Christmas with my Three Best Friends (Lucky Lady Reverse Harems)

Chapter 26

26

Richard

O ne of our clients and a close friend of mine texted me earlier to let me know that Alice was late yet again. This time, however, Shay wasn’t around to open the gym in her stead. Shay is away in Canada, and I don’t know why… but I’m worried. Or miserable. Or both and more. There’s been a lot on my mind lately. Doubt has been a predominant companion of mine, particularly where the new gym project is concerned.

The enthusiasm I originally had about the place is starting to fizzle out, and I’m not the kind of man who backs down from a newly signed lease agreement. I’m ready to roll the project forward and set up a new gym in the space, but I feel… lonely. Lonely in this business endeavor, and lonely on a personal level. Marius and Jax have remained friendly and civil, yet I can feel them slipping away. They said they understood, but I can’t stop them from walking away. I have no control over people’s emotions. I barely have control over mine.

I walk into the West Key reception area just as Alice comes out of my office, giggling with stars in her eyes as she sees me. “Hey, bossy boss!” she quips.

“Good morning, Alice,” I reply coldly.

It’s one thing to have Shay cover for this girl when she’s late, it’s one thing for me to keep forgiving her transgressions on the matter, and it’s a whole other thing for clients to call me—ME, of all people, to tell me our gym isn’t opening on time on account of a lazy receptionist. It’s unacceptable. And Shay was right on the money with this one, too. Instead of handling it from the very beginning, like the man and the businessman I portray myself to be, I chose to shift my focus away from West Key and on to another project. How will I ever grow anything if I don’t stick around to nurture the seedling?

We meet in front of the reception desk as I give her a subtle nod of acknowledgment. She is way too relaxed for the glower aimed at her. It’s almost insulting.

“You were late again,” I tell Alice, then briefly glance over her shoulder to find Jax sitting in one of the guest chairs of my office. Another person I need to sort things out with before I lose him, too. I’m pretty sure we’ve already lost Shay. “I don’t think this is going to work out, Alice.”

“Easy there, Rick,” she giggles. “There was a lot of traffic down Ninth this morning. It wasn’t my fault.”

“It’s never your fault, is it? You’re late at least twice every week.”

“Minor delays. Barely fifteen minutes!”

I shake my head slowly. “You were almost two hours late less than a couple of weeks ago. I could just pull the CCTV footage from the last month alone, if you want. We could go over each day and check the timestamp. Would that make you feel less in the wrong, Alice? Because I’m pretty sure your arguments would just wither away. Do you not understand how serious this is?”

“Rick, come on, it’s not that big of a deal.”

“The fact that you’re constantly late and failing to open the gym on time? Are you serious? We’ve lost clients because of you. And honestly, I’ve tried to be understanding and supportive, fully aware of the difficult situation you’re dealing with at home, but I can’t take this anymore.”

The humor fades from her eyes as she takes a step forward. Maybe she’s used to intimidating men with her brazenness, but I think she’s forgetting who she’s speaking to. Maybe it’s time to remind her. Some lessons must be hard in order for us to learn. This is going to be hers.

“You can’t fire me, Rick. We’ve got history together.”

“I don’t think you understand how interpersonal relationships work.”

“What will your clients think when they hear we were a thing, huh?”

She narrows her eyes at me, and suddenly… it hits me. She’s actually foolish enough to think she can pull this card on me. I gave her too much leeway. I was far too kind and patient with the wrong person.

“It’ll ruin your reputation, Rick. Especially since I’m just a naive twenty-something from the slums of Seattle. You used me.”

“Okay, so, I’ll keep this short and sweet,” I reply and raise a finger to silence her when she tries to talk over me. “No, it’s my turn. You listen. You and I had a bit of a fling before you came to work here. No professional standards were breached. From an HR point of view alone, my hands are clean, do you hear me? Should you be dumb enough to try and stir a shit storm on the matter, I will come down on you so hard, you will never hold any job better than restocking the shelves at a 7-11 for the rest of your life.”

“Rick…”

“Pack your stuff and be out of here. Accounting will wire you the last paycheck, and HR will send all the necessary documents to your home address. And if you want a recommendation for whatever job you get into next, I suggest you be civil,” I add sternly. “I gave you a chance, and I was nothing but grateful for the support you provided during the gym’s earliest days. You were compensated accordingly, and so it’s no excuse for these repeated offenses. It’s time for you to grow up and accept responsibility for your actions. You’ve been late on our time and money, and you know damn well time and money are the two things you don’t want to cross me with.”

She stares at me, disbelief and shock glistening in her wide eyes. “You’re serious…”

“Of course. I’ve given you plenty of chances, and you have repeatedly spat in my face. I’ve learned an important lesson here, too, mind you. No one will ever get as many chances as you got with me, Alice. And like I said, if you think of blackmailing me again, I will make you suffer in ways you can’t even imagine. This is my business, my hard work, my life. Do you hear me?”

All Alice can do is nod slowly as she pulls away and retreats behind the desk, utterly ashamed. I reckon the harsh reality is finally starting to dawn on her as she becomes aware of the repercussions corresponding to her actions. These are simple consequences, and I brush off any sympathy I might have for this girl. She’s had plenty of opportunities to do better. I should have listened to Shay about her a long time ago.

I should have listened to Shay about a lot of things.

I go into my office and close the door, fully aware that Alice is sobbing behind her desk. I couldn’t care less. The damage she has done outweighs my sympathy for her.

Jax watches me intently as I take my seat behind the desk and notice the brightly colored folder between us. I’m angry and riddled with guilt at the same time. Worse even, Shay’s absence is digging deeper into my soul. I don’t know how to deal with it because I’ve never felt this way about a woman. It’s as if I’m strapped into a rollercoaster cart that’s careening out of control.

