Work Text:
“There’s one last thing on the agenda.”
Johnny turned to focus on Stevie in her little square. He enjoyed the convenience of having video calls, especially with him and Moira in Vancouver while she filmed on location. Back during his Rose Video days, he’d held many a phone conference meeting, and the addition of seeing the person’s face made it feel more personal. Now, if he only knew how to make the image bigger it would be perfect.
“Lay it on us, Stevie,” Roland replied.
Stevie cleared her throat. “Well, with the twenty new motels we have and the company’s overall rise in popularity I think it’s time to hire a professional to handle the finances.”
Johnny felt his happy mood disappear; it was replaced with insistent dread. “But I do the finances,” he stammered out.
“It’s not that we don’t think you’re capable, Mr. Rose,” Ruth started. “It’s just that finances aren’t your expertise, and with the company growing we want to make sure that we have only the best working each position. And that means branching out.”
Roland sucked his teeth. “Yeah, and it’s not like you’re getting any younger.”
“Would I still be able to oversee it?”
Stevie’s face softened, almost to a look of concern. “Just as much oversight as Roland and I have now. We get to review the budget and look at the quarterly reports.”
Every word Stevie uttered was a nail in the coffin of his control. He felt warm all of a sudden and a clamminess in his palms. Oh, it was happening again wasn’t it? Johnny thought after Eli he wouldn’t have this feeling, but here it was.
With his last thread of composure, he asked the only other question that ran through his brain like an incessant thud. “When will you put out the job ad?”
“In about two weeks,” Ruth replied.
Johnny glanced at Stevie to see her biting her bottom lip. He wondered how long they’d talked about it. He knew Stevie and Ruth were close and, if the one time when he visited the New York office was any indication, dating. He didn’t think they’d try to oust him, but he couldn’t help the nagging thought that they’d been hiding this from him until they absolutely couldn’t anymore.
“Alright.” He paused. The tone of the meeting had significantly changed and he always hated ending a meeting on a bad note. He clapped his hands together. “Well, adding to the team is always a good thing. I’ll see you all at the next meeting?”
“Of course Mr. Rose,” replied Stevie and Ruth, while Roland let out a drawled, “Yep.”
He waved at the screen and tried his best to keep up his smile until Stevie closed the meeting. He stared at the black screen, his worry and concern reflected back at him.
---
Johnny looked up from his book to see Moira enter the bedroom. “How was your day, sweetheart?”
Moira sat down in front of her vanity. “It was simply marvelous. I always enjoy a locale shoot, to truly immerse myself into the mores and be one with the denizens.” She took off her jewelry, putting the rings in a small ceramic dish and the bracelet and necklace in a box. “Nicole and I went to a little café after we commenced filming and had a lovely tête-àtête."
"That sounds nice," Johnny replied.
She stared at Johnny's reflection in the mirror. "What seems to be the matter, Mr. Rose? Didn't you have your confabulation with Stevie and company today? You're usually bursting at the seams to tell me all about it."
"Oh, it was fine. We went over some new acquisitions and how we want to handle the next two months."
Moira got up from her seat, climbed into their bed, and laid a hand on his chest. "You can't hide anything from me, John. You've always had an expressive visage and clearly, there's something eating at you."
He wrapped his arm around her and sighed. "Stevie talked about hiring someone to do the finances, and I'm worried."
"What ever for? You spend so much time on them lately I feel like a wife waiting for her bridegroom to return from war."
"I'm afraid what happened with Eli could happen here."
"Well, I just don't think so."
Johnny looked at the fierce look in Moira's eyes and he remembered the time when she demanded a raise during her tenure at Sunrise Bay and refused to leave until she had it in writing.
"But it could," he replied, a hint stubborn to match her gaze.
Moira wiggled out of Johnny's embrace. "There are several reasons why your concern is poppycock. One, I’m sure everyone in charge of hiring will find a qualified candidate. Two, the chances of it happening again are slim, and even if they do I’m sure your eagle eye can spot it sooner. Finally, if you still have concerns then you really should talk to David.”
