by Jess Bentley
“Well, congratulations,” he says softly, brushing his shoulder against mine before he leaves the room.
I don’t expect Landry to pick up the phone, and she doesn’t. Instead I get her voicemail, and I’m not entirely sure what to say.
“Landry, I know you’re mad. You have every right to be mad,” I begin. “I’ve been a jerk. I’m sorry. I could give you a million excuses why I’ve been a jerk. They all seemed like good excuses at the time. But now… I just feel kind of stupid. You’re my sister, and I love you. I’m going to love your baby. And I’m going to love you for having your baby. Okay? I love you.”
Hanging up the phone, my stomach is in guilty knots. I’m just not sure that’s enough.
Chapter 19
Maxwell
The look on Clarissa’s face when she saw the Raj Abnar contract was absolutely priceless. Her eyes widened dramatically, and the tip of her nose went pink, the way it does when she’s really excited about something. Though she tried to protest, she really does deserve it.
“Hey, do you want to take an early lunch?” I ask her.
She looks up at me from behind her laptop, cautiously happy to see me.
“Don’t you think we’ve been obvious enough for today?”
“No, I think you worry too much,” I counter. “Besides, how often do you sign a deal with a client like that? Don’t you think you deserve to celebrate?”
She rolls her eyes theatrically. “Well, it is hard to argue with that,” she finally confesses.
“Excellent, let’s go!”
“What, right now?” she gasps. “It’s barely eleven!”
“Right now,” I repeat. “I’m afraid I’m going to have to insist. It’s good for you.”
“You are so bossy,” she mutters, but she is smiling.
I desperately want to take her hand as we leave the building, but I have to be satisfied with brushing her arm with my arm in the elevator. Normally she would pull away, but today it is a special occasion.
I could spend the whole afternoon with her, but even though I convince her to have a glass of champagne with me, I can’t convince her to stay longer. She eats her grilled tuna Caesar salad with gusto, relishing the capers and washing them down with more champagne.
By the time we get back to the office, I guess we are just a little bit tipsy. To my chagrin, though, we run into Lou in the reception area.
“I was just looking for you two,” he scowls, crossing his arms. “Where have you been?”
“Out to lunch,” I answer with a smile. “I take it you heard the good news?”
He seems determined to be cross with us, but a man like Lou can’t be upset with that kind of professional fee.
“You are damn right I heard the news!” he replies, grinning. “Let’s head back to my office and toast to this relationship!”
I know that he is referring to the relationship with Raj, but I can’t help stealing a secret look at Clarissa. She blushes and follows him, barely wobbling on her stiletto heels. Another glass of champagne will put her right up to the limit.
“To Maxwell Kent!” Lou announces, raising his champagne glass in the air.
“No, not exactly,” I shrug.
Lou scowls. “Not exactly? What’s that mean?”
“It’s Clarissa’s deal,” I answer simply.
“Well, Maxwell brought it in but—”
“But Clarissa closed the deal,” I interrupt.
Lou seems suspicious and slowly lowers his champagne glass.
“Okay, so Clarissa? You’re giving your commission to her?”
“She did the work, she gets the commission,” I explain. “That’s the deal, right? Or, it should be. The reality is, Clarissa’s been overlooked and underappreciated almost the entire time she’s been here.”
“Maxwell,” Clarissa interjects, surprised.
“Now, nobody’s ever complained to me,” Lou objects. “Clarissa? Is this true? Are you unhappy?”
“Clarissa never complains to anybody,” I reply. “You were just supposed to know, Lou. Which is why I need to resign.”
Clarissa gasps.
“What are you talking about!” Lou barks, suddenly furious. “What kind of nonsense—”
“She is twice the VP I am, Lou. She’s worth it.”
Clarissa is shocked, and if Lou wasn’t here, I would kiss that expression right off her face. But since he is here, I have to hold back.
“Well, Clarissa?” he grumbles sullenly. “I guess there is an open vice president position here now…”
“Vice president?” she gulps in response.
The words seem to echo through the room. I can tell by the look on her face that this is something she’s dreamed about, but never said out loud. But she deserves it. She deserves it more than anyone.
“Actually… Let me take that back,” Lou mutters.
I clench my jaw. I know he has the courage to do this, if he just thinks about it for a minute. He must realize how valuable she is.
Lou sits behind his desk heavily in the creaky, old leather chair. He gulps down the last of his champagne and sighs for a long time, then sits back.
“You know what? Why don’t you just take it all?”
Clarissa shakes her head. “Lou, if it’s too much…”
“No, I’m serious,” he continues in his gravelly voice. “To be honest, I’m tired of all this. You guys still have it, the fire for it. I can see it just looking at you. You’ve got that spark, and I lost it… a long time ago. I don’t even know when.”
“Wait, what are you talking about here?” I ask slowly.
“I’m talking about a buyout,” he shrugs. “Just take the whole thing.”
Clarissa gasps as she figures it out. “You are talking about… selling the company?”
“Well, I’m talking about selling the company to you two. Not to anybody else. Certainly not to any of those characters out there.”
He waggles his finger in the air, indicating all the other brokers in the office.
