stuff to take into the shop today. I got the stuff from Cash and checked in on him yesterday. After Axel and Emelie left, I was able to check on his brother, too.
His brother is a lot worse than I expected. He won’t be around much longer, which is sad because had he gone to the doctor, he could have been treated and lived a long full life. Cash has never been on his own. After their parents died, his brother took him in and moved them to their property in the mountains.
His brother is crazy smart and holds some pretty famous patents, but he’s paranoid. Because of that, Cash has been fairly isolated other than coming to the shop. I’m worried how he’ll do once his brother is gone, so I made sure he knew he had us, and now Emelie, too. We’ll make sure he’s okay.
Even with Cash and his brother on my mind, Jenna isn’t far from my thoughts. She’s been pulling back since she had dinner at the cabin and I’m hoping to get Emelie’s take on it from a female perspective. Yesterday didn’t seem the right time to ask her. I’m not sure what to do. I don’t think I did anything wrong. We barely kissed that day, and she was fine after our swim in the river. My mind has been going over every detail for a few days now as she slips further and further away.
Heading to the shop to see the guys is a welcome break. I walk in and unload mine and Cash’s stuff. The guys and Jack notice.
‘Cash isn’t able to leave his brother’s side. He’s paranoid and isn’t himself. Cash is keeping him comfortable with some sleeping medicine, so he had me bring his stuff in.’
‘That explains the meds he had me order. They came in yesterday,’ Jack says.
‘I can take them up to him. You good to settle his account?’ I ask, knowing Jack should be able to make any bank deposits he needs for him.
‘Yes. Just let me get it all set and I’ll print out a receipt for you to take to him,’ Jack says, turning his attention to his computer as Emelie and Axel walk in.
‘How’s he really doing? Since you stayed a bit longer, I’m hoping he opened up to you,’ Emelie asks.
‘He looks tired and worn out. To be honest, he could use some of your sweet fudge. I’ll be taking this up to him in a few days so I can stop by and pick some up.’
Emelie’s eyes light up. ‘We’ll go to the store and get what we need,’ she says with a smile on her face, which of course, makes Axel smile.
‘What’s new with you two?’ I ask them.
‘Not much. I’m still learning everything I can and preparing for winter. How’s Jenna?’ Emelie asks.
‘I don’t know. We went hunting a few days ago, then I invited her for dinner, and she’s been pulling away ever since.’
‘Maybe it was your cooking,’ Bennett says with a chuckle as he walks over to us.
Emelie gives him her death stare before turning back to me. ‘Okay, walk me through what happened.’
‘Well, she did great on the hunt and even after, when I was skinning and butchering the deer. She took photos, asked questions, and the only time she cringed was when I was gutting the deer. I asked her to stay for dinner and she wandered around the house while I put the venison steaks on the grill and put the meat away.’
‘What did she find when she was wandering the house?’ Emelie asks.
‘She looked through my books in the library and the photos on my mantle. She saw one of me and my parents and asked about them, and I told her the truth.’ I cringe because other than knowing that they died when I was young, I haven’t told the guys all the details. ‘I told her they died on their way to my eighteenth birthday party.’
Emelie places her hand on my arm. ‘I’m sorry, Phoenix.’
‘That’s why you hate birthdays,’ Bennett says, putting two and two together.
I nod. ‘I told her when they died, I sold the company and bought the property out here and I’ve been here ever since. That’s when she started pulling away.’
The guys know my parent’s company sold for a lot of money. Bennett and Jack both helped me set up my portfolio because as a kid of barely nineteen when I got here, I had no idea I shouldn’t keep over a billion dollars in the bank.
‘Most girls run toward money, not away from it,’ Axel says.
‘From what she told me that night you had me take her dinner, I put a bit of her past together,” Jack says thoughtfully. “She’s accustomed to people in her life using money to control her, and that’s why she moved out here.’
Now it all makes sense. Her ex showing up and demanding money. The mentions of her trust fund, and not using her parents’ money.
‘If that’s true, she’s probably running away because she thinks you’re from the life she left. You have to show her you aren’t like the people she’s trying to get away from,’ Emelie says.
‘Go explain how your parents were. Tell her to look them up. There’s enough online about the type of people they were,’ Bennett says.
‘Most importantly, if you’re sure she’s it for you, don’t let her run and put space between you. She’ll be used to people not putting in the effort, so if you have to camp in her front yard, do it. Don’t let her push you away,’ Emelie says.
The conversation carries on around me, but I don’t hear any of it. I’m making plans to visit Jenna. Maybe I’ll go get lunch and take it to her since it’s still early. After I’ve loaded up the stuff for Cash in my back seat, that’s what I’m going to do. But first, I’ll need to stop at the Café.
What if she sees the fact that I paid off her ex as me being just like her parents?
Jenna
After selling one of my large prints online, I went into the city yesterday and bought a couch and a TV. I was getting pretty bored in my cabin. They just delivered the couch this morning, and it’s so soft and plush I’m sure it’s more comfortable than the mattress on the floor I’ve been sleeping on.
I also bought some throw pillows and a blanket to go with the couch, along with a stack of books I got at the thrift store here in town. So now I’ll not only have a place to watch TV, but I have a reading area, too.
This place is slowly starting to feel more and more like home. I’m saving up now to get a security system installed. If Chad knows where I live, my parents will, too. I don’t want to be caught off-guard again.
Just as I’m just settling in to read a book, there’s a knock on the door, making me wish I’d bought the security system instead of the couch.
My heart races as I walk to the door, a bit scared of who I’ll find on the other side. Hesitantly, I open the door to find Phoenix standing there looking nervous.
