She pushed her hands up between them, hating the shiver of need that came with touching him. “What? You’re staying at the station for me? You don’t have to do that. You can go, be the communications director or whatever. We don’t have to work together.”
“That job is in New York, Everly.”
She sucked in a breath. Chris dropped his hands.
“You’ve always intended to go back?”
“Not anymore. Things have changed.”
That was an understatement.
She let out a sharp, painful laugh. “From the beginning, this job has been a stepping-stone for you to get to where you really want to be. Now, what? You’re going to give that up because we kissed? Somehow I’m supposed to believe you won’t one day regret or resent giving up everything you’ve worked toward because we have some chemistry?” He started to answer, but she cut him off. “Did you even want to manage the station? Do you have any interest in this arena at all?”
He sighed. “No. I didn’t. But there are challenges here that I never expected that made me like it. What we have is far more than just a little chemistry. You know it. I can be happy here because I’m not staying for business. I’m staying for you.”
For some reason, that only made it worse. It was too much pressure. She’d just reached the point of believing they could work. What if they didn’t? He’d already made it clear there were no guarantees in life. She couldn’t be his reason. It would make her feel like a dead end. A detour on the path to what he’d really wanted.
She bit the inside of her cheek and willed her words to form coherent sentences. “Why? Why would you do that? Until six weeks ago, you barely saw me. Barely acknowledged me.”
His face fell. “Everly. You know why.” His hurt tone cut through her, but she couldn’t stop herself from finishing.
“You couldn’t even tell me who you really are. Your father owns an empire. You’re meant for more than a small town. You jumped through all these hoops because your career matters to you more than anything else. You told me how important it is to you. We just … You can’t throw it all away for something that hasn’t even begun. For something that could end.”
He touched her arm, and she pulled away. “Don’t say that. I want you. We can make this work.”
Everly crossed her arms over her chest, wanting to move but afraid her feet wouldn’t carry her. “Can we? What if it ends up not being what you want? We know what your thoughts are on things that don’t seem to have an easy solution. Cut and run, right?”
“Damn it, Everly. Do not throw my divorce back in my face. You want to talk, I’ll tell you everything you want to know. But don’t use that against me.”
“Okay. Let’s talk.” She gripped the chair. “How long have you liked me?”
His brow furrowed, like he sensed a trap. “Since the moment I looked at you.”
“Then tell me why you suggested I date a bunch of strangers. Tell me why, if you liked me so much, you came up with that solution to save the station.”
His jaw tightened, and Everly’s heart spasmed.
She nodded. “Because business comes first. Always.”
“I thought I was leaving. I never planned on telling you how I felt. I thought I could help you find happiness before I had to go.”
She scoffed, her jaw dropping. “Oh.” Now she stalked away, nervous laughter bubbling from her throat. “Isn’t that nice. You turn the station around, make Dad proud, and do a little pity project on the side. How lovely.”
He huffed out an impatient breath. “Jesus. Stop turning my words around.”
She whirled, pointed at him. “The bottom line—that’s a term you understand, right? The bottom line is you were willing to let me be with someone else to prove something to your father. You held back because you never intended to stay. I get that there are no guarantees in life, but I need to be all in with someone who doesn’t hold back. Someone who will give me everything—their heart, their trust, their honesty. That’s what I have to give. That’s what I deserve in return. I can’t be with you if in the back of my mind, I’m always wondering if you’ll be sorry you stayed.” Her voice cracked. “If you’ll be sorry you stayed for me.”
She stepped around him, desperate to escape before her tears did. The hurt and frustration etched into the lines around his mouth, his eyes, clawed at her heart.
“I’m willing to stay,” he whispered. “Once again, you’re the one running.”
She shook her head. “Self-preservation,” she said, throwing his words back at him.
Stacey hurried after her when she grabbed her purse and fled for the exit. She didn’t think about work or shirking her responsibilities. All she could focus on was getting out of the building, getting away from Chris, being alone.
Stacey had other plans. “Hey. Hey! Stop it. What’s going on?”
Everly hurried to her car, her hands shaking as she pulled her keys from her purse. She unlocked the door and yanked it open.
“Just go.” She slid in and started the car.
Stacey opened the passenger side and jumped in.
“What are you doing? Get out. I need to be alone.”
“Do what you need to do, but I’m not going anywhere. You’re in no shape to drive, so I’m okay if you want to just sit here and not get us into an accident. But I’m not leaving you alone. Cry, scream, do whatever you need, but you are not alone, Evs.”
She swallowed down the tears, put the car in Drive. “I’m fine.” She held the tears back and thought that she and Chris had something in common—they were both liars.
[37]
Chris grabbed one of the rolling chairs and rammed it into the wall. Yanking at his tie, he pulled it over his head and threw it on the boardroom table. The staff had scattered, and he had no idea what was being played on the radio right now, but none of it mattered.
Noah walked through the door and looked at Chris. “What the hell is going on, man? I saw Everly run out of the building with Stacey. Your receptionist looks like she saw someone get run over. Mason and Mari are running Stacey’s spot.”
