A Second Chance

Chapter 4

Ally smiled at her. “I assumed that would be the case. If you can make that all happen, I can likely be ready to fly down in 2 business days with the understanding I may have to work remotely if the situation warrants it. I have a solid tenant, but honestly the main house is popular on Airbnb during football season so I may have situations I need to be in person to resolve.”

Coriene nodded. Gary made some changes to the contract and shortly after Gwen came in with it printed. Gary signed and then he handed it to Ally. She began to read over the text when she saw the company name Kivler Technologies. She put down her pen. “Your brother is Evan?” she asked as she slowly looked up. The expression on Coreine’s face told her she was in fact Evan’s sister. “I can’t sign this.” she mumbled. “You must not know who I am. I can put our past behind me and do my job. If they boot your brother, they will likely scrap the whole team and start over. I can’t stand by and let that happen. However, your brother made it clear he doesn’t want me in his life, and your mother will never sign off on this.”

Ally tried to maintain eye contact with Coriene, but she felt the hot tears building in her eyes. She looked down at the table, but she could see Coreine nervously shift in her perifieral. “Mom knows she was terrible to you,” she whispered. “She knows that she said horribly cruel things to you and made wild assumptions about you and your intentions. She knows that she handled the whole situation with Lauri inappropriately and she knows you will likely never forgive her for that. She also knows you are the best in your field and if she wants Evan to have a fighting chance of rallying his team...he needs you. He’s broken. He’s lost his focus and sight of his purpose. He has a team that loves him, but they are lost without his leadership. That team needs someone with your expertise, talents and success record.”

“What about Evan.” Ally asked flatly. She flashed back to the night on her porch. It had been just about a year since Evan and Lauri had moved into the in-law-suite in Ally’s home. Ally lived in the main house with her two best friends Josh and Jake. From the beginning Ally could tell Lauri was unhappy in Minnesota. Lauri and Evan fought almost constantly. Evan enjoyed hanging out with Ally, Josh and Jake, but Lauri always seemed uncomfortable. After a couple months, Lauri started spending more time in Chicago. Then it became she was spending all her time in Chicago. It wasn’t a surprise when the pair broke up, but it was surprising how unaffected Evan was by the break up. He initially dated around, but he always seemed to find his way back to hanging out with Ally. She had no intention of getting into a serious relationship with him, but somehow it still happened. He even convinced her to celebrate her birthday. Her childhood birthdays were never joyous occasions, but he promised her the perfect night.

They had a wonderful dinner for her birthday and he said he had a surprise for her back at his apartment. When they arrived, his mom and his ex Lauri were there. Lauri told him she was pregnant and that the baby was his. He denied it, but she claimed that after they broke up they slept together one last time. Evan said he was drunk and didn’t remember it. Still Lauri insisted it was the truth. His mom told him he needed to pack up and move back to Chicago immediately. He and Lauri needed to get married ASAP. Lauri had been sure to not let that they were broken up get out in the gossip train, so the story would be that decided to move up the wedding and move back to Chicago full time because of the baby. She said that “playtime with the local trash” needed to come to an end.