My uncle is quite a piece of work. If I thought Alastair’s attitude was bad, well, my uncle’s is about a million times worse. Jacob happens to be the mayor, but he’s also one of the most frustrating people I’ve ever known. He doesn’t act in ways that make the community better. He doesn’t make choices that will help local businesses grow and thrive. Nope. That’s not my uncle.
My uncle is the guy who looks out for number one.
Well, number one and his immediate family.
“You’ve got this,” I tell Alastair. “Your dad didn’t build this company from the ground up, cousin. You did.”
“Well, me and Melanie,” he says with a smile.
My cousin always gets a mushy look on his face when he thinks about his fiancé. The two of them together are, quite possibly, the happiest couple I’ve ever met. They perfectly complement and complete one another, and that’s not an easy thing to do.
Not in today’s world.
“Of course,” I agree easily. Melanie and Alastair are the tiger world’s best power couple. He might be a dick on his own, but Melanie manages to tame the beast that lives within Alastair. Something about her manages to soothe his terrible beast. I don’t know how she does it, but she manages to treat my cousin in a way that makes him believe in himself.
The result is that when he’s around her, he’s happier, kinder, and gentler. He doesn’t let local businesses get under his skin. He doesn’t let the possibility of change stress him out to the point of yelling.
“Speaking of Melanie,” he raises an eyebrow, and I start moving toward the door because I know what comes next in this little scenario.
“Nope.”
“You don’t even know what I was going to ask.”
“I definitely do know. My answer is still a hard nope.”
“Hey, you have to have a date to my wedding,” he says.
“Why?” I shake my head. “Weddings don’t require the guests to have a date. This day is all about you and your bride,” I point out. “What does it matter if I have someone’s hand to hold?”
“Cassidy,” he complains.
“No.”
“Cassidy,” he tries again.
“No.”
“Well,” he shrugs. “Then I guess Melanie is going to be very excited. You know she’s trying to set you up with Lester.”
My stomach churns.
“No.”
He smiles and looks at me.
“Then bring a date, Cassidy. You have two weeks.”
Chapter 2
Matthew
“Tell me something good,” I say to Justin. Rubbing my temples, I stare at my companion. The monster headache that’s sitting just behind my eyes isn’t going to go anywhere, it seems. Not anytime soon.
Justin shrugs and looks back at the paperwork sitting between us. There’s too much of it. There’s always so damn much. No matter how hard I work or how many decisions I make, somehow, there’s always more paperwork than when I first started.
Seriously, it’s a bit of a fucking downer.
“You didn’t say anything,” I point out, gesturing at the files and forms.