“You know what? Tell your fiancée I said yes to dinner. I’m busy the rest of the day, but any evening this week should work.”
His mouth pops open slightly before he recovers. “Oh. Well, okay. I’ll let you get back to things and confirm the day and time later tonight.”
Owen stands, and I follow him to the door. I give his hand another firm shake. “Thank you for coming by, Owen. I look forward to all the good we can do for West-to-East together.”
Owen’s grip tightens slightly before he nods and releases. “As do I.”
Once he’s gone, I glance at the clock. I need to head out for a meeting. It wasn’t ideal for this to be scheduled during my first week at a new company, but I have a lot to think about for work. A break after all the meetings I’ve had should help me process things easier.
I head out of the office after sending a quick email to those I met with today, thanking them again for their time. Same as I did for the others yesterday. My niceties don’t mean that I’ll be taking things easy on them, but I believe in building a foundation of respect with my employees before demanding their greatest work. If they don’t hold me in a positive regard, I won’t ever get their best.
My Range Rover is parked in the front row in a designated parking spot. As soon as I’m inside, I let out a quiet snarl. “Kenzie.”
The vents blow her sweet scent around me, and I grip the steering wheel tightly while exiting the parking lot.
I’ll need to have the house cleaner come early and take my car in for a detail. I can’t let another woman distract me. Especially not a mouthy one like Kenzie.
Sure, she was better in bed than I expected, but I don’t have it in me to handleallof her. I don’t need to have gotten to know her well to see that she’s bright where I’m dark. That she lives life too chaotically for my organized preferences. Too much time with her could unravel years of my own hard work making sure I was nothing like my parents.
When I pull into Resolutions—the animal shelter that I’ve been on the board at for three years now—the sound of dogs barking brings a smile to my face. I don’t own any pets. Not because I don’t love them, but because it wouldn’t be fair.
I spend every other summer in a different country. I work long hours. I live alone. No, I’d rather spend my spare time helping a company like this that finds abandoned pets the proper homes to give them a better life than the needle they might get at the pound thanks to overcrowding.
I hop out and head inside. We’re meeting today to discuss the annual fundraiser. I haven’t caught up on emails yet to know what their plans are looking like so far, but I do intend to write a check and help on the day of. Doesn’t sound like a lot, but I do my best. The new job wasn’t expected, and my time will be even more limited than past years.
The building is an old house I’d bought and donated to the shelter. It’s still within city limits, but there’s an acre of property and we’ve done a lot to take advantage of every square inch. Cats hang out in the windows, sometimes drawing people in, but most of the time, just soaking in the sun.
The yellow paint and white trim are soft instead of obnoxious, and the flower beds are well cared-for by the other volunteers.
When the bell rings just inside the door, I’m greeted by a few more deep barks and the sound of Joyce calling out. “Be right there.”
Joyce has been running this place for decades. She’s like the mother I was never blessed with. That woman could ask me for anything, and I’d give it to her.
“Oh, Bentley! You made it home,” she says as she comes around the corner. I take steps forward to greet her, and when her surprisingly strong arms wrap around me, the air whooshes right out of my lungs.
“I told you I would,” I say with a laugh.
She pulls back and inspects me. Her curly silver hair is bouncing at her shoulders as she nods her head. Her bright green eyes shine, making it easy to ignore the new wrinkles she’s taken on since I last saw her.
“Well, we have much to discuss. I was just coming out to lock the door and put up a sign so we can get started.”
Joyce sidesteps me and grabs a white piece of paper from the front desk. It’s already written on with a long piece of tape secured to the top. Her hand slaps against the clear window on the main door and she turns back to me. “Ready?”
Her grin is infectious, and I return it. “Absolutely.”
She heads down the right hallway, her flower, ankle-length skirt swishing as she goes. “We finished the remodel of the back wing this summer. I’ll take you back there if you have time after the meeting. We also have a lot of the tasks planned for the fall fundraiser. We just need to assign roles. A few volunteers have moved on this summer, so I brought in a new one, and I’m hoping to get the workload dispersed amongst the rest of us.”
I fight back a groan while I read between the lines. Joyce is giving me a fair warning that writing a check might not be enough this time.
“You know I just started at that new company this week, right?” I ask.
She glances back at me and brushes a stray curl out of her eyes. “I’m well aware of what you’re up to, Bentley.”
My shoulders tense. I’m not sure her tone bodes well for me, but I dismiss it as we enter the meeting room. Though, it’s more of a food storage space with a table in the middle of all the bags and cans stacked against the white walls.
Joyce grabs my arm and points to the people around the table. “Just a refresher for everyone before we get started. The man candy on my arm is Bentley Abbott. On my left is Sandy, then Charlie, Sam, Dakota, Mary, Gene, and our newest recruit just joining us today, McKenzie.”
My eyes land on the back of the head to the last member. She’s not looking at me like the rest. In fact, she’s staring pretty hard at her twisting fingers, and her red hair seems all too familiar.