Page 10 of Billionaire Enemy's Baby
I get out of the car, anxiety zig zagging through my veins.
Here goes nothing, I suppose.
ChapterThree
JOSH
“Wow.” I whistle as Wyatt takes me out onto the painting lot to show me a custom job that he’s doing himself. “You have some excellent members of staff working for you, but I have to say I think this is my favorite of all the bikes being done.”
The details on the Harley Davison is incredible.
The way the red paint fades into a distressed pattern, and the intricate Celtic like patterns all over it is something else. I know Wyatt always had a fascination with motorcycles. Mom used to hate it when we were teens. But now see he’s turned his passion into something phenomenal. And in Beaufort too.
Amazing. I can see why Dad wanted me to know what he has achieved.
“Well the owner of this bike actually shipped in from New York,” Wyatt declares with a quiet pride which makes me smile. He doesn’t normally talk about himself so it was nice to hear him speaking with such pride.
“I guess he heard about me, and wanted my work.”
I realize again how much I’ve missed while I’ve been away. That actually kinda sucks I would have liked to see his rise to what he is now. Because to say he was the least out of the Macauley’s to become a success would be an understatement.
I almost didn’t want to leave for London because of him and what he was going through. At the time, if I could have doneanythingto help him overcome the addictions that seemed to be consuming him, then I would have stayed. Europe and my own ambitions would have taken a back seat because I was scared. No one else but me seemed to notice that he was sinking into all kinds of addictions. Alcohol, drugs, gambling… but when I tried to help, he told me I was making it worse. He told me he wanted me gone, and I guess because I was still so young at the time, I believed him and I left.
Thank goodness he didsomethingto sort himself out.
Maybe one day I’ll ask him how he went from what he was to what he is today, but this doesn’t feel like the right time to do so.
Right now, I just want to enjoy his achievements.
“You want a ride?” Wyatt asks with a laugh. “It’s a lovely machine.”
I blanch, knowing that he’s teasing me but not enjoying it all the same. IknowI’m not the risk taker that he is, I know I don’t throw myself into danger, but in my defense I never saw it working out well for him, so why would I put myself in that position?
“Nah, I don’t think so. I don’t think the owner of this bike wants some amateur riding on it, do you?” I cock a knowing eyebrow at Wyatt. “She’s a beauty though.”
“It’s nice for you to get to see it all.”
All of a sudden, there’s a wistfulness to Wyatt’s tone that hadn’t been there all morning. I snap to attention because this catches me off guard. “I have always wanted you to come back to Beaufort to see what I’ve become. I don’t want you to only have shitty memories of me, you know?”
I let out a little chuckle. I guess we are talking about this then. “Wyatt, I have so many good memories of you, they drown out the bad ones. It seems like it was only a short time of your life anyway, so I wouldn’t worry about it too much.”
“Hmm, sure.” I can see that it still plagues him though. There’s a little dark cloud hanging above his head. If having my forgiveness helps him get rid of that, then I am all for it. “Well, it’s good to know that I’m not in that dark place anymore, that’s for sure. And I’m making progress in the right direction every single day. But what about you? Huh? Dad says that you have some big plans for New York City. Let’s hear all about them.”
I’ve been really keen to talk it over with Wyatt, to make him as proud of me as I am of him. But now after seeing everything that he has done, and in the town that I have been nothing but desperate to get the hell away from, I’m not quite so sure that I want to make it all about me. I don’t have the same desperate need to spill everything out.
“Well, I was working at a tech company in London,” I say instead, sparing him the details. “And I really learned a lot. I made some great decisions in the business which led to them making a whole lot of money. I really think I can emulate that here. In New York City.”
“How is that coming along?” he asks, sounding genuinely interested.
“Well, you know… I’m just trying to set up meetings with all the right people at the moment. Not something I could do easily from England. I’m sure it’ll be better from here.”
“Nice!” Wyatt grins, ear to ear. “Well, if there is anything you want help with, I don’t know how much use I will be, but I will do anything I can.”
I nod and smile back, although all of Wyatt’s contacts are going to be far too small town for me. Unless the owner of the Harley Davidson has any use for me, I don’t know what Wyatt can do. It’s nice of him to offer though. It shows that just because I went out of contact for a while, it doesn’t mean anyone hates me. I’ve still managed to keep hold of the people who are important to me.
The last five years haven’t taken anything away from me…
“Oh shit.” Wyatt checks his watch and claps his hand to his forehead. “I forgot; I’m supposed to be interviewing for the new receptionist in a moment. Hanging out with you made me forget that I had other stuff going on…”
