Page 107 of Power Move

“Thanks for coming to get me,” she said as the driver headed towards Shoreditch.

“Of course. I’m sorry about your dog, Eva. If I couldn’t be there for her…it would be hard.”

“It’s awful. Mona took everything—she needed to win. It was alwayshermoney,herhouse,herplans, andherpriorities. Speaking with her today, it rang louder than ever. We were pleasant, but she initially accused me of stealing the straws she believes she paid for.”

“Straws?”

“Sperm. We had one last straw left in our arsenal from our donor when I miscarried. The first thing she told me when we met post-breakup to divvy things up was she didn’t want me to use that straw. It hurt— a lot. It’s gross to think I had such a good five years with her. Was it even the truth or just control?”

I squeezed Eva’s hand. “I think she still cares about you, butbreakups are messy, Eva. They bring out the worst in us. Even the best people can sink to new lows during a divorce. I watched my sister lose herself while Chandler dug in low enough to leak a sex tape. He was never my favorite person, but I didn’t see that coming.”

“Sadly, it didn’t surprise me,” Eva sighed, resting her head on my shoulder.

“I think you can love the good parts as much as you feel the pain of being blindsided,” I admitted. “When Dad died, I struggled to deal with any of the good memories. I was so broken over the loss and taking over the responsibilities of the family that I reacted erratically and with anger. People saw me as the villain—especially Daphne. I don’t blame her, but that wasn’t the goal.”

“What do you mean?”

“I hid all the pictures in my office of the family because I couldn’t see Dad smiling and us all happy without crying. I hate to admit that, but it’s the truth.”

“Davey, that’s heartbreaking, but understandable.”

I loved the sweetness in her face now.

“Grieving something… it’s not linear. I wanted to hurt everyone around me to feel anything,” I said. “And I regret it now. I even tried to kick Cal’s ass.”

“What?” Eva laughed.

“Daphne ended up injured after falling off his sister’s horse. Cal brought her home, and I found out not only were they fucking but that Dad wanted him to take over the company instead of me. I was a third choice—Daphne, then Cal, and finally me. I saw red. In the end, we worked it out. I’m still a little salty. We’ve always been competitors, you know? There’s no way around it.”

“I hate my brother-in-law, so I have no place to talk. Now, fill me in. I’ve been so distracted. I apologize. What is going on with this company?”

“In my attempts to expand our sustainable developmentempire,” I explained, “we’re courting a company developing a unique insulation solution. I want it so we can control its use in the U.S. Market. It’s a nice feather in the cap, but the owner is a fucking narcissist.”

“So, what, I’m here to be a buffer?”

“You’ll be a lovely help. He’s a techie. You’ll do great, baby.”

“You really think that?”

“I know that,” I said. “Eva, you’re my partner in crime if you want to be.”

29.TRAINSPOTTING

Davey

Eva excelledwhen she could talk authoritatively about tech solutions. The meeting with Pimm, our acquisition contact, was her time to shine. After some coaching, the asshole agreed to the redlines, scheduling a time to sign in the morning.Success!Papers sorted, we went back to Daphne’s, and I tucked her in bed. She’d given so much emotionally and intellectually, I couldn’t expect anything more out of her for the rest of the trip.

We woke the next morning, heading to a highly recommended breakfast spot. Eva was quiet, still held in jet lag’s chokehold. Despite this, she offered to join me on a voyage to a platform at Gatwick. I never expected her to come, but she took a coffee to go and sat waiting for a train.

“You really must be bored,” I looked down the line.

“The weather isn’t bad, and I need to be awake,” Eva said. “Now what is this train and why the fuck are we here just to see it?”

“It’s a 73/9. It’s super rare. They’re using it on the rear of a train to move new cars. I heard it would be here in approximately ten minutes.”

“What is a 73/9?”

“A locomotive.”