‘Phoenix?’
‘Can we talk? I brought lunch.’ He holds up a paper bag.
When I step aside to let him in, he hands me the food and stops short when he sees the couch. It’s not easy to miss since it’s a large L shape. The light gray color that works well with the wood cabin walls really sold me on it.
‘I finally got a couch. Try it out. It’s the most comfortable couch I’ve ever sat on,’ I tell him.
He takes a seat at the end closest to the door. I sit on the opposite side so I can face him.
‘The couch is perfect for you,’ he says before looking back up at me. ‘What scared you off?’ He gets right to the point.
There’s no reason to play dumb and make him explain when I know exactly what he’s talking about. I owe him the truth. ‘Where I come from, money means power, and people use that power to make you their pawns. It’s why I couldn’t be a part of it.’
‘I know that life, and people like that, but it was never my family. Even though we had more money than others, we were the outcasts. Look up my parents, Thomas and Quinn March. They owned March Enterprises out of Billings. They specialized in technology for my dad and real estate for my mom.’
He stands up and walks to the door, then stops. ‘I’m going to go check my fishing lines tomorrow. If you want to come with me, I’d love to have you. If not, I understand, and I won’t bother you again.’
Before I can reply, he’s out the door, and I’m left alone.
He wasn’t here that long. I’d think I imagined him if it weren’t for his scent lingering in the air. As I eat the sandwich he brought me for lunch, I pull out my phone and search his parents on the internet.
The first headlines are all about their death.
‘Billionaire, Thomas Quinn killed by Drunk Driver: Son, Phoenix set to inherit company.’
‘Can the 18-year-old heir of March Enterprises really run the company?’
‘March Enterprises sold in one of the largest deals the state has ever seen.’
Scrolling back several pages, I look for articles about his parents before they died. None of the articles mention Phoenix, and that eases my mind a little. They didn’t force him to be in the media to better their image like my parents did.
‘March Enterprises to restore historic Montana Homes.’
I read a few articles talking of the work his mom was doing to preserve the past and the historic homes even though they didn’t make her any money. My mom doesn’t do a damn thing if it doesn’t benefit her.
‘March Enterprises turned down governor’s invitation to dinner.’
Reading the article, I find that Phoenix’s parents refused to dine with the governor after it was revealed he was having several affairs and got two women pregnant at the same time. Neither of them was his wife. His wife chose to stay beside him, as many political wives do. The Marches are quoted as saying how appalled they were about his behavior and would not support it. The governor was not reelected, and the politicians tried to blame it on them.
‘Thomas and Quinn March spend a week working hands-on remodeling an orphanage.’
This is the first time I find a photo of Phoenix. He was sixteen and helping his parents. The orphanage suffered damage in a tornado, and while all the kids were fine, they didn’t have the money to do the repairs. Not only did his parents fund all the repairs, they spent a week getting dirty on-site, cleaning up, and helping with the rebuild. Another article goes on to show the final project and how they made sure all the kids had their own beds and a new toy waiting for them when they reopened.
The people I know would’ve thrown money at the orphanage and never thought of them again. No one I grew up with would have gotten their hands dirty like that.
I spent many more hours reading headline after headline about a family who truly cared and had morals. How different it must’ve been to grow up that way, to be allowed to be a kid and have fun instead of posing for press photos every weekend.
Phoenix’s family was different, and the worst part is how he lost them so young. The world needs more people like his parents and fewer people like mine. For an instant, I wonder how different his life would’ve been were it my parents that died instead of his. I scold myself. No matter how much I hate my family, it’s never good karma to wish death on anyone.
Thinking of my parents, I do a quick search on them. The headlines lead me to find that Chad is already engaged again, this time to Tami, who was to be my maid of honor. We have forced friends–forced by our parents, but not really close. I think I’d be more surprised if Chad didn’t go after her. He’s in it for the money and to social climb. After mine, Tami’s is the next best family to marry into. It makes sense.
It also makes sense that he wanted the money he lost on our wedding if he had to help pay for another. As I stare at their engagement photo, all I can think about is that he’ll be on affair number three or four by the time they have their first kid. If she’s lucky, they’ll have two separate houses and only be together for events. The life of the rich behind the cameras.
I can only imagine the money his parents spent on the press campaign after I called off the wedding, and how fast Chad moved on. Because all the post-wedding articles say he left me because he realized he was in love with my maid of honor, that I’m hiding because I’m embarrassed about being left at the altar. My parents are quoted as saying they wish them all the happiness and blessings they deserve. In my world, that’s a huge fuck you and may karma do its worst.
The press campaign easily cost his parents millions because there isn’t one mention of me leaving him. With how fast he moved on, for all I know, he could have been cheating.
Yep, the world Phoenix grew up in is miles away from the one I know.
I suddenly realize it’s dark, and way past dinnertime. Going into the kitchen, I put dinner in the microwave and think about Phoenix. If I hadn’t seen those articles, if he hadn’t told me about his parents, I would never have guessed he came from money. He doesn’t act like it, which has to mean something. My gut says he’s a good guy and nothing like the people in the world I grew up in.
Tomorrow he wants me to join him fishing, and he made it a point to say he won’t bother me again if I don’t go. So essentially, if I don’t show tomorrow, I would be saying it’s all too much and I’m done. It’s an easy out. But is that what I want?
When the timer goes off with my food, I grab it and sit at the kitchen island to eat. Then I pull up my phone and search for information about fishing lines so I don’t look like a complete idiot out there tomorrow.
