Authors: Stephanie Julian
Then, of course, traffic had been miserable. There was a reason most people around
here took the bus from Reading on weekdays.
The upside to the drive was that she’d had plenty of time to think.
Which was why she hadn’t gone directly home.
Looking at the front door to her parents’ house, she sighed. She needed to make the
right decision and her dad had always been the person to tell her the unvarnished
truth, no matter if she wanted to hear it or not.
Later, she’d talk to Annabelle, who always saw the upside of everything.
But first, she needed her dad to lay it on the line for her.
She knocked to announce her presence then opened the door and stepped into her childhood.
The white brick ranch house on the outskirts of town had been built in the ’70s and
the exterior showed it. Inside, the décor was stuck in the ’90s. Her mom had never
gotten around to redecorating before her death.
And her dad never changed a thing.
“Hey, Dad,” she called out. “It’s me. Where are you?”
“In the kitchen. I was expecting you earlier.”
Damn, she should’ve called on her way home. “Sorry. Traffic was heavier than normal.”
Walking into the kitchen, she took a deep breath and her stomach growled when the
mouthwatering smell of her dad’s spaghetti sauce hit her.
Her dad turned away from the stove long enough to give her the once-over. “I understand.
Sit. I’ll get you a plate.”
She did as she was told, watching her dad dish her a huge portion of spaghetti and
meatballs. “Daddy, I can’t eat all this. I’ll explode.”
He gave her a stern look that made her feel five years old again. “You’re skin and
bones. Eat. Then tell me why you look like you have the weight of the world on your
shoulders.”
Her first-generation Korean American father had guilt trips up his sleeve for every
occasion. She’d never doubted his love for her, but Tiger Moms had nothing on her
dad.
What he and her mom had ever seen in each other that made them decide to marry was
a total mystery.
Teddy Song was stoic, demanding, occasionally judgmental, and set in his ways. He
expected a lot from the people around him and even more from himself. His position
as the chief financial officer for the state-run geriatric home gave him the chance
to combine politics and money and he loved it. Loved the challenge.
He couldn’t understand why she was content working for a dry cleaner while her hard-earned
degree went to waste. He’d expected her to “make something of herself.” And that hadn’t
included tying herself to Arnie, a man who drove a delivery truck and working for
a dry cleaning business.
After he’d poured them each a glass of wine, he sat across from her and waited.
She took a deep breath. “I’ve had a job offer. For an assistant costume designer.”
He nodded, as if those came along every day. “That sounds promising.”
“It’s in New York City at an off-Broadway theater. They expect the show to do well
enough to move to a Broadway venue when a stage opens up. The company’s financially
stable. It has a good reputation and I actually like the people. I’d be working under
one of my professors from college.”
“It sounds like a great opportunity. So why are you hesitant to take it?”
Trust her dad to get right to the point. Which is exactly why she came to him.
“I’ve met a man—”
“The man who’s stayed at your house recently? Is he the same man you go to Philadelphia
to visit?”
Well, hell. She should have known he’d hear. Her father didn’t seek out gossip, but
he did stop at Tracy’s every morning to get his coffee. Someone down there must have
filled him in.
Now she felt like a guilty teenager. But that didn’t mean she had to show it.
Looking her dad straight in his eyes, the identical shape and color of hers, she said,
“Yes, it’s the same man.”
“And he treats you well?”
Okay, that wasn’t what she’d expected him to ask and it threw her off track. “Yes.
He treats me very well.”
“Do you love him?”
She blushed, a fiery heat consuming her cheeks. But the answer was easy. “Yes.”
Her dad didn’t bat an eyelash. “So you’re going to throw away this opportunity because
you’re afraid this man doesn’t want you to take the job. Has he told you not to take
it?”
She wanted to leap to Tyler’s defense, but that would have been an irrational answer
to a straightforward question. Her father might read something into her response that
wasn’t true. “No, not at all. He’s encouraging me to take it.”
“Then what’s wrong?”
What’s wrong was that he was encouraging her to take it. Hell, he was practically
putting a foot on her ass and shoving her out the door.
