Chapter Eight
"Och, tis beautiful country. Ye would love it; rolling green hills, sky that stretches on forever. Really n truly God's country."
"Ye must have loved growing up there." Rhianna commented with a warm smile.
Brian Flaherty's face grew wistful. "Aye, that I did. Not that we didn't have our troubles. Me da died when I was very young and it was just Mum to raise the seven of us, the best she could."
"Seven?! I can't imagine what it must have been like. I mean, Sean and I were trouble enough for our da and he had servants to raise us. How did your mother manage it?" Rhianna asked earnestly while taking another bite of her lunch.
"Well, we helped, best we could. The seven of us just kinda looked after each other."
"Sounds like a very close-knit family."
Brian smiled deeply, his brown eyes twinkling warmly. "Aye, that we were. Still are, actually. Although at the time I did hate it. See I was born smack dab in the middle of the seven; I got it on both sides. On the one hand, the older kids had all the freedom while the younger kids got all the attention. I used to feel so invisible, like no one cared about me. But of course that was hardly the case. Ah the perception of youth." Brian laughed and Rhianna joined in.
She had grown to love these daily lunch breaks of theirs. They had suddenly started when one day Rhianna decided to leave the factory for a bit of fresh air. She had found the foreman under an old oak tree in the grassy lot adjacent to the factory. He had invited her to lunch with him and they enjoyed their time together so much that it became an unspoken arrangement that they would take their breaks together.
At first they had talked mainly of business. Brian kept her abreast of the factory's status. He also taught her a few things that he knew about business, for she still had much to learn. But soon their talk had turned to family and relationships and other light topics.
Rhianna was surprised to learn that Brian, as a young man in his mid 20's, was still unmarried and unattached. She couldn't fathom how such a nice, charming and good-looking man as he could still be single, and told him as much.
She smiled to see the deep pink blush on his tanned cheeks. "I don't know." He replied seriously. "I guess I just haven't found the right woman." He added with a meaningful gaze into Rhianna's green eyes.
She hastily averted her eyes. His weighted statement had thrown her emotions for a loop. It was becoming clear from his tender treatment toward her that he had feelings for her. and she was almost certain that she cared for him as well. He was young, good looking with a warm, generous spirit. She so enjoyed being around him. He made her feel happy, safe.
Unlike that Sheamus Brady. When she was around him she felt anything but safe. Not that she feared him, exactly. On the contrary he had managed to come to her rescue twice now. No, it was herself she feared. She feared the things that Sheamus made her feel.
At sixteen, she had done a great deal of growing and maturing in a short period of time. But she was still very much a child; innocent of the knowledge of men and sex. And that's why she feared Sheamus. He made her feel funny inside, unlike the innocent crushes of her youth. This was deeper, stronger, with the power to possibly destroy her. Changes were taking place, deep inside her. And they terrified her.
Rhianna abruptly brought herself out of her thoughts. {Why are ye thinking about that arrogant, infuriating, egotistical man? The only thing ye feel is pure, red-hot anger.} She thought about his mocking blue eyes that sometimes smoldered with intensity. She thought about his well toned and tanned body and his wild blond hair. She thought about the way her heart raced whenever they were in the same room.
She thought about how she never seemed to know quite what was going through his mind. At first he had been mocking and condescending. But since last night he had changed. He smiled at her, opened doors for her, complimented her ideas. He seemed to go out of his way to charm her - and she could tell that something was up his sleeve.
Rhianna turned her attention back to her companion. This was why she enjoyed being with Brian so much. He didn't play games with her. He was just his sweet, kind, funny self. Their growing relationship was nice, comfortable.
Besides as she reminded herself, the whole thing was pointless. In ten months she would be married to Mr. Dimera and that would be the end of it. Rhianna brought herself out of her reverie and smiled sweetly at Brian. They resumed their conversation and laughed and talked the rest of the break.
Sheamus groaned and rolled his shoulders to loosen the tense muscles. He was halfway through what was shaping up to be an especially long and hard day. It had been hard due to last minute preparations to ensure that the shipment would be ready on time. Long because his mind had raced non-stop the entire day. He replayed the information he had learned last night over and over in his head. He shook his head in disbelief. The chance he had been waiting for almost his entire life was now in front of him. Rhianna was the key.
He looked around at the factory in awe. {This is her dowry. And the man who marries her gets it all.} Fire burned in his blood as he thought about the possibilities. Finally the chance to run the company. Not just run it - own it. Finally the chance to show everyone what he could do. To restore Cassidy's to its former glory, and beyond.
He looked again at the factory. He noticed the peeling paint, the cracks in the walls, the leaking pipes. The same dangerous equipment that had killed his father. There was so much that needed to be done. The factory was in need of serious maintenance and repair. But first it would have to begin really making a profit. But he knew he could do it if given the chance.
