Day 105: Tales Of Poignant Winery Reunions And Brutal Business Dealings
Day 105: Tales Of Poignant Winery Reunions And Brutal Business Dealings
Day 105 Of How To Move On From A Man — 1LD
If you’re new here to 1 Lovelock Drive, welcome! Let me fill you in on what you’ve missed.
I’m Andie and my ex, Douglas, dumped me. This is my break-up, so to speak. Douglas is a power player in Melbourne, worth more than I could ever comprehend.
I have no idea why we broke up.
I work and live at 1 Lovelock Drive. There, my best friend James and I are building Highway, our unisex clothing line. Our two other best friends, GG and Sophia, are investors.
GG is dating Douglas’ brother, Taylor. Awkward.
I’ve recently discovered my ex has bought a controlling stake in our business. But I had to find that out the hard way!
“The pinot noir?”
Sophia nodded and the waitress, donned in the classic Innocent Bystander uniform, put the glass down in front of her.
“And the prosecco must be yours?”
I was grateful for the drink. We both were. Up until the food and drinks arrived, we were making impersonal small talk. Weather. Hangovers. Work. The Yarra Valley.
Nothing to do with what we came here to talk about. It was torture, considering all that I knew and all I needed to confront Sophia about.
But once the pleasantries were over I couldn’t hold my tongue any longer.
“I know about the buyout.”
Sophia didn’t even pretend to look surprised. She had led me down this path, in her own weird way. It was only a matter of time before I finished putting all the pieces together.
“Ok. How much do you know?”
“Almost everything, I believe. I know that James facilitated a new investor, a majority investor, who is controlling the direction of the business. I know everyone’s shares have shrunk, as well as creative direction. And I know that Taylor Gallo has also bought himself a share, too.”
Sophia sipped on her wine. “Do you know who this majority investor is?”
I nodded then shook my head.
“I know the name of the holdings. No one can seem to tell me who the mastermind behind it is. Black River Holdings. That’s the name.”
“I’m surprised you couldn’t find any information on it.”
I couldn’t tell if Sophia was mocking me or not. For someone screwing me over behind my back, you would have thought she would act a little less smug. Or, maybe, I was really that dumb. I certainly felt it.
“I only found it out yesterday. Time hasn’t exactly been my friend. No one has.”
Sophia looked down. I could see her lip quivering.
“It wasn’t my idea. Yet, when it came down to it, everyone said it’s business and not personal.” Cliche, right? “You wouldn’t have gone along with the deal if you knew who was behind Black River Holdings. And then we wouldn’t have had the backing we need to take Highway to where it deserved.”
“So I was holding you back? Me?” Silence. “Just say it.”
“Fine. You were holding us back. No, correction. Your break up was holding us back.”
“My break up?”
Why did everything lately have to go back to that man? Why could I not get rid of him? I just wanted to be free. It was too much to ask. “What the fuck does my break-up have to do with our business?”
“Where are we? Right now? Look around you.”
“We’re at Innocent Bystander.”
“And that is…?” “A winery.” I paused. “A good winery.” I paused again, watching Sophia stare through me. “The winery where I had my first secret date with Douglas. So?”
“Come on, Andie. Put it together. You brought me here, like the way he brought you here.”
Fucking Douglas Gallo.
You’re reading The Andie Chronicles, the 2023 romance-fiction series from the 1 Lovelock Drive (1LD) universe.