The Path to Love

Chapter 59 - Hunter's POV

I've decided I'm magnificent at being the one in charge. The hotel in Italy has been completely redone, I ended up firing over half of the staff because they didn't know how to do their jobs, and now the hotel has been booming in business since the grand reopening.

I did the same thing at the restaurant in Brisbane and the hotel in Auckland. I got the restaurant revamped in Brisbane and fixed the hotel up in Auckland. I ended up terminating the partnerships as well, it was with the same person in both places, so it was easier. Some people just lack simple intelligence when it comes to making money. The trips were taking a lot less time than I thought, I was almost a week ahead of schedule. That just meant more time at Dawson Enterprises, damn.

The pain was becoming more bearable everyday. I don't even know what she was to me, she was my almost. She was almost my future, almost my present, almost my girlfriend, she was my almost and I ruined it, her, and us completely by putting her in danger.

I've come to terms with what I've done, I had to. Sam left me with no choice but to face it. I put her in danger, I risked her life, I had to pay the consequences. The consequences happened to be losing my daughter and her mother. I have to live with that for the rest of my life. I'm not okay with what I did, I wish I could take it back. But, I can't. I made those choices, and now I have to live with it. She's better off without me in their lives. Every choice has a consequence, now I'm just living with what I've chosen. She was my almost and I ruined it. But, what's worse, I ruined her and that is what kills me.

I shook the thoughts from my head and forced myself to look at documents surrounding the sushi restaurant in Texas. I was currently sitting on a plane with my assistant, Angelica. "What do you think should be done in Texas?" I asked her.

"Fire the chef, first of all. There are a lot of bad reviews about his cooking. The restaurant looks aesthetically pleasing, so you don't need to redecorate. I think new staff and that's about it."

"Great, it should only take a few days then. After that, we will be well on our way to Canada."

"I can't believe how fast this trip has gone; I've learned so much."

"You and me both." I replied.

"You're becoming a feared CEO," she said to me.

"What do you mean?" How do you know?" I asked her.

"People are rating you online. They say you mean business and you know what you're doing. People are looking forward to when you become the official CEO of Thomas Enterprises."

"Let me see that," I replied, taking the tablet from her. I started to read the reviews and she was right. Some of the employees I fired wrote that I was scary, customers at some of the places I went to wrote that I knew what I was doing, and I was a good business man. People I terminated my partnership with hated me but made a point to say I knew what I was doing and was definitely going to be successful.

"These are not bad reviews," I said to her.

"Nope, not at all," she replied.

"It's pretty convenient that Thomas Enterprises has their own private jet, it saves a lot of money on plane tickets."

"Yes, but you have to pay the staff to operate the plane," she replied.

"True, true."

"Are you okay?"

"What do you mean?" I asked her.

"You seem like you're throwing yourself into this work. You've only been here a couple months, yet you're travelling all over the world to fix failing businesses. Your eyes gloss over occasionally and you stare into space a lot. It just seems like you are putting yourself through all this work to avoid thinking of something."

"Hmm, I don't think that's really any of your business, do you?"

"No, not at all and I'm sorry for that. I'm just worried, that's all. You seem like a good person and a lot of CEO's are stuck up snobs, and I do not want that to happen to you. I don't want whatever is clouding your mind to turn you into a hateful man."

"I'll be fine." I said to her. "There is just some stuff I have to work through. I made some choices in the past that were not some of the best choices for me or the people that were involved." I decided to be brutally honest with her. "I had a girl best friend, we had been best friends since I was five. We never developed anything romantically, but everyone thought we were dating or that we should have dated. One night, we both got drunk and that led to us spending the night together. She got pregnant. For the first few months, I had no memory of her pregnancy because we had gotten into a car accident that took my memory and she didn't want to tell me she was carrying my child. Once I remembered, we fought, and I got involved in her life. Things slowly start to get better, for a little while. Then, I put her in danger by getting her involved in something I should not have. Then I tried to fix it by risking her life. She told me she never wanted to see me again. I realized that all I would do is keep hurting her and putting her in danger, so I made the choice to leave. I didn't want to, but I had to do what was right for her and our child. I love that woman to death, and I miss her constantly, but this is what is best. I had to do this to protect her and to keep my unborn child safe. Their safety means everything to me."

Once I was done talking, she just stared at me in shock. I guess she wasn't expecting that. When she could finally get her bearings, she looked at me with sorrow and pity in her eyes. I didn't like that. "That is a roller coaster of events that has happened to you. I'm sorry you had to go through all of that."

"I made the choices, now I have to live with the consequences." I stated.

"You're not a bad person, Hunter." I let it slide that she called me by my first name. "Shit happens. Life fucks us all, but you are an honourable man for putting the safety of your best friend and daughter first. You've probably been going back and forth about your choice to leave, but if you think that is what's best for them, then that is probably what's best. Once you feel it is safe to be involved in your daughter's life again, you'll easily be able to find them. You are the future CEO of Thomas Enterprises; you have unlimited funds. Even if you wanted to see them and be with them now, you have the means to keep them safe, no matter what. You look like you could be a good father. Don't let fear chase you away from what will be one of the best experiences of your life."

The rest of the ride was silent as I sat there and pondered over what she said to me. What was I really afraid of? Was I afraid of harm coming to them or was I really afraid of not being able to protect them if something happened? I let those two questions float around in my head for the rest of the flight to Texas.
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Author's Note:

"Don't let fear chase you away  from what will be one of the best experiences of your life."

My favourite quote this far! This quote hit home for me because I was writing this as I was following one of my biggest dreams and I was so scared.

Never let fear plague what you really want.