Can't Let You Go

***LIAM***

"Good morning?" Testing the waters, I greet Carter when I run into him in the elevator.

Before answering, he gives a quick glance around, "Morning."

The lack of his usual warmth and enthusiasm, confirms he is upset with me. With witnesses, I guess there's not much we can say and he avoids me further by heading straight into his office, though he doesn't close his door.

Taking that as an invitation, I walk freely through his door. "Coffee?" I ask, pausing for an answer that doesn't come. "I made them both flat white because I didn't want to bother with the frother, but one is darker than the other. Which do you prefer?"

Keeping his eyes glued on his monitor he does at least answer this question. "Give me the stronger one."

Setting a mug in front of him, and myself in a chair, I press on. "I hear it's a rare thing to see you in the office."

"I've got meetings with Dad today. We've got a project we need to move quickly on." He finally looks at me. "Was there something you needed to discuss with me?"

"I thought I'd get your opinion on where I'd fit in here until I go back to Korea."

"Have you told the rest of the family that you're only here temporarily?"

"No, I don't want to deal with the nagging and arguments."

"I think it doesn't really matter which department you join. Just pick a job where you're not a nuisance and don't cause trouble if you're not going to be here to clean up the mess."

"I don't want to be underfoot, but I still need to perform well and prove that I can succeed in HH so I can be left in peace to run my own business."

"I can't help you there, I don't have any say in personnel assignments. I don't even get to pick my own assistant. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to finish this document before my meeting."

We hadn't seen each other since I showed up at L' Abri and I wanted to give him a chance to air the grievances he obviously has, but I leave as requested, trusting he'll bring it up himself at some point.

The morning hadn't progressed very far when I'm called into a meeting. Finding another open door, I enter and greet both Carter and his father. "Good morning, Family. You wanted to see me?"

"How are you coming along with studying HH? Got a good idea of everything?"

Putting my hands in my pockets, I rock on my feet. "Mmm. I think so. Most of it anyway."

"Good. I've got something I want you to get involved in."

"Dad," Carter interjects.

Uncle Robert holds his hand up to Carter then returns to me. "Since you've been living abroad these past years, you'll have a different perspective on style and trends. We've got an international project in the works and I'd like to get your opinion as we go. Are you up for it?"

"Sure, I'll take on anything you'd like to assign me to. What's the project?"

"A ski resort in Chile."

My heart drops. I guess I shouldn't be surprised to learn that HH is going after the same job as Savis, but Tally is going through a trial by fire via this bid. The slight twitch in the corner of Carter's mouth is nothing new to me, he's hiding a smirk. He must already know that Savis is one of our competitors.

"How can I help?"

"What do you think the biggest draw is to get customers to visit a particular ski resort?"