Addicted (The Addicted Series, #1)(109)

"And if I don't?" I asked. "I'm not saying no Dwayne, but you don't lay out a challenge like that without some sort of both reward and punishment."

Dwayne nodded. "Reward is simple. If you do it, at the end of four years you'll be made a Vice President of Forrester Hotels, and you can choose your area to work in. We still have offices in Chicago, if you want to know, I couldn't move everything to Miami. You'd be on the third tier down in the company. I'm the top tier. My sister Elizabeth, despite selling me her shares and starting her own law firm, is the second tier down according to corporate structure. If I died today, my shares would go into trust for Erica and my daughter, and Elizabeth would take over as Chairman and CEO. You'd be on the level below her, along with about ten other people. You'd command a handsome salary, though I'm not sure you really need that. Frankly, it's hard to keep that third tier staffed because as soon as I do, someone else comes in and offers them a shot at the top tier in their chain. Half of my biggest competitors worked for Forrester at some point or another.

"More importantly than that though, is that you'll be what Krystal deserves. You'll have made something of yourself, and whether you take my job, go back to Castelbon and work with your father, or strike out on your own, you'll be successful. The stick, well, I don't really need one. The stick will be looking yourself in the mirror if you fail. Your punishment will be denial of your happiness, forever. The stick will be looking your own child in the eyes, because from what you tell me, I suspect this Gina woman will want you involved, and telling them not to follow in your footsteps, that their father is nothing more than an overgrown child."

Dwayne's words hit me hard, he was never one to pull any punches. Could I do it? Could I take on this challenge? Could I do all that and be a good father to Gina's baby? Could I be a man, and not an overgrown child, as Dwayne put it? I swallowed hard, and made my decision. "Alright, I'm in. On a few conditions of my own."

Dwayne nodded for me to continue. "Interesting negotiation tactic, considering I seem to be the one with all the power in this, but go ahead."

"First, that you let me work with whoever you have pulling the strings to decide what I'm going to study. I'm not being forced into studying business administration just because I'm working for you."

"That's easy enough I suppose. I've found some of my best managers came from totally non-hotel backgrounds. What else?"

"Second, that before I sign anything, I get a chance to go back to Chicago and try and get Krystal back. I'm doing this for her, and whether she still loves me, hates me, or whatever, I need to look her in the eye and apologize, and tell her about this."

"And if she tells you to f*ck off? No offense Julian, but it would take a remarkable woman to take you back, not only because you had sex with and impregnated her aunt, but then you ran away like you did."

"Regardless of if she tells me to f*ck off, I still need to tell her, Dwayne. I'll then go into the program at least knowing that I tried, and that failing out means more than just letting myself down."

"Okay, deal. The resort doesn't open for months anyway. I was planning on having you start by interning in Chicago, if that makes it any easier. If she tells you off, then you intern here in Miami. Anything else?"

I grinned sheepishly and nodded. "Yeah man. Can you give me a ride to the airport after I get tickets? I walked to the beach because my license is suspended still. I can't drive legally for another seventy-four days. And I don't think I can stomach walking back to the airport from your home. Where are we in Miami anyway?"

"I live on Fischer Island. Which, by the way, is why you should probably stay indoors as much as possible until I give you a ride to the airport. You happen to have slept with two of my neighbors, and their husbands don't like you all that much."

I shook my head in true regret. "Jesus, all this shit from my past is really starting to catch up to me. I know you weren't quite as bad, but how did you ever get past it?"

Dwayne shook his head. "Considering that I know I could never even think of opening a resort in Macau, Hong Kong, or for that matter anywhere else in China due to what I did with a certain ambassador's daughter, I can't answer that one for you."





Chapter 24


Krystal




I woke up the next morning driven from sleep by the grumbles of my stomach. Rolling out of bed, I made my way into the kitchen, where I looked at the scraps in my fridge. It's a little known secret, but most chefs don't have a lot of food at their homes. We tend to eat bits from the restaurant prep, and are so tired by the time we get home that cooking is the last thing on our minds. When Julian was living with me, I kept the basics, but we'd cleaned out the fridge before going to Castelbon Manor. All I had in the fridge were some condiments, a half gallon of milk, some strawberries, and a tub of cottage cheese.

"Guess I'm going European today," I said, grabbing the cheese and the strawberries. I could turn the strawberries into a quick sauce, chill it, and combine it with the cottage cheese for something that would at least give me some energy, as well as distract me and give me something to do.

Poking around my cupboards gave me some balsamic vinegar, and I had what I needed. I took my stick blender to the strawberries, breaking them down quickly before putting them in a sauce pan with some balsamic vinegar. A few more ingredients, and viola, a strawberry sauce. I poured the sauce into a shallow pan and put it into my mostly empty freezer to chill and thicken up. It was right where I wanted it to be in twenty minutes, and poured it over the cottage cheese. The plating was a total mess, but I really didn't care, plopping it all in a bowl which I sat down and devoured in about two minutes of gluttony.