He frowned. “What does David have to do with this?”
“Well, seeing as he is currently running a successful business after everything happened, either he didn’t think anything of Eli’s betrayal or he got over it.”
“Oh,” Johnny replied. He honestly hadn’t thought about David and the store and what that might mean.
“Now, I need to finish my evening ablutions but don’t slumber just yet John because I have some plans for you.”
He smiled and watched as Moira climbed out of bed. She unzipped her dress, stepped out of it, draped it over the vanity chair, and headed toward the bathroom.
---
Johnny paced back and forth. He knew that David didn’t work at the store today, but he should have asked ahead of time to see if they could talk. He also knew if he didn’t make the call there was a likely chance he wouldn’t. He sat back down on the couch and grabbed his phone, pulled up David’s contact information, and hit the FaceTime button. It rang a few times before David’s face filled the screen.
He looked sleep-rumpled. His curls were a wild mess and one side of his face lined with a pillow mark. It reminded Johnny of when David was younger and tried to sleep in his and Moira’s bed after they had been gone for several days.
“What do you want, Dad?” David asked, voice rough with sleep.
“I didn’t mean to wake you up, son. If you want I can call back.”
David waved his hand, wedding ring catching the light. “It’s fine. I really shouldn’t sleep the afternoon away. It’ll mess up my sleep schedule.” He put his glasses on, the sleepy expression now replaced with a look of concentration.
Johnny paused. He wasn’t sure how to approach his concerns. Prior to Schitt’s Creek, he didn’t talk about finances with the kids except to hand them checks or transfer money into their bank accounts. And to pay for David’s gallery , his mind unhelpfully supplied.
“You know, I don’t think I’ve ever asked how Patrick joined you at the Apothecary. I remember you mentioned he helped you out with your forms and something about a grant?”
David hummed and nodded his head. “Yeah, when he came to drop off my business license he mentioned that he would apply for a grant for me and if it went through he would come work for me.” As he replied a small smile grew on his face.
Johnny cleared his throat. “And uh, when he got started he did the finances?”
“Yes,” David drawled. “He was in charge of business and I was in charge of the aesthetics.”
Johnny’s thumb rapidly tapped on his thigh as he asked the next question. “How did you trust him?”
He arched a brow. “Are you saying I don’t trust my husband?”
Johnny lifted his hands up in placation. “No, no, not exactly. It’s just that after what happened with Eli and then learning about the gallery, how were you able to trust Patrick?”
“What is this about? The store’s been open for almost three years. If you were concerned about Patrick, why didn’t you ask then?”
He squirmed in his seat. He didn’t want to worry David with his concerns, but apparently his inquiries couldn’t be said without his son pressing the issue.
“Stevie and Ruth mentioned in our meeting yesterday about hiring someone to do the finances."
David didn't say anything but looked at his father expectantly.
"With what happened with Eli...I let you kids and your mother down and I don't want to make the same mistake twice. When I started with Stevie I promised to help her and if we hire someone to do the finances…"
"You think it'll happen again," David finished.
The words seemed caught in his throat so Johnny nodded.
David sighed and shifted slightly. "I’m going to say a few things and I’d like it if you didn’t say anything until I’m finished.”
“Alright,” Johnny murmured.
“When Patrick started at the store I was a little worried, but I had so much to do I didn't really get a chance to worry about that particular detail. He did give me his CV but I think that was because he was being a little shit. And when I was in the café once, Ray came by to talk Patrick up. I don't know if his intention was to reassure me but it did."
He let out a deep sigh. "After we opened is when it became a major concern. Patrick would go over the revenue and expenses with me. But there were a few times when the store was closed I looked at the books. I didn’t think Patrick would hide anything, but I wanted to see for myself.” He cringed. “He, uh, actually caught me one evening and I explained it all to him. He was understanding and afterward was more forthcoming to me about the finances. I won’t be going to any tax seminars or anything, but at this point, I could do a passable job at it.”
