Page 111 of Serenity
“Truth moment,” smiling, I spoke to the group of men I’d shared the holiday with.
“You preface things like Duke, too. Just say it,” his dad teased with a laugh.
“I’ve never had smores.”
A cacophony of really circled our small group around the fire.
“Toast that ‘mallow up. Let her see what she’s been missing,” Duke Senior pressed.
The gooey, sugary taste of toasted marshmallows struck my taste buds first. Followed by that was the chocolate and the crunch of the graham cracker. While not a fan of heavy sweets, I could see it becoming a monthly staple as my period made its appearance.
“Winner, winner, chicken dinner?” Duke Senior asked.
“It’s yummy,” I confessed.
“Yeah?” His warm brown eyes bloomed with satisfaction as if I’d given him the winning numbers to the lottery. All three of the Dukes were satisfied.
“I like it. Yeah,” I laughed.
YOU HAVE NO IDEA
Fountains of champagne flowed amidst an abundance of cheers. Confetti fell from the high ceilings of the ballroom. All around me, people were hugging, kissing, laughing. Convivial joy. I was steeped in it. Piper Hermès played a beautiful rendition of Auld Lang Syne on violin, but the best part of entering another year was Bumble Bee clinging to my fucking arm.
From a large projector, we watched live as the giant silver heart dropped in downtown Paramour in commemoration of the holiday. My new year began with the feel of pillowy lips seasoned with the scent of peach and the flavor of excitement. The Colonial Pipeline New Year’s party was one for the books.
With Serenity, time became insignificant. The passage of it no longer required tallying. We didn’t count days. Didn’t count months. Didn’t curse ourselves in that way, as if our time together was limited. No longer counting the, we simply existed in our own bubble. Enjoying each other.
February rolled around with a ramping up of work on both of our ends. She was beginning construction on her first spa while I was knee-deep in mergers at Colonial. Robbed of our typical autonomy, we had to be intentional about the moments we spent together.
“The foundation has been laid. We’re cooking with grease.”
A smile wide enough to split her face in two came alongside her explanation when I asked about the status of the new spa. I was happy for her. Proud.
“That’s good. Solari hasn’t been giving you any problems either?”
“Nope. Everything is going splendidly to plan.”
So she claimed. I’d done my digging into Solari, discovering that after a botched IPO attempt unraveled the business, revealing larger-than-expected losses and potential conflicts of interest with the company’s co-founder, the company was filing for bankruptcy.
While surprised Bee hadn’t been made aware yet, I kept my mouth zipped. Sensitive to receiving help when it came to the new spa, I couldn’t handle any further rejection. Maybe she already knew and was keeping the information to herself.
The wariness of Colonial Holding’s board members was immense when I expressed an interest in purchasing Solari. Despite their hesitation, I convinced them that the purchase was a sound idea. My win didn’t come without pushback, however. They’d made such a big deal of it that my father even showed up to the meeting. Pulling me aside in a separate room, he voiced his reservations freely.
“What’s gotten into you to make such an imprudent decision? Have you seen their reputation? It’s going straight to the shitter.”
At a tie between board members over the acquisition, he was the only one who could break it.
“What is it that would cause you to place all we’ve worked for at risk to buy fucking Solari?”
“Pops, you’re dragging it. All we’ve worked for at risk?”
“You know what I mean, D3. That company is trash.”
If I could have gone about it any other way, I would have, but seeing Serenity struggle with Solari to obtain what she wanted fucked with me. She wouldn’t accept my gift, so I had to move a little differently in how I approached her dilemma.
“It’s not what. It’s who, and you know who she is.”
“This is about Serenity?” My father’s face collapsed. “I know she’s Ramsay’s daughter, yes. But I’m asking you, who is she? Tell me in your own words.”