look into the lease contracts. They have a clause that allows us to make any improvements without the permission of the tenant.”
“Do your brothers know what we’re doing?” Langdon inquiries.
“Only the basics,” I explain. “We don’t want them to worry about any speculation.”
“And Vance?” he questions.
“He knows more because he’s concerned about it too,” Beacon answers. “Listen, while you’re working here, be invisible. I don’t want the town to notice any of you. If I see anyone on the fucking Twitter feed, you’re going to be sent to the H-I-B bodyguard division and work with celebrities. I’ll make sure they assign you the most annoying asshole.”
“You?” Seth jokes.
“Fuck you!”
“The equipment arrives tomorrow,” Seth takes over. “If you have any questions about your role, ask now. For those staying at The Lodge, this isn’t a vacation. Everyone else, make sure to follow protocol.”
Half of his team is leaving Baker’s Creek immediately. Their mission is to spy on these guys and get back to us with their whereabouts—or give us a heads up if they’re heading to Oregon.
“The most important thing is that we finish this with zero casualties. Meeting adjourned,” Beacon says.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Grace
Monday is the day Mills takes Arden to Happy Springs, where they have a Mommy and Me class. He spends the rest of the day with him. His schedule is flexible enough that Arden doesn’t miss him. But now that his knee is better, thanks to Hayes, he wants to go back to skating.
That’s why he’s happy that I’m going to be here. I’m not sure how to tell him that I don’t plan to stick around for the rest of the year. It might be easier to break the news to him than to Beacon, though.
Leyla only works in the morning. Since I wouldn’t be able to be with Carter until noon, Pierce said he’d take the day off to be with him.
“I feel like a slacker. I came to take care of your nephews, and I had to excuse myself on the first day.” I laugh.
“No, you came to be with me. You’re doing them a favor,” Beacon rectifies my statement. “But since it’s for their protection, I think it’s fine that you took the day off.”
We’re approaching the Baker’s Creek exit when he asks, “What do you want to do? We could go to Portland.”
“No. Why don’t you walk me through a day in the life of Beacon? When I visit it is usually over the weekend, or you ask someone to cover for you.”
He grins. “It’s around eleven. That means I texted you about five times already. It’s Monday, and today I’m scheduled to work at The Lodge.”
“What do you do there?”
“I usually work at the front desk. When I piss off Henry, I get sent to one of the restaurants. I usually end up washing the dishes since I’m not allowed to cook, and I’m a shitty waiter—according to the manager.”
“We used to waiter at that restaurant close to Central Park during college. What gives?”
He chuckles. “That was fun. I don’t miss the stuffy uniform. That’s not the point. I don’t want them to know that I can do it.”
“So, you’re always washing dishes instead,” I say, laughing.
“What can I say? Henry gets irritated easily. It upsets him that I’m not willing to learn new things. How am I supposed to manage The Lodge if I don’t know the difference between a fucking salad fork and a table fork?”
He pauses, looks at me briefly, and says with a grumpy voice, “Do you know there are fourteen kinds of forks? I’m lucky we only use two types.”
“You need to stop teasing your brother.”
“Well, if you want, we can work at The Lodge for the remainder of the day. I promise to behave. But hear me out, there’s a second option.”
“Ooh, goodie, what else can you offer other than pissing off your brother so we can wash an unlimited number of dishes?” I laugh. “Do you have any idea how ridiculous that sounds?”
“How many times do I have to explain to you it is about having fun? Life is short. I’d rather look back and say, ‘I had a fucking awesome life’ rather than ‘I wasted it in nonsense.’”
“It’s a bit crazy that your nonsense is logical.”
“Which is why option number two should be our goal of the day.” He pauses. “We’re going through your list.”
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you, Mr. Aldridge?” I say in a sultry voice.
“You’ve no idea, babe.” He grabs my hand and