by Tessa Radley
“To you?” She stared up at him, emotion shifting in her eyes. “Why would you want to own Kingdom stock?”
Why indeed?
He’d been asking himself the same question.
“I don’t,” he said tersely. “I did it—” He broke off.
For you.
But Georgia was frowning. She was adding up the limited pieces of information she had at her disposal and coming to God only knew what conclusion. In his arms, he could already feel her stiffening. She moved restlessly in his lap and against his will, his body reacted to her abrupt movements.
“Sit still,” he growled.
“The takeover—”
“Listen,” he said roughly, determined not to be distracted by the dictates of his body. It was imperative for them to talk. “My father has no ambitions to stage a hostile takeover.”
“How can you say that?”
“Dad had some mad scheme of using his newly-acquired stake in Kingdom to force me to do what he wanted—return to JJB Boots.”
Her frown had deepened. “He thought that would work?”
He shrugged. “He thought if he had a decent block of Kingdom stock, he could lean on the Kingdom board to fire me.”
“Why did you resign from JJB Boots?”
Jay hesitated. “When I went to that fashion trade show I was seeking...something. I thought I was looking for a new challenge...but I couldn’t crystallize what I needed. All I knew was that I no longer knew where my life was headed—or what I wanted.” There was no harm in admitting any of that. “I was in danger of becoming one of those sad sons who can never make a decision without running it past Dad’s master plan first. One of those men who never stand on their own two feet, and live out their lives as sad shadows of the men they might have become.”
Georgia shifted. “Sometimes it’s easier just to be swept along with the current.”
“But it’s harder, too.” Jay wanted her to understand. “You lose yourself—and finding that inner certainty again takes strength.”
“And Kingdom offered a bigger and better challenge?” Her voice was as brittle as glass. “One that would make you strong again?”
He didn’t respond as she wriggled in his lap, and he loosened his grip so that she could sit up to face him.
Pulling the hem of her pink dress straight across her knees, she said, “Was that first meeting that Friday night really a fortunate coincidence, Jay? Or did you—and J.J.—plan that, too?”
“My father had nothing to do with it. Our meeting was nothing I’d ever planned for.” But it wasn’t the whole truth. There was more. “I didn’t come to Kingdom to apply for a job. I came looking for you.”
“Oh, God.” Georgia stiffened in his arms. “Let me go.”
Let her go? Anything but that!
But she was so tense in his hold, so rigid, it was clear she didn’t want to be anywhere near him. The battle inside him was fierce, and the familiar fear was consuming. If he let her go...he was going to lose her. Forever.
But he was out of alternatives. He had no choice but to release her. So Jay opened his arms, and she scrambled off his lap.
Her chest rising as she drew a breath, Georgia pushed her hair off her face and finally looked at him.
“That Friday night did we...?” Her throat bobbed. “Did I know you were engaged?”
“No.”
There was a sudden spark in her eyes. “Did you take advantage of the situation...? Did you take me to bed?”
“What do you take me for?” The ache in his chest deepened. “I was engaged... You were in a state of distress. We didn’t sleep together—at least not in the way you’re asking.”
The tough, determined set to her jaw was one Jay knew all too well.
“What’s that’s supposed to mean?” she demanded.
“In the interests of full disclosure, you should know that we stayed together that night. You shared my room. And I held you—until you fell asleep.”
Her hands came up to cover her eyes. “Oh, my God.”
“You didn’t want to go back to your room because your fiancé and his—”
Georgia’s voice cracked. “You know about that?”
Her hands dropped away from her face, and she stared at him, flushed deep, deep red with a humiliation that made him want to draw her into his arms.
“That you caught your rat-shit fiancé in bed with another woman? Yes, I know about that. You told me.”
“I told you?”
He nodded.
“So you thought it might be a good idea to take me back to your—”
“There were no other rooms available. The hotel—and the adjacent hotels—were jammed to the rafters with conference goers. You were distressed. You had nowhere to go. You slept in the bed. And once you were asleep, I moved to the couch. A very uncomfortable two-seater couch, I might add, but I’ll forgive you for not thanking me for my gallantry.”
A little of the tension went out of her. “Well, thank God for that.”
“I’m not that much of a bastard. You were very shaken after breaking up with Ridley.”
“How I wish my memory about him had been blanked out.” She stared at Jay bleakly. “That...incident...has replayed in my mind over and over, thousands of times.”
He’d been so sure the traumatic memory had been suppressed that he’d never dared bring it up to her. “Georgia, none of it was your fault.”
Her expression didn’t change. “My father doesn’t agree. He blamed me. Ridley was the perfect son-in-law as far as he was concerned.”
Jay gave a snort of disgust. “Then you had a lucky escape.”
He was tempted to tell her that Fordyce would’ve been a far worse mistake, but managed to bite the barb back.
He’d never given up hope that Georgia would remember him. But she never had, not even now when he’d filled in the gaps she deserved to know.
