by Tawny Amaya
She pursed her lips, a sparkle in her eye that I didn’t care to see. “He’s never had any other woman around but you.” Marti then looked me up and down, a slow smile on her face. “No one to challenge the norm.”
I clenched my hands into fists. If that wasn’t a gauntlet, I didn’t know what was. “Well, I’m sure that your work with Jackson will be brief.”
Marti tossed her hair over her shoulder, her smile feral. “Don’t bet on it, Bree. I tend to stick around when others do not.”
I opened my mouth to retort, but she just gave me a little wave and sauntered off, greeting people as she passed. I stared after her, shutting my mouth until I was nearly grinding my teeth in anger. Not only did I have to contend with the fact that Jackson at least seemed to be happier back in New York, but now I had a woman that was sniffing after my man.
Just flipping great.
******
CHAPTER 10: JACKSON
I looked at my watch and groaned, not believing how late it had gotten. Bree was going to be so pissed if I didn’t call her soon. Pulling out my cell, I quickly dialed her number.
She answered on the first ring. “Hey, you okay?”
“I’m fine babe,” I said, sighing into the phone. “Listen, I’m not going to be home for another couple of hours.”
“Oh,” she said.
I heard the disappointment in her voice and wanted to take it back. Bree hadn’t been the same since we attended the gala last night and I couldn’t place what the hell was wrong with her. Was she homesick? Was she regretting being with me? I hoped the hell she wasn’t. “I’m sorry,” I said again. “I’ll make it up to you, I swear.”
“I-It’s okay,” she answered, blowing out a breath. “Do what you have to do. After all, you came to work, not babysit me.”
“I would rather babysit you,” I said softly. “I’ll see you in a bit.”
She hung up, and I looked at my cell, a bit concerned by her reaction.
“Everything okay?”
Looking up, I saw Marti glancing over at me from her makeshift desk. To ensure we were on the same page, I had gotten a table moved into my office, and for the last few hours, we had worked on this new campaign, calling more people than I cared to admit assuring the investors that there wasn’t turmoil in the company. Everything was just fine. “Yeah,” I said, placing the phone on the desk. “Everything’s good.”
She leaned back in her chair. “Are you sure? You know you can talk to me. I won’t tell your secrets.”
I gave her a grin, rubbing a hand through my hair. “Nah, I’m good but thanks.”
She nodded and turned back to her laptop. “Well if it makes you feel any better, I just got an email from Trevor. You made quite an impression last night.”
“Yes!” I said, leaning back in my chair, my concerns about Bree moving to the back of my mind for now. “Hopefully word will spread like fucking wildfire.”
Marti leaned back in her chair, looking over at me once more. “Tell me, Jackson, why did you ever leave New York? I mean, you were perfect last night and had everyone eating out of your hand by the end of the night. Clearly, this is where you belong.”
“I-I had things to do back home,” I said, uneasy talking about my private life with a stranger. I had a damn good reason for leaving New York, and that was Bree. Without her, my life felt empty, and all I had was my work.
Twisting my chair, I stood and walked over to the window, looking at the rows of buildings that had come nearly second nature to me in the past. I loved the city and everything it was about and if I knew I could get Bree to move here, I would.
But she wouldn’t be happy.
“Can I ask you a question, Jackson?”
I turned and saw Marti looking at me, her pen tapping against her lips. “Shoot.”
“What if we went global?”
I opened my mouth to say something, but she stood, her expression animated. “Now don’t shoot me down just yet. With your brains and influence, you could take this company globally. Why stop with New York?”
I stared at her. She didn't surprise me with any words that I hadn’t already thought myself. There had been a time that I had wanted to take the company internationally, but my father hadn’t wanted to, and since he still held the majority of the stocks, I couldn’t argue with him. She walked forward. “I mean, you are awesome at what you do, just awesome.”
“Thanks,” I said, a bit embarrassed by her praise. “But I don’t think we are ready for international.” Hell, I had a mess here.
She gave me a little shrug, a pout on her red lips. “Oh well, it was a thought. But I really do not understand why you aren’t here full time. Everyone loves you, and you have turned this mess around in a matter of days. That’s impressive in itself.”
“It takes a team,” I said, pointing to her massive campaign she had put together. I was highly impressed, and Marti was worth every fucking dollar I paid her.
She blushed and tucked a long blonde hair behind her ear. “Thanks, that means a lot.”
I stretched my arms over my head, suddenly weary. I couldn’t wait to get home and crawl into the bed, the last few days and the jet lag catching up with me. That plus coupled with the fact that I hadn’t spent much time with Bree in the last twenty-four hours. Sure, we had attended the gala together last night, but I had spent the majority of the night attempting to repair the damage that the asshole had done to the company that I hadn’t been able to say more than two words to her.
And she hadn’t complained not one time. That was one of the many reasons I loved Bree. God, I missed her.
But my time wasn’t over yet.
Blowing out a breath, I went back to work.
Two hours later, I threw down my pencil. “I’m beat.”
Marti closed her laptop and leaned back, a satisfied smile on her face. “We did it.”
I grinned. “Yeah, we did.” We had churned out a new proposition for my father, one that was going to turn this company on its head. It was edgy, new, and I couldn’t wait to roll it out. I stood and grabbed my coat, shrugging into it. “Go home. It’s late.”
She grabbed her things, and we both headed to the door at the same time, bumping into each other with a laugh. “I could use a drink,” she said, her hand laying on my arm. “My treat?”
I looked down at her, and for a moment I thought about taking her up on her offer. A cold beer was exactly what I needed, but there was one waiting for me at home. “I’m going to pass.”
“Too bad,” she said with a pout. I gave her a shrug and stepped back so she could walk through the door before following her, cutting out the light in the office as I did. We were almost to the elevator when Marti stumbled, and I reached out, grabbing her at the last moment. She ended up against my chest, her hands on my suit coat as a gasp left her lips. “Oh my! I am so sorry.”
I set her upright, stepping back. “No worries. That rug trips everyone up.”
She gave me a smile. “What would I do without you?”
Clearