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“Come on, Dean. You’ve punished yourself long enough. It’s been years since Anna left.” I deeply regret ever telling Coral anything.
“I know,” I admit. “But in some ways, it still feels like it was yesterday.”
“Except that it wasn’t,” she points out. “And you deserve to move on.”
I sigh. “I’d love to have a relationship like you and Seamus do.” Seamus adores Coral. Every time I see them together, they fawn over each other like love-struck teenagers.
“Well, you aren’t going to get that by sitting and moping inside your house all by yourself,” Coral points out. She tends to be right about most things, which is why I hired her. But I don’t know if she’s right about this. I can’t deny that there’s an attraction between Mae and me. But just look at Mae’s behavior when she left. That wasn’t how she’d act if she were head over heels in love with me.
“Of course. I realize that,” I say. “But there’s also the whole ‘Cornel Condominiums’ thing.”
“You haven’t told her about that?” Coral asks.
“No.”
Coral shoots me an exasperated look. “Why not?”
“Because she probably won’t want anything to do with me after she finds out that my whole presence here has been for an ulterior motive—one that intends to destroy the farmhouse she lives in with her family.”
“Oh, yeah. Good point.” Coral looks thoughtful. “But what if you let them in on the deal?”
“What do you mean?” I ask. If there is a way to keep the condos and Mae, then maybe…
“Well, set up the deal so they get a good-sized chunk of money. That way, they can move anywhere they want.”
I was always planning on doing that. But I know that even with the money I’m going to offer, Mae will still be furious with me. “Yeah, but she and her daughter are really falling in love with the land. I can tell. And honestly, I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t, too.”
“Wha—okay?” Coral brushes off my words with a wave of her hand. “So, find another property to develop your massive condos on.” She makes it sound so easy.
“But this area’s perfect.” I run a paint-covered hand through my hair.
“Obviously not if you’re feeling this way,” Coral says.
“But the investors have already agreed to this plan. If I try to change it now, they may become hesitant towards any of my proposals in the future.” I’ll be just like my failure of a brother in their eyes.
Coral grabs my face and forces me to look at her. That’s the second time she’s done that today.
“Dean William Cornel. Nobody thinks that you are your brother, Ryan. You need to let go of that. You’ve proven yourself ten times over since you joined the company.”
“You think?” I ask, after she releases me.
“No, I know.”
“How?” Coral looks confident, but she’s also my assistant. She’s more than a little biased.
“Because I’m your second set of eyes and ears at the office,” Coral says. “I listen, and I observe. You know Mr. Ginty?”
“Yeah.” He’s worked for the company since my father ran things.
“The other day, I heard him talking about how remarkable it was that you and your brother were raised by the same parents because you turned out so differently.”
“I never knew he felt that way. He’s so severe when I propose new projects, always asking me about the permits and environmental impact studies.”
“Yeah,” Coral says. “So, please. Get out of your own head for a change and do what feels best for you and your personal life.”
“What are you guys talking about?” Dylan asks, walking into the room.
“About your dad and Mae,” Coral says, with a self-satisfied smirk.
