Hi Readers: Did you guys enjoy Valentine's Day 2019? Well, I hope you did. But now, we're done with Valentine's Day and starting with the next day. Now, if you have any ideas for me; then I am more than open to entertain the ideas that you have for me. Please, just send them to me. But right now, we're going to concentrate on the story. Here's February 15th.
By the way, sorry for the delay in the chapters. I might not get out as many was I would hope, but we'll see.
Chapter One Hundred and Forty-Three
February 15, 2019 – Office of the Chairman and CEO
He decided that he wanted to work in his new office, the office that was already all set up for him today. The reason? He wanted to take advantage of the fact that he has this office now, that he has a quiet place to work where nobody could find him. Plus, he had to set it up. He had to put his pictures up, including his newest picture from his vow renewal that they made sure to take yesterday at the reception. And boy was it beautiful. Well, she was. That was definitely the sight that he enjoys looking at the most. His beautiful wife who was wearing a beautiful wedding dress, which he got to take off the night before. That was definitely something that he enjoyed doing, and it's what he's always going to enjoy doing. However, that was not what he needed to concentrate on right now; rather, he needed to concentrate on what he's writing.
Writing on the laptop that he had in front of him. And just what might that be? An e-mail that will definitely anger a bunch of his friends, which is something that he's ready for. After all, that's his job. He needs to make sure that they know that when they are at work; he's their boss. And that was why he was sending them this e-mail from here, in his office. But what e-mail is he talking about? The e-mail with the new dress code that he's going to establish for the office. And that was why he was worried, worried that his friends would be mad at him; as he's asking a lot of them. But he's still going to have to put his foot down, and make sure that they follow his rules when it comes to the dress code that he's establishing in the office; a dress code that he's going to make sure that he follows as well, as he wants to lead by example from the top down.
Taking a breath, Matt went ahead and made sure to put all of his current employees in the e-mail so that he could send it. God, he really needs to just make a quick mailing list that he can use. You know what, let's do that first so that he can make his job easier. Sure, he already has all of the e-mails in his contact book; but he can definitely just make it faster for him, especially when he's working on just his laptop without his second screen. Yes, Matt has a second screen here in his office; and it's definitely a tool that he has been using when he works here and will continue to use whenever he works here. Just taking a breath, Matt proceeded to start writing the e-mail that he needs to write. Now, he would try and do it much more professionally if he was used to do it; but he will just be doing it in the way that he talks to his friends normally, for now.
That way, he thinks that they may respond to the e-mail better. But still, that doesn't mean that he doesn't plan on getting angry responses. Still, here we go with the e-mail that he's going to send all of his friends. Here it is.
From: Casey, Matthew
To: Board of Directors
Subject: Re: Future Operations of the Business, Attire
Hello Executives:
I am writing you today from the office, with the goal of giving you some information that you all need to know about the future. Before we begin, let me just thank you all for having attended our vow renewal as a way to open the building. I do not believe that there was a better way for us to open the office, and it really meant a lot to me and Gabby for you to have attended. But now, I need to get to the purpose of this message (which you might have guessed based on the subject line).
The first topic that I want to write to you guys about is the future operations of the business. More specifically, I am writing to let you know that we will begin working in our offices here as we live here. More specifically, we will be working on the 16th and 17th floors of the building. The 16th floor will be where we have meetings, while the 17th floor is where we will have our offices. However, do not think that offices are open to grab; instead, they will be assigned.
