Bennett
My alarm went off and set a pounding headache off in my head. I blindly felt around for my phone, grabbing Henley's arm by accident. I cracked open my eye to see her sleeping beside me. She jerked her arm away from me, roughly turning on her side, making an unhappy grunt. My alarm kept going off and I reached for it again, this time locating it, and sliding the alarm off.
My eyes burned as I took in the timeâ 7:00 AM. I must have slept through an hour of alarms. Startled, I sat up quickly, making my vision swim. Why did I drink so much? Especially when I had to work the next day. And work was sure to be hectic with the news of Lee resigning... Lee...
I paused. This was all Lee's fault. That jerk. He drank all night because he knew he'd be quitting and could call in without any concern. And left me to nurse a hangover while also dealing with the fact I needed to find a replacement for him. After all I'd done for him...
Mildly annoyed now, I hauled myself out of bed, muttering to myself. Henley flipped over and I glanced at her to see her glaring at me. I held up my hands defensively. Right. She didn't have work today and could sleep in. I walked over to her side of the bed and made a show of tucking her in and kissing her forehead before heading to her bathroom to shower.
Part of me missed staying in my own house, but the part that worried for Henley overruled it. I could stay at Henley's house for the rest of my life if it meant she'd be safe.
I showered and changed and kissed Henley one more time before heading into the kitchen to fill a water bottle to bring to work. Brandon was up and eating a bowl of cereal and a bowl of oatmeal, watching Youtube on his phone, a spoon in each hand for each meal.
I stopped for a moment. Somehow he never failed to throw me off guard.
"Hey," he said without looking up.
"Good morning," I responded, reaching into the cabinet for a clean water bottle.
I heard the scraping of a bowl being pushed across the table. "Want some?"
I glanced over my shoulder, seeing the oatmeal bowl pushed in my direction, wet oats sticking to the spoon in his hand still. "No... thank you."
Eyes still glued to the screen, he shrugged, and pulled the bowl back. "Suit yourself."
"Do you have work today?" I asked, bringing the water bottle over to the sink to fill it.
"Nope. I took the day off."
"That's nice," I said distractedly, putting the cap on the water bottle, suddenly hit with an intrusive thought that I never even should have considered in the first place.
Could Brandon possibly replace Lee...?
Brandon burped loudly with absolutely no regard for anyone and then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand instead of grabbing a napkin on the table and my brain immediately corrected itself. No. He could not.
"You good?" Brandon asked, finally looking at me, a frown on his face. "After last night, I mean."
I smiled at him. While Brandon had odd traits about him, he was a decent guy. "Yes, thank you. It was a shock, but when I really think about it, Lee didn't seem that happy even all those years ago."
Brandon stared at me. "I meant about your hangover..."
"Oh."
"Um. But if you want to talk about Leeâ"
"I'm actually late for work," I said, hurrying out of the kitchen and into the hallway to put on my shoes. "Are you staying with Henley today?"
"Until Ariana comes to take her to class," Brandon answered, still seated in the kitchen, now out of eyesight.
"Okay. Good." I hesitated. "Goodbye."
"See ya."
I grabbed my work briefcase and headed out to my car, my cheeks uncomfortably warm. How awkward.
Fortunately, I didn't have much time to dwell on the awkwardness. My thoughts were immediately taken over about what to do next as CEO with Lee gone. Would I promote someone? Would I hire someone from outside? It didn't feel right to hire from outside, but at the same time, I didn't want to promote someone who was loyal to my mother. There were too many concerns there. Although the board of directors had agreed on firing her, they didn't have much of a choice about me and Lee taking over the position of CEO. If I hired someone up, who knew what they could plot?
I could just not promote anyone to the role and take things on myself again, but...
I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel. If I did that, would I end up like Lee? Would that even be a bad thing?
I pushed that thought from my mind. If anything, Henley and Brandon worked for me. If I left, they wouldn't have guaranteed job security. I wouldn't take that away from them... even if it was a slight abuse of power.
When I entered the main office building, all eyes were on me. I tried not to grimace as I politely greeted everyone who stared too long. So, the news was out. Lee hadn't wasted any time. Someone must have sent out an e-mail already.
I somehow made it to my office without having to answer any questions, deciding to wait to talk to the HR team first. I paused when I realized the door to my office was already unlocked and I could hear muted voices speaking inside. Grabbing the handle, I opened the door, surprised to see three people already inside.
