Page 2 of One Hot Summer
Chapter Two
GRIFFIN
“ J esus, Griffin, you still at it?” Collin’s voice cut through the silence before his body even crossed the threshold. He dropped a thick folder onto my desk with a thump, nearly upending my coffee. I caught the cup before disaster struck and glared at him over the rim.
“Ever think about knocking?” I grumbled.
“Ever think about going home at a reasonable hour? I mean it, Griff. When’s the last time you got out of here while it was still light out?”
“I was out at noon today. I had that lunch meeting, remember? The heat was unbearable. Zero out of ten, do not recommend,” I quipped.
His eyes narrowed, unamused. “Fine. When was the last time you did anything other than work?”
“We landed Devereaux,” I said, as if that explained everything. “Two hours ago. I was just wrapping up the postmortem and then I promise, I’ll go home.”
Collin gave a low whistle and shook his head. “You’re impossible. Most people would pop a bottle of champagne. You look like you’re prepping for an audit.”
I gave him the closest thing to a smile I could muster. “I guess I’m just not ‘most people.’ ”
He dropped into the chair across from me, propping his feet up on the edge of my desk and making himself at home. His hair was rumpled and his tie askew, but he still looked about ten years younger than me even though we were the exact same age.
Collin was more than just my business partner; he was also my oldest and best friend.
We had met our freshman year of college where we both were majoring in business.
The two of us couldn’t have been more different at that time.
He was a typical college kid, partying too much and sleeping with a different girl every night.
I, on the other hand, was taking a full course load, working full-time at a distribution warehouse at night, and doing my best to provide for my new wife and infant son.
We shouldn’t have had anything in common, but the first time we’d gotten teamed up for a project, something just clicked.
We discovered we had similar ideas and work ethics, and we shared a common goal: to one day run our own successful business.
We worked hard, both of us putting in the time and effort needed to make our dream a reality and now, here we were, one of the top marketing firms in New York City.
But while Collin had managed to find the love of his life and settle down, I had ended up divorced and alone.
He fixed me with a pointed stare. “Listen, you helped build this company from scratch. You’re allowed to enjoy it sometimes. Or at the very least, leave before the cleaning crew starts assuming you live here.”
I rotated the coffee cup in my hands. “Don’t get melodramatic. I’m fine. Just trying to stay on top of things.”
“You’re not fine. You’re a hair’s breadth from exhaustion taking over. Face it, you’re burning out.”
Those words hit harder than I wanted to admit, even to myself. I set the mug down, folded my hands. “I don’t have time for burnout.”
He snorted. “Nobody does, but it catches up to you anyway. Seriously, Griff, it’s starting to show. Even Mel in HR was asking if you were ‘going through something.’ ”
“Somebody has to stay on top of all of this,” I argued. “You have Sandy and the twins. They need you at home at night. But I don’t have anyone waiting for me,” I finished quietly, the words tasting bitter on my tongue.
My friend’s expression softened. “I know, man. But that doesn’t mean you have to live here. You used to make time for vacations.”
“Yeah, back when I had a family.”
“You still have a family. You’ve got me and Sandy, and you’ve got your son,” he reminded me.
“I know,” I answered quietly. It wasn’t that I didn’t appreciate my friends.
He and Sandy had taken care of me after the divorce, having me over for dinner more times than I could count and making sure I didn’t spend too much time by myself.
I would always be grateful, but it wasn’t the same.
At the end of the day, the two of them had each other and their little boys, but my son was in college now. When I went home, I had… no one.
“Besides, we have an incredible team here who’ve been with us for years. They know the business inside and out. This place could practically run itself at this point.”
I sighed, rubbing a hand over my face. The stubble on my jaw reminded me I hadn’t shaved in days. “What do you want me to do, Collin? Go home to an empty condo and stare at the walls?”
“I want you to take a break before you completely burn out. When’s the last time you took some time for yourself?
” I rolled my eyes, but he ignored it, continuing on.
“Look. I’m not asking you to join a yoga retreat or anything.
