holding out his hand. I stood, shaking his hand, feeling relief course through me.

"Yes. You must be Mr. McCoy?"

He smiled at me widely. "At your service. And please, call me Connor. I apologize for being tardy. Traffic getting out of DIA was a bear and so was the driver, if you know what I mean. I should've gotten his number now that I think of it," he said, looking thoughtful for a moment before shaking his head. "Now," he said, taking his seat and putting his briefcase aside, "I don't want to waste any of your time because I charge by the hour, so let's get down to business," he said, folding his hands in front of him and glancing at me and Caroline intently.

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