“Go away, Noah. Now isn’t a good time.” He picked up his tie and wrapped it tightly around his fist.
“Clearly. What happened?”
“Just go somewhere else, okay? I don’t have time to screw around with you. You wouldn’t understand, anyway. You jump from one thing to the next without a plan, never stopping for a damn minute to see where you’re going. Everything is messed up. I don’t want to get into it with you.”
Noah pursed his lips, nodding and slamming the meeting room door. He pulled a chair out from the table and sat down, put his hands behind his head, and leaned back.
“First of all, fuck you. Maybe I jump from one thing to the next, but I’m happy with my life. I don’t need it color-coded, mapped out to the minute. Besides, this isn’t about me. Second, calm the hell down so we can fix what you broke.”
“Jesus. You’re so much like him sometimes, it drives me nuts. This can’t be fixed. I can’t throw money at it and make a deal. I can’t sweet-talk my way through this, okay?”
“You want to do this now? Okay, then. Back at you, bro. You’re more like him than you want to be, too. You don’t think outside the box. You’re too black and white. You keep things in separate boxes, and when there’s spillage, shit blows up, and instead of dealing with it, you wanna shove everything back into the right place.”
Chris stopped pacing and stared at his brother. “I have no clue what you just said.”
“There’s always a solution, Chris. I’m not talking about money. Punch something if you need to. Preferably not me, because I will punch you back. Whatever you gotta do. But pull yourself together. Let’s do what we do and figure this out.”
“You have no idea what’s even going on.”
“Nope. But I’m pretty smart, little brother. You’re all tied up in knots, your girl ran out of here crying, and your staff looks like a bomb exploded. Seems like they al
l might have found out about Dad and the business being a stepping-stone.”
Chris deflated, his anger morphing into hurt, his heart twisting at his brother’s words. “She was crying?”
Noah’s face softened. “Not quite, but she looked close. What the hell happened, man?”
Chris sank into his chair and pressed his head back against the cushion, rubbing the heels of his hands against his eyes. “I screwed everything up.”
He filled his brother in on Mr. Lee, the staff finding out, and his conversation with Everly.
“It’s time to tell Dad to go screw himself. Sometimes I think his real full-time job is messing with us like puppets.”
Chris laughed at the analogy. “Little hard to do that when he’s holding the strings.”
“Cut them, then. We have our own money. You’re an excellent businessman. We don’t have to live by his decree. I’m not going back, man.”
Chris startled. “What?”
“I’m staying. I like it here. I don’t want to be in New York anymore. Under his thumb.”
Chris leaned forward, dropped his hands between his knees. “You’re moving to California. Just like that?”
Noah grinned and put his feet up on the table. “Well, I do like to jump around from one thing to another, but I can actually picture myself standing still here. Figuratively. I’m looking into more houses. I can make my own real estate investments here on the West Coast. It’s sunny here more often than not, I like the people, the vibe, and my little brother is going to live here if he gets his head out of his ass and figures out what he wants.”
Chris swallowed the lump in his throat. Noah made it seem so cut-and-dried, but he hadn’t seen Everly’s face. He hadn’t felt her shut down, step back physically and emotionally.
“Well? What do you want?”
The answer was simple. “Everly.”
* * *
When Chris arrived home that night, the fatigue went straight through to his bones. He’d spent the day putting a plan into action, which involved lawyers, conference calls, and talking with both of his brothers.
He let himself into his apartment, realizing the emptiness of it mirrored how he felt inside. He had to believe there was a way to fix things with Everly, but not tonight. If he let himself think about her, he wouldn’t be able to pull himself out. He’d be on the phone or at her door, begging for another chance. He had to settle things first. That was the only way to give her some of the guarantees she needed. One thing at a time. If he knew his father the way he was sure he did, he didn’t have much time to get settled.
Sure enough, as he sat down on his couch, his phone lit up, showing his father was trying to FaceTime him. Nerves resurfaced. He breathed in through his nose and out through his mouth.
“You’ve got this. If you don’t, well, you have nothing else to lose at this particular moment.”
With that, he swiped Accept.
“Dad. It’s nearly midnight in New York. Late night.” Keep calm. Don’t let him rile you. Those were Noah’s words. The numbers are in your favor. That, of course, was Wes’s wisdom.
“What the hell did you do?” New wrinkles had formed around his father’s eyes and mouth. Definitely not laugh lines. His graying eyebrows furrowed; he held the phone too close to his face.
“I did a lot today. Are you referring to something specific?” Chris sure as hell hoped he sounded more nonchalant than he felt. If his heart beat any harder, his father would hear it through the phone.
“Don’t give me that. You know what I’m talking about. I got an email from that ad agency saying I was in violation of the contract. He actually gave me a goddamn ultimatum. You want to explain how he knew about the primary contract regarding the dissolution process?”
Here we go. “I got blindsided, Dad. I had no idea you were pulling the rug out there. When Mr. Lee came at me today, irate, I got our lawyers on it, figuring we’d better lock this down before it got out of hand. I had them comb through all the individual contracts we have with each of the subsidiaries as well as the primary documents. I thought I was being thorough, making sure he didn’t have any room to take action against us.” Chris took a breath, his hands shaky. “I had no idea it wouldn’t turn out in our favor.”