Just… take a couple of weeks off. Seriously.
I’ll cover the Cambria pitch. You know I’m the only one who can deal with those lunatics anyway. ”
I tried to picture Collin running the meeting. It actually made me smile, just a little. He had a way of charming people even when he wasn’t trying. “And what am I supposed to do with myself, exactly?” I asked, rubbing my thumb along the grain of the desk. “Book a cruise? Go to a spa retreat?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. Just go somewhere. Anywhere. You’re a fucking millionaire. Maybe it’s time you enjoy some of the fruits of your labor for a change.”
A vision of my cabin in the mountains at sunrise flickered behind my eyes—clear blue skies, towering fir trees.
I hadn’t set foot in that place in three summers, when Dalton convinced me to spend a weekend together before he started his freshman year at NYU.
After his mom and I split, the cabin felt…
hollow. But it was better than the alternative, which was staying here and drowning in work and takeout containers.
I gave him a look. “You’ll really handle Cambria?”
The corners of his mouth turned up. He knew he was about to get his way. “I’ve got it covered, no problem.”
I hesitated, my eyes drifting to the stack of files on my desk. But Collin was right, I needed a break. With a sigh, I pushed back from my desk and stood up.
“Alright, alright. I’ll go. But if anything major comes up?—”
“It’s my company too. I’ll take care of things here,” he interrupted firmly. “Now go. Relax. Recharge those batteries.”
I gathered my things, feeling oddly unsettled as I prepared to leave the office so early.
As I headed for the door, Collin called after me.
“And, Griff? Try to have some fun, would you?” I waved him off, but his words stuck with me as I rode the elevator down to the parking garage.
When was the last time I’d actually had fun? I couldn’t remember.
The drive home was a blur of taillights and neon signs. I barely noticed the city around me, my mind already racing ahead to the cabin. What would I even do there for two weeks? The idea of relaxation felt foreign, almost uncomfortable.
I pulled into the parking garage of my building and took the elevator up to my condo. As soon as I stepped inside, the silence hit me like a physical force. I’d lived here for years, but it had never felt like home. It was just a place to sleep between long days at the office.
I moved through the rooms, turning on lights as I went.
The place was immaculate; thanks to the cleaning service I employed.
But it was also impersonal, more like a high-end hotel suite than a home.
The furniture was sleek and modern; all metal and glass.
Not really my style, but that’s what happens when you let an interior decorator design your home instead of picking out items yourself.
With a sigh, I headed to my bedroom. I pulled out a suitcase and started tossing in clothes without much thought.
Jeans, shorts, T-shirts, a couple of button-downs just in case.
As I packed, I called Dalton, wanting to let him know I’d be gone from the city.
It went straight to voicemail, as expected.
He was probably knee-deep in some humanitarian project, making the world a better place, one village at a time.
“Hey, son, it’s Dad. Just wanted to let you know I’m heading up to the cabin for a couple of weeks. Your Uncle Collin is forcing me to take a break.” I chuckled softly then paused, unsure what else to say. “Anyway, call me if you need anything. Love you.”
I tossed my phone onto the bed and finished packing, throwing in some hiking boots and swim trunks as an afterthought.
Over a quick dinner of cold Chinese leftovers, I booked a flight for the next morning.
With the exhaustion of the day creeping in, I took a shower then climbed into bed where I quickly passed out.
If there’s one thing I could count on in this city, it was that even at 6:00 a.m., there would be traffic.
Fortunately, I made it to the airport on time and boarded my flight with a few minutes to spare.
The flight was mercifully short, and before I knew it, I was picking up my rental car at the Knoxville airport.
As I drove down the winding mountain roads, memories of past trips here with Dalton flooded back.
We used to spend a week every summer up here, Dalton and Sherry and me, hiking during the day, sitting out under the stars at night.
But that was before everything fell apart.
I pushed the painful thoughts back into the box where I usually kept them and locked it up tight. If I was going to spend my vacation depressed, I might as well have stayed in the city. Besides, I’d promised Collin to relax and have fun, and I was going to try my best.