Office 1: Matthew Casey, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (Office Extension 101)
Office 2: Gabriela Casey, Deputy Chairwoman; President and COO, ELLA Apparel (Office Extension 102)
Office 3: Heather Darden, Head of Public Relations (Office Extension 103)
Office 4: Stella Kidd, Chief Creative Officer of ELLA Apparel (Office Extension 104)
Office 5: Kelly Severide, President and COO of Casey Fire (Office Extension 105)
Office 6: Antonio Dawson, Casey Police Expansion Project (Office Extension 106)
Office 7: Jay Halstead, Casey Police Expansion Project (Office Extension 107)
Office 8, Alex Halstead, Casey Police Expansion Project and/or ELLA Apparel (Office Extension 108)
I hope that you can please keep to these assignments, as they are set up as such with regards to the extensions for our offices. If you wish to change, you must ask my permission prior to changing offices. Future offices will be added on near you guys, and you may also have offices on other floors in the future so that you can be with your employees (if you wish). Thank you once again for understanding that I want you in these assigned offices, and I hope to get some feedback.
Thank you and have a good day.
Matthew Casey
Chairman and CEO, Casey
Taking a breath after he sent the e-mail, Matt just tried to relax as he hoped to make sure that his friends and family understood. But little did he know that he would actually be getting a visit right now from someone whom he just sent the e-mail to. More specifically, one of his newest employees; Heather Darden. Hearing a knock on the door, Matt looked up to see her and just smiled. "Well, if it isn't one Heather Darden." Getting up, Matt smiled as he made his way over to his late best friend's wife; who just so happens to also be the mother of his godchildren. "So, what brings you down here this morning?" Heather smiled when Matt asked her that. "Mind if I sit down? I haven't spoken to you in ages." Matt agreed with Heather when she said that, smiling as he went to point to the chair that he has in his office.
"Sorry, just give me a minute. I need to just put the things that I have on my laptop down, I was just working." Heather agreed with Matt when he told her that, watching as he went to sit down. "Oh really, already back to work even though it's Friday; and it's the day after your vow renewal?" Matt sighed when Heather asked him that, finishing up with putting his windows down; after which, he closed his laptop a bit. "Already know what to do?" Matt laughed. "Oh, believe me, I have been doing this for a while. You really think that I am just doing this all at once for the first time?" Heather agreed with Matt when he said that. "I have to say, I am quite impressed at the operations that you already have; and you already found a great building." Matt agreed with Heather when she said that, smiling at her. "How do you and the boys like the condo?"
Heather smiled when Matt asked her how she likes the condo, which she loves. "God, it's gorgeous. That bedroom is gorgeous, and it has a great view of the ocean. God, I love the view of the ocean to wake up in the morning." Matt smiled when he heard Heather say that. "Trust me, Gabby feels the same way. If I wake up early, I get up, make her some tea, some breakfast, and then let her sleep in so she can admire the view." Heather smiled when she heard Matt say that, glad that was the case. "Was she awake when you left this morning?" Matt shook his head when Heather asked him that, sighing. "She had a bad dream overnight of the whole fiasco yesterday, and she needed sleep. So, I asked her if I could work down here for a bit; before I go back upstairs and relax with her. We might even go back to our place to just be alone."
Heather was confused when Matt said that. "Because you can't be alone here in your penthouse?" Matt took a breath as he looked at the widow. "Bad memories already, and I think we should just take it easy for a while." Heather agreed with Matt, taking a breath. "Okay, I get that I have no right to ask about all that…as I haven't been in Chicago for years. But what the hell happened yesterday? With that woman you wanted to leave." Matt took a breath when Heather asked him that, well aware that he needs to tell her what happened. "Uhm, she abused Gabby while they were on shift; it was right after we had a fight about having a baby, because we used to think she had an aneurysm that could kill her if she got pregnant." Heather was shocked when Matt told her that. "Oh god, that was horrible." Matt agreed with Heather when she said that, sighing.
"And then I had to say this horrible thing. I told her that she can't have kids, because I was scared out of my mind." Heather just stared at her boss when he said that. "Okay, I am talking to you as a friend right now…right?" Matt agreed with Heather when she asked him said question. "Yes, of course you are." Heather then proceeded to get up, walking over to the man who actually said that to his wife. She then went to slap the back of his head. "OW!" Heather just looked at him. "Oh shut up, you have no right to complain over that you idiot. You said a really stupid thing." Matt agreed with Heather when she said that, nodding. "Oh believe me, I am well aware that's the case." Heather agreed with her boss, nodding when he said that. "Then again, I was scared out of my mind. I mean, I did loose my last fiancé in a fire." Heather agreed with Matt.
