She puts her hands under her thighs and blows out a breath. “I’m sure you know how talented he is.”
Not sure what that has to do with their relationship, but I nod.
“Have you heard of Happy Harvest?” she asks.
Happy Harvest is huge, more a corporate empire than a direct competitor, but everyone knows them. I find I’m surprised that Caden worked for them. He seems so perfectly suited for a small, niche operation like ours. “I have.”
“He came recommended, so we hired him to supervise our non-GMO organics.”
This part makes sense.
She smiles. “He impressed our people, so when one of our managers left, he was recommended for the job. The interview was where I first saw him. It was love at first sight.”
It’s painful to think it had been the same for him, but I’ll dwell on that later. Now I need to focus on gathering information.
“It’s my family’s business, and I’ve been groomed practically from birth to be a key player in the company,” she continues. “Whenever we move someone up to management, we get together with the candidate to make sure we feel it’s a good fit, and the second I saw Caden, I recognized I was looking at greatness. See, my father is close to retirement, and he thinks my older brother should be in charge. I disagree.” Her expression turns dark, like a thunderstorm that blots out the sun. “He only thinks that because he’s old fashioned and believes boys are better than girls. But my brother Mark is not better. I’m the clear choice to succeed. I’m the one with the plans, vision, and ambition.”
Her features clear, and it’s like the sun’s come out again. “Then I found Caden.” She shook her head. “It was like…” Another shake. “I don’t know, like he was the man I never knew I was dreaming of. One look and I knew he had to be mine.”
Interesting that she viewed him more as a possession. I have a hard time reconciling the man I know with one who would be okay with that. But I don’t interrupt to clarify. I just let her talk and hope it will become clear.
“My father objected, of course, and he tried to keep me away from him, but I had to have him. Caden resisted at first.” She darts a glance in my direction to make sure I’m listening, and I don’t disappoint her. I’m on the edge of my seat. “I mean, you know how he is.”
Something about her tone and the expression on her face makes me think she wants an audience, like the prospect of drama between us excites her. But I’m not playing that game. In fact, I’m not playing anyone’s game except my own.
I only nod, remaining impassive.
“Luckily, he’s only a man after all, and I convinced him in the end.” She gives me a crafty smile. “After our first night together, I saw what needed to happen. First, I had to make Daddy love him—which wasn’t too difficult, considering Caden and him share a passion for farming. I bided my time, doing everything I needed to do to make Caden happy and cultivate his relationship with my father. In the end, it wasn’t hard to convince the family to make him head of operations.”
Each word she speaks is like a blade cutting away at me.
It’ssosimilar, too similar. Not in scale, but in practice. Caden must have seen it. There’s no way he didn’t. Yet, even then, as we were making plans, he kept this from me.
I nod, not wanting to be distracted by my own turmoil. I want her to finish the story so I can be on my way. “What happened?”
“He was awesome, just like I knew he would be.” She puts her hand on her chest. “It wasmethat recognized his potential,methat understood how great he could be, and my moves that made it happen. When I convinced Daddy to put him in charge, our market share had been slipping, but under Caden, everything bloomed again.” She leans toward me, like we’re co-conspirators. “How much has your yield improved since he’s been here? And don’t tell me it hasn’t.”
“Production has improved.” That’s all I’m willing to say.
“Anyway, my plan was coming together exactly as I wanted. Caden was gaining power. I was gaining power. I needed one more piece to make it all come together: Caden and I needed to get married. With him by my side, it would be only a matter of time before Daddy gave the company over to me.”
Well, isn’t this a tangled tale. I narrow my gaze, studying the woman before me.
This entire plot is reading like an overwrought soap opera. Back when I was a kid, my mom watchedAll My Children. All Meredith needs is an evil laugh and she’d fit right in with the cast.
I’m not sure what’s truth and what’s not, but I do think Meredith believes her story—it’s the gleam in her blue eyes, the blind ambition, that competitive sneer when she saysher brother.
But in a strange way, I understand her.
Because underneath the saga, isn’t she just jockeying for her place? She saw Caden as a path to get what she wanted and used it. My guess is she’s lived in her brother’s shadow her entire life and saw a way out of the darkness. Now she doesn’t want to let it go.
Can I blame her? I don’t think I can.
“Then what?” I prompt.
“It took some convincing, but Caden came around.” She waves a hand through the air. “He tried to back out a few times, but I explained to him that we were perfect together, and eventually he agreed.”
This part does not sound like Caden at all. I raise a brow. “Was the night he left one of those times?”