“Everything okay?” Jax asks.

I shake my head. “No. And yes. A little bit of both, I guess.” I take a deep breath and lean forward slightly. “I just fired Alice.”

“Thank the fucking stars,” he exhales sharply.

“Pop the champagne bottle, will ya?” I shoot back, half-smiling.

“Come on, man, she had it coming for a long time. What made you finally decide to can her?”

“I got a call earlier from a customer,” I reply. “You were right. Shay was right. Marius was right. I was too lenient. And for that, I apologize.”

Jax chuckles softly. “It’s cool, man. You’re a good human being, you give second chances aplenty. I wouldn’t want you to change that about yourself.”

“You make it sound so easy. Anyway, we’ll find a replacement. I’ll email HR to post a job ad online,” I reply. “What did you want to talk to me about?”

“West Key. Shay. And that.” He nods at the colored folder on my desk.

“What’s this?”

“Shay left it before she went away,” he says, his voice dropping by several degrees.

I open the folder and find the handwritten note first. Her words hit me like hammers right to the heart. I can almost hear her speaking directly to me, her tone trembling slightly as she explains she needs some time away from everything before she can decide what she’s going to do next. It’s a subtle way of saying she is definitely considering walking away from it all—the gym, our friendship, our intimate relationship. And I can’t blame her. I’d do the same in her shoes.

“What is this, exactly?” I ask Jax as I put the note away and start flipping through the folder. I’m surprised by the amount of detail that went into each presentation slide. The more I read, however, the more fascinated I become with what the proposal actually entails. “Damn.”

“Yeah, I figured you’d feel the same way,” he replies, almost laughing. “See how brilliant she is? How she put the whole thing together? This is it. The edge we need against our competitors in the area. Rest assured that once we publish the marketing materials for this program, people are gonna be flocking to the reception desk to buy memberships and consultation sessions with Shay before she sends them over to us for training.”

“This is fantastic,” I manage as I continue perusing Shay’s proposal. “So, we’re targeting the hardest to catch segment of our population.”

“That’s right. She’s fucking amazing.”

“She really is.” I look up at him when he sighs. “We made a mistake with her. You realize that, right?”

“Just one mistake?”

“Well, a cluster of mistakes,” he sighs deeply. “We have to get her back, Richard. And for Christ’s sake, you can’t leave us. I know you’ve got your heart set on the new place and whatnot, but could you at least consider staying on here part time? We need you here, man. West Key needs you. We said we were okay with you leaving, but the truth is… We’re not. I know Marius isn’t around right now to agree, but I also know I’m speaking for the both of us.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose, leaning back in my chair for a moment. This is it. The crossroad I’d dreaded yet knew I’d stumble upon.

“I’ve been going about this the wrong way, and it’s my responsibility,” I tell Jax. “You’re right, though. At the first sign of trouble or distress, I was ready to just pack my stuff and leave. That’s not a good business practice, even if the books speak in my defense. You stick the tough times out, you work with your partners to lift the place up to where you know you’re able to bring it. And West Key has enormous potential. It has always had potential. I was a fool to focus strictly on the financial figures, and I’m sorry.”

“Dude…”

Jax seems utterly shocked. Granted, it’s not every day that I acknowledge such a colossal mistake, let alone apologize for it. I’m a proud man—stupidly so, sometimes. But after what just happened with Alice, after I finally opened my eyes and understood the greater picture, Shay’s bitter words returned with a vengeance, cutting through my brain and making my very soul bleed.

“I was a terrible business partner in that sense. I wasn’t a very good friend, either. And as far as our relationship with Shay is concerned, I fell short there, too,” I continue. “I’m done letting other people interfere in our life, Jax. I’m done calling it quits before trying hard enough to justify leaving. And I am done being afraid to speak my truth and my heart. I’m sorry. I’m really sorry.”

My good friend nods in agreement and takes the folder back to flip through it once again. “It’s okay, Rick. I know you meant well, and I know you were only trying to watch your back. The business side of things is never easy… but this, my man, this right here… it’s solid gold.”

“Yes. And we need to send it over to the marketing department so they can get started on designing the actual campaign,” I reply. “I want it to be ready for a spring rollout, just in time for Shay’s return.”

“All this,” Jax says, pointing around him with a bright and hopeful smile on his face, “all this is worth fighting for, Rick. We’ve come too far to let this place fizzle out like so many other gyms in Seattle. I never forgot why we started this project and who I started it with.”

“I almost did…”

“But you remembered. It’s why we’re here, now, talking about it.”

“Yeah. It is worth fighting for. And so is Shay,” I say, reaching the final and most important conclusion. “We have to do something about her, too. We need to fix what each of us broke, Jax. She’s going to need the three of us by her side, especially if we implement this program. It’s insanely ambitious, even for her. We may need to hire more trainers if we get the figures she estimates we could get with a proper marketing campaign.”

Jax nods again, satisfied with my decision. “Oh, we’ll figure it out, I’m not even worried about that.” A frown draws upon his brow, however. “I’m more worried about how we’re going to get to her. This relationship of ours was supposed to be something else, something simpler. But you and I both know there are feelings involved, which is probably why she’s been pulling away.”

He makes a valid point. It’s probably why we’re equally stuck knee-deep in this mess, anyway. We thought it was crazy but easy. Keep it for the pleasures of the flesh only. Have fun. No strings attached. No actual commitment. Just three guys and one incredible woman, playfully ticking through a naughty list until we’d all be sated.

Love has a way of sneaking up on us when we least expect it.