He glanced out the window and saw Rhianna lunching with the foreman. She was his chance. He frowned when she laughed deeply at one of Brian's statements. {She has a suitor.} he remembered. {Could it be him? He probably wants the factory too.} His stomach twisted in bile at the thought of someone wanting to use Rhianna just to get her factory. {Isn't that what you're trying to do?} he reminded himself. "So I have a little competition." He muttered aloud. "No big deal. Once I turn on the charm - she'll be all mine. Along with the factory."
He paused for a moment and imagined married life with the feisty redhead. He imagined the emerald fire that would blaze in her eyes when they fought. He imagined the furious blush on her cheeks - the haughty toss of her wavy long hair. He imagined the fun they would have "making up" afterwards.
{Hmmm. Could be interesting.} He shrugged his shoulders and threw himself back into his work.
Hours later, he stretched his tired arm muscles and looked over at the stacked crates of parts ready for shipment. He smiled with pride at the sight. Their first shipment - since Lord Cassidy's death and since Rhianna took over the reins. He was especially proud of this shipment because he had been the one to convince their reticent customers to place an order with the Cassidy's instead of going to the competition.
For this reason the shipment was extremely important. It would reestablish their customers' trust in Cassidy's. Or destroy it utterly if there were something wrong with the parts, or if the shipment did not arrive on time.
Sheamus looked at the crates and was suddenly struck with the urge to open them, to perform a quality check on the parts. He hesitated though, momentarily. To go behind the backs of the quality control inspectors and recheck the parts himself would be a serious insult to them. Like saying he didn't trust them to do their jobs.
But he had to check them. He had personally sold the parts - many of them to people he knew. His professional reputation was on the line - not to mention everyone's jobs at the factory. He would just have to be.discreet.
He had just finished inspecting two crates and was cracking the lid on the third. He peered into the crate and his blood froze.
Rhianna rubbed her tired, red eyes. The numbers on her balance sheet had begun to blur and dance before her.
"Aaarrgh!" she gritted in frustration. Something was still off with the books - and it went back quite a while. Years, in fact. At this point she honestly didn't know if it were the books or just her.
{Well, ye're not gonna find it tonight. Go home'n get some rest.} She pulled on her coat and was just going to call and see if Sheamus was ready to leave when he bust into the office, his pale face a portrait of barely controlled panic. His words took her breath away.
"There's something wrong with the shipment."
"Och, tis beautiful country. Ye would love it; rolling green hills, sky that stretches on forever. Really n truly God's country."
"Ye must have loved growing up there." Rhianna commented with a warm smile.
Brian Flaherty's face grew wistful. "Aye, that I did. Not that we didn't have our troubles. Me da died when I was very young and it was just Mum to raise the seven of us, the best she could."
"Seven?! I can't imagine what it must have been like. I mean, Sean and I were trouble enough for our da and he had servants to raise us. How did your mother manage it?" Rhianna asked earnestly while taking another bite of her lunch.
"Well, we helped, best we could. The seven of us just kinda looked after each other."
"Sounds like a very close-knit family."
Brian smiled deeply, his brown eyes twinkling warmly. "Aye, that we were. Still are, actually. Although at the time I did hate it. See I was born smack dab in the middle of the seven; I got it on both sides. On the one hand, the older kids had all the freedom while the younger kids got all the attention. I used to feel so invisible, like no one cared about me. But of course that was hardly the case. Ah the perception of youth." Brian laughed and Rhianna joined in.
She had grown to love these daily lunch breaks of theirs. They had suddenly started when one day Rhianna decided to leave the factory for a bit of fresh air. She had found the foreman under an old oak tree in the grassy lot adjacent to the factory. He had invited her to lunch with him and they enjoyed their time together so much that it became an unspoken arrangement that they would take their breaks together.
At first they had talked mainly of business. Brian kept her abreast of the factory's status. He also taught her a few things that he knew about business, for she still had much to learn. But soon their talk had turned to family and relationships and other light topics.
Rhianna was surprised to learn that Brian, as a young man in his mid 20's, was still unmarried and unattached. She couldn't fathom how such a nice, charming and good-looking man as he could still be single, and told him as much.
She smiled to see the deep pink blush on his tanned cheeks. "I don't know." He replied seriously. "I guess I just haven't found the right woman." He added with a meaningful gaze into Rhianna's green eyes.
She hastily averted her eyes. His weighted statement had thrown her emotions for a loop. It was becoming clear from his tender treatment toward her that he had feelings for her. and she was almost certain that she cared for him as well. He was young, good looking with a warm, generous spirit. She so enjoyed being around him. He made her feel happy, safe.
Unlike that Sheamus Brady. When she was around him she felt anything but safe. Not that she feared him, exactly. On the contrary he had managed to come to her rescue twice now. No, it was herself she feared. She feared the things that Sheamus made her feel.
