“I guess so. But the thing is, I think I want to move to Hope Island. Make a clean break of it. If I get out of the city I might slow down a bit. Staying in Seattle can only lead me to do things I don’t really want to do. I’d end up back in the office; I can see it now.”
Matt stared at him, mouth open. Wow. This could change everything. Without Ryan there, would Mia want to continue on with the company? It took a couple of seconds for him to form any words in reply. “Well. I wasn’t expecting that. Did you actually say that to Mia in so many words or only hint at it?”
Ryan rubbed his hand over his chin. “Well, I wanted to bring the subject up of me retiring but I need to think about how to handle it better. This is going to hit her hard, no doubt about it. I want to make my decision one that she can live with, so she’s none the wiser about me wanting to move yet.” He clasped his hands together before continuing. “Atticus is coming down shortly to discuss the business. We’re planning on calling a board meeting this week. I’ll do that via Skype so I don’t have to go to Seattle. But, Matt, I wanted you to know so you can be there for Mia.”
“I’m not sure that’s a good idea me hearing any of this. It kind of feels like I’m going behind her back.”
The back screen door opened and his father walked in. “Going behind whose back?”
“Atticus, good morning. I was just telling Matt things are changing and I was keen for him to be in on our conversation.”
His father looked at him from under his bushy eyebrows, a gentle smile on his face. “I agree with Ryan, Matt. You seem to like Mia and she likes you. The poor girl is going to need support when the board meets and I have some other ideas that I’d like to throw into the mix.”
It still didn’t make him feel better. “Fine. But let it be noted that I’m not happy about discussing her behind her back in case it ever comes up.”
Ryan got his attention. “Matt, do you really like my niece? Enough to want to have a relationship with her, not some holiday fling?”
Of course he did. Surely that was obvious. But being asked made him feel like a child. “Yes, I do.”
Ryan ran his finger around the top of the coffee mug and chose his words. “You have to understand how she works. Mia’s always been very driven, even from when she was a tiny child. Such a ball of energy. She found her calling young and put that energy to good use. When her folks died, well, that just kicked it up a notch or two. She had this crazy idea that she had to do better than before and that’s when I stepped in and took over the management of the company. I was there when she made the decision to take it public.” He sighed. “It was a move I was against, but now I think it might have been a good decision.”
“Why do you think that?” Matt poured some coffee for his father and himself and pulled up a stool.
“Because when it happened, it was the only way I could see to get her to slow down. The money was dealt with when the company went public. She’ll never have to work again if she doesn’t want to. She’s famous now, constantly being asked to do spots on television shows or to overhaul some rich person’s home on their own reality show. Mia can do what she wants, but she can’t seem to make herself step away from the business. I think the more famous she gets, the more she feels she has to stick to her guns and take the company to new heights.”
“That’s ridiculous.” Matt couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
“Sad, but it’s true. Success can be addictive, Matt. I don’t think Mia sees it that way though. To her it’s just hard work that she has to do.”
“But what about your health? What about hers?”
“That’s the thing that made me want to step back, as you know. And it’s the reason your father and I want to discuss things, to make the right decision for moving forward. It’s just a shame it took my health scare to start the discussion about what direction the board wants to go.”
“So what are you going to do?”
Atticus and Ryan shared a glance. “Ryan and I have been discussing the idea of selling off the shops, as I mentioned to you already. I’ve been working with the figures before we discuss it with Mia and put it to the rest of the board. We want to restructure as a franchise business. That way the day to day responsibility will fall to the owners of each individual store, much like it does with those hamburger joints you see everywhere.”
Matt nodded. The more he thought about it, the more he decided it was a good idea. “What about management, Ryan? Doesn’t the parent company still oversee a lot of the ideas and monitor things?”
“Yes, generally they do, and this is what started the whole thing. We were approached before I had my heart attack,” Ryan said. “So what we propose is to sell that off too. It isn’t generally done that way because the parent company still makes money off the franchisees. But the thing is, we don’t need that money. As an investor, I’m more than happy to take a payment from dividends each quarter, and that won’t change if we sell off the shops. I don’t need the manager’s salary, nor the stress.”
“So, that leaves the obvious question. What happens to Mia?”
Both men sipped their coffee, suddenly finding the black liquid compelling.
“Dad?”
Ryan held up his hand. “Let me answer that