Sitting down again, Heather smiled at him. "OK. I get that." Matt took a breath. "That doesn't mean that I'm not horrified that I did it. But me and Gabby got past it, and we're glad that we're having the twins." Heather agreed with the CEO when he said that, smiling as she knew that. And she also knows that he's going to be a great father. "I can't wait to see you as a dad." Matt smiled when he heard Heather tell him that, taking a breath as he looked at her; god, he wants to talk to her about Andy so much…but he's scared to talk to her about him. Just taking a breath, Matt looked at her and tried to take it easy. "Uhm…" Matt then sighed. "Sorry, I am just trying to say this without hurting you." Heather just looked at Matt when he said that, well aware of what he was thinking of. "You're thinking about Andy at times aren't you?" Matt agreed.
"Yeah, I always try and think back what he did when you were pregnant with the boys; and how I should help Gabby. But things just keep getting more complicated; not that our life has never been easy. I mean, I never expected this to happen. Me inheriting money and starting a company like this was never on my radar." Heather smiled when she heard Matt say that, well aware that was the case. "Oh, I can definitely see that's the case. But you've done it in the past." Matt agreed with Heather when she reminded him that he did it in the past, which he did; but he never did it on such a large scale like he is right now. "Yeah, but never on this big of a scale." Heather agreed with Matt when he told her that, clearly able to see that he was nervous. "You nervous about it?" Matt took a breath. "There are times where I am quite nervous."
Heather agreed with Matt when he said that, smiling at him. "Okay, let me ask you this. Which one are you more nervous about? Being a dad, or running a company?" Matt took a breath when he heard Heather ask him that, because that was really scary. "To tell you the truth, I am equally scared." Heather was shocked. "Really?" Matt then slipped close to his desk, smiling at Heather. "Can I explain that?" Heather nodded. "Go ahead." Matt sighed. "Well, I have experience raising kids." Heather looked at him. "When did you raise a kid?" Matt laughed. "First of all, while you were in jail; which delayed me starting a relationship with my wife." Heather agreed with Matt when he said that. "And then, me and Gabby fostered a kid right before we got married." Heather agreed with Matt, smiling. "Speaking of which, thanks for the invite!"
Matt laughed when he heard Heather tell him that. "Heather, it was literally a last-minute thing. We went to the courthouse to get married." Heather agreed with Matt when he said that, glad that was the case. "I'm glad you finally got married though, and that you guys are still together. I've read Gabby's blog, and I hated that things got that bad." Matt agreed with Heather. "That was why I wanted to renew our vows, and we did it really well." Heather agreed with Matt when he said that, smiling. "By the way, I've been meaning to ask. What are my limits on decorating?" Matt laughed. "You can decorate all you want, just take it easy if you ever want to move out. I may want to rent those out in the future." Heather agreed with Matt when he said that. "So, what exactly are you working on?" Matt smiled at her. "I just assigned the offices."
Heather agreed. "Which one am I in?" Matt smirked. "You're in Office 1703. I think we already agreed on your job?" Heather smiled. "Head of Public Relations right?" Matt agreed with Heather when she said that. "Yeah, that's exactly what I was thinking. I like you being the face of our company. Now, I do want you to know that there are some things that we are not going to talk about; and that's my family history, with my father and stuff." Heather sighed, well aware of the history that he has with his father; as he shared it before to Andy. "Yeah, I'm sure that you have a lot of mixed feelings about all of that." Matt sighed, before he agreed with his friend. "Yeah, nothing like inheriting money from you late abusive father." Heather agreed with Matt when he said that, taking a breath. "You know that you're not going to be like him."
