Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 99356 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 497(@200wpm)___ 397(@250wpm)___ 331(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99356 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 497(@200wpm)___ 397(@250wpm)___ 331(@300wpm)
I turned a slow circle while my co-workers retrieved their bags from the little compartments on the side of the bus. The trees had mostly shed their leaves. The gravel road we’d followed up the mountain was winding, steep, and strewn with leaves. The air smelled like a campfire, and there were faded blue shapes of mountains stretching out in every direction I could see through the trees. Maybe the most impressive of all was the towering resort lodge where we were going to be staying.
Every single employee from Pollard was “invited” to this conference, which was code for, “come or we’ll find a reason to fire your ass at the earliest opportunity.”
I lagged behind to take in the scenery and keep an eye out for Dean, but I didn’t see any obvious sign of him. I wasn’t sure what a “sign of Dean” might be. It’s not like I’d spot his droppings or claw marks on trees. Maybe horny, dazed women? Discarded panties? Used condoms? Those would probably tell me Dean was near.
So far, it was just the employees and none of the higher ups. I didn’t even see my sister, Lizzie, who was supposedly going to be tagging along with her husband-to-be all week during the conference.
Marley came up and shoulder bumped me. “Pretty, huh?” she asked.
I nodded. The hotel was massive, with gleaming windows and “A” frame arches hosting rows and rows of mountain views in every direction. “The Pollard brothers like to remind everybody how rich they are, I guess.”
“That they do,” Marley agreed.
We headed up the path together and made our way in through the main entrance. It had an upscale cabin feel inside as well, with rock sculptures and drizzling waterfalls adding to the scene. The main entrance featured an ornate staircase flanked by walls sculpted to show the shapes of trees and leaves. Overhead, huge beams of wood ran across the vaulted ceilings and the walls were lined with windows, letting the surrounding nature do most of the talking as far as impressing guests went. At the top of the stairs, the lobby was a huge area with several sitting rooms full of real fur-lined chairs, thick and beautiful wood slab furniture, and an endless array of windows wherever they fit to show off the views.
I was surprised to see the three Pollard brothers standing in the lobby, greeting some employees and chatting with a small group of men and women I didn’t recognize. My sister was holding onto Jonas Pollard’s arm with her head resting on his shoulder as he talked.
“The golden goose,” Marley whispered.
I grinned. “The happy bride.”
“Why did she even come to this thing? It’s just a work conference.”
“Because Lizzie is the perfect girlfriend and the perfect wife-to-be. If her husband cares about it, so does she. I’m sure she didn’t want to miss this.”
“Barf. You should go say ‘hi’.”
Marley was goading me, but I thought she was probably right. I just didn’t want to be anywhere near the Pollards or my sister when Dean made his arrival. I’d decided our best course of action was to stay under the radar. For all I knew, nobody would even realize both of us were going to be at the conference together. Sure, Dean was one of the speakers we were all supposed to listen to, but it was possible nobody would make the connection, right? It wasn’t like he was a true employee of Pollard, at least. He just came in to do consulting work with the eldest Pollard brother, Maxwell.
“Maybe we should just find our rooms,” I said.
Marley gave me a tug. “Oh, come on. It’d be weird if you don’t at least go say something to your sister. What do people say to brides? Happy wedding? Or is there no catch phrase for that one? Merry Christening? You know, like–”
I rolled my eyes. “No need to elaborate. If I go talk to her will you stop?”
“Yes.”
“You stay right here.”
Marley gave her eyebrows a little wiggle and waited, arms crossed.
I gathered my breath. The anxiety was doing its work. With the speed of a quantum supercomputer, I calculated every horrible outcome of walking up to that group and trying to say something to my sister. I imagined them all laughing at me uncontrollably. I imagined one of the bosses calling me a broke ass loser and smashing a pie in my face–because you never knew when people were hiding pies behind their backs. I even had one image of Lizzie dumping a bucket of pig’s blood all over me, Carrie style, and laughing with everybody in the lobby at my misfortune.
Was any of it logical or likely? No.
Was any of it as mortifying as what was actually about to happen? Definitely not.
I approached the group. Lizzie saved me the embarrassment of having to get their attention. She spotted me and let go of Jonas to come over and intercept me a few steps away from the bosses, wrapping me in a hug.