Chapter 10 I Sean Reviano

Several Days Ago On Sean Reviano POV …

Sean stared at the phone screen containing texts from his parents that asking when he would be coming home. For a moment, he looked at the employees who were meeting together in the meeting room. He put the phone back in and glanced at Via who was tucking her long hair behind her ear.

Sean's eyes couldn't take his eyes off Via's beautiful face looking down at the report, but his logic prevailed a step until he was relieved to look away.

Slightly clearing his throat, Sean gathered attention. “Where were we?”

“Our hotel rating and review report on the booking room platform, sir. I think ….”

The meeting continued, but Sean's eyes couldn't take his eyes off Via who was explaining about the Luna Star Hotel review report which was slightly down from the previous month.

In the middle of the session, Sean found out that Via was daydreaming. In order to appear professional and not favoritism, Sean rebuked her.

 “Via?”  called Sean as the woman began to lose focus. “Viania Harper!” called him again. 

Until the third call, Via still didn't look up which made Sean a little worried. With a calm face as usual, Sean called Via last time because he was uncomfortable when he started to hear whispering voices from around. 

“Via!”

Via gasped, obviously taken aback that she wasn't listening.  She looked down in shame, which made Sean feel a little guilty.

“Via, I've been calling you. Are you feeling unwell?”

“I haven't been feel well since this afternoon,” Via replied, looking reluctant and continued, “Sorry for disturbing your concentration.”

The mere presence of Via was enough to make Sean lose his concentration, but of course he wouldn't answer that.

“No … no, if you are not strong enough to attend the meeting, you can take a rest.”

“Ask permission if you feel unwell before the meeting begins.” Now he felt worried even though Via said otherwise. Sean's eyes continued to watch Via who was still attending the meeting as he opened the document he just described.  “Back to the meeting, I want us to improve Luna Star's service and….”

 ***

Daren just walked into Sean's study at Luna Star. His friend approached while carrying a pile of documents.

“I heard from aunt that you're going back to Blueberry Hill,” Daren said as he placed the pile of documents on the table.

Sean seemed reluctant to explain, but in the end he just nodded.

“Mom asked me to come home,” he said.  “I'm only at Blueberry for a while, then I'm going to Michigan to finish a project which Dad gave me two years ago.”

Daren's face seemed interested in joining.

“I want to join in too.”

One sharp glance from Sean was able to silence Daren's mouth which had no brakes.

“You think I want to work on that project? Even Luna Star still needs guidance, my Dad wants to build a new hotel in Michigan. I told him to hold off until Luna Star stabilized, he flatly refused.  What a stubborn old man!” Sean muttered as he read the documents that Daren brought one by one.

“Isn't that a playground project?” Now Daren was confused by the change of plans. “Since when did it turn into a hotel?”

Sean closed the document he was reading and looked back at Daren.

“Ever since Nicko Anderson announced he'd be building a playground not far from where my dad had planned it.”

This time Sean couldn't hide his annoyance. His usual calm face turned cloudy.

“Oh my, you can build in a new place.”

“It's not that easy, doing re-research will only add to the cost. Plus I don't want to have anything to do with the mafia.”

Remembering that Nicko Anderson was part of the Italian mafia was no easy feat, and Sean knew the consequences of dealing with people like them.

“I'm hungry, let's eat out,” Daren whined which gave Sean a headache.

Sean put back the paperwork he almost signed, but considering that fussy Daren was more annoying than finishing the pile of paperwork, he decided to have lunch before his time.

***

“Where are you taking me?”  Sean asked as soon as they reached the shopping center.

“My favorite bakery, you insisted to be invited here. Did you forget?”

Hearing the word bakery, Sean came out first, making Daren chuckle.  He didn't understand why his best friend liked to visit every bakery in town.

Sean first arrived in the shop, he looked around carefully, like a team of appraisers who paid attention to every detail of the building.

“Hey, we're here to buy not to poke holes in every wall,” Daren whispered as they were glared at by the shopkeeper.

As if he didn't care, Sean shrugged his shoulders as he continued his original assessment. He even paid close attention to every menu on display. Throwing a lot of questions about the basic ingredients of the pastries there, made Daren feel bad for the shopkeeper.

“Are you buying or are you planning a new business?” To Daren the last question made more sense.

“What do you think is the success percentage of a bakery business of this size?” Sean asked suddenly, Daren was about to answer when Sean answered the question himself. “I think it's quite profitable with the right exposure. After all, she also doesn't care if her cakes sells or not.”

 Now it was Daren who was confused.

 “Who?”

Sean waved his hand in the air, ignoring the question just now and then innocently ordering the many cakes that were on display in the display case. Almost all as a sample.

“Just say you don't want to talk, don't wave your hand impolitely,” Daren snorted as he hit Sean's hand which was still in the air.

With a satisfied smile, Sean looked at Daren while carrying groceries.

“Let me know when you find a new shop,” he said as he walked away leaving Daren who hadn't ordered anything.

***

Sean replied messages from his mother one by one. He let her know when he would arrive at Blueberry Hill.

As he was about to leave the room, his phone rang. He thought his mother was calling, without looking at the caller Id, Sean picked up the call.

“Hello,” he said.

“Hello, Sean. It's me Eve. I heard from your aunt that you are coming home, why not tell me?”  Evelyn asked in her usual spoiled voice.

Sean laughed at that and refused to leave the room.

“Sorry, I thought you were very busy. I'll be home in two days, we'll just meet there. Right now I'm very busy Eve,” explained Sean not wanting to keep his subordinates waiting in the meeting room. He looked at his watch which showed that the meeting was about to start. “I'll call when I have time,” Sean offered, which Evelyn did not accept.

“Can't you tell them to wait? It feels like we haven't spoken in a long time,” the girl whispered from the other side.

“I can't, Eve. Respect their time, I can't just cancel a meeting just because you want to talk.”  It sounded harsh, but Sean didn't want Evelyn to get used to it.

From the tone of her voice, Sean could hear her frowning.

“Alright, understanding CEO. Call me when you have time, okay?”

Sean laughed at the joke. He agreed before finally disconnecting.

Sean had just opened the door when his personal secretary suddenly called out in a cheerful voice that made Sean frown.

“Sir, a package just arrived!” shout the woman as she jogged around in high heels that made a noise when they hit the floor.

Sean's face brightened when he remembered the diamond ring he ordered that arrived today. His hands quickly took the package from Altha's outstretched grip.

“Thank you,” he said with a perfect smile, unconsciously making the woman in front of him flabbergasted with wide eyes.

Impatient, Sean opened the box and saw that the diamond ring he had designed himself had taken shape. It was as elegant as he imagined it would be, even more perfect than the picture he had painted. His steps were so light as he walked into the meeting room, even though the smile didn't fade on Sean's face because of a ring in his trouser pocket.