by Emma Nichole
I take his hand and lead him over to the small seating area we use when we have customers waiting on a table.
“I have things I need to say first,” I say, sinking to a chair.
He sits right next to me and doesn’t let go of my hand.
“Okay.”
“I should have let you explain yourself. I’m sorry that I didn’t. You have to know my family is my number one priority and if anyone could hurt them; that’s an instant deal-breaker for me. I should have known better than to think you could do that, especially after the night we shared before.”
He brings my hands to his lips, kissing my knuckles.
“Piper, the plan was always to make sure your family maintained ownership of this building. I was trying to do all of this under the table so you wouldn’t feel obligated to me in any way. I wanted you to just want me because you wanted me. The bank had already foreclosed; I swept in instantly so it wouldn’t wind up in the wrong hands. I would have never taken this from you or them.”
“Then why the payoff? Why did you handle everything? It’s just… it’s too much.”
He tips my head back so our eyes are meeting. “I did that because I see how hard you and your family work for this, and it’s not because you’re looking for anything other than making people happy, and keeping your father’s legacy alive. I wanted to make sure you were able to do that.”
“Nathanial, it’s hundreds of thousands of dollars.”
“I know how much it is, and I want you to know that it comes with no obligation. I’m not trying to buy you. I’m trying to…”
I lean over and silence him with a kiss to his lips and when I pull away, I swipe my finger over his lip, erasing some of my lipstick that was left behind.
“I just know I love you, Nathanial. The last few days have been fucking hell, and all I have wanted was you. I didn’t mean to fall in love, but now that I have… I can’t just leave it behind.”
“So we are doing it then? We’re trying this? Because I’m an asshole who will push your buttons, and you know what kind of temper I have,” he teases me.
“And I’m a stubborn bitch who gives it back as good as you dish it. Seems like we’re a match to me.”
He leans forward this time and places the tenderest of kisses to my lips.
“I love you,” he says.
“I love you too.” I take his hand. “Come on, let’s go tell my mom.”
We are just rounding our way back into the dining room when he tugs me to a stop.
“Piper, wait. There’s one more thing.”
I turn to face him. “What?”
“I’ve been thinking about Lennox a lot, and the next step I want to take with it.”
“Okay…”
“With everything here with you and your father’s legacy, it got me thinking about my own father’s legacy with Lennox, and how I owe it to him to make sure the thing he worked his ass off for, even at the expense of some important things, isn’t wasted because of some grudge and deep-seated guilt I have. Having said that, I want to formally offer you a promotion within Lennox Publishing. I’d like you to step in as CEO.”
I think I’m hallucinating. I’m having an out of body experience, because surely I’m not hearing him correctly.
“You… you what?”
He steps closer and cups my face once again. “Piper, there is no one more qualified than you. You are educated in the field, you know the company inside and out; the staff loves and respects you. You don’t have to answer now, but I wanted to make the offer right now because I need you to know how much trust and love I have in you.”
“But your father.” I shake my head. “He may not agree to this at all.”
“He already has.”
“What?”
“My father and I had a conversation, of sorts. He was having a good day, and I went by to check on my mother. I spoke to him about the past and our history, and then I mentioned this idea to him, and you should have seen him light up at the idea.”
“I’m going to dehydrate if I cry any more.” I rest my forehead on his chest. “I am nowhere near ready to take a leap like that. I’ll need training and guidance and…”
“I’ll take care of you.” He kisses the top of my head. “I always will.”
This man, this stubborn, brazen, asshole of a man turned my life on its head the day he walked into it. No one can make me angrier, happier, sadder, more excited, turned on, or frustrated than he can, but I think that’s all why I love him.
We balance each other out. Our imperfections fit together in a perfectly imperfect way, and honestly, what else could be better than that?
Epilogue
2 years later
Piper
Ida,
Consider this your formal invitation to my nuptials. I thought this might be more fitting than sending you a traditional invitation.
September 24th at 3 p.m.
We don’t have a dress code. I told Nathanial it was silly and I wanted our guests to be comfortable.
We hope you, Graham and your not-so-little-anymore ones can make it.
Soon-to-be Piper Lennox
I send off the email right as my desk phone rings. I answer it without even looking to see who it is.
“Piper Kingston.”
