WITH A SIGH OF RESIGNATION, Chance walked into his office Monday morning and met his brothers’ inquisitive gazes. He knew why they were there. Marcus had mentioned to them that they’d been invited to Kylie’s for dinner and no doubt they wanted to know how things went. But he wouldn’t make it easy for them. He would pretend that he hadn’t a clue why they graced his office with their presence.
“Good morning. Is there any reason the three of you have taken over my office?” he asked, placing his briefcase down on his desk.
After a few moments, when no one replied, he exhaled a long sigh and said, “I don’t recall us having a meeting this morning. I know I have a meeting with Bas later today, but what’s up with you guys? Is anything wrong?”
Not surprisingly, it was Bas who stepped forward and said, “How about cutting the bull, Chance. You know why we’re here. We want to know how things went yesterday.”
Chance looked at him. “Was there a particular way they were supposed to go?”
“You tell us,” Morgan said, frowning. “You were the one who was all bent out of shape last week when you found that note. Can we assume you blew things out of proportion and Tiffany Hagan isn’t the threat to our nephew’s future that you assumed she was?”
Chance leaned back in his chair. A part of him wanted to tell his brothers that Tiffany was no longer a threat but her mother definitely was. But there was no way he could do that and have a moment’s peace from their inquisition. “No, Tiffany’s not a threat and although I’m not going to say I overreacted, I will say that I think Kylie and I have everything under control.”
Donovan quirked an eyebrow. “Kylie?”
“Yes, Kylie Hagan. Tiffany’s mother.”
Donovan smiled. “Oh, yeah, the one who’s such a good-looker.”
A dark scowl suddenly appeared on Chance’s face and he leaned forward. “And how do you know that Kylie is good-looking?”
Donovan was taken aback by the bite in his brother’s tone. “You told us, don’t you remember? In fact, your exact words were, ‘If the daughter looks anything like the mother then I’m in trouble.’”
“Oh.” Too late, Chance recalled having said that. He leaned back in his chair again, ignoring the curious glances his brothers were now giving him.
“You know what, Chance?”
Chance glanced over at Morgan and frowned. “What?”
A smile curved Morgan Steele’s lips. “I hate to tell you this, but I have a feeling that you’ve gotten yourself into some trouble.”
“SO THERE YOU HAVE IT, Chance,” Bas was saying after handing him the written report. “I’m glad to say that considering everything, we’re doing well. Although some of our competitors have gotten bruised by the severe trading conditions of the past few years, we’ve been successful because we’re a company that sets the pace and doesn’t just follow the trend. Still, whether we like it or not, sooner or later we’re going to have to give some thought to the possibility of outsourcing in order to stay competitive. I don’t like it any more than you, but that’s the way things are going now and we need to continue to adapt to change, even change we don’t particularly like.”