Matt agreed with Heather when she told him that. "Oh, I am well aware of the fact that I am never going to be like my father; as I am going to make sure that I am never like my father. He is a monster, and he will not make me a monster in the eyes of my children." Heather agreed with Matt when he said that, smiling at him. "By the way, your vows were beautiful yesterday." Matt laughed. "Thanks Heather. I really wanted to make them special for Gabby." Heather smiled when Matt said that, as that was definitely what he did for his wife. "Oh, and you definitely did that for her." Matt smiled at her. "Thanks. I really hope that I did a good job, because I was really nervous." Heather laughed. "Even Griffin liked them." Matt smiled. "How are my godsons anyways? Are they okay with the move?" Heather agreed with Matt, smiling at him today.
"Oh, they are loving the move. They are just sad that they have to start school next week." Matt agreed with Heather when she said that, smiling at her. "Well, I would understand that; I mean, they are now living in Hawaii." Heather agreed with Matt when he said that, laughing. "Beats rainy Portland." Matt smiled. "How in the world did you get to Portland anyways?" Heather sighed. "The ex." Matt nodded. "I'm sorry about that, I just had to tell you what the boys were thinking." Heather agreed with Matt as he said that, well aware that he had to do that. "And I felt obligated for Andy, as he would want his sons to be happy when it came to who they have to spend the rest of their lives with." Heather laughed. "Not that he would be happy that I was with anybody else." Matt shook his head. "Oh, now that's not the truth; and you know that Heather."
Heather looked at Matt when he said that, just deciding to listen to him. "He wants you to find somebody, and I know that; because I would've wanted the same for Gabby when I almost died in that fire." Heather agreed with Matt, knowing full well what he was talking about. "You were an idiot in saying goodbye to her." Matt nodded. "I know. And I am never going to do that again. Maybe that was a bad example, because I have a better one. I mean, Hallie died in a fire just like Andy; and she would've wanted me to move on. Heck, I'm having twins now!" Heather smiled. "God, I just realized that we have significant others who died within a year of each other." Matt agreed. "Try having just gotten back together with her two weeks before." Heather agreed with Matt when he said that. "It was a nice funeral. Are you in touch with her family?"
Matt sighed. "I haven't been since I started with Gabby. It would be weird. Talking to my ex-future in-laws?" Heather shrugged. "I still talk to Andy's parents." Matt laughed. "That's different. You have kids with Andy, and they're Ben and Griffin's grandparents; speaking of which, how are they?" Heather sighed. "Doing better each year." Matt smiled. "This summer, you should send them to their grandparents. Where do they live anyways?" Heather smiled. "They're still in Chicago. Georgina's in a retirement home, Alexander's still at home." Matt smiled when he heard about Georgina and Alexander Darden, Andy's parents. "I should've called them so many times, but I didn't know if they would take my calls. I'm not sure just how they feel about me. I mean, I was his Lieutenant; and I led him into his death." Heather shook her head.
"I spoke to them about that, and they don't blame you; they knew it was a risk, and they understood. He died for the City of Chicago." Matt agreed with Heather when she said that, smiling. "Me and Gabby are going to honor him in one of our kids' names." Heather was a bit taken aback when she heard Matt say that. "Really?" Matt nodded, smiling at her. "One of our sons are going to be named Matteo Andrew Casey." Heather smiled when she heard Matt tell her one of their sons' names. "Named after you and Andy." Matt nodded. "Our other son is going to be Gabriel James Casey." Heather smiled. "So, you each get a namesake." Matt snickered, agreeing. "Then, we start for some daughters. I want daughters named Bella Grace and Sofia Marie Casey." Heather smiled. "God, those are adorable." Matt smiled. "Andy wanted to use the name Bella."
