Euan and Gregg

Chapter 2

Chapter 2Sitting on his bed, Gregg tumbled his phone between his fingers as he looked at a picture of him and Euan just after they’d started college. Euan had kept his mocha-brown hair just above his shoulders, and his incredible hazel eyes were alive with the exuberance of youth. Gregg loved this picture of them. They had their arms across each other’s shoulders and they had matching smiles.

With a sudden flurry of movement, Gregg sent Euan a text. It was a countdown of the time before they’d get together. He couldn’t express his excitement or his anticipation any other way.

He rubbed his face. He hadn’t meant for two years to go by since he last saw Euan. He had no idea where the time went. What he did know was that he wasn’t getting younger and his life was certainly no bowl of cherries. This time when they got together, Gregg needed to really talk to his friend. He smiled. His best friend, even now, despite hundreds of miles between them.

A warm glow enveloped Gregg. He remembered them growing up, picturing Euan in the kitchen, wearing his mother’s apron and a chef’s hat Gregg had bought him as a joke, waving a wooden spoon like a conductor.

“No. Like a magician. The way you turned basic ingredients into an omelet or a cake were amazing. I’d starve without someone else to do the cooking or a freezer to microwave ready meal.” Gregg whispered out loud to the photograph.

Unlike him, Euan had a job he loved, doing the work he’d always dreamed of. Cooking. “You did well, buddy. Not like me. Following in father’s footsteps still. Not what I dreamed of. Not at school, and not now.”

He closed his eyes. Well, that was all going to change. All he hoped was that when he finally told Euan the truth, his friend would still be his friend. Anxiety gnawed at him, suddenly making him feel sick. He replaced the photograph in his journal and locked it. Standing up he shoved his cell phone into his pocket.

There were still a lot of things that needed to be done before taking his few days’ vacation. The last thing he needed or wanted was his dad trying to delay or stop him because something hadn’t been finished.

Once his business here was wound up, he could fly home. There was no anticipation associated with that thought. But at least home was a lot closer to Copper Creek than where he currently was. A wave of nostalgia washed over him.

He’d loved living in Copper Creek. His family had moved there when he was still in kindergarten and that’s when his friendship with Euan had begun. When his father announced they were leaving the town, Gregg had been crushed. Thankfully, he and Euan had still attended the same college. Well, in truth, he’d made sure of it. Since college, he’d worked in the family firm, and hotel rooms were now as much home to him as the sprawling ex-ranch his father had recently bought.

Heading across to the table in front of the window, Gregg checked his emails. There were several from his father checking up on his progress with the deal he’d been sent to conclude. He answered each in turn, keeping the message as brief and relevant as possible.

There were no messages asking after him. Nothing personal. His father was business through and through. Dickson Cox loved the cut and thrust life as a businessman. He relished buying up struggling firms, disassembling them, and making profits out of other people’s misfortunes. Gregg hated it.

Sometimes he was quite sure that the business he was sent into to take over just needed a temporary loan to get through a tough patch. But there was more profit to be made his father’s way, and profit was the one god his father truly worshipped.

Gregg shook his head as he sent the last message away. If it wasn’t for his upcoming break, he was sure his father would have yet another business for him to visit by the time he got home. Gregg just wanted to get back, pack for vacation, including his long disused camping gear, and get on the way to Copper Creek.

He rubbed his hands and grinned at the thought of camping with Euan. They were also going to climb up to the Witch’s Hat. An easy day’s climb, nothing too arduous. A sigh of happiness finally broke free. Camping, climbing, and best of all Euan for company. Gregg couldn’t think of anything he’d like more.