I Want You Back (Want You #1)(18)
“Thanks. But with that realization comes the hard truth for both of you—Ash and Nolan. You dropped the fucking ball with this place. I didn’t give you the go-ahead to become involved so you had a personal place to kick back with a cold one on the weekends when you weren’t fulfilling your duties at LI. I was serious in telling you I wanted new concepts for this space that would make it successful. A year and a half later, every time I look at the monthly P&L, I see that we’re limping along, business as usual. Making enough to pay Simone and the waitstaff and that’s it. Again, that isn’t a change of any sort. I released funds to foot the bill for a full remodel, but I’ve yet to hear a new idea about what this place could become, let alone see a single blueprint.”
“That’s where you’re wrong,” Nolan said. “You shot down our initial idea of this place becoming a sports bar, with memorabilia from your hockey career, and Jensen’s football career, and Uncle Monte’s basketball career. Sports figures are a huge draw in this town, Jax.”
“This town doesn’t need another damn sports bar just like the two hundred other sports bars on every damn corner.”
I looked at Simone and she stared back at me. She wasn’t surprised that it had come to this. In fact, she’d warned me when I’d brought Ash and Nolan in to manage my half of the partnership that it wouldn’t work. For them, running a bar was a hobby. For her, it was the business she’d gotten stuck with by trusting me.
“Okay, Jax, I’m relieved you’re airing your grievances,” Ash said. “But—”
“But I’m not done. And you will listen to me until I am done, and not a word of this conversation leaves this room until I’m damn good and ready for it. Understood?”
Around me Nolan, Simone and Dallas nodded, and Ash said, “Understood.”
I did two rounds of my deep-breathing exercises before I spoke. “The truth I’ve had to face in retirement is that I do not want to work at Lund Industries. In any capacity. I’ve been going with the flow, faking interest while inside I’m a confused mess. That’s the type of feeling that’ll drive me back to the bottle. Not that I’ve been tempted,” I clarified at Nolan’s look of concern, “but it’s far more likely to happen if I’m unhappy in my day-to-day work life, in a job I hate, than here in this bar where I have ready access to every kind of booze imaginable.”
Silence.
Then Ash’s whistle echoed from the speaker phone. “That’s some serious stuff to throw at us out of the blue, Jax. You honestly hate spending time at LI?”
“Yes.”
“If you’ve felt that way for six months, why wait so long to tell us?” Nolan asked.
“Because I thought I was doing the right thing joining the family business. Problem is, I don’t understand the family business. At all. And I realized I don’t want to understand it. You guys have been part of LI since our dads first put you to work there. I’m not the best qualified to take over as CEO when my dad retires just because I’m the eldest Lund. It should not be my birthright.” I looked at my brother. “That job is ideal for you, Nolan. You’ve got the charisma and the knowledge. You’ve spent your life learning the ropes. It’s a total dick move on dad and the uncles’ parts to even consider putting me in a position I don’t deserve.”
“And don’t want,” Dallas said quietly.
“Exactly.” The fierce support in her eyes . . . there was something going on with her too. She hadn’t taken a permanent position at LI after she received her business degree, despite having worked there as an intern throughout her college years. Having a heart-to-heart with her after I made it through this conversation was my top priority.
“Nolan?” Ash prompted. “Don’t you have something to add?”
“Yes. Eventually. Right now I just need a moment to gather my thoughts. This has caught me totally off guard.”
“Understandable. But focus on the bar issues, not your future at LI. So far we haven’t heard a peep out of Simone. I’m sure she has opinions,” Ash said dryly.
Simone snorted. Then she folded her arms across her chest and leaned back against the countertop. “I agree with Jax. I always have. This business was supposed to be an investment for me so I could shake off the shackles of corporate America and live my life. But this business became my life. Due to the fact my business partner had a hockey career that kept him out of running the day-to-day business, I had no choice but to become a bartender and bar manager. That isn’t how I hoped this opportunity would play out for me. Every penny of my partnership money is in the physical aspect of this building. Jax has the capital to remodel, remake the image, change the concept. I don’t. So I’ve been in a holding pattern until someone decides what this place could be.”
“Simone, if Jax could buy out your half, would you take the cash and move on with your life?” Ash asked her.
Good question. I glanced over at Simone.
She shrugged. “There’s no added value to the property since we purchased it, so he’d only have to reimburse me for what I initially paid. Which means the time equity I’ve invested doesn’t equal squat. I’d be a fool to bail out now when there’s potential to see our initial vision realized as well as return on my investment.”