Heather was shocked. "He wanted to have another baby?" Matt nodded. "He was going to tell you, but he never got the chance. He wanted a daughter after rescuing a baby girl right before he died." Heather sighed when she heard Matt say that, nodding. "I don't know if I would've done it, but I'm glad to know what his final thoughts were." Matt sighed. "Trust me, it's much better than my last memory of Andy." Heather looked at Matt. "I was right behind him when he went into the window, and after he climbed in…" Heather just took a breath as she looked at her friend. "I watched the fireball engulf him. I still dream about it every September. I think that I'll always will about it until I die." Heather sighed. "Do you think you have PTSD?" Matt bit his lip, before nodding. ."Yeah, I think I do. I just never got around to getting diagnosed with it."
Heather sighed. "I think you should go see a doctor for it Matt." Matt agreed with his friend. "Oh, by the way. Don't forget. No work on Monday, President's Day." Heather agreed. "Yeah, I know. The boys don't have school, so I need to figure out what to do with them that day. Maybe I can save their homework for that day." Matt shook his head. "If you ever need them to do something, send them to me; I need some help in Floors 3-4. I've decided to paint the ELLA Apparel Boutique myself." Heather was shocked when Matt said that. "Really?" Matt nodded. "I want to do it for my wife, as it's her project; and I want to just support her as much as I can." Heather smiled. "And you are Matt, I can already see it." Matt sighed. "It's also a way for me to distract myself." Heather was confused. "Everything okay Matt?" Matt just took a breath.
"I guess, I'm really missing Andy right now. I never really thought that I would ever miss him as much as I do right now, because there are so many conversations that I would like to have with him; about getting ready to have kids. Like, how do I deal with the newborn life; how do I balance work and family, am I doing things right?" Heather agreed with Matt when he said that, clearly seeing that the CEO was still hurting over the death of her late husband. "You know that you can always talk to me about it, because I was his wife; and I know him better than anybody. I would definitely know what he would tell you." Matt agreed with Heather when she told him that, as that would definitely be the case. "I know, and I think I will definitely take you up on that offer in the future." Heather agreed with Matt, smiling as she heard him say that to her.
"Well, I'm here to help you; and I hope that you know that I will always be here for you, and that I am really independent. I'm sure that you would really need someone to do that. I mean, you can turn to everybody else. But I'm new to this, and I have no idea what happened in Chicago; so I don't bring in a bunch of drama." Matt agreed with Heather when she said that. "Yeah, I guess that's right." Heather smiled. "And even better, you know that I'm going to give you the real answer." Matt agreed with Heather when she said that. "Oh, you know that I would give you the honest truth; that's why you hired me." Matt agreed with Heather when she said that. "And you're good with the money thing. I know, I should pay salaries but…" Heather smiled. "I'm good. I don't have to pay rent, and I have some money leftover from me selling my home."
Matt agreed with Heather when she said that, smiling at her when she said that. "Oh, I bet you do. By the way, I still would love to hear a bunch of stories from the boys; and I plan on taking them out sometime. I might try and buy a boat so I can get back to fishing. I did it one with Kelly in Chicago, and I just need to get a boat or something." Heather laughed. "Maybe next year, when you've made money." Matt shook his head. "More like when I'm done having kids. Me and Gabby are thinking of having four kids." Heather was shocked. "Really?" Matt agreed with her. "I want daughters." Heather agreed with Matt when he told her that, laughing a bit until she felt her phone vibrate. Going to grab it, she saw that it was a text from her sons. "Oh c'mon, he tells me NOW!" Matt was confused. "Tells you what?" Heather sighed.
"Ben forgot his textbook for Math." Matt laughed. "Looks like you have to go." Heather agreed with Matt, smiling. "If you need me to do anything, let me know." Heather then got up, smiling as she walked over to her boss. She then went to hug him. "Thanks again for all of this." Matt agreed with Heather when she said that, smiling at her. "No problem Heather. But you go take care of those boys." Heather nodded, smiling as she went to walk away so that she could get Ben's textbook for her. Meanwhile, Matt thought about what he wanted to do; and that was go spend some time with his wife. So, he decided to pack up his office and make his way back upstairs to his and Gabby's home; where he could enjoy some time with her.