The Final Trail: Family Drama Thriller (The Trail Series Book 5) by AA Abbott

Author:AA Abbott [Abbott, AA]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Perfect City Press
Published: 2019-10-28T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20.

Kat

“Sure you want me to taste-test these?” Tim asked, eyeing the new ready-mixed cocktails with concern. “I’m a beer drinker; I don’t have the palate for them.”

“Yes, but you know what sells,” Kat told him. “We’ll use Marty’s office. He’s out.”

Tim grinned. “That will be my office soon.”

“Don’t get too attached to it. It’s the largest room in this industrial unit, so it makes sense to have all our meetings there. You should redecorate as well. You’re handy with a paintbrush. Let’s have an edgy vibe rather than the boring corporate look.”

She gathered a collection of small bottles, placing them on a tray. “Ready?”

Tim nodded. He was more easy-going than Marty. Kat sensed she’d face less of a struggle for resources than in the past. She caught herself daydreaming about a bigger copper still. Three years before, the images drifting through her mind would have been designer dresses.

They left the functional laboratory, a glass-walled space carved out of a corner of the distillery. Tim hailed employees as they passed the distillation equipment and then through the warehouse, stacked high with cartons and crates. Kat noticed a subtle change in her co-workers’ attitudes to him. Before, despite being Marty’s son, he had been accepted as one of them. Now, as the CEO in waiting, he was management. False smiles and an absence of banter greeted them.

Having persuaded Tanya to bring water and glasses, Tim sat at Marty’s birch meeting table. He stretched his legs. “Right. What have you got for me?”

“Seasonal Bellinis. Spring, summer, autumn, winter.” Kat began pouring the sparkling drinks.

“With prosecco, no doubt.”

“Absolutely.”

Tim’s eyebrows arched upwards. “Do I detect Angela’s hand in your latest idea?”

“She may have been involved,” Kat admitted. “We’ve had a few drinks together recently. She’s still keen to host our wedding in her back garden next year.”

Tim winced. “That’s kind of her, but Dad’s retirement changes everything. You and I will be busy. We won’t have time to organise a fancy wedding.”

A sudden chill gripped her. “Are you saying you don’t want to get married?”

“Not at all.” Dismay was written on Tim’s face. He rose to his feet, enveloping her in a hug, lips brushing her head.

His mouth moved swiftly to hers. “Where’s your passport? Let’s just fly somewhere hot, and do it. We don’t need to impress anyone,” he said, between kisses.

“Not this side of Christmas.” Kat suspected he was right. There was no need for a meringue dress and a huge, polite party to impress distant relatives. She didn’t have a family, anyway, apart from Erik. Her estranged mother would never be invited.

She needed time to think about it, though. Tempting as the notion was, she couldn’t abandon the distillery in November, when production was at its peak.

“Vegas gets my vote,” Tim said. “You used to be a croupier. Check out the swanky casinos.”

“Just remember the house always wins,” Kat said. She’d have to ensure he set a limit and stuck to it. There was a risk that, swayed by the glamour of the gaming tables, he’d lose his inheritance.

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