Lee, Henry, and Cara.
Cara stood out in a pink suit and white heels and she waved her hand in greeting. "Morning, Bennett!"
"What are you all doing here?" I asked, setting my briefcase down on my desk.
"Various reasons," she responded.
"And I still have some work to finish up," Lee said.
"I thought you wanted out of here immediately?" I asked.
Lee scratched his cheek, smiling sheepishly. "I think finally knowing I'm going to be gone has given me a second wind. I need to tie up some loose ends so not everything falls on you."
I turned my attention to Henry. "And you?"
He immediately leaned forward, stretching his arms out, a manila envelope in his hand. "I'd like to apply for a job."
My eyebrows shot up. "What?"
"I've printed out my resume."
I took it from him, confused. "But I thought you didn't want to come back?"
"I didn't want to work for your mother, but I'll happily work for you, Bennett." Henry paused. "Mr. Calloway."
Lee frowned. "I told him he didn't have to start working again, but I can't stop him."
I opened Henry's resume, looking at the one sheet of paper. Henry had really only worked here his whole life. "Henry, you realize Lee probably has a lot of money, right? And investments?"
"I do, but I want to earn my own money."
I tossed his resume down on my desk. "You realize Henley was hired in your stead when you quit?"
Henry nodded. "I don't need my old position. I'll do anything."
"Even housekeeping in the hotels?"
Lee's mouth fell open. "Bennett, what? Absolutely not. He's way more qualified than that!"
Henry put his hand on Lee's shoulder, shaking his head. "Any job is fine with me. Housekeeping is also a respectable job."
I held out my hand, impressed. "See, Lee? He's fine with it."
"Bennett, seriously?" Lee responded, pursing his lips.
"What? You want a say in this? Then you shouldn't have quit your job," I said casually.
I could tell Lee was getting frustrated. I calmly sat down at my desk, opening the laptop on it, trying to keep a straight face.
I was just messing with him. I was allowed to.
I typed on my laptop, trying to seem uninterested in the conversation.
Cara watched the exchange between us with an amused look, arms folded over her chest. "You could be a flight attendant for me, Henry."
Henry glared at me, a rare sight from him, snatching his resume off my desk and handing it to Cara. "Is there anything I can do that doesn't involve flying places?"
Cara bobbed her head. "Sure. I can find something. It might be a bit of a commute for you, though."
"That's fine," Henry said. "I just want a job."
Lee grit his teeth. "Bennett, you seriously won't hire Henry?"
"Technically I don't hire anyone," I pointed out. "I just give my reference."
"You're really going to be this petty?"
"Yes."
Lee's hand clenched into a fist. "I can't believe you. Henry worked for us for almost a decade. You won't hire him back just because I quit? I thought you were okay with me quitting. Didn't we have a good conversation last night? I didn't expect you to be like this. Henry doesn't even have anything to do with itâ"
I ignored Lee's tirade and swung my laptop around so the screen faced Henry. "Here are all the jobs we have available. You can take your pick."
Lee immediately shut up. Henry blinked at me. Cara laughed.
"...You were doing that on purpose?" Lee questioned. "Since when do you joke around like that? I actually believed you."
"Clearly," I responded, pushing the laptop closer to Henry. "Henry, I'd be glad to hire you back. You're more than capable, and we might be in a tough spot until I figure out what to do next." Henry picked the laptop up to scroll through the jobs. "If I hire a new CEO, I could always switch you to be their assistant, too. Just don't go falling in love with them."
"Can I get back to you on what job I want?" Henry asked. "I want to look them over more."
"Take your time."
Lee heaved a heavy sigh, walking to the sitting area of my office, and collapsing into a chair. "I really thought you could have been petty enough to refuse to hire Henry."
"Maybe a decade ago I would have been," I said. "Now, though, I know a good worker when I see one."
"What are you going to do?" Cara asked me. "I heard the news of Lee resigning."
Lee's head whipped toward her. "Already?"
"Mhm. Received an e-mail on my way here."
"That was fast," Lee muttered.
"Are you here because your father is worried about our partnership now that a CEO has resigned?" I asked.
Cara shook her head. "Nope. I told him it was fine. I'm here because I wanted to give you something."
I looked at her quizzically as she handed me an envelope. "What is it?"
