Page 54 of Built to Last

“Harper,” she calls out. “Harper, are you still here?” She walks into the living room, lips pursed as she looks me over. “I thought you would still be here. Those Hollywood people are making you soft. Your father was always at work long before the sun rose.”

I stifle a groan. “They’re not from Hollywood. Many are hardworking Canadians, though this one is New York born and bred. Reid, this is my mother, Margie Ross. Mom, meet…”

“Why on earth is Reid Dorsey in your house?” She smooths back her hair and is suddenly smiling. “I’m sorry, Mr. Dorsey. I’m completely forgetting my manners. It’s so lovely to meet you. Oh, I wish Harper had cleaned up more. I assure you I taught her how to keep house properly.”

She starts to straighten up the mail I chucked on the end of the bar.

“Mr. Dorsey is here because we…” I begin.

“Are dating.” Reid moves to my side, his arm going around my shoulders. “And her place is perfectly lived in. I can’t stand it when a house is neat as a pin. It lets me know the person who lives there doesn’t have a life.”

I turn my head to stare at him but he’s serious. This man never has a thing out of place. His home is immaculate. “I should tell Aggie,” I say under my breath.

His lips kick up slightly. “She knows I don’t have a life.”

“You’re dating Reid Dorsey?” My mother looks shocked. It’s good to know I can still do that to her. “And you didn’t tell us?”

I never planned to tell her. Reid has zero idea the can of worms he’s opened. “It’s pretty new, Mom. And also casual.”

“Not so casual I didn’t wake up here this morning,” Reid offers. “So you should also consider the fact that having another whole human being in a place can make it messier. It’s not bad. You keep a fine house.”

I didn’t consider the fact that he is defending me. He doesn’t even know my mom but he’s telling her to lay off. Ivy and Ani stopped a long time ago because the fight’s not worth it. I’ll tell Reid the same thing once she’s gone but… I realize how alone I’ve been feeling. Maybe I won’t tell him. It’s dangerous because he told me he’s leaving for California, but I can’t help but revel in the warmth I feel right now.

My mom stops fussing. “Well, I guess Harper works, so it’s hard to keep up both. Harper, I wanted to talk to you about having a big family gathering before the meeting in a few weeks. I know there’s been trouble, and everyone is anxious about the new changes you’ve made.”

I step away from Reid because suddenly my shoulders are up around my ears. I am anxious. Everything seems to be slipping through the cracks, reminding me how much I’m needed there. Paul is sloppy and he puts his buddies in lead jobs on the sites rather than the person with the best experience and skills. “I’ve explained to you that they aren’t arbitrary changes because I’m some kind of evil oligarch trying to take all the wealth for myself.”

She sighs. “Harper, no one thinks that. Everyone knows how hard you work. I know some of the things your father did weren’t perfectly legal, but he did them for the family. We need to sit down and figure out how to help. Aunt Elaine needs a new car.”

“Aunt Elaine is ninety-two, and they took her license because she smashed into a fire hydrant the last time she drove.”

“Well, she was trying to get to church.”

Oh, how she rewrites history. “She was right outside the liquor store. There was a case of beer in the back seat.”

“I’m sure she was buying that for someone else.” My mom’s lips purse. “Harper, I didn’t teach you to judge people like this.”

“Yes, you did. It’s literally all you did my whole childhood, up until right this second.”

She shakes her head. “You and your precious sarcasm. You are going to give your new boyfriend the wrong impression. Oh, Reid… Can I call you Reid?”

“That’s my name.” He looks entirely too amused by the situation.

Mom nods primly. “Reid, you will have to come to our family dinner. You’re always so gracious on the television. Very masculine, but in an old-school way. A veritable knight. You might soften up my daughter’s image.”

Reid gives her a bland smile. “Harper doesn’t need softening up. She’s the CEO of a company that people depend on. She’s too soft if you ask me since she keeps people on the job who are clearly not competent. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have to rush from her passion project two or three times a week in order to save her cousin. Who has been doing this job for every bit as long as she’s been, so he should know how to handle a client. It’s almost like he wants her to fail.”

“Paul would never put the company in jeopardy,” Mom insists.

“And yet he keeps doing stupid things that upset the clients,” Reid replies, and I’m surprised that he’s been keeping up with my day-job problems. I wonder who’s been talking to him. “Suddenly the man can’t read his own bids and overbuys for a site and has to ask the client for extra cash?”

I groan. Yeah, I handled it. “I called the provider. They let us return the extra materials, but they don’t usually do it. I barely scraped out of that one, and the client is still upset Paul came to them.”

“He’s overworked, too.” My mother stares at me. “He has children.”

She’s making my argument for me. “And a wife who does all the work. You know I’ve actually been to Paul’s place. He works. He golfs. He drinks with the guys. So please don’t tell me Paul works harder than I do because I don’t have children. Go talk to his wife because she’s the expert. And Mom, I don’t have time for some reunion party where I’ll be inundated with requests I have to turn down.”

“That’s the point. Don’t turn them down,” Mom orders. “Give on a few of them and I promise the board meeting will go exactly the way we need it to. You need to stay in control of the company. I think if you would give Paul a raise so he makes what you make, it could go a long way to get the two of you on the same page.”

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