“Lou, I don’t know how we could do that,” Clarissa answers tentatively.
Clearing my throat, I catch her eye. She just got a commission. A huge one. It takes her a moment to remember.
“You know, I’ve been thinking about getting out of the city,” Lou continues, almost talking to himself. “I’ve been thinking about going up north. Maybe Lake Geneva? Just finding a little place to fish?”
I try not to let on that I remember anything regarding him and Sunny. He may not even know that I know. Obviously, there is at least one person in Lake Geneva who would be happy to see him too.
“Retirement, you think?” I suggest nonchalantly. “Think you’ll find enough to do to keep busy?”
He raises his eyebrows and bobs his head from side to side. “Oh, I think if people put their mind to it they could find things to do to entertain themselves.”
“So should we put the paperwork together?” I suggest.
Clarissa looks startled. I can tell this is all going very fast for her.
“Yeah, put something together for me,” Lou suggests. Already I can tell that he seems more relaxed. Retirement will do him good.
“Okay. We will have something for you by the end of the week,” Clarissa stammers.
“Sounds good,” Lou says, but I can see the champagne has taken hold. His eyes are droopy, and I figure he is about to slip into one of his brief afternoon naps.
Clarissa follows me to my office, her steps quick and nervous. She closes the door behind her carefully before daring to say anything.
“What was that!” she whisper-yells.
“What was what?” I whisper-yell back.
“All of that!” she continues, beginning to pace back and forth. “The compliments! The quitting! The promotion! The buying the company! This is insane!”
I don’t say anything for a few seconds, giving her room to breathe.
“No, this is nuts!” she declares, loud enough that I’m sure pe
ople can hear her outside the door.
“We can do this,” I reassure her.
“We don’t even know how much he wants!” she reminds me. “My commission is stupidly huge, but I haven’t even gotten it yet. And what if he wants more? What then?”
“I have money, Clarissa,” I smile. “Money is not a problem.”
“No, it has to be fair!” she objects. “It has to be… even. Right? Totally even.”
She continues pacing back and forth, practically making me dizzy. Eventually I have to reach out and grab her wrist to make her stop, pulling her close. Though she resists, it is only for a few seconds. She melts in my embrace, looking up at me, searching my eyes for answers.
“Come on, Maxwell,” she whispers. “You know this is crazy, right?”
“What’s crazy about buying a company together? People do it all the time.”
“People do crazy things all the time!” she retorts. “What if I don’t have enough money to—”
I kiss her to quiet her. Her objections melt away into helpless whimpers.
“Okay, but you have to promise me it will be even,” she continues stubbornly as soon as I release her soft lips from mine.
“Partners in all ways,” I assure her with a smile.
“Okay, this is a promise!” she warns me.
“It’s more than a promise,” I reply.
Blinking, she stares at me. “What’s more than a promise?”
“A proposal is more than a promise,” I shrug.
“What does that mean?” she asks shrewdly.
“It means if you are my wife, then everything is even, right?”
“What?” she gasps.
“Does that mean yes?”
Her eyes narrow. “I don’t think you technically asked the question,” she reminds me.
“Oh, you really are stubborn,” I smile.
She looks at me with utter amazement as I step back, drawing the ring from my pocket and kneeling in front of her with it held between my fingers.
“Clarissa Goring,” I begin in a loud voice, hoping everyone can hear me, “will you marry me?”
“But it’s so soon!” she whispers.
“Yes! Let’s not waste a minute!”
Her hands flutter beneath her chin as she waves them excitedly.
“May I remind you that you still have not answered me?” I gently prod her.
“Oh, yes!” she yelps. “Yes! Definitely yes!”
Sliding the ring onto her finger is one of the most satisfying sensations of my whole life. She gazes at it proudly, then tucks it under her chin. And yet, it’s only a moment before her expression turns doubtful.
“I don’t think your parents liked me,” she confesses meekly.
“Oh, sweetheart, don’t worry about them,” I sigh, wrapping my arms around her shoulders and pulling her close to me.
I don’t care who knows it anymore. I am not going to let her pull away again.
“No, really,” she murmurs against my chest, pouting.
“Well, if it makes you feel any better, Sunny practically ordered me to do it,” I admit.
She thinks about it for a few moments, then nods.
“Actually, that really does make me feel better.”
Chapter 20
Clarissa
With my hand in my pocket, I stand nervously in front of the door, waiting for Maxwell’s parents to answer. He pulls me closer and brushes his lips against my hairline, murmuring something sweet against my ear.
“It’s going to be fine,” he tells me for the thousandth time. “Take your hand out of your pocket.”
“Then they will see the ring,” I mutter through clenched teeth as quietly as I can.
“That’s kind of the point.”
“Can’t I just take it off?” I ask. “I’ll put it right back on again later. I promise. It’s not like I’m going to lose it or anything.”
“It’s against the law for you to take it off,” he sniffs. “As your future husband, I command it.”
He has said that sort of thing several times—trying to tell me that “future husband” is some kind of lawmaking entity. He thinks he is being very funny.
“Maxwell!” Sherry Kent calls as she flings open the door. “And Clarissa! You don’t have to wait out there! Please come in!”