"Open it," Cara said, then turned toward Lee. "If I knew you and Henry would be here, I would have brought yours too."
I opened the envelope and pulled out a thick, pink piece of cardstock. On it was gold foil embellishments and an elegant script with the words Join us for the wedding of Cara Castrelli and Tala Salazar.
"You're getting married?" I asked dumbly.
"Yup!"
"Congratulations!" Lee and Henry said simultaneously.
She grinned at them. "It seems marriage is in the air, huh?"
"I didn't even realize you two were engaged," I said.
"We only just got engaged." Cara held up her left hand where a giant diamond sat on her ring finger. "We're just excited."
"Congratulations," I said belatedly. "Of course Henley and I will come to the wedding."
"Make sure to RSVP, then!"
"You guys moved quick," Lee mused. "I like that. Henry is insisting we enjoy being an engaged couple first."
Cara gave a fake pout. "What? Why?"
Henry placed my laptop back down on my desk. "Why not? Don't you like the term fiancé?"
"I like wife better," Cara responded.
Lee nodded. "Yes, husband is better than fiancé."
"Well, I like fiancé," Henry defended.
"And so, I'm holding off for you, my dear fiancé. As much as I'd marry you tomorrow if I could."
Henry rolled his eyes. "Let's think about that later."
"We're also moving quickly because I want Tala on my health insurance," Cara explained. "Her job doesn't offer the best and she pays quite a bit for it."
"Does she still work at the dealership?" I asked.
"Yup. She loves it there. I offered her a better job with me, but nope." Cara shrugged. "She loves selling cars. Maybe even more than she loves me."
"That's still good for you, isn't it? You have someone who knows a lot about the cars you drive," I pointed out.
Cara smirked. "Yep. And I love that she loves what she does. Sexy and smart. A salesperson. She sealed the deal on my heart." She paused, then turned red. "Sorry. That was so cheesy."
I smiled. "I appreciated it."
"What about you, Bennett? Are you going to get married?"
"I'd like to, eventually."
"What are you waiting for?" Cara asked.
"For Henley to be ready," I responded. "She has things she wants to get settled before we consider getting married."
Cara frowned. "Did you ask her and she said no?"
I shook my head. "No. We've just had a few conversations. She has every right to want to be ready to get married. Just because I'm ready doesn't mean I can expect her to be."
Lee patted me on the shoulder. "You're so mature, Bennett."
I shoved his hand off me. "I respect her choices."
"You two are also really young. Henley even more so. There's no reason to rush it," Lee continued. "If you love each other that's the most important thing. Marriage isn't something everyone is after, either."
I figured that. It didn't seem Henley particularly cared about it, but she would accept it for me. Because I wanted it. So, of course, I could wait until she was ready. And when it was time, it'd be that much better knowing we both we're ready. Right now though...
I hung my head, sighing. "There's too much going on, anyway. Having to replace you. Dealing with her stalker. And our father..." I closed my eyes. It'd been so crazy I'd barely even thought about him. And he'd been respecting my want for space.
"Right..." Lee mumbled. "I'll start going through resumes when the job listing is out. Maybe we can interview together."
"I doubt you'll still be here by the time that process starts," I said. "I don't even know if I'll want someone in as high as a position as you held."
"Then Henry can have the other job," Cara suggested.
Henry grimaced. "I don't think so. I don't have any experience in a leadership position. I'm okay with something else."
"It's nothing against Henry, but he wouldn't have the experience necessary," I agreed. "Don't worry about it. I'll figure it out with the HR team."
"Well, I'm still around for a bit if you need help," Lee offered.
"I can also recommend people if you'd like," Cara said. "I have lots of connections. And I've worked with a lot of amazing people."
I took this into consideration. "Let me decide on what kind of role we'll be hiring for and then I'll let you know when we put the posting out. I'll consider people outside the company as well as in it."
Cara gave me a thumbs up. "Got it. Then, I'll stop bothering you now. I delivered what I had to. I should get back to work."
Lee gave her a small wave. "It was nice seeing you."
"I'll either give you guys your invitation to Bennett or send it to your house if you give me your address," she said. "I'll text you later."
Henry nodded. "Sounds good. See you later."
"Bye, Cara. Let's get together soon. I'm sure Henley would like to see you."
"Ooh, that's a good idea. Tala has been worried about her. I bet she'd like to see Henley, too," Cara responded, picking her purse up off the coat rack. "Maybe next week?"
