Page 12 of Patio Lanterns (The Blue Canoe Cottage #1)

Rick

Guilt was one hell of a motivator.

Rick hadn’t heard from Aidan in the nearly two months since their last blow-up about the cottage.

He’d asked his son to come over in the spring to lend him a hand installing patio pavers.

The day had started out fine, but within hours, tempers flared over something so insignificant Rick could scarcely remember what set it off.

Before he knew it, Aidan had stormed away and cut off communication.

Even when Rick had sent his son a text wishing him a happy birthday, it took three days to receive back a terse “Thx”.

Aidan couldn’t even be bothered to spell out the entire word.

Their issues stemmed back long before Rick had moved into the cottage, but it was now the main friction point between them.

The matter was black and white as far as Rick was concerned.

He’d bought the place for himself, and Aidan and his mother Julie got to use it while he lived on the coast. That had always been the deal.

Julie knew it to be true and abided by their agreement, but convincing Aidan of it was an entirely different story.

He dug in his heels, determined to make Rick out to be the bad guy.

And since he’d been back, the hostility between him and his son simmered just below the surface.

But now, Rick knew better than to push. He figured that whenever Aidan was ready to talk, they’d talk.

So he was understandably nervous when Aidan texted him out of the blue, asking if they could meet at the Maple Leaf Lodge that afternoon.

He’d even called him “Dad” in the strangely amicable, single-sentence message, putting Rick’s suspicions on high alert.

Aidan came bearing gifts, a six-pack of them, chilled and frothy. Sitting directly across from one another on the deck, they each pulled back a tab, staring one another down.

“I’ve been working with a developer who’s building new estates on Mirror Bay, Lake Whippoorwill, and over on Davina Island.

He said that in a couple years, this area will be like a summer playground of the stars,” Aidan said excitedly.

“If I buy in now, and get in on this thing from the ground up, I can be planning and building custom cottages directly with A-list clients. I’m talking really big-name celebrities. ”

Rick listened quietly. No doubt Aidan was a talented carpenter.

The renovations he’d started at the Maple Leaf Lodge before Rick had returned were a testament to his impressive work.

But getting into business with someone who had literally promised him the stars?

Already he was suspicious, seeing more red flags than a Moscow parade.

“But I thought you enjoyed doing cottage renovations,” Rick pointed out.

“Yeah, it’s fine. I thought I wanted to be a contractor, but it turns out, what I’m really good at is seeing the bigger picture. That’s why I want to pivot and become a real estate developer.”

“A developer? You sure about that?” Rick questioned. “They’re the ones who buy land and finance the deals, you know.”

“They build too, or at least they bring in builders for their projects. And where I think I have a real leg up on other guys is that I can cut out the middle man and use my construction experience to do project management,” Aidan explained.

“What really turns my crank is being able to take ideas and transform them from paper into properties.”

Funny, because Rick could’ve sworn that it wasn’t all that long ago that Aidan had said what really turned his crank was being able to build something with his own two hands.

“So, what exactly do you need from me?” he asked, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

“I need to come up with a hundred grand to buy-in as a partner,” Aidan admitted, staring down at the table, rolling his beer can between his hands. “I’ve got a little over fifty saved up myself, but could really use the other half.”

Ah, so that was it. He’d come around to make a withdrawal from the Bank of Dad.

“Look,” Aidan said, “I know this is a lot to spring on you, but I have to move fast. I have a meeting lined up with a major client, and I mean major , and want to be able to confidently introduce myself as a company partner.”

“Aidan, I don’t know. Fifty grand is a lot,” Rick tried to reason. “What do you even know about this company or the guy you plan to partner with?”

“I know that he’s a successful businessman like you. And that you both recognize a good opportunity when you see one,” he said. “Trust me, Dad, this is a sure thing.”

That made Rick even more skeptical. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the business world, it’s that there’s no such thing as a sure thing.”

Aidan cleared his throat. “Well, what about me, then? Invest in your son. Help me get my name out there and really build my brand.”

“Your brand?”

“My personal brand. When you’re working with this level of clientele, it’s not the biggest companies that get the work, it’s the ones with the best brands,” Aidan said.

“You’ve got to have a presence on all the socials that boosts your reputation.

That’s how people decide if they want to work with you or not. ”

“Along with having the proven skills and expertise, I presume,” Rick said.

“Of course,” Aidan replied. He framed his hands in front of him as if reading off an invisible marquee. “Don’t just stand out, be outstanding,” he said. “Remember? You taught me that.”

Rick heaved a sigh. He couldn’t shake the feeling that Aidan was about to make a deal with the devil.

It was clear to him that this shady developer had stroked Aidan’s ego, luring him with the promise of cozying up to celebrities on the way to easy street, amassing untold wealth.

Well, sorry to break it to ya kid, but that’s not the way things work in the real world.

At the same time, when your estranged kid appears out of the blue asking his old man for a favour, you do it.

Their relationship was precarious, and maybe giving him the money would be a way to start making amends.

Besides, if Rick didn’t step up, someone else would, and no one knew better than he did that the business world had more than its share of predators ready to sink their teeth into someone so trusting.

Aidan leaned forward on the table. “This isn’t just about the money, you know.”

“It’s not?”

“Of course not. Don’t you think I want to make you proud of me?”

“Son, I am proud of you,” Rick said. “You don’t have to jump into this deal to prove anything to me.”

Aidan pulled back the tab on a fresh can, and it opened with a slow hiss.

“Look, I know this isn’t easy, especially after the way we left things, and I know we still have a lot of bullshit to work through.

But maybe this could be a way to save on therapy and move past all that.

This is a chance for you and me to build something… together.”