Okay, maybe that was a little overdramatic but still . . . Tyler wanted her to take
the job.
And she wasn’t sure if she didn’t want the job because she knew it would take her
away from him or because her goals had changed.
Shaking her head, she sighed. “I’m not sure.”
“And what is it you’re unsure about?”
She almost rolled her eyes but caught herself in time. “If I knew that, Dad, we wouldn’t
be having this conversation.”
Sitting back in his chair, he crossed his arms over his chest. “And why are we having
this conversation exactly?”
Suddenly, she knew exactly why she was here. “Why didn’t Mom become a photojournalist
like she wanted to?”
Her dad nodded as if he’d expected her to ask the question all along. “The simple
answer is because she didn’t want to leave you behind for long stretches of time.
And because she thought I didn’t want her to go.”
“Did you?”
He shrugged, such an odd movement coming from him. “I wanted her to be happy. I knew
she wasn’t, although she was a natural teacher.”
“Really?” She’d never known that about her mom.
“Oh, yes. And she enjoyed it too. It just wasn’t enough for her. When you started
high school, she began to apply for jobs at the bigger newspapers. She had several
interviews but . . .” He paused, then sighed. “The market fell apart. Newspapers were
folding left and right and if they weren’t closing, they certainly weren’t hiring.
Most were cutting staff to save money.”
“So she missed her opportunity.”
“Yes. And I couldn’t do anything to help her.”
And here was her opportunity, practically knocking her over.
“I’ve also had an offer to open a boutique. In the spa retreat they’re building only
a few miles outside of town.”
“I’ve heard about that. Seems like a risky venture, with the economy the way it is.”
“So you don’t think I should do that?”
“I think it will require much more of a sacrifice from you. Starting your own business
is a huge undertaking. Would you be able to stick it out?”
A sharp retort sprang to her lips but she managed to bite it back and think about
what he’d said. He’d asked a legitimate question.
“Yes, I could.”
“And do you want to open a boutique?”
With a heavy sigh, she set aside her fork. “It was never really something I gave a
lot of thought to. But the more I think about it . . .”
“The more appealing it becomes.” Her dad shocked her by nodding, his usually stern
mouth curved in an even rarer grin. “Have you thought about what will happen if this
boutique fails to take off? Then again, the show could close in a matter of weeks
and you’ll be out of a job there as well. But opportunities like the one you’re being
offered now don’t come around often.”
He hadn’t said anything she hadn’t already thought of herself but, coming from her
dad, it did help her see things more clearly.
“Kate, I love you.”
As much as she’d always thought her father expected more from her than she could do,
she knew he did. Still, every time he said it, it made her grin.
“And I’ll support whatever decision you make,” he continued. “I’ll only say that controlling
your destiny is a heady proposition. But business and pleasure don’t always mix. I
would hate to see you lose everything, but to not have attempted it might be even
worse.”
**
Tyler glanced at the clock for what had to be the hundredth time in the past five
minutes.
She had to be home by now. Why hadn’t she called?
Probably because she hadn’t wanted to tell him her decision.
She’d be crazy not to take the job in New York. And he’d be crazy to try and influence
her decision.
“Are you even listening to me?” Jared’s voice broke into his thoughts, splintering
his single-minded focus into a hundred different pieces.
“Frankly, no, I wasn’t.” He sighed and watched his brother raise an eyebrow at him.
“Jesus, Tyler. You need to figure out what you’re going to do about the chairman’s
seat. I can’t make the decision for you, but the more I think about it, the more I
think you need to do it. The GoldenStar was Granddad’s baby.”
“I know that. It’s what’s making this decision so damn hard.” Tyler shook his head.
“I don’t think we should let it slip through our fingers. The other hotels—
“Are the board’s,” Jed said. “I don’t give a rat’s ass about those. But Granddad built
the Philadelphia GoldenStar. I think it should stay in the family.”
