Alaska Home. Debbie Macomber
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More than he knew. If everything went according to Christian’s plan, her boss was about to lure the beautiful Allison Reynolds back to Hard Luck and offer her Mariah’s job.
“I’m very serious,” she told Ben.
“Actually I’ve been thinking about getting some help for a while now. In fact, I was about to ask Christian to pass along some of the applications he collected last year.”
“I thought business was, uh, down a bit.” She spoke as tactfully as she could. She’d heard that a decrease in customers was the reason he’d started the frequent-eater program.
“It’s not so bad lately,” Ben said, leaning against the counter. “I’m here 365 days a year. You can’t blame a man for wanting a break now and then. Have you got someone in mind for the job?”
Mariah nodded.
“Who?”
She didn’t hesitate. “Me.”
“You?”
Despite her best efforts, her lower lip quivered slightly. “Christian’s in Seattle and he...he’s with Allison Reynolds.”
“Listen, Mariah, I don’t know what he sees in that woman, but trust me, your position with Midnight Sons is safe! Sawyer isn’t going to let him replace you with anyone.”
“I’ve known for a long time that Christian would love to get rid of me.”
“I’m not saying whether that’s true or not, but I will say that his attitude underwent a...minor adjustment the week you were away.”
“Well, that’s nice,” she murmured a little sarcastically. “But he’d do anything to convince Allison to move here. He’s been hung up on her all year.”
Ben didn’t argue. Rubbing the side of his jaw, he frowned. “I don’t know what to advise you.”
“If you don’t hire me, maybe Pete Livengood will,” she said. “He might need someone to stock shelves for him.”
“Now don’t do anything rash.” Ben patted her hand. “Sawyer’s always been on your side, no matter how much Christian griped.”
Which was another way of telling her that Christian had done plenty of griping.
The oven buzzed in the background. “Let me get your pizza into the oven and I’ll be right back,” Ben told her, scurrying to the kitchen.
She could apply for a position with the state, too, she mused while he was gone. But if she got a government job, it was unlikely she’d be able to continue living in Hard Luck, which made the idea less appealing.
“You sure you’d want to work in a restaurant?” Ben asked when he returned. His look was thoughtful.
“I’m positive.” The way she saw things, she wouldn’t have much of a choice.
“If you don’t want to stay with Midnight Sons anymore, you can have a job right here.”
The lump in Mariah’s throat wouldn’t go away. The computer screen blurred as her eyes filled with unshed tears. Swallowing hard, she quickly typed out her letter of resignation. Every word was like the end of a dream, the end of her hopes. The printer spewed out the single sheet, and she took a few minutes to compose herself before signing it.
When Mariah was fairly certain she wouldn’t make a fool of herself by bursting into tears, she brought the letter to Sawyer.
“What’s this?” he asked, glancing up from his computer terminal.
“I’m giving you my notice.”
Sawyer’s gaze shot to hers in disbelief. “You’re quitting?”
She nodded, then said with forced cheerfulness, “It’s been a wonderful experience, but as Christian pointed out, my contract is up. I’d agreed to work for Midnight Sons for a year, and—” she shrugged “—it’s time to move on.”
“Is it the money?” Sawyer asked with a dumbfounded look. “Are you unhappy with the benefits package?”
“No. You’ve always been more than generous.”
“But...” Sawyer didn’t seem to know what to say. She realized she’d taken him by surprise, but that couldn’t be helped. She’d made her decision and felt it was the right one.
“In that case, can I ask why you want to leave?” Sawyer asked. “Especially now?”
“For one thing, I can see the writing on the wall,” she told him, struggling to keep her voice even. “I overheard Christian telling you he wants to bring Allison Reynolds back to Hard Luck. There simply isn’t enough work to occupy two full-time secretaries. Allison was the one he wanted from the first. I... I have what I want—the cabin and the twenty acres of land.”
“Now, listen, there’s no way on earth I’m going to let my brother hire Allison Reynolds,” Sawyer insisted. “Your position here is secure, I promise you.” Fire glowed in his eyes as if battle loomed on the horizon and he was ready to take aim. Brother against brother.
“I appreciate what you’re saying, and I thank you, but you and I both know that Christian—”
“It’s not going to happen, Mariah,” Sawyer said from between clenched teeth. “I won’t let it.”
He was making this more difficult than she’d expected. She’d assumed she would hand in her notice, and he’d put up a token fuss, then release her. What shocked her was the vehemence with which he argued.
“Thank you, Sawyer. I’m grateful for what you’re trying to do, but the last thing I want is to cause dissension between you and Christian. It’s pretty obvious that he’d prefer to work with Allison.”
“Why don’t we wait until Christian’s back?” he suggested. “There’s no need to jump to conclusions. I talked to him last night, and he didn’t mention bringing Allison back with him.” He paused and seemed to reconsider. “But then, I suppose I didn’t give him an opportunity to say much.”
“It’s too late, Sawyer. I already have another job.”
This seemed to shock him even more. His jaw dropped and his eyes widened. “Who...where?”
“The Hard Luck Café. I’m going to work for Ben.”
“Since when did Ben Hamilton need a secretary?” Sawyer demanded. He made it sound as if Ben had stolen her away from him.
“Not a secretary,” Mariah hurried to explain. “He needs help in the kitchen.”
“You’re qualified to cook?”
“I won’t be responsible for the cooking,” she clarified. “I’ll wait tables and clean up and...and things like that. Ben’s been running the café on his own all these years. It’s time he relaxed and left the small stuff to someone else.”
“Ben!” Sawyer said the name in a tone that implied his longtime friend had turned traitor.
“I asked him about the job,” Mariah pointed out. She didn’t want to cause trouble between Ben and the O’Hallorans any more than she wanted to between the two brothers.
Sawyer reread her letter and frowned anew. “You’re sure this is what you want?”
Was she sure? Mariah didn’t know anymore. From what Christian and the others had said, Allison Reynolds was a real beauty; he was clearly besotted with her. Mariah didn’t stand a chance of winning Christian’s heart. It wasn’t easy to walk away from this job—or from Christian—but she had to, for the sake of her sanity. And for the sake of her pride,