Page 70 of Because You Loved Me

Michael had prided himself on being as fair of a father as he possibly could. Even when Asher expressed interest in taking over the operations of Carlson Corporation, Michael called a family meeting to make sure everyone was okay with Asher assuming control. Of course, they all were more than fine with it. Only Asher had ever shown any real interest in the family business; the rest of his siblings always had other interests and things that drove them.

For him, it had always been the family business. Even while he’d been away at college for his degree in business management, every single thing he’d studied, he’d done it with an eye to how he could apply it to Carlson Corporation. He was constantly thinking about how he could increase profits and employee satisfaction. What could he implement to improve the guest experience, or to give back to the community?

For almost ten years, every single day had been devoted to Carlson Corporation. He’d hardly even taken a holiday. Not a real one, anyway. And definitely not one where he hadn’t taken his laptop.

Now that he stopped to think about it for a minute, not only had he not been working for the last week, but he’d also hardly given work a thought.

That had never happened before. Ever.

And it wasn’t likely to happen again. Not once Noa left.

And she was going to leave.

Asher squeezed his eyes shut against the intrusive thought and focused his attention on something he could control. The notebook in his hands.

Asher fanned through the pages to take a cursory look. The book was full of lists and bullet points. There were a few longer entries where his father had noted the projects he’d tackled, along with the challenges he faced. By the looks of things, he’d faced many different kinds of setbacks while he restored the little cabin.

The first entry in the notebook was dated six months after their mother, Angela, had passed away.

“How had we not known about this place?” Asher lowered the book and looked around the shed. Judging by the dates scribbled in the book, Michael had been visiting the cabin alone for years. There was no mention of him having any help with the various projects on his lists.

“Why me, Dad?” Again, Asher fanned through the book. He’d have to sit down and properly go through it when he had time to figure out what it all meant.

He could only just make out the cabin through the grimy shed window. Noa would be up soon and there was no way he could pretend that last night hadn’t happened.

With a sigh, Asher tucked the journal and all the answers it might contain back on the shelf. He only had the bandwidth these days for one problem at a time.

* * *

He was gone when she woke up. For a moment, Noa didn’t know whether she should be upset or relieved by that.

Maybe that feeling told her everything she needed to know.

She’d only slept fitfully after their…what could you even call what had happened the night before? A fight?

It wasn’t really.

A reckoning?

A reality check?

Maybe that was the best way to describe it.

Whatever it had been, it had left Noa feeling unsettled and…for lack of a better word, sad.

She poured herself a cup of coffee from the pot he’d made and turned as the front door opened and Asher came inside.

“Morning.”

“Good morning.” She leaned back against the counter and watched as he shrugged out of his parka and kicked his boots off.

“Is the coffee still warm? I could make more if it’s?—”

“It’s perfect.” She lifted the mug to her lips and took a sip. “You’re up early.”

Asher moved through the room, into the kitchen, and pulled her into his arms for a quick kiss. In that moment, when his lips pressed to hers, everything feltnormalagain. Not that they had a normal. Not after less than two weeks. Still. The weirdness of the night before vanished, and it was just Asher and Noa again.

She squeezed her eyes shut, wanting to savor the moment, but the instant he pulled away, the cold reality of the day slapped her in the face.

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