“What is it, Jay? What’s wrong?”
“You were gone when I woke up on the Saturday morning,” he told her.
Slowly, she shook her head. “I don’t remember. Days...that entire weekend...is simply gone.”
“I know. I tried to contact you—only to learn that you’d crashed the rental on the way to the airport. You’d been hospitalized. I was worried.” Nothing as mundane as worry. When he’d heard that she’d been in an accident and was awaiting surgery...he’d been truly terrified. He’d sweated bullets. “I wanted to see for myself that you were okay.”
“I was fine.”
The sound he made was not pretty. “I got to see you several weeks later, and you were not fine! You returned to work far too soon, hopping around on crutches—”
She shrugged. “Kingdom needed me. Besides, I’d heard Ridley’s position had been filled, and I was eager to meet his replacement.”
Jay knew she’d been worried her place in her father’s life...in Kingdom...might be usurped. The day she’d met him, she’d been bristling with suspicion.
Even though he doubted Georgia would ever admit it, the period after her accident had been one of crisis. Her faith in herself must’ve been badly shaken by her memory loss, by Ridley’s betrayal and her father’s angry disappointment. Hardly surprising that she’d turned, as always, to work.
Kingdom had always come first, and Jay knew it always would. The company pulled at her...even as her father pushed her away. And it saddened him to see how hard she worked to try to gain her father’s approval and love.
“You should’ve been resting, keeping your ankle elevated.” He didn’t want to nag, but he couldn’t help himself. “That’s what non-load bearing means.”
“Well, you certainly reminded me of that often enough.”
He had. He’d tried his best not to hector her, and had taken refuge in the taunting rivalry that had grown between
them.
“And you brought me coffee...” her voice softened at the memory “...whenever I needed it.”
But bringing her coffee was never going to be enough.
For him.
Or for her.
Despite everything, he couldn’t help her attain what he knew she really wanted: to prove herself by getting the top job at Kingdom and winning her father’s love. And Jay was in danger of doing what his father had done to him: smothering her with protection and expectations.
If he loved her, he had to give her the freedom she needed.
Even if that meant losing her forever.
Fourteen
Fake.
Their engagement was fake. She was an imposter...a fake. She, who worshipped at the altar of honesty, had lied. To Jay. To herself.
She’d been so scared of becoming lovers with Jay, so fearful of jeopardizing their working relationship, so terrified of risking the tentative friendship between them, that she’d been blind to the fact that she was falling in love with him.
Forget blind. She’d been asleep.
For years!
What if she took a chance and told him how she was starting to feel?
As Georgia stared at Jay, a vision of all the possibilities filled her mind. They were dynamite together. She wanted to share her slice of Kingdom with him...the plans and projects and shining success she’d plotted for years.
But before she could get up her courage, he spoke. “Do you ever think about what you want? Deep down?”
She was shaking inside when she said, “I want to be someone people respect and—”
“People? Or your father?”
Jay’s interruption jolted her.
“Are you sure that’s what you want?” He tipped his head to one side, studying her. “What you really want most?”
She wanted more than one night... She wanted a future with Jay.
Georgia drew up her shoulders and let them drop. “There are other things I want.”
“Like what?”
The impossibility of Jay falling in love with her made her hesitate...
Her mind veered away and she thought of her weariness. “Well, a vacation would be nice.” Not running away or avoiding, but simply a time to relax and reflect.
“What else?”
“I’ve been meaning to spend more time with Roberta. I missed her when she lived in Europe. Yet, since she’s returned to New York, we haven’t spent much time together.” All they seemed to do was work.
“You two are close.” His voice had dropped.
“Very. It’s quite strange because when we were children, she was much closer to Charis.”
“Did you resent that?”
“No. I don’t know. Maybe.”
“Perhaps much of the tension between you and Charis comes from your father’s dominance and manipulation?”
“What’s this? Psychoanalysis 101?” But she had to admit that her father had always made it clear that Charis was his favorite—even when she pretty much killed herself to be everything he’d ever wanted from the son he’d never had.
“No. I have no desire to fix you—you are perfect the way you are.”
She blinked in disbelief. Had she heard right? Had Jay actually told her she was perfect? With no gleam of mockery in his eyes...eyes that were already glancing away at the watch on his cocked wrist.
“What time is your flight?”
Her heart contracted. She told him, even as she tried to fathom what he was thinking.
But his face gave away nothing.
“The guests will be leaving soon, and then I’ll give you a ride to the airport.”
She’d half expected him to ask her to stay.
But he hadn’t. Something inside her withered.
“I suppose you’ve got what you want all figured out?” She flung the words at him, feeling curiously defenseless.
If it hadn’t been for his stillness, and the slight narrowing of his eyes, she would’ve thought he was quite at ease.
“Yes, I know exactly what I want.” His lips curved up, but his eyes remained watchful. “Two years certainly gave me plenty of opportunity to work that out.”