David’s face softened. “I want you to know, and I think Alexis and mom would agree, that you didn’t let us down with Eli. You worked with the man for years, and you thought you could trust him. How were you supposed to know he was a backstabbing bastard? And while we could say it was a traumatic experience, if I could go back and change it I don’t think I would.”
Johnny felt tears in his eyes and let out a loud sniffle. He knew that this was a difficult conversation to have with a parent and here was David vulnerable and honest. Before Schitt’s Creek, they never would have had a conversation like this.
“Sorry to interrupt, but if I could just say something real quick.”
Johnny quickly brought a thumb to wipe away any potential tears as Patrick’s face moved into the frame. His cheek was pressed to David’s and David’s face brightened at the contact. The action almost had Johnny truly break into tears.
“I didn’t catch all of it, but if you’re worried about David you don’t have to be. We only have the joint savings account so even if I was going to try and run away with his money he’d still have his checking.”
He let out a wet chuckle. “No, I, ah, wasn’t worried about you. Actually, the Rosebud Motel Group is thinking about hiring someone to take over the finances.”
“Oh, that’s good news,” Patrick replied.
“Ah, yes, I guess it is.”
“Are you worried about something? I’m sure you’ll get some well-qualified candidates.”
“I don’t think I’m worried about anything now,” Johnny turned to look at David, “I had a nice chat with David and I think he answered any concerns I had.”
David gave a small smile, his dimples peeking out. “I’m glad I could help.”
“I have to go, but I’ll talk to you soon.”
“Okay,” David replied.
Johnny ended the call as they all chorused ‘bye.’ His talk with David allowed for some of his fears to drop off, but the edges of his brain still clamored out betrayal.
---
Johnny knew that he only had a week to tell Stevie about his concerns. If he was a better partner he would have called her right after he finished his call with David, but he wasn’t. Dread still clung to him. He held his phone out. He knew her next meeting wasn’t until one so he’d have plenty of time to talk to her. He thought about last night when Moira asked if he had talked to Stevie yet, and the quiet look of surprise on her face when he said he hadn’t.
He quickly hit the call button and pressed the phone up to his ear. Johnny waited patiently as the call went through. On the third ring, Stevie answered.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Stevie. Do you have a minute to talk?”
“Uh, sure.”
“It’s about the finance position.”
It was quiet for a moment, except for the sound of Stevie’s breathing at the end of the line.
“Is there anything in particular about it that you want to talk about?”
Johnny rubbed his palm along his thigh. “I want to explain my behavior during our last meeting. When you brought up hiring someone to handle the finances my first thought was of what Eli had done to the family. When we started working together I said I’d help you out and I guess the mention of hiring someone new got me, ah, a little protective.”
He wished he had thought to FaceTime or Zoom Stevie so he could see her face at this moment.
“I hadn’t thought of that,” Stevie responded quietly.
“I don’t know if I would have expected my reaction,” Johnny replied frankly.
“Is it going to be a problem that we hire someone? You didn’t sound thrilled at the meeting.”
He paused. If he told Stevie it was a problem she’d probably still hire someone and their relationship would be damaged. At this point, with the time to process it and the conversations with Moira and David, he didn’t feel the same urgency and fear as he initially had.
“You’re right I wasn’t thrilled,” Johnny began. “But I also know that if we want the Rosebud Motel Group to be successful then we will have to branch out and hire more people. I do have one question.”
“What is it?”
“Would it, ah, be possible for me to look at the candidates, see their cover letters and such?”
“Uh, I’d have to check with HR and see what you can have access to since you won’t be on the search committee, but I’ll keep you updated,” Stevie replied.
“Thank you, Stevie. This means a lot.”
“You’re welcome, and I’m glad that we were able to discuss this.”
They talked for a few more minutes, and when they hung up Johnny felt relieved.
A month later they hired a financial director who after an intense vetting process, Johnny was happy to call a colleague.