Page 114 of Bayside Heat
“Uncle Drake?” Hagen asked sweetly.
Drake turned, meeting his nephew’s inquisitive gaze and feeling guilty as hell that Hagen had witnessed him getting upset. “I’m sorry, Hagen. I shouldn’t have snapped at your mom.”
“I know why you’re unhappy,” he said with all the confidence of a little boy with an innocent view of the world. “Serena is gone. I miss her, too.”
Drake’s throat thickened. He lifted Hagen into his arms, stepping aside for Rick to drive the boat. “You’re right, Hagen. I do miss her.”
“So bring her home,” Hagen suggested.
“I want her with me every day, buddy, but sometimes adults aren’t sure if they’re going to be happiest in one place or another.”
“Daddy moved here to be with us,” he said matter-of-factly. “So maybe you can move to Boston to be with Serena. But you need to still come visit us, or I’ll miss you both.”
“I will, too,” Mira said.
“That’s good advice, buddy,” Matt said as he took Hagen from Drake’s arms. “What do you say you and I see if we can spot any fish while Uncle Drake tries to figure things out?”
After they walked away, Emery said, “I bet we can come up with whatever she needs to buy the business. I have some savings.”
“Me too. How much does she need?” Desiree asked.
“No, you guys,” Drake said sternly. “Don’t you think I’ve already told her the money is hers if she needs it? I could buy three companies for her if that’s what she wanted. I appreciate you wanting to help, but this is Serena. She’s not going to take money from any of us.”
“Not in a million years,” Rick agreed.
“She doesn’t know what she wants right now,” he explained. “I just don’t want her to make the wrong decision and regret it, whether that’s staying where she is, buying this company, or something different altogether. I laid all my cards on the table. The next move is hers.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
SERENA TRUDGED INTO the office Monday morning thanking the heavens above that she didn’t have any face-to-face client meetings today. She’d been up late last night talking to the girls, who had each pressed her for details about her thoughts on Shift. Chloe had given her the best advice. Don’t think about Mom while you make this big of a decision. Once she’d taken their mother out of the equation, her thoughts had become clearer. She’d called Drake, and he’d tiptoed around their earlier conversation. She knew it was killing him that she was suddenly unsure of what she wanted to do with her future. Drake was a fixer. A planner. A guy who had stepped back just so she could move forward. It was that, and all the unknowns, that had kept her tossing and turning all night and left her looking like a zombie this morning. Hopefully the makeup she’d used to cover the dark circles under her eyes would do the trick and no one would notice.
She checked in with Laura and Spencer, passed by Gavin at the coffee machine and kept on going, ducking into her office to hide out for the day. She was so exhausted and confused, she didn’t trust herself not to snap at Suzanne if the opportunity arose.
A hand with a coffee cup appeared in her doorway. “Is it safe to come in?” Gavin asked in a cartoonish voice.
“The coffee, yes. You? Probably not.”
Gavin sauntered in with a cocky grin and a cup of coffee in each hand. He guided the door closed with his foot and said, “I’ll take my chances.”
“You’re either brave or foolish.” She waved to the chair across from her.
He set a coffee cup in front of her, then sipped from the other as he sat down. He crossed an ankle over his knee, sat back, and said, “Definitely both, but wow. You look like hell. Breakup, nookie night, or PMSing?”
“None of the above.” She came around the desk and sat in the chair beside him.
“Don’t get handsy with me,” he warned.
She smiled. “I need advice.”
“Should I get cookies?”
“Probably, but there’s no time, so just go with it. Let’s say you got an opportunity for a new job.”
