#end of queue for now
Bay slipped out of Sylvie’s arms to find a shirt. “Suppose we better get going. Is Heaven ready?”
Sylvie chuckled as she perched on the edge of the bed. “She’s been in her new dress for the last two hours. I think we’ll have more trouble getting her out of it, to be honest. I had to convince her not to wear it on the train ride home.”
“Sounds about right,” he said with a laugh. “Thanks for taking her out today. Wish I could have come, but work—”
“Babe, you know I love spending time with her. We had a lovely girlie day, and I spoilt her like the little princess she is.”
Bay groaned, stepping out of the walk-in wardrobe with shirt half buttoned. “You are so setting yourself up for trouble, you know?”
“If years of fairytales and childhood films taught me anything, it’s that things don’t end well for wicked stepmothers. I’m gonna make myself her favourite,” she added, turning her nose up with a self-satisfied smile.
Bay shook his head. “I’ll remind you of that when she’s a teenager.”
“Oh, no, nuh-uh, don’t pretend you’re not the worst one for spoiling his little princess.”
“Granted, I suppose. Right.” He absently smoothed his shirt and took a deep breath. “Ready?”
“One hundred per cent.”
“…Let’s go then.” He held out a hand, only a little shakily, and Sylvie took it with an encouraging squeeze. He gently grazed her knuckles with his lips before tugging her up off the bed. She giggled, her smile bright and excited, the very opposite of his own nerves, though he tried his best to mirror it as they set off to find his just as eager daughter.
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James kept his word and didn’t bring up business again throughout lunch, staying relatively quiet for the rest of their time together. Maurice suspected he wasn’t the kind for small talk or personal conversations, and the comfortable ground of professionalism had been his only card. Still, Maurice could tell he was trying.
As Maurice and Rupert waved them off—they’d decided to spend the rest of the day exploring Grey’s Harbour alone—Maurice felt a great weight lift.
“That. Went much better.”
“Better than I could’ve hoped,” Rupert agreed with a smile, relief clear in his voice as he hugged himself tight.
“You don’t wanna go with them? They’re only here one more day, right?”
“Nah, I’ll spend tomorrow with them while you’re at work. This is such a rare occurrence.”
“What is?”
“Us having a day off at the same time. And more than once in a week? Unheard of.”
Maurice chuckled. “I really do need to hire some more staff, huh?”
“Wouldn’t be a terrible idea.”
Maurice’s mind circled back to his conversation with James. Getting rid of his useless business partner sooner would come with many advantages, surely enough to outweigh the risk? …A good idea to look into in the new year, perhaps.
He glanced sideways at Rue, whose arm pressed ever so slightly against his own. Typically, Maurice would have felt uncomfortable with anyone standing that close, but he found himself savouring the light warmth the familiarity brought. He almost wanted to ask if Rupert had meant all he’d said in the cafe or if he’d simply been praising him up to James. Smiling faintly to himself, he decided to assume the former, and to be honest, he wasn’t sure he’d survive hearing it again anyway.
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“Has my son told you what I do as a profession?” James asked as the waitress brought out their food. He smoothed a serviette onto his lap as he looked at Maurice with a hint of a smirk.
“Uh, no.”
“Unsurprising. In the simplest terms, I work alongside businesses to help them succeed. Evaluating risk and such.”
“Oh.” Huh.
“Six months, you say…” James took a bite of his food and chewed thoughtfully. “Hm. Well, you have a working business now, and therefore enough income… Would it not be preferable to take out a short term loan to cover the rest and be rid of this partner sooner? A bank would surely see you as investable by now.”
“Um… I guess? But then I end up paying more in interest than if I simply waited. And I’d have to hope business stayed good enough to be able to pay off the loan in time to not fu— to not screw myself over.”
“Have you ever had such a downturn in business?”
“Well, no, but…”
“It’s a risk, I’ll concede that, but as someone more qualified to say so—if you don’t mind me saying—I would suggest it a risk worth taking. And yes, it may mean you lose a little paying interest on the loan compared to waiting, but potentially higher profits would make up for that long term. I assume you want to put a kitchen in there?”
“Yeah…” Maurice was surprised James would have guessed that.
“That alone would up your profit margin significantly—”
“Honey, I think that’s enough business talk at the table,” Helena said pointedly, exchanging amused expressions with her son.
“Of course, of course. Just think on it, hm?”
“…I will.”
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Before Maurice could speak, James stepped forward, hand extended. It took a few confused moments for Maurice to realise the purpose behind the gesture.
“I would like to apologise for our first meeting,” James said a little stiffly, though this time it was undoubtedly more from discomfort than contempt. Maurice quickly recovered. The handshake, though firm, was much more genuine than their last, holding no apparent signs of hostility. “I hope you will allow me to start over, set a new first impression?”
“Uh, s-sure,” Maurice stammered uncharacteristically. “Uh, I-I’m sorry too, for what it’s worth. I didn’t exactly help with my own behaviour…”
“All forgotten,” James said, holding his hands up. “You are working today?”
“Uh, n-no.” Uneasy, Maurice’s eyes briefly flicked just over James’ shoulder to where Rupert stood tensely observing them. Jaw clenched tight, eyes keenly flitting between the two, he was probably waiting for something to go wrong.
“Good. Then you will allow me to take you both to lunch to make up for the last one.”
“Oh, um. Yeah, sure.” From the corner of his eye, Maurice watched Rupert let out a small, silent sigh of relief.
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