At sixteen, she had done a great deal of growing and maturing in a short period of time. But she was still very much a child; innocent of the knowledge of men and sex. And that's why she feared Sheamus. He made her feel funny inside, unlike the innocent crushes of her youth. This was deeper, stronger, with the power to possibly destroy her. Changes were taking place, deep inside her. And they terrified her.
Rhianna abruptly brought herself out of her thoughts. {Why are ye thinking about that arrogant, infuriating, egotistical man? The only thing ye feel is pure, red-hot anger.} She thought about his mocking blue eyes that sometimes smoldered with intensity. She thought about his well toned and tanned body and his wild blond hair. She thought about the way her heart raced whenever they were in the same room.
She thought about how she never seemed to know quite what was going through his mind. At first he had been mocking and condescending. But since last night he had changed. He smiled at her, opened doors for her, complimented her ideas. He seemed to go out of his way to charm her - and she could tell that something was up his sleeve.
Rhianna turned her attention back to her companion. This was why she enjoyed being with Brian so much. He didn't play games with her. He was just his sweet, kind, funny self. Their growing relationship was nice, comfortable.
Besides as she reminded herself, the whole thing was pointless. In ten months she would be married to Mr. Dimera and that would be the end of it. Rhianna brought herself out of her reverie and smiled sweetly at Brian. They resumed their conversation and laughed and talked the rest of the break.
Sheamus groaned and rolled his shoulders to loosen the tense muscles. He was halfway through what was shaping up to be an especially long and hard day. It had been hard due to last minute preparations to ensure that the shipment would be ready on time. Long because his mind had raced non-stop the entire day. He replayed the information he had learned last night over and over in his head. He shook his head in disbelief. The chance he had been waiting for almost his entire life was now in front of him. Rhianna was the key.
He looked around at the factory in awe. {This is her dowry. And the man who marries her gets it all.} Fire burned in his blood as he thought about the possibilities. Finally the chance to run the company. Not just run it - own it. Finally the chance to show everyone what he could do. To restore Cassidy's to its former glory, and beyond.
He looked again at the factory. He noticed the peeling paint, the cracks in the walls, the leaking pipes. The same dangerous equipment that had killed his father. There was so much that needed to be done. The factory was in need of serious maintenance and repair. But first it would have to begin really making a profit. But he knew he could do it if given the chance.
He glanced out the window and saw Rhianna lunching with the foreman. She was his chance. He frowned when she laughed deeply at one of Brian's statements. {She has a suitor.} he remembered. {Could it be him? He probably wants the factory too.} His stomach twisted in bile at the thought of someone wanting to use Rhianna just to get her factory. {Isn't that what you're trying to do?} he reminded himself. "So I have a little competition." He muttered aloud. "No big deal. Once I turn on the charm - she'll be all mine. Along with the factory."
He paused for a moment and imagined married life with the feisty redhead. He imagined the emerald fire that would blaze in her eyes when they fought. He imagined the furious blush on her cheeks - the haughty toss of her wavy long hair. He imagined the fun they would have "making up" afterwards.
{Hmmm. Could be interesting.} He shrugged his shoulders and threw himself back into his work.
Hours later, he stretched his tired arm muscles and looked over at the stacked crates of parts ready for shipment. He smiled with pride at the sight. Their first shipment - since Lord Cassidy's death and since Rhianna took over the reins. He was especially proud of this shipment because he had been the one to convince their reticent customers to place an order with the Cassidy's instead of going to the competition.
For this reason the shipment was extremely important. It would reestablish their customers' trust in Cassidy's. Or destroy it utterly if there were something wrong with the parts, or if the shipment did not arrive on time.
Sheamus looked at the crates and was suddenly struck with the urge to open them, to perform a quality check on the parts. He hesitated though, momentarily. To go behind the backs of the quality control inspectors and recheck the parts himself would be a serious insult to them. Like saying he didn't trust them to do their jobs.
But he had to check them. He had personally sold the parts - many of them to people he knew. His professional reputation was on the line - not to mention everyone's jobs at the factory. He would just have to be.discreet.
He had just finished inspecting two crates and was cracking the lid on the third. He peered into the crate and his blood froze.
Rhianna rubbed her tired, red eyes. The numbers on her balance sheet had begun to blur and dance before her.
"Aaarrgh!" she gritted in frustration. Something was still off with the books - and it went back quite a while. Years, in fact. At this point she honestly didn't know if it were the books or just her.
{Well, ye're not gonna find it tonight. Go home'n get some rest.} She pulled on her coat and was just going to call and see if Sheamus was ready to leave when he bust into the office, his pale face a portrait of barely controlled panic. His words took her breath away.
"There's something wrong with the shipment."