"Talk to you then."
After Cara left, both Lee and Henry did, too. Henry back home, Lee to his office. I gathered myself and tried to treat it like a normal work day. I had a lot to do, and debating about what to do with Lee's position would have to wait. It would be annoying to delegate work to multiple parties, but maybe it would beat letting someone hold the title of CEO alongside me. I couldn't think of one person already in the company who deserved that. Not to mention the turmoil that'd inevitably come from jealousy if I brought someone up into the position over others who'd been working for the Calloway Hotels for decades.
My head ached, and I decided to blame it on the hangover. I took a couple of ibuprofen and continued to work, trying to distract myself from it. I couldn't let myself get too stressed out. That was never a good thing.
When lunchtime came around, a knock at the door pulled me from my work, and I realized my nose was nearly touching the contract in front of me. I pulled back, squeezing my eyes shut, trying to readjust my vision that got too used to the small font. "Come in."
A hand appeared first with a brown paper bag in it. I immediately smelled grease. Who was bringing in greasy food? Blonde hair appeared next and a beautiful grinning face. "Surprise!" Henley greeted me, stepping fully in.
I stood up from my desk immediately. "What are you doing here?"
"I came to bring you hangover relief!"
I eyed the bag in her hand warily. "That's... for me?"
"Greasy food is good for hangovers," she said, walking over to my desk, and attempting to place the bag on it.
I quickly shoved a pile of papers I was about to shred under it to make sure the grease didn't get on my desk. "Henley, I think that's if you eat greasy food before drinking."
Her eyebrows squished together cutely. "Wait. Is it?"
"Hydration and foods like avocado and eggs are better for recuperating," I clarified, walking around my desk to her. "Not McDonald's."
She clicked her tongue. "Dang it. I thought I could convince you to eat this finally."
"That's not happening."
"You don't know what you're missing, Bennett. What if it does make you feel better?" she argued.
"Well, there's one thing you brought that can make me feel better," I said, taking her hand in mine.
"Don't say it's me," she responded.
I pulled her back to my chair and sat down, pulling her into my lap. "It's you."
She put her arm around my neck and kissed my forehead. "Do you have a bad hangover?"
I wrapped my arms around her waist, hugging her. "Not really. Besides, I did it to myself. I can't complain."
"You can complain. I'll listen."
I looked up at her, smiling. "Why would I waste my precious time with you on complaining?"
"I can't stay long," she told me, sighing. "I came between classes."
"Just to bring me food?"
"Well, to see you, too. And I have something to tell you."
"What's that?"
"I've decided on my degree."
That wasn't what I was expecting. I stared at her, curious. "What did you decide on?"
She hesitated a moment, keeping eye contact with me. "Business. With a minor in economics."
That wasn't what I was expecting, either. "Why?"
She chewed on her lip for a moment. "Well... I kept thinking about it. What do I want to do? And nothing came to mind. I don't know why, but I just can't foresee a future career for me. Maybe because I thought I'd be waitressing for the rest of my life without an opportunity to further my career. But here I am now, and I still just don't know."
"It's okay not to know, Henley," I reassured her, moving my hand to her thigh. "You don't have to choose something randomly. If you felt pressured by my questions before, thenâ"
"That's not it," she said quickly, shaking her head. "I thought about this long and hard. I've always had it in the back of my mind, but I just wasn't sure." She adjusted herself again, so she could completely face me, straddling my lap. "I want to help you. I want to get a degree and work my way up to your level and help you run the company."
It took a moment for her words to catch in my brain. "...What?"
"Well, I don't need to become a CEO, or anything. Just high enough to be of help to you and now what I'm doing. To be able to be someone you can rely on in work and outside work," she said confidently. "Honestly, I don't hate working here. Being an assistant is a little boring, but maybe if I take on more responsibility it won't be as boring."
"Don't decide on your career just because of me," I said. "You don't have to do that."
"I'm not being forced to do anything, Bennett. I want to do this"
"Butâ"
"It's not like these skills will be invaluable if I end up not liking it later, either," she said. "It's better than me wasting time not knowing what degree to go after, too. Now I have a plan. I have something to work toward. And if it benefits you, too, then it's all the better." She paused, her eyes widening as if she just had a sudden thought. "Unless you don't want me here..."
