The Lies I Believed

Yet To Come

"You guys didn't have to be here. I could have handled it all on my own."

"I begged to be here, Lexi. I'm not leaving you again."

"And it's an honor to be here. I didn't know you wanted me to take part in the grand opening."

"I wanted you to live a comfortable life with your son. Bad hours and children don't mix."

Lara smiled and hooked her arm through mine. "I'm going to be with you every step of the way. We're like family, at this point. We've seen each other struggle too much to say we're strangers."

"To help you out, we've already interviewed women who've shown an interest in the therapy world." Dawn said. "If you hadn't promised me a position once you got your building, I would be roaming with no one to give me orders."

"You're a good person to have around. I trust you a lot more than I did when all that went down."

We all stared up at the building in satisfaction. The interior was fully furnished with central air and heating. I couldn't ask for anything more perfect. It was small, but everyone has to start somewhere. I plan on buying another floor, if all goes well within our first three months of opening. I don't want to get overly excited and mess something up.

Lara ended up leaving Palm Springs just a few weeks after I returned home. We spoke constantly about where she would live and who could be trusted to watch her son after school and on weekends. We discussed vacation days and weekend getaways. I wasn't about to have her leave a good position for another position without the works.

Dawn wouldn't leave me alone about continuing to work for me. After I'd gotten settled in Manhattan years ago, she came to me and begged to help her out. I was still angry about what she'd done with Cameron, but I can never hold a grudge for that long. She brought up some good points and ended up helping me find the best buildings with moderate foot traffic.

"How far along did you get in the interview process?" I asked Dawn.

"I've already hired some women and Lara has been training them."

"Right now, I'm thinking we should see how our first three months go before I buy two more floors."

"That's a good idea." Lara nodded.

"Make sure everyone knows we only offer Humanistic Therapy, Sauna Therapy, and the occasional Marriage Therapy class."

"Just sent the chat a text..." Dawn muttered. "They should all be here within the next hour, so we can discuss what needs to be done for our first week."

"Okay." I clapped my hands. "We have till noon to make sure everyone knows what they're doing. The doorman will be here to welcome the guests and sign them in. I have a receptionist in mind, but she won't be here until next Friday."

"I can step in for that," Lara said. "I know a thing or two to keep things running smoothly."

"What's our facility capacity?"

"150 people and that's excluding employees. You requested to have two personal saunas, one couples sauna, and three large group saunas. They are being prepared for a test run now. After our first week, guests will have to make appointments for the smaller saunas."

"After months of planning and knocking down walls, I can't believe we're ready to make ourselves known to the world." I sighed in content.

"I invited a few reporters to give you a head start on publicity. I hope you don't mind." Dawn looked at me. I shrugged. "I promise you they won't dig into your past and make a mountain out of a molehill."