“You should identify as Piper Kingston, CEO. Actually, Piper Lennox, CEO. Start practicing now,” Nathanial’s voice croons through the phone.
Even after two years, I’m still as attracted as ever to him. Those who say the honeymoon phase is temporary haven’t ever had a man like him in their lives.
“I’ve only been CEO officially for less than six months, Nathanial. I’m not going to announce it to everyone who calls. That would make me an asshole.”
He laughs and the sound makes me shiver from head to toe.
“How’s your dad doing today?” I ask him, no longer afraid to bring him up.
His health has been touch-and-go over the past two years, and it’s a struggle with patience on everyone’s part, but we are all learning to manage.
“He’s all right. He’s having a good day, so Mom is taking him out for some much-needed time away from the apartment.”
“I’m glad. I’d like to make them dinner this weekend. Do you think they’d like to come to our place?”
I moved in with Nathanial last year, after putting it off for as long as I could. I am a very independent woman, so I was reluctant to sell my place at first, but as each day passed, living with him full time sounded better and better. Hell, I was over there more than I was at home anyway.
“I’m sure they’d love that.” I hear the ding of an elevator on his side of the phone. “What are you doing for lunch? Can I swing by? I’d like to eat mine there.”
When I agreed to step up as CEO of Lennox Publishing, it allowed Nathanial to go back to NCL full time, after helping with the transition here and helping me each step of the way. Both Lennox Publishing and NCL are both thriving in a way I know he’s proud of. I saw a new life in his eyes when he was able to shift his focus back to his passion, and it made me love him even more.
“You don’t have to ask that. I’m not going anywhere, so come on by. You know I’d love to see you.”
“Ask and you shall receive.”
My office door swings open and there he stands with a single lily in his hand, dressed to the nines in my favorite charcoal suit and gray tie.
“And what if I’d been busy?”
“You wouldn’t have been. I have insider information.”
“Kate.” I shake my head then stand to greet him. “Is that for me?”
He gives me the flower and I inhale its sweet scent. “It is.”
“Thank you.” I look for bags in his hands, but they are noticeably empty. “I thought you were coming to eat your lunch here?”
“Oh I am.” He closes my door behind him and flips the lock. “I didn’t say food was what I would be indulging in.”
He scoops me up like a bride and lays me a
cross my desk, then sinks to sit in my chair so he is eye level and able to look directly up my skirt.
“Oh my God.” My fingers curl over the edge of the desk in pure anticipation.
“Déjà vu,” he chuckles.
“Shut up and touch me, Mr. Lennox.”
“With pleasure, Mrs. Lennox.”
That may not be my name yet, at least not legally, but I’ve felt more and more like his every single day. Soon, I’ll stand at the altar and we’ll make promises to each other that we will keep forever. I just hope they include to always keep one another on our toes, to always play around and have fun together, to always make each other laugh, and when things get to be too much, to always find our center together, just like this.
The End
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Acknowledgements
First and foremost, I want to thank Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward for opening up their world to us, and for giving us a chance to expand on their characters, settings, and themes. It was and is something I’ll always be grateful for.
I have to thank my family – my husband, Christopher, for understanding the times when I have to hide out in our bedroom to meet these deadlines, and my daughters, Cady and Haylie, for being so incredible.
Mom – Thank you for always supporting me in every thing I do. You mean so much more to me than you could ever know. I love you so much.
Karen – You are an always open ear for me and you are so understanding and kind. You take my words, clean them up and make them worthy of being read. For that, there aren’t enough thanks.
Joanne – You were a last minute godsend and I’ll exploit you at every turn from now on.
Dani – Holy wow. You held my hand through this process, even when I wanted to delete everything and never write another word. You are my best friend and this book is yours as much as it is mine.
Finally, I want to thank you, the reader, for picking up my book and taking a chance on Piper and Nathanial. They hold a special place in my heart and I hope you loved them like I do.
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About the Author
After years of living vicariously through so many characters and stories created by others, Emma Nichole has taken the plunge herself.
A southern girl born, raised, and still residing in Tennessee, she holds the quirks of this area of the world close to her heart, and showcases it in her writing.
She's a wife, a mother of two, an avid college football fan (Go Vols), a best friend, a sister, a lover of all music, movies, and above all else... a lover of books.