Page 18 of Only Ever Yours
Finn tilted his head to one side as if considering my last points. “I honestly can’t remember. Jase and Rod have been doing everything here with an apprentice from Maplebrook Academy for the past nine months. And I haven’t run my own sessions in I don’t know how long. Once I got everything set up at the unit, I let everyone else take classes andclients.” He reached for his coffee. “I miss the hands-on side of things.”
“What do you think, then?”
“You’d really be prepared to give up a well-paid job for a tech firm to run the family business? I can’t exactly afford to pay you much, if anything.”
“You heard yourself, right?The family business.I’m family and I want to help run it. I don’t care about the money. I have some savings, and you’re not exactly going to be charging me rent, are you?” I crossed my fingers out of Finn’s sight. For this to work, he actually did have to let me live in the house rent-free.
“Ha, you know as well as I do there’s no mortgage on the house, and all we have to contribute is running costs. As long as you can do that, I’m not going to charge you any rent.” He steepled his fingers in front of him. “It’s all a bit sudden, Hollis. Are you sure about this? I mean, you’ve been here for a week, and suddenly, you want to be back in Maplebrook permanently.”
“You know what happened with Gil,” I said quietly. “I don’t want to run the risk of seeing him again, and being in London increases the chance. Being this far away lessens the risk.”
“He really messed you up, didn’t he? I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have questioned you.” Finn softened. “You’ve always been so sure of yourself and what you want out of life. To hear you make what seems like a backwards step is a bit of a surprise.”
I smiled. “I hardly think being Chief Operations and Finance Director of two businesses is a step backwards.”
“Oh, is that what you want to call yourself?” Finn laughed.
“I’ll even get the business cards printed up.”
Finn leaned across the desk and extended his hand. “Welcome on board, Sis. In all honesty, I’m glad you’re going to be involved. With me at the helm, I could run both businesses into the ground before we’ve even started.”
I shook his hand. “I don’t think it would have happened. And I certainly won’t let it. There’s one more thing.”
Finn released me. “Oh, God. What now?”
“Are you okay with me decorating Barney’s room?”
“It’s yours again. You can do whatever you want with it.” Finn’s phone rang. He showed me the screen. “It’s Tia. Don’t suppose you’d also consider the odd shift at the coffee shop?”
“If I can keep all the tips, you’re on.”
He waved his hand, shooing me out of the office. I grabbed my bag and left the office, feeling a lot more alive and motivated than I had when I’d woken up that morning. It was funny how a seemingly light entertainment programme had the potential to totally change your life.
“You seem happy,” commented Jase. He perched on the edge of the bonnet of the car he’d been working on when I’d arrived. “Headed back to London?”
“Nope. Quite the opposite in fact. You’re going to have to get used to having me around on a permanent basis.” I smiled at him. “So, you’d better up your tea-making game.”
“You’re staying?”
“Sure am. I’ll see you at home later.” With a spring in my step, I exited the garage and started the walk home.
As soon as I got into the house, I knew I couldn’t put this phone call off any longer. Preparing myself, I sat on the couch and opened the purple notebook in front of me with the bullet points I wanted to make during the conversation. Picking up my phone, I ignored all the messages on the screen and went to my contacts. Scrolling through until Ifound Alissa’s number, I hit the call button. As expected, she answered within a few rings.
“Hi, Alissa. It’s Hollis. I wanted to talk to you about when I’m coming back. And, well, the short answer is, I’m not. I’m giving my notice as of today.”
Chapter Seven
Jase
“I’ll have a tea when you’re ready, Princess.” I stuck my head into the office where Hollis was hunched over her laptop.
She gave me the finger without looking up. “Little busy right now, Jase.”
This had become our little routine over the past week. I’d tease her about making me a drink; she’d usually tell me to fuck off and then relent and present me with a mug about ten minutes later. Today didn’t seem any different.
I approached the desk. “What are you doing?”
“If you want to get paid this month, you’ll leave me alone.” Her nose wrinkled as she looked at something on the screen.
