“You’re not anything close to being fine,” Eric snarled. “What you do in your personal life is your business, no matter how thin you spread yourself. But now it’s affecting the brewery.”
“I tried to walk away from him. It’s not my fault he—”
“Of course it’s your fault. Jesus, this is the second time in a week. First you fight with Monica Kendall, and now you knock out a jealous ex-husband?”
“I didn’t—” Jamie made himself stop the explanation. That wasn’t the point. “I acknowledge that I shouldn’t have hit the guy. It was a mistake. I’m sorry. But I don’t have to answer to you for every—”
Eric snorted in disgust. “You know what? I’m sick of playing this role.”
“What role?”
“The mean boss. The asshole brother. You want out of here, then get out. You’ve become a liability.”
“What?” Jamie’s head was spinning, his pulse still racing from the fight.
“You want to grow up, get out there and do it, because I’m tired of waiting.”
“Jesus Christ, Eric, Monica came in here and attacked me! And that asshole was insulting a woman who doesn’t deserve to be insulted. I didn’t instigate anything.”
Eric flashed a bitter smile. “You bring this on yourself, Jamie. You always have. After all, I’ve never sunk a business deal with my dick, and no crazed woman or jealous husband has ever come in here and attacked me in front of the customers.”
That hollow place inside him was filling up now with pain that felt like cement. He was reeling, and the worst part was, he had no one to turn to. His family was part of the problem, and Olivia was gone.
“Go home,” Eric said. “We’ll talk about this tomorrow.”
“You don’t get to send me home, Eric. You don’t get to chastise me or tell me I’m not welcome here. But you know what? I’ll save you the trouble of trying. I quit.”
“What?” Tessa yelped.
“I quit. It shouldn’t be a problem since you’ll be better off without me.” He untied his apron and tossed it to Eric, who caught it with a steady hand. His eyes narrowed, but he didn’t try to stop Jamie. Why would he?
“Jamie, just calm down,” Tessa said. “You’re still upset about the fight.”
“This has been coming for years, Tessa. Just leave it alone.” Unable to face the bright, crowded cheer of the front room, Jamie headed for the back door.
“You promised me!” she yelled. “You promised you wouldn’t leave.”
“I don’t have any choice,” he muttered.
Then he was out in the night, the cool air rushing into his lungs. He sucked in a few deep breaths, hoping to loosen the tight bands around his chest. Amazingly, it actually worked. He stood a little straighter, his shoulders pressed back. It had been coming for a long time, after all. And he was ready to get the hell out there and do something on his own. Maybe he should thank Victor for setting this in motion. If he hadn’t been pushed, Jamie would’ve stayed for months. Maybe years.
“Yeah,” he muttered with a smile. “I’ll thank that bastard when hell freezes over.”
He pulled his keys from his pocket and walked to the car, still smiling. But when he drove away from the brewery, he made sure not to glance in the mirror. He didn’t want to see his dad’s place growing smaller and smaller as he drove away.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
HE DIDN’T WORK on Tuesdays, so Olivia wasn’t taking too much of a chance by coming to the brewery. She didn’t know if she’d see him in class today, but she definitely didn’t want to see him here. And there was no reason to think he’d show up. Still, she sat in her car with both hands wrapped around the steering wheel, peering carefully at every car that looked as if it might turn into the parking lot.
There were only three cars here right now, and none of them were Jamie’s. She could safely go inside.
The portfolio sitting on the passenger seat seemed to pulse beside her, so she only glanced at it before closing her eyes. This felt like the right thing to do, but she couldn’t be sure.
She understood what it was like to want to walk away. She’d walked away from her parents with a deep sigh of relief. But Jamie deserved a
shot with his brother. He deserved the chance to make his mark on the brewery, but pride would keep him from taking it.
But did she have the right to take the chance for him?