"That's not it," I said immediately. "There's nothing I could want more. I'd love to work alongside you. But only if it's truly what you want and you're happy doing it."
"Well, it is what I want. And if that changes later, we can figure things out then," she said, running her hands through my hair. "I know Lee leaving must be weighing on you heavily. It'll be okay. I'll work hard to be of help."
"Are you really sure that's what you want to do?"
Instead of responding, she leaned forward and gave me a deep kiss, holding my chin still in her hand. "I'm sure," she said when she pulled away, smiling again. "I like having a goal. It's making me feel better about myself."
I pulled her back for another kiss. "Then, I'll gladly look forward to helping you with your studies. You'll have your own at-home tutor."
"Oh, yeah? What else can you teach me?" she teased, running her finger down my neck and down the front of my shirt.
I felt my cheeks warm and I gently pushed her off my lap, afraid of getting too distracted. "Although I won't eat the McDonald's, I do think I should eat something. Want to go to one of the restaurants nearby?"
She clasped her hands behind her back, scrunching her nose up. "I don't have much time, but maybe something quick? I don't really mind being a little late to class."
"You shouldn't be late at all. We'll find something quick. Is Ariana here, too?"
"No, I came alone."
I shut my laptop before turning to her, an anxious feeling creeping through my chest. "Alone?"
She twirled a piece of her hair around her finger, not meeting my gaze. "I don't want to drag someone with me everywhere. I can't do that. Everyone has stuff to do. Besides, I was just coming here. There are always people around. And I need some privacy, too. Even if driving alone somewhere is the only way to do it."
I glanced at my watch. It was around the time people started taking off for lunch. "I understand your want of privacy, but Ariana knew you were coming here at least, right?"
"Oh, definitely. I told her I'd text her as soon as I pulled into the parking lot and then I texted her before coming in. I'm being safe, Bennett," she assured me. "And nothing has happened since our last confrontation."
"I just want you to be safe," I said, taking her hand in mine.
Her blue eyes twinkled as she grinned at me. "I know. Me, too. But you have a lot on your plate now, so I'm doing my best not to worry you."
"You can always worry me."
"I know I can, but I don't want to," she argued, and then her stomach growled. She blushed, crinkling her face up. "Should we eat?"
Smiling, I pulled her to the door. "Let's go."
Stepping outside my office, my heart felt a little lighter than it had when I stepped in. Maybe Lee was leaving. And maybe it'd be a hassle to figure out what to do nextâ but it wasn't impossible. And knowing Henley could possibly become a leader in the company made me feel motivatedâ to help her get there, and also to make sure the company would stay a place where she liked to work while she worked to get there. Lee and I had already started that, but now it'd be left to me alone.
But as Henley swung our hands together as we headed to the elevator, I remembered that although I had to do this alone, I wasn't alone. I'd still have everyone's support. If my mother could run it solo, I could, too.
In fact, I'd do it better.
Author's Note:
...Hello. I am copy-pasting this note from The Stakes Between Us. It has been an extremely long time. I owe an explanation for my absence.
Long story short. So many, so many, opportunities that were provided to me this year and last year ended up being horrible and led to me losing out. Losing out of time, money, and motivation. I changed my entire LIFE for these and got screwed. It led to such burnout that I would get physically nauseous when I tried to our thought about writing again. I only thought, this will be a waste of time and effort, and I will be left with nothing every time I went to write. I asked myself, how is this possible this keeps happening to me? Why? For over a decade I've written and how has nothing worked out? It blew my mind. I wanted to stop and quit and try to find a stable career because this was not it.
But... I tried to remember why I started writing. For my readers. I just want my readers to read my books. The job offers and opportunities made me give up the stories I wanted to write for my readers to write for other people and their IP. But now I just want to focus on my own. I want to write for my readers to read my work and that's it.
So I'm back! And I'm going to do my best to be consistent and bring you my best work! But I need to work my way up to how I used to be. The writing might be worse (in fact, it is, it's so freaking dry idk what happened!), the chapters might be shorter, but I need to re-learn how I write and what I like because I've spent so much time being someone else for companies. I'm also going to delete my patreon. I can't work with pressure of promises I've realized.
I also am trying to get used to a keyboard that's NOT broken. I bought a new laptop. It was all my money but, wow...... it's amazing to not be typing on a broken keyboard for the first time in years.