You Say It First
Page 52

Pallas’s chest was tight. She didn’t know if she was going to cry or scream or pass out, but she kept going. She’d started this and she was going to see it through.
“Working here makes me happy. Owning Weddings in a Box is an amazing blessing and I’m grateful every day that Gerald cared enough about me to leave me this business. Yes, it’s hard work and yes, I might fail, but so what? I’m going to do my best every single day, and I’m going to keep trying to make it a success. If that means you’re not proud of me, then that’s your problem, not mine. You’ve punished me before, Mom. I survived that and I’ll get over this.”
Pallas stood and grabbed her purse. “You’re wrong to put conditions on your love. You’ve done it my whole life and you’ve always been wrong. Families should love each other, no matter what. Sometimes I don’t like you very much, but I’ll always love you.”
With that, she started for the door. She’d finally stood up to her mother. It had taken twenty-eight years, but she’d done it. Now she had to make her way to her car and get somewhere safe before she started shaking too much to drive. And then she was going to have wine because it had to be five o’clock somewhere.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
NICK HESITATED AT the entrance of the bank. While he understood the theory of separating business from his personal life, he was still pretty pissed at Libby Saunders for always coming down on her daughter.
The previous night, over a bottle of wine, Pallas had told him about her latest confrontation with her mother. While he had been impressed by Pallas’s strength and courage, he wanted to confront Libby and ask her what the hell she was thinking. Pallas was a wonderful woman, a great person and any parent would be proud to have her as a daughter. Any parent except for Libby. He had no idea what had happened in the other woman’s past to make her this way, nor did he care. He only knew that Libby hurt someone he cared about and that pissed him off.
The fact that she was a woman pushing sixty meant he couldn’t do anything about it. Nothing physical, anyway. But he could be mad and possibly move his bank account somewhere else.
The latter thought nearly brought him out of his mood. Sure, because that would show her.
He walked inside and crossed to a teller window where he made his deposit. The young man’s professional demeanor only flickered a little when he saw the amount of the check. It had been a good month, Nick thought humorously. His art was selling all over the world. Atsuko had a knack for putting the right piece in the right gallery—a talent that was making him a very rich man.
He took his receipt and headed for the door. Before he got there, he heard rapid high heels on the marble floor. The hairs on the back of his neck rose, so he turned and saw Libby approaching.
She wore a dark suit and pearls. Her eyes snapped with what even he could see was annoyance. He came to a stop, ready for whatever she had to say. A verbal confrontation would be just fine with him.
“If you would follow me,” she said, without bothering with a greeting.
He didn’t even hesitate, instead following her through to what he guessed were the executive offices. She went into one and faced him.
“This is all your fault,” she said as he stopped in front of her. “Every bit of it.”
“I have no idea what ‘it’ is,” he told her.
“Pallas, that ridiculous business of hers. Everything was on track before you got here. Everything was going the way it should have.”
“Oh, I don’t know. I’d say the problem started when you punished Pallas for what happened in college,” he said easily. “If you hadn’t been such a hard-ass, she wouldn’t have had to move home and take a job with Gerald to support herself. She would have been safely in college, earning her finance degree before coming to work here, with you.”
Libby’s mouth dropped open. “How dare you!”
“Tell the truth? I know hearing it can be hard. So while I’m on a roll, let me just ask this. Why do you have to ride her so hard? You’re always demanding the impossible, then shutting her out. What’s up with that? Where’s the win? Are you going to mean her into doing what you want? You’re only pushing her away.”
“You have no right to talk to me this way.”
“At the risk of sounding like a five-year-old, you started it.”
Drew joined them. He glanced at Libby.
“You do realize everyone working back here can hear you,” he said quietly. “Perhaps you’d like to take this to the privacy of your home instead of this bank.”
Libby flushed. “I do not want to take it anywhere. I want this man to leave.”
“This man is a customer. Libby, you need to calm down. I’ll take care of Nick. If you’ll excuse us?”
Libby glared at them both. Nick was intrigued by the dynamics of the complicated relationship. While Drew was Libby’s nephew, he was also some high-up guy at the bank. Pallas had called him the heir apparent. Did that mean he was Libby’s boss? Or that he would be one day?
He didn’t get an answer from her. Instead Libby held open the door and when they left, she closed it behind them. Drew led him down the hall.
“Let me buy you a cup of coffee.”
“Sure.”
They went into a large, glassed-in office with a big executive desk and a couple of leather sofas in the corner. Drew opened a cabinet that held a Keurig coffee brewer and held out a tray of pods.
“What are you in the mood for?”
Nick picked dark roast. Drew dropped it into the machine, put a mug on the tray and pushed a button.
“I assume you take it black,” Drew said as he handed him the full mug.
“Sure.”
Drew made a cup for himself, then sat on the second sofa. “This is where I apologize for my aunt. I have no idea what got into her.”
“Really? I would think it’s pretty obvious to anyone who knows her and understands the dynamics between her and her daughter.”
“You have a point.” Drew studied him. “Anything you want to tell me?”
“You called this meeting.” Nick had no idea what the other man wanted, but he could be patient and wait.
“You’ve been seeing a lot of Pallas.”
So they were going there. Good. He wanted someone to have her back. “I have been.”
Drew waited.
Nick figured that as family Drew was entitled to win this round, so he said, “She’s great. I like her a lot. And I’m leaving in a few months for Dubai. I’ll be there two years.” At least that was the plan, he thought. Assuming he wanted to take the commission. Which he did. Why wouldn’t he?
“She knows?”
“Yes. I’ve been up-front about it. I don’t want to hurt her.”
“Sometimes we do it without wanting to.”
“Agreed.”
“Libby’s not easy,” Drew said. “I don’t know what her deal is, but it’s pretty firmly focused on Pallas. I guess it’s a mother-daughter thing. Regardless, Pallas has people who care about her.”
Nick wasn’t sure if he was being warned away or offered comforting information. He decided it didn’t matter. “I’m glad she doesn’t have to go it alone.”
“Me, too.”
Nick waited a second, then figured there wasn’t going to be anything else. “Thanks for the coffee,” he said as he put the mug on the table next to him and rose.