I refuse to show my weakness to anyone, let alone him. I never do. My life has been vastly different than my brother’s. When Callum had doors open to him, they closed for me because I didn’t have to work hard enough for things. My mum forced Callum to become a man, where I was sheltered because she was afraid to “lose me too”. I wanted to live. I had dreams of being on my own, but Mummy had other ideas. Instead of letting me live, I was forced into a cage. My brother may have looked at me like a spoiled, bratty, and entitled prick, but I was secretly jealous of him.
He shakes his head. “Well I’ve been running a business. I’ve been raising a family. I’ve been behaving like a fucking grown up, where you are. . . the same as always.”
That one stings a little.
“I’m here now. I’m asking you to give me another chance.”
Callum starts to pace the room. “I can’t do this again, Milo.”
“Do what?”
“This!” He yells with his hands raised in the air. “Where I bail you out time and time again. It’s always the same story, just a different setting. I’m not going to fire Danielle because you decided you finally wanted to come get your job back. If it was that important to you, you would’ve come with me from the start. Instead, you ran off, like you always do, and left me in a bind.”
If everything was as simple as Callum believed it was, we would have no problems in the world. He doesn’t see what it cost me, for him to leave. We lost our father when I was sixteen. Callum was more than just a brother to me, and it was so easy for him to leave London, for a fucking girl.
“So, you’re going to just toss me out? Homeless, without a job, in another country?”
“You want a job?”
“Are you daft? Of course I want my job.”
He eyes me carefully. “In the acquisitions department?”
He really is slow. “Are you toying with me?”
“No, not at all.” Callum moves toward me, and I suddenly feel like I’m being set up. “You’re reinstated, Milo,” he claps me on the shoulder. “You’re going to be Danielle’s assistant.”
Chapter Five
Danielle
“My assistant?” I ask.
“I know it’s not ideal, but I give him three days—tops. He’ll never last. My brother is . . . well, Milo.”
Great, so basically, I’ve adopted a grown man-child. Ugh. This is not how I planned to start my new career at Dovetail. I wanted to prove myself, not babysit the owner’s brother.
Not to mention that I clearly suck at parenting, if we take my daughter into account.
“Callum, I’m not sure this is going to be a good idea,” I say with a sigh.
“This isn’t to punish you, if that’s what you think.”
“No,” I say quickly. “I don’t, I just . . .”
“I hoped you’d rise to the challenge.” He smiles.
My eyes meet his and I straighten in my chair. I know what he’s doing, and unfortunately, it’s working. I don’t back down. I tackle things head on, especially in business. My life might be in the shitter, but here, I can command what I want.
“I can, but this isn’t really a challenge, this is personal,” I clarify.
He nods. “It is, but I’m offering you a chance to put my spoiled brother in his place. To make him your bitch.” He grins.
“You want me to make his life hell?” I ask.
“As much as you can.”
Well, that I can do, but it still feels . . . wrong.
“He’s your brother, though.”
My sister is the world’s biggest pain in the ass, but she’s my sister. It’s true what they say about siblings—I can pick on them but no one else better.
“Yes, but he’s always been in charge. It’ll be good for him to see what ground level work is.”
I can’t actually say no. The reality is that Callum is my boss, and I just got this position. Do I like being in the middle of some family feud? Nope, but I like money. I like working, and promotions, and the company car, and access to the vacation homes that the company owns. So, I’m going to suck this up, and do my best to get Milo to quit so I can get a real assistant.
“Okay, if you really want me to do this, you’re the boss.”
Callum nods as I get to my feet. “Thank you.”
“No problem.”
What I really want to say is: I hate this.
I walk down the hall, praying that Milo already quit, but no such luck. He’s sitting there in my office with a notepad.
Great.
He continues sitting and I take a minute to compose myself. If even half the stories about Milo are true, I’m in deep shit. He’s the male version of Nicole, but she controls herself when it comes to work. According to some of the office fodder, he does not.
“Okay, so you’re my new assistant it seems,” I say from behind my desk.
“That I am, even though I did your job for . . . oh, seven years.” He gives a fake smile. “But my brother has once again underestimated me. I wouldn’t suggest you do the same, sweetheart.”
“Danielle or Mrs. Bergen.”
“Come again?”
“Don’t call me sweetheart. I’m your boss,” I say. If I don’t put my foot down and squash this now, it’ll get worse. I need an assistant, and if that’s his job title, he’s going to start acting the part.
“Oh.” He gives a mischievous smile. “I see, you’re the boss and I’m the employee. I like it.”
I would like if his voice didn’t make me want to sigh and ask him to say other things so I can hear him talk.
Why is an accent like catnip to women?
I shake the thought from my head. “Yes, so, I’d like to have you start working on a few projects we have coming up.”
“You’re serious?” Milo asks.
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“You’re going to have me do menial tasks?”
“As opposed to . . .”
He bursts out laughing and slaps his leg. “Okay, I get it. Lesson learned. I’ll be a good boy from now on.”
I have no idea what the hell he’s talking about. “Since Dovetail is now a US based company, you’ll need to fill out a bunch of forms and go down to personnel. I’ll have some things on your desk for when you get back.”
Milo’s face falls when he realizes I’m not kidding. However, he gets to his feet and heads to the door.
“Milo,” I call his attention.
His eyes meet mine and I can feel the anger roll off him. Instead of backing off, I further assert myself as the alpha in our new relationship. “Be sure to close the door on your way out. I have a lot of work to do.”
“This is going to be fun for both of us.” He grins and heads out the door, closing it behind him.
After a second, I release a heavy breath and close my eyes. “Yeah, loads of fun.”
I pour a glass of wine, chug it, and refill it again. After the day I had, I should grab a straw and drink from the bottle, but I’ll keep it classy for now.
It’s now nine. Parker is asleep, and Ava is giving me the silent treatment, which is like a gift from God. I’d rather have peace and quiet than her yelling right now.
I turn the television on and shove another piece of pizza in my mouth. Calories don’t count on days like this. Tomorrow, I’ll spend an hour at the gym to make up for my meltdown today.
I’m flipping through the channels when someone knocks on my door.
What in the hell?
I open the door and see Richard Schilling, Peter’s partner at the firm standing before me.
“Danielle.” He smiles.
“Richard, is everything okay?” I ask, looking at what I’m wearing, wishing I didn’t look like a hot mess.
“Yes, sorry I didn’t call first, but I saw the lights on and thought this would be better in person.”
I haven’t seen Richard in months. When my husband was killed, I found that everyone wanted to help. They’d come by with food, mow the yard, fix the shutter that fell, or offer to take Parker to Cub Scouts because . . . I lost that person. Then, they gradually stopped calling or coming over. Their lives had gone on with their own families, and we’d been forgotten.
I get it.
I don’t begrudge them, because when our neighbor passed away, it was the same thing. I would bring casseroles, sew a costume, or anything to help, but it became an afterthought as time passed.
“Yeah, of course,” I say pulling the door open. “Come in.”
He enters, and I can imagine his thoughts about the house. It’s a mess, but I don’t give a shit. I’m a mess. My kids are a mess. It’s only fitting the house be in disarray as well. I’m doing the best I can and fuck anyone who judges me.
“Would you like something to drink?” I ask.
“No, no, thank you. How are you doing?”