Before I can say anything else, Rob is gone.
I honestly don’t know if he’ll be back. He’s an essential part of my team. He knows how to make sales faster…and he knows where all the bodies are buried, so to speak. This sucks.
I curse and grab my gear. Rob’s tirade aside, I know I have a hard decision to make. I have to talk to Keeley—somehow. We need to work this out. No matter what happens with Griff, in my head she’s mine and she’s going to stay that way.
I can’t say I’m in a great mood when I climb into the car and tear out of the parking lot for home. Yes, I’ve known for a long time that Rob is a complete bastard. Frankly, it’s one of the reasons I hired him and why we worked well together. Birds of a feather and all. Sometimes I have to be charming for clients, but I could always count on my marketing manager to be ruthless.
His shit tonight was way over the line.
I get that my indecision has thrown him for a loop. Since he gets paid when I get paid, I realize that if I don’t reel in the Stowe estate, I’m costing him a lot of money. He should also know I’m going to do my best to succeed and make things right for him. If he’s calmed down tomorrow, we can try to work it out. If he continues to be an asswipe, I may be hiring a new staff member.
My phone rings, butting into my thoughts. There’s just enough glare left in this sunset that stabs my eyes through the windshield, I can’t see the display on my Range Rover. But my insides torque up at the hope that Keeley is finally not pissed enough to talk to me.
I grope for the button on the dash and stab it. “Hello? Keeley?”
“Sorry. It’s Harlow.”
“Hey, sis.” I try not to sound disappointed.
She laughs at me. “Tell me how you really feel?”
“Give it a rest.”
“You got it bad for this woman, don’t you?”
Yeah. I’m not sure what that means yet or how it’s going to play out in the future. The not knowing is making me antsy. “Did you want something?”
“Well, I called to tell you a few things, but since you’re so ribbable now, I think I’ll keep the good stuff to myself until I’ve had my fun.”
I sigh. “Why aren’t you taking your frustrations out on your fiancé? Is he still in London?”
“No. He’s flown on to Athens. He’s very important,” Harlow says in a voice that makes me worry she’s questioning her own importance to him.
“You okay?”
“Are you?” she counters. “How is it going with Keeley?”
I’m a smart guy…usually. I am definitely intelligent enough to realize that I will never understand the female mind. Harlow isn’t much like Keeley—but she’s closer than I’ll ever be.
“I’m not even sure. Good one minute, not so good the next.” I fill her in on last night’s un-hilarious comedy of errors.
“What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know. What do you think I should do?”
“You have never once asked my advice with a woman. By the way, if you had, I could have told you Tiffanii was a selfish whore.”
“Thanks for the FYI. I figured that out.”
“Finally. Look, you’re obviously tied up in knots over this girl. Are you in love with her?”
I’ve never been in love. How the hell should I know? “Maybe.”
Harlow laughs without humor. “You sound so clueless. It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad.”
Gritting my teeth in frustration, I bite back a curse. “Are you going to make fun of me or help?”
She hesitates, and I wonder how much she’s enjoying my torment. She’s not usually cutthroat like the males in our family, but she’s also no slouch. My little sister learned from some of the most ruthless assholes ever and she can keep up. I’m actually worried about her answer.
“Neither,” she says finally. “Look, there’s no redeeming Dad, so I gave up on him a long time ago. You and Griff… It’s been a toss-up which side of the fence you two would fall on. But I’m starting to have hope for you. You seem like a better man with Keeley.”
I want to be a better man. I even feel like a better man. I don’t want to let that—or her—go. But I don’t want to give up the Stowe estate, either. It’s not just a property or a payday. It cements my future.
“What are you saying?”
“That you need to figure it out. I could tell you how to play this, but if I do, whatever move you make won’t be authentic. Keeley sounds like a smart cookie. I’m guessing she’ll see right through any choice that doesn’t come from your heart.”
Most likely. “I don’t know how to choose with my heart. I have three chromosomes—X, Y, and asshole. How do I change that?”
“Stop making excuses and decide what you want most. I only called to drop a little knowledge on you. First, tonight Griff is going to someplace called Lelani’s Beachside Grotto. He should be there about…now. So if you want to proceed with your original plan to introduce Keeley to him, here’s your chance.”
My breath seizes up. My heart pounds so hard I swear it’s going to bruise my rib cage. I have to decide now? Right this minute?
There’s still a little part of my brain screaming that I’m an idiot if I don’t follow through, but all the function in my body seems to be coming from my chest these days. It’s telling me that my head needs a fucking vacation.
“Thanks,” I manage to mutter. “And he’s still not seeing anyone?”
“Nope. But something is going on. I talked to him today. He sounds really wound up.”
“He’s probably on edge about the Stowe estate.” The end of the week is going to creep up on both of us.
“Maybe.”
“What’s the other reason you called? I mean, besides the chance to talk to your amazing elder brother,” I try to joke.
It falls flat.
Harlow gets quiet, sober. My gut starts screaming.
“Mom picked up and left yesterday.”
“What? What happened?”
“I don’t know exactly. Dad called me in a huff this morning. Mom didn’t come home last night. She didn’t call. She didn’t say she was going anywhere, she just…left. She also took her Mercedes, a suitcase…and half their checking account.”