For them, it was an exciting time looking forward to being married. For the rest of us, it felt like we were getting off easy. There weren’t going to be any complicated plans or expectations from any of us. Instead, they ordered food from their favorite restaurants in the area, decorated the field on the compound they both loved, and got dressed in simple, casual clothes that made them feel comfortable.
We all chose to give Merry a bit of a pass when it came to her attitude that day. A good while into her pregnancy and not coping with the summer heat well, she was on a short fuse right up until the ceremony. But we didn’t talk about that. We glossed over it and lingered over the happy memories instead.
I thought we were all going to get a break after that. Not so much. We were still reeling from the rapid unfolding of Merry’s pregnancy and their wedding, and were planning for the baby’s arrival, when Kelly came along. Or, technically, came back. But that was a long story. What mattered was she brought along with her a heart she stole years before… and happened to belong to my brother Darren. Not to mention the baby girl who looked just like him. Now we were wrapped up in planning their wedding. It meant the whole family was in a mild state of overextended panic all the time.
That meant I was doing even more damage control than normal. Working at the compound was mostly about loyalty and family ties rather than it being my great passion. On paper my title was CEO, but really, I was a glorified assistant. I did everything that needed doing when everyone else dropped their balls.
To their credit, that didn’t happen all that often. Usually everyone was really good at their jobs. They were devoted to the racing team and committed to doing everything to the best of their ability.
Right now, things were a bit different. They were still working hard but throwing in the wedding planning and baby preparations and everything was kind of going to hell. Every day I felt like I was chasing around behind them catching mistakes, fixing issues, and picking up the slack. And every day, I reminded myself this was the path I chose.
In all reality, I loved my job. Even when it was crazy like this. Working for Freeman Racing wasn’t my only career. I also owned several restaurants and a couple of smaller businesses throughout Charlotte. Instead, I worked the family business out of love for the tradition. This was my father’s dream, and he’d put everything of himself into it when he was younger. From very early in my parents’ marriage, they worked together to build this for themselves and for their future children.
Even when they couldn’t imagine that they would raise four boys, they’d worked hard to create this company and make it into a legacy they could leave us. My brothers and I had grown up around it. We’d spent our childhoods playing in the huge open spaces and watching the mechanics work on the bikes. It was important to all of us, especially to Quentin. Nick was the only one of the four of us who decided not to work on the compound as an adult. But even without an official job with the company, he still ended up a part of most activities and events.
I loved that about the company. I loved everything my parents built and what only became bigger, more impressive, and more successful over the last several years under Quentin’s watch. That was why even with the success of all my other businesses, I kept up with my work with the racing company as well. But if I had to listen to Darren get cranky over catering or Quentin debating the merits of an all-girls baby shower before the baby came or a family shower after, I was going to have to kill my brothers. Or maybe just fire them.
Which might be challenging considering Quentin was technically my superior. I couldn’t exactly just fire him.
“She says she’s afraid of going into labor right in the middle of the party,” Quentin said.
I rolled my eyes as I walked into the kitchen. Maybe I would have to figure out how to fire him. At least temporarily. Just to make a statement.
“That would be so exciting!” Kelly said.
My eyes rolled their way over to her. The mechanic was leaned against the counter, her chin propped in one hand as the other plucked a spinach-and-cheese croissant from the plate my mother set a few inches away.
“It would be such a celebration,” my mother agreed. “And convenient. All of us would already know what was going on so we could all go to the hospital together. No one would miss out.”