slept on the plane, so I’m all yours for a few hours, then I’ll probably crash.” It was only a six-hour time difference, but my sleepless plane ride was starting to catch up with me. I got up and went to my carry-on to take out my laptop. The gift bags caught my eye.
“By the way, anyone want their souvenirs before we start to work?”
“Yessss!” Tess exclaimed. The other two nodded.
Laney was front and center in my mind as I handed out the gifts. I’d bought the last ones with her after our tour. I chuckled, remembering her cute but awkward “What happens in Rome, stays in Rome” speech. We’d only kissed, and I’d only known her for two days, but she’d been in my thoughts ever since I boarded that plane. I liked spending time with her. It had been the first time I’d gotten so caught up in an activity I was doing outside of work or spending time with my family, and I knew it was all because of Laney. Her enthusiasm had been captivating. She’d been captivating. I’d been tempted to message her since my landing, but she’d made her boundaries clear...
When Tess got out her iPad, I rolled my shoulders, zeroing in on the screen. This was just what I needed to get my head back in the game and push any thoughts of Rome—and Laney—to the back of my mind. Once I’d put the jet lag behind me, I was going to be my usual self again: focused and in a great mood. I was sure of it.
Chapter Six
Cole
One week later, pushing Laney out of my mind proved to be nothing more than wishful thinking. It just wasn’t my style to walk around frowning or barking commands. Half my team was looking at me warily whenever they passed me; the other half was avoiding me. I didn’t like this one bit.
Was I ruthless when necessary? Hell, yes.
But I was also the type of boss who always kept his door open and was close enough to his team to know when anyone had personal problems or wanted a new challenge. You could say I was a considerate... tyrant.
Just before I left for Rome, I’d promoted one of our employees from the operations to the finance department. Even he was avoiding me. Great. Just great.
On Thursday afternoon, Tess surprised me by visiting me at the office.
“Tess, anything wrong?” I asked the second she entered the room.
“I can’t visit my brother?”
“Of course you can. You just usually don’t come by yourself. Do you need anything? Is anything wrong with the store?”
Her store was in Soho, and my office building was on the Upper West side—not exactly on her way home. The only other time Tess had come to see me alone was when she’d wanted to ask my opinion about quitting her job to focus full-time on the store. She’d been at wits’ end, completely drained of energy, and had admitted that she couldn’t do both things anymore. I’d felt oddly proud that she counted on my advice.
We’d run the numbers, and they had looked encouraging. It was a risk, but a calculated one. She’d then talked to Skye about it, and they’d both quit their jobs.
I tried now to guess what this was about, how I could be of use.
Tess sat on the chair in front of my desk, looking straight at me.
“Brother dearest, everything is fine with the store. I’m fine. I think you aren’t.”
I stared at her. “What? Why would you say that?”
“Hmm... let’s see, you were awfully quiet during the working lunch yesterday when you usually fight everyone else for airtime.”
“Maybe I was just tired, jet lagged, you know.”
She held up a finger as if saying, that’s not all.
“And I’ve been hearing worrying reports from several of your colleagues that you’ve been a bit of an... ass this week.”
I groaned, dropping my head. “If I’d known you were going to befriend every single coworker we sent to your shop, I wouldn’t have done it.”
“Yes, you would, because you’re an amazing brother.”
It had been a clever idea to send business their way. When they’d opened the store, we’d told our employees about it in a general meeting. We’d made it clear there were no expectations, obviously, but I’d wanted to use any opportunity to pimp the girls’ business. They’d also offered a “friend and family discount” for the occasion. More than half of our employees checked it out, and Tess had become friends with