Nervously I allow Maxwell to guide me into the entryway, a smile frozen on my mouth. His mother leans forward and kisses me on both cheeks, but she is definitely warmer than before, I think.
“Oh, hello again!” Marshall Kent bellows in his extremely loud voice as he enters the room. “Clarissa! Thank you so much for coming!”
This time, I insisted that we not have dinner. Drinks would be fine, I said. Secretly, I just wanted to make sure that if everything went as terribly as last time, I could get the hell out of here a whole lot faster. Waiting for dessert to end was practically torture last time.
“Gimlet, am I right?” Marshall asks with a wink.
“Oh, yes!” I nod. “You remembered what I like to drink?”
“I could never forget a gimlet girl,” he smiles, obviously trying to be charming.
Sherry does her best too, speaking warmly to me, asking me questions about where I’m from and things like that. Things she didn’t ask before. Of course, I try to answer right away. I don’t want them to think I’m holding a grudge, after all. It’s important that they like me.
Still, I keep waiting for the ghost of Zella to pop in for a visit. I expect her to arrive at any time, and I keep an ear out for the chime of the doorbell. But she doesn’t. No one even mentions the Hews. Eventually I begin to relax.
When I let my guard down, I feel Maxwell’s hand sliding against mine. I smile at the electricity of his touch, even in front of his parents. Though we are in our early thirties, I still feel like it’s disrespectful to canoodle too emphatically in front of them. Then he tugs on my wrist, and before I can stop him he pulls my hand from my pocket where I have been stubbornly keeping it all this time.
Sherry gasps aloud, clapping her hands over her mouth.
“Maxwell! Clarissa!”
“Congratulations, my boy!” Marshall bellows, practically shaking the crystal chandelier.
I stand just in time to catch Sherry as she rushes to hug me, almost losing my balance. She squeezes me tight in a motherly embrace, then pulls back, her eyes gleaming with the emotion.
“Oh, Clarissa! This is so wonderful!” she breathes. “I just couldn’t be happier for you!”
“Really, it’s wonderful,” Marshall beams, coming to his wife’s side.
“Thanks, Dad,” Maxwell grins, reaching out to hug his father tight, then thumping each other on the back in a very manly embrace.
I am practically overwhelmed by their show of support, and I understand that there is an undercurrent of meaning here, that they are sorry for how things went last time. That they accept me. That they accept us.
“You see? I told you it would be all right,” Maxwell announces with a smirk when we are back at my apartment.
“You did,” I agree cautiously. “And what did you have to do to make that happen? Threaten to cut them off?”
“Oh, I think you underestimate them,” he scoffs. “My parents are very decent people, given the right motivation. A little coaching maybe. They’re going to love you very much. Not as much as me, but…”
“Oh, that’s a relief,” I smile, curling myself into his strong arms again, my favorite place to be.
In moments, his embrace begins to strengthen and he pulls me up, his lips seeking mine. Though I was tired just moments ago, suddenly I am invigorated again. Being close to his body energizes me somehow. I love the feeling of aligning myself with him. I know that every time I brush against him, I will find new depths of pleasure to explore.
Though we are still parked in his parents’ driveway, I simply can’t wait anymore. When he opens my car door, I duck in but I drag him with me, straight into the back seat. It might be childis
h, but making out in the back seat of my fiancé’s hot rod is something I’m completely entitled to, and now that I know I’m worth it, I plan on getting everything I deserve.
Epilogue
Maxwell
The elevator doors open, and I have to smile again. Every time that I see the brushed silver sign that reads “Kent-Goring Commercial Properties” I get a flush of pride.
The renovation took months, but it was totally worth it. Instead of a bunch of stuffy offices around the outside and a bunch of cubicles nobody wants around the inside, now we have open spaces with shared desks and ergonomic chairs. Everybody has a laptop or an iPad to work on, so there’s no reason to assign people cubicles.
Since we spend so much time meeting clients, it just makes sense to let people be where they are comfortable. We have several lounges and meeting rooms now, all outfitted with updated technology and the fastest Wi-Fi outside of the CIA. The desk phones were all recycled since absolutely nobody wanted our donation.
But even with the changes, I made sure that there was still a corner office and that Clarissa took it. She didn’t want it, of course. She barely wanted her name on the sign. I tried to convince her to put her name first, but of course she was never going to let that happen. Eventually she agreed to both of our names, with a hyphen. That was the most I could manage.
But the corner office is special. Not the way Lou had it, but updated. It signifies her importance and it reminds her of just how hard she has worked, and how much she is worth. Decorated in subdued shades of blue and turquoise, it is a beautiful space. Not too luxurious but not too spare, either. Comfortable, with a pullout sofa and blackout blinds, for obvious reasons.
The sound of music reaches me quickly, and I head for the closest conversation room. Everyone is gathered here for our grand reopening party, smiling and laughing with glasses of expensive champagne for everybody.
Before she sees me, I stop and lean on the partition. I like to watch her when she doesn’t know I am doing it. Here she is, in her element. No longer at the bottom rung of the ladder. She climbed all the way to the top. Even Fred has to treat her with the respect she deserves now.