friend. You’re her employer, and you need to start acting like it.
She had known she and Dee had very different business approaches, but this was the first time they had argued about it. Apparently, it wasn’t the first time Dee had thought about it, though. Why hadn’t she said anything before? They should have been able to talk about it instead of letting things build up.
One thing Dee had said in particular kept going through her mind: This good-cop-bad-cop game you’re playing isn’t fair.
Was there some truth to that?
It was tempting to blame it all on Dee and her inability to adjust to a new leadership style.
But deep down, she knew it wasn’t that simple. Maybe she had been a little too lenient with Courtney. Admittedly, it wasn’t the first—or even second or third—mistake their admin had made. She was fresh out of college, so Austen had hoped she just needed some time to settle into her first real job. Instead of taking action and confronting Courtney, she had just waited and tried to be positive and encouraging.
Apparently, Dee had felt forced to take up the slack and step in.
Austen should have seen it coming. Sitting around, waiting patiently for a problem to sort itself out, had never been Dee’s strong suit. She should have—
“Is this seat taken?” a gentle voice asked from two steps away.
When Austen opened her eyes and turned her head, she wasn’t surprised to see Dee standing in front of her, shuffling her feet.
Relief flooded her. Dee had searched her out. That was a good sign, right? A lump lodged in her throat, so she nodded wordlessly and slid a little to the side.
Dee sat on the bench next to her, close but not touching.
The inches between them felt like a deep rift.
Should she be the first to reach out and—?
“Um, here.” Like a peace offering, Dee held out a familiar box that said, Good things come in pink boxes. “You left your purse with your wallet in the office, and I thought you might be getting hungry.”
Dee had obviously braved the long lines at Voodoo Doughnut, three blocks away from their office.
“Thank you.” Austen’s voice came out a little croaky. She opened the lid. The scent of chocolate and cinnamon wafted out, making her stomach growl again. Two of the baked goods were Chuckles—donuts with chocolate frosting, dipped in chocolate powder, and topped with peanuts, caramel, and chocolate drizzle. They were her favorite. She picked one of them up, but then held it without taking a bite.
Their gazes met over the box.
“Um, that didn’t go so well, did it?” Dee said quietly and pointed her thumb in the direction of the office.
“No, it didn’t. Clearly, there are a few things we should have talked about much sooner. I just thought it was all going great and…”
“It was. It is for the most part. Everything has been amazing. I should have put this one setback into perspective and not let it get to me so much, but…” Dee drew a deep breath. “After all the shit I had to take from my uncle and the rest of the family when the Disney deal fell through, any kind of screw-up really puts me on edge.”
Austen put the donut back into its box and took Dee’s hand. “That wasn’t your fault, and I will never do what your family did and put the blame on you if something in our company isn’t going well. I hope you know that.”
Dee held her hand tightly. “I know. It’s just… I want us to succeed. I want Feathered Friends to have a first year that will blow everyone’s socks off.”
Austen had a feeling she knew why. Dee’s father telling her she didn’t have a head for business probably still stung. “To prove to your family that you can do it without them.”
A hint of red tinged Dee’s cheeks. She lowered her gaze to where she was stroking Austen’s hand with her thumb, then peeked up again. “That’s part of the reason. Is that so wrong?”
Austen squeezed her fingers. “No. I’m all for showing your family how wrong they were not to appreciate you more.”
“But?” Dee asked.
“But don’t you think there’s a different way to do that? I kind of liked the thought of getting to start over together, and Feathered Friends being a place where you don’t have to be Attila but can be just Dee.” She studied Dee’s face. “I mean, you don’t really want our employees to be scared