The fears that had always been so much a part of her everyday life bubbled up. She hesitated, and then said in a rush, “Is Kingdom part of it?”
“If you have to ask that, you don’t know me at all.” He took a few steps away, making her feel more alone than ever. “Come, we need to go back to the house.”
What did Jay really want? There were so many more questions she wanted to ask, but Jay was waiting, his body tense.
So, she would be leaving...
There was the confrontation with her father that lay ahead. Her heart plummeted. She was dreading it. But she couldn’t prevaricate anymore; she had to tell her father the truth that she’d turned Adam’s down proposal. But she was not going to allow him to banish her from Kingdom as he had Charis. And before she left Jay’s parents’ home, she owed them an apology for the sham engagement. She wasn’t much looking forward to that, either; but at least then her conscience would be clean. She wanted Jay’s parents to remember her as someone with integrity. Even though there was no reason she would meet them ever again.
“Come on.” Jay had paused on the stone stairs. He held out a hand to her. “Let’s go say goodbye.”
* * *
All the guests had finally left, and the anniversary party had been a stunning success.
While Georgia packed her bag, Jay had disappeared to check his email and make a couple of calls. Once she was all packed up, conscious that she would be leaving very soon and that she still had to undo some of the damage she’d done this weekend, she made her way downstairs.
In the den, J.J. was at his desk and Nancy sat on a couch with Zeus asleep at her feet. J.J. narrowed his eyes over the top of his spectacles as Georgia entered.
Once again, the shame about lying to Jay’s parents washed through her. So much for her high principles. “I’ve come to say goodbye,” Georgia announced.
“No doubt we will be seeing more of you, for those skiing trips at the very least.” Nancy rose to her feet. “The snow will be here soon.”
J.J. removed his spectacles and set them down on the desk. “You do know that Jay is only marrying you because you’re your father’s right-hand man, don’t you?” He paused. “Jay has always wanted to call the shots.”
“Stop it, J.J.”
Georgia gave Jay’s mom a grateful smile, before turning her attention back to J.J. “Jay could’ve taken over JJB Boots, if that’s all he wanted, and he would’ve gotten total control far more easily.” Suzie was right. J.J. had no idea what motivated his son. “But that’s immaterial, and you have no need to worry about me keeping Jay away, because I won’t be marrying him. Our engagement was a facade. Fake.”
There was a gasp. Then Jay’s mother was at her side. “What’s this nonsense about a fake engagement? The two of you are perfect for each other. We—I—would welcome you with open arms.”
Bemused, Georgia stared at Jay’s mother. For the first time in years, the yearning for a mother flared. Then she threw her arms around Nancy and hugged her. A real warm hug. Tears pricked at the back of her throat. “I’m so sorry for deceiving you. Thank you for being so welcoming. Whoever gets to be your daughter-in-law is a very lucky woman.”
Nancy hugged her back. “Georgia—”
From behind her, she heard a curse.
Georgia let go of Nancy and spun around. Jay stood in the doorway, her trolley bag at his feet. Now that it was finally time for her to leave, Georgia felt a lump in her throat.
It was time to finish what she’d started.
She hurried to Jay’s side.
“This belongs to you.” She tried to wrest the beautiful ring from h
er finger, but it refused to budge.
“Don’t,” said Jay, his jaw tight.
“I’ve already told your parents that our engagement is not real—and that I’d never stop you coming back.”
“I’m not coming back to JJB Boots. My father knows that.”
J.J. muttered something Georgia decided it was better not to hear.
“Your father can come along to New York next time Jennifer and I visit,” Nancy said quickly.
This time J.J.’s muttering was louder.
Nancy rounded on her husband, her hands on her hips, her eyes flashing. “It’s time we traveled together. Why, I was speaking to Joyce earlier, she and Bill have been wanting to go on a cruise for years, but they’ve never gotten around to it. She invited us to go along.”
“Wait a minute.” J.J. looked concerned. “I can’t simply leave our business—”
Nancy tossed her head. “If you want, you can stay here and run JJB Boots, but I’m going on a cruise.”
“You can’t expect me to leave the company for months—”
“One month, that’s all.” Nancy brandished her index finger at J.J. “I intend to go once a year. While I certainly don’t expect you to do anything you don’t want, I’ve been dreaming about this for a long time. Now I’m going to do it.”
“Go, Mom!” Jennifer’s voice rang out from the doorway. “Make your dreams happen.”
“Dad, you could always leave JJB Boots in Jennifer and Suzie’s more-than-capable hands.” Jay’s suggestion broke into the cacophony. “Who knows? You might even find they do an outstanding job.”
It was the baffled expression of blank shock on J.J.’s face that caused Georgia to interject, “Don’t make the mistake my father made two decades ago. He was married to his business. He put Kingdom ahead of my mother’s needs. He drove my mother into another man’s arms. And then she died—they both died—and she never came back.”
And her father was still putting Kingdom ahead of his daughters...