I did not.
But maybe it wouldn’t be terrible having my own place to stay when I came home. At least I wouldn’t have to crash in Lukas’s guest house anymore. And Charlie could have a sense of stability. She could pick any room she wanted and decorate it however she saw fit.
There was a little flutter of excitement before I remembered any stay here would be short-lived. It wasn’t permanent.
But it could be.
“And finally, in regard to the majority shares I hold of Hartstrings Records,” Allison paused, glancing up at us before continuing. “I hereby gift them in their entirety to Olivia Hart. She is free to do with them as she sees fit. If shares are sold, she is entitled to ten percent of the proceeds, while the remainder is to be deposited back into the trust.”
Even though I’d been expecting the news, all the air left my lungs as Allison finished speaking. I waited in tense silence, hoping to hear the caveats I craved, that there were stipulations and red tape and a million other stipulations that’d free me, but she simply sat back in her chair.
“What about my job?” I asked. Carl’s presence here suddenlymade sense. “Can I be CEO and majority shareholder at the same time, the way our company agreement is designed?”
He tapped his fingers against his desk. “It’s not entirely uncommon, especially for some smaller companies. I don’t believe it’s against any of our clauses, though I’d need to verify.”
“And what are my options if it is?”
“Well, to be frank, you would have a decision to make—to keep your role as CEO of Hartstrings Records, or become the majority shareholder. From there, depending on your answer, we’d begin the transition.”
He said it so casually, as though it were really that easy. But how the hell were we going to do that when I didn’t even know what they were? All of this was too much. I didn’t have the capacity to make any more decisions right now. Especially not when the last one I made was still haunting me.
“How long will it take you to look up the specifics?”
Carl chuckled. “I’m pulling up the documents as we speak. Would you be available tomorrow morning? As you may know, the other shareholders are dying to dig their claws further into the business. The sooner we figure out the company’s path, the sooner we can get them off our backs.”
Tomorrow. It was too soon. I didn’t want to leave. There were still so many things I wanted to do while I was home, but there was no time left.
Charlie. Lukas. Grady. Cleo. Harper.
Duke.
I’d have to leave everyone behind, going back to living out of hotels and eating takeout, alone, in front of the television. Compared to the past two months, that might as well have been my fucking nightmare.
The chair squeaked as my fingers dug into the armrest. Panic clawed at my throat, threatening to tear me up from the inside. I was vaguely aware of someone saying my name.
“Livvy?” Lukas asked, drawing my gaze toward him. Concern hardened his eyes. “Are you okay?”
“Y-Yeah, sorry.” I smiled weakly. “I just started thinking about everything I need to get done before this meeting tomorrow. Are you in the Nashville office, or am I flying out to L.A.?”
Please say Nashville. Please say Nashville.
“L.A., unfortunately.” My heart sank. “I’m already rescheduling my day to ensure we have enough time to take care of everything. If you’re okay with it, I’d like to start first thing at eight?”
I nodded. If I were going into the office that early, I’d barely have enough time to say goodbye to Charlie before I left. The pit in my stomach grew tenfold.
Carl was quick to depart, eager to get started on his research, leaving the rest of us to sit in silence. Allison slid the binder across the desk toward me. “Here is the will in its entirety. I know it’s soon, but we should also schedule a meeting sometime this week to go over your duties as executor.”
“I’ll have my assistant reach out to schedule a time,” I said, shaking her hand as she stood.
Her gaze traveled to the unopened letter I’d set down. “Please don’t forget to read that. It’s imperative that you do so as soon as possible.”
“Why?” I asked. “What’s a few more days when we’ve already been waiting weeks?”
“Mr. Hart was clear in his instructions that you were both meant to read the letters the day you received them.” Allison stepped around the desk. “He seemed like a deliberate man. I would assume there’s a reason for his urgency.”
Lukas escorted Allison down the hall, leaving me alone in the office. I collapsed back into the chair and stared at the letter. If the law office had received it in the mail only a day or two after his death, it meant this was one of the last things he wrote.Seeing his final thoughts was a privilege, but having them immortalized in writing was even more so.
“Surprised you haven’t opened it yet,” Lukas asked, leaning against the door. “Curiosity would’ve gotten the best of me by now.”