That part actually was a shock. It had been Wes’s idea to look through whatever documents they had available. Chris had suspected his father of bending rules, to get his own way in the past, but what he’d done with the station nearly crossed ethical lines. The contracts with the subsidiary companies were standard. The one for the radio station, however, implemented several clauses that overrode many of the terms the smaller companies agreed to.
His father’s face contorted with anger with every word. Chris worked to keep his expression passive.
“You told him!” His father spat the words, actual spittle flying from his lips.
Keep calm. “I absolutely did not.” Nope. Noah had. He’d gone to Mr. Lee, encouraging him to take a look at the fine print. Most of the companies wouldn’t bother reading any extra paperwork, but they had access to it. Once Mr. Lee found it, realized what Noah wasn’t saying, he’d taken the necessary action to make sure his father knew getting rid of the smaller company wouldn’t be quite as easy as he’d hoped.
“Then who did?”
Chris shrugged. “I’m sure you can get it dismissed, Dad.” He needed to wrap this up before he gave in to the renewed anger that was surfacing.
“That’s not the point. I won’t have you sabotaging me like a child out for revenge.”
Chris gripped the phone tighter, keeping it a reasonable distance from his face as he began to pace the room. “Again, I don’t know what you’re talking about, but while I have you on the phone, I’d like to mention that being caught off guard by Mr. Lee wasn’t pleasant. You had no right to step in. More than that, you had no reason.”
His dad started to speak, but Chris was done playing. “You gave me the reins in theory, but you’ve questioned me every step of the way. When I don’t do what you want, you break promises, go back on your word, or change the rules of the game.”
“This is how business works. If you haven’t figured that out yet, maybe I was wrong about your ability to succeed at all.” His father’s tone deepened. Hardened.
They stared at each other through the small screen. He wished, even willed himself to feel more for the man staring back at him.
His dad waved a hand dismissively in front of the screen. “This is a waste of time. My lawyers will make this go away. Even if they don’t, it doesn’t matter anymore. Get your ass home. Part of this is my fault. Thought you were ready for the next step, but clearly, you’re not. As for the station, none of that matters. I’m selling the entire thing piece by piece. Even if this Lee guy thinks he has a leg to stand on, there’ll be nothing to fight for.”
Chris nearly shot out of his seat. “What?”
His dad shrugged. “We don’t need this in our portfolio.”
Chris lost whatever calm and cool he’d fooled himself into believing he had. “You haven’t got a goddamn clue what any of us need. The only person you care about is yourself. You had no right to undermine me, go behind my back. It wasn’t that this was too much for me; it was that you couldn’t keep your hands out of it.”
“Watch how you talk to me. It’s my company. My hands built every bit of it, so of course they’re in it.” His father’s eyes went hard, like his aging jaw.
“Bullshit. Grandpa built this company. He’d be sick if he knew what you’ve done to it and this family. You’ve torn both apart bit by bit so there are only fragments floating around resembling what he put his heart and soul into.”
His father’s fist came down hard. Chris heard the thump through the computer. “My father was stuck in the past. This is the way forward. You and your brothers are spoiled. Indulged. You’ve had everything given to you.”
Chris wished he could pace. “Given to us at a price I’m no longer willing to pay.”
He didn’t have to play by his father’s rules. He and his brothers had joined forces years ago, creating a contingency plan that Noah reminded Chris of today.
His father’s face went a deep shade of red. Chris worried, for a split second, that he was having a heart attack.
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“I can’t keep jumping through your hoops,” he said. “I won’t. I want to be happy more than I want to please you.”
“You’re a damn fool. What the hell is wrong with you?” His dad was practically snarling through the monitor.
Chris smiled. “Nothing. I finally figured out what’s worth chasing in life, and it isn’t your approval.”
“You’re going to walk away from your dream, from what you’ve worked for all these years, because I made some decisions without your approval? You’re acting like a child. You’re going to lose everything.”
Chris shook his head. “I hope not. I’ve had my head down, working toward this goal for so long, I never stopped to make sure I still wanted it. I came here to prove something to you, but instead, I found out who I am. Having it all means something entirely different to me than it does to you. I don’t want to fill your shoes. I want to walk in my own. Good luck with your wedding.”
Chris pressed End before his father could say anything more. He was too tired for any more circles. That chapter was closed. The rest would play out however it would, but he knew now, professionally, he’d be okay. He always thought he needed his father’s backing, his approval. He didn’t discount how lucky he was to have the opportunities given to him, but in each of those roles, he’d been the one doing the heavy lifting. He’d done the work, risen in the ranks, and still never received an ounce of appreciation from his father. So he’d go it alone, or he’d work for someone else. Either way, he’d survive professionally. The most important thing he’d learned was that what he did for a living was not how he wanted to be defined.
When he thought of what kind of man he wanted to be, the answer was simple: the kind that deserved Everly’s trust, heart, and love.
Ten Rules for Faking It Page 32