Rick needed a moment to collect his thoughts, catch his breath, and get his bearings. He knew he had never been Father of the Year, and the guilt dogged his conscience for not being present in Aidan’s formative years.

Four months after they eloped, he and Julie both realized it was over between them.

They were nineteen and in way over their heads, mutually deciding it would be best to go their separate ways and pursue the lives they wanted.

Rick, a promising wide receiver in university, was eligible for the CFL draft the following year.

Julie wanted to get her master’s in education.

Better to admit their mistake, part as friends, and move on, they figured. No hard feelings.

They had begun proceedings to formally end their union when Julie discovered she was pregnant. A kid? Rick certainly wasn’t ready for fatherhood at twenty. They hadn’t talked about having a family, probably because they didn’t have a snowball’s chance of making it that far anyway.

Although they’d considered staying together, neither one was thrilled with the idea of pumping the brakes on the divorce for the sake of bringing up a kid together under one roof.

Julie had things well in hand with child-rearing, and Rick provided for them financially, sometimes working two jobs in addition to finishing school and playing ball.

Anything Aidan needed, it was his. After all, it was the right thing to do. The only thing Rick knew how to do.

Through the years, he put in some effort to make it up to Aidan, but living four provinces away didn’t exactly help the heart grow fonder.

Rick bought the lakefront cottage with his son in mind, imagining that someday, they’d be swimming and fishing and having meaningful heart-to-hearts by the water’s edge.

But because he chose to stay out on the West Coast building his business, he just never got around to creating those special moments with his son.

Now, Aidan was sitting across from him, offering up a chance to make up for those lost years. Or so he said. One thing was for certain: if Rick had been carrying around his regrets inside him like a keg, then Aidan had just tapped it, twisted it clockwise, and released decades of pent-up guilt.

“Look, Aidan, I admire your ambition, really I do…”

“If things go well, we’ll get to be part of some of the most valuable projects in Muskoka. And with some of the big names attached, it wouldn’t take much to expand this across the country. Who knows? It might even take off into its own series someday. Like a Selling Sunsets in Cottage Country .”

A TV series? If that was seriously his end game, he really did have fucking stars in his eyes.

As if sensing what Rick was thinking, Aidan backtracked. “Look, I know I’m getting ahead of myself. For now, I need help scraping together this partnership payment,” he said. “And don’t worry, I’m still working in the meantime. I haven’t quit my day job yet.”

“Well, that’s a relief,” Rick said. “All the same, I’d like to review your contract first.”

Aidan waved off his father’s concern. “Aw, come on. You don’t have to worry about that. This is all legit.”

“I do worry about that, son. I don’t want it to turn out that someone’s trying to take advantage of you.”

Aidan really had no idea what it was like being stabbed in the back, professionally speaking, the knife cruelly twisted by someone you believed had cared about your best interests.

Rick had started his business after his football career ended abruptly.

That itself was a shock to the system. He had no inkling that he’d been cut from the team until his agent called to break the news the night before training camp.

He’d spent the winter rehabbing his knees, hoping to squeeze one more season out of them.

After giving the team his loyalty and solid locker room leadership for the better part of a decade, after earning respect as a mentor to his younger teammates, after helping them win a Grey Cup, they released him without a courtesy heads-up.

Yet, he picked himself up and channelled his energy into a brand—new endeavour.

He’d always had a head for numbers, some finesse with stocks and investments, and a way with people.

His reputation as a former football star helped him to sign clients and get his company off the ground; a company that grew for twenty years thanks to his own sweat equity.

And then it all came crashing down. Again.

After his trusted partner and friend pulled the rug out from under him, stealing away his opportunity to decide the fate of the business he’d sacrificed everything for, including his relationship with his son.

Rick was still grappling with the after-effects of those betrayals, and never wanted Aidan to suffer the same thing. He would do anything to protect him.

“Look, Dad, I appreciate what you’re saying, but I’ve got it under control,” Aidan told him firmly. “For now, I just need to know if you’re in or out. Can I count on you to have my back?”

“You know that I’ll always have your back, Aidan. But I’m afraid I’m going to need a little more time to think this through.”

“Yeah, sure,” he said, looking a little dejected. “Take whatever time you need.”

Rick exhaled. “I hope you know how happy it makes me that you felt you could talk to me about this. Whether or not we can do some kind of deal, I really want us to keep working on our relationship.”

“I want that too,” Aidan said. “In fact, I was hoping we could start spending more time together.”

Rick smiled. “Yeah, that’d be great.”

“Yeah?” Aidan grinned.

He nodded. “That’s all I’ve ever wanted.”

“Well then, maybe we could start with dinner tonight.”

“I’d love to. You want to go out and grab something or—”

“Actually, I’ve already made plans for us. You know the Blue Canoe Cottage up on the hill?”

“Sure.” Rick shrugged. A few of the neighbours had started maintaining that yard after Micki Pelletier’s husband died suddenly a few years back. When Rick heard that she had been diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer, he volunteered his services too.

“Then you already know that Mrs. Pelletier passed away last year.”

He nodded. “So sad. I didn’t get to know her well, but she was a nice lady,” Rick said. “And I remember hearing how fond she was of you.”

“Mrs. Pelletier always made me feel welcome, like one of the family,” Aidan said softly. “My friend Lark is at the cottage to spread her mother’s ashes.”

“Lark? Seems to me that you two used to be pretty close, weren’t you?”

“We still are,” Aidan said with a smile. “Which is why she invited us to dinner.”

“That was nice of her. But I don’t want to be a third wheel. You two probably have a lot to catch up on.”

“Lark insisted you come. Plus, it’ll finally be a chance for you to meet my oldest and dearest friend.” Aidan rose to his feet. “So, dinner’s at seven. You in?”

Guess it was settled. Rick nodded. “I’ll bring wine.”