Jared was right. Tyler knew that. But Jared wouldn’t be the one with the extra weight
on his shoulders. It’d be Tyler, because that’s what he did. He took over. He made
the major decisions and he dealt with the consequences.
And if he did, he wouldn’t be able to give Kate and their relationship the time it
required. The only times Mia had complained during their years together had been when
he was spending so much time getting Haven off the ground.
Yes, she’d understood that a project that huge demanded every ounce of his concentration.
But she’d expected him to at least acknowledge her presence occasionally. To put some
effort into their relationship.
But he’d taken her for granted.
“I know this is asking a lot from you right now,” Jed continued. “But we can do this
together, just like we’ve done with Haven and the Spa.”
Tyler looked at Jed, saw a conviction there that made him smile. Yes, they could do
it together. And with both of them working on it, it wouldn’t be such a colossal undertaking.
It’d still require a shitload of time, but they could do it.
Jed wouldn’t let him down.
And Kate . . .
Yes, he knew that sometimes life just sucked and there was nothing you could about
it.
You really couldn’t have it all. He should know that by now.
**
Tyler checked his ringing phone and paused before answering it.
“Hello, Kate. How did your interview go?”
“It went well. Really well, actually. Which is kind of why I’m calling. I need to
talk to you.”
Tyler mentally braced himself. Maybe he wouldn’t be the one breaking off their relationship.
“I’m glad to hear the interview went well. What did you want to talk about?”
He couldn’t keep the cool tone out of his voice. It matched the icy sensation coating
his guts.
Even though he knew this was for the best, he’d still had the slightest hope that
things would miraculously work out.
“Tyler, is something wrong?”
Her tentative question solidified his decision. “No, I’m sorry. I’ve got a lot on
my mind.”
“Oh. Did something happen?”
“I’ve decided to accept the chairman’s seat on the GoldenStar board. It’s going to
take up a hell of a lot of time.”
She paused. “Then I guess it’s a good thing I’m going to accept the job in New York.”
Thank God she wasn’t here, because he was pretty sure he looked like he’d just gotten
kicked in the gut. At least that’s how he felt.
There’d still been a part of him that had hoped . . .
“I’m glad it worked out for you.”
Another pause. “So you don’t have a problem with me taking this job?”
“No.”
Yes.
“Should I?”
“No. Of course not.”
Did he detect a hint of sarcasm creeping into her tone? Better to ignore it. “When
do you have to be in New York?”
“They want me there by the end of the week, but I couldn’t leave Joe in the lurch.
I’ll start the following week. I’ll be staying with Dinah until I can find an apartment.”
“I’m sure Jed would be happy to help you with that. He’s got several friends who live
in the city—”
“Tyler, what’s going on?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“Yes, you do. Don’t play semantics with me.”
“You’re right. I’m sorry.” He took a deep breath. “I’m not trying to be cruel but
I think, with everything we both have going on right now, it’s better if we make a
clean break. Now.”
**
Okay, now Kate was pissed.
She knew exactly what he was doing. The bastard was pushing her away deliberately.
And she knew why. Hell, she even understood to a degree.
But he was taking the easy way out and, damn it, she wanted to call him on it.
Even though she felt like he’d shoved a knife in her gut.
She wanted to scream and rant and rage at him. Wanted to tell him she knew exactly
what he was doing and why he was so very wrong.
“Kate? Are you still there?”
Through gritted teeth, she said, “Yes, I’m still here.”
“I know this may seem abrupt but—”
“
Abrupt
would be a good word for it. But I can think of another.”
He continued as if she hadn’t spoken. “I’m not going to have much of a private life
in the next few months and I don’t believe I’ll have the time I’d like to devote to
you.”
Oh hell, now she felt tears burning at the corners of her eyes. And she absolutely
refused to show him how weak she was. “Then I guess you’re right. We should end this
now.”
It was his turn to pause.
Isn’t as much fun to be on the receiving end, is
it?
“Then we’re in agreement.” His voice had taken on a cool tone she’d never heard from
him before. “We had a great time together, but we both need to focus on our careers
at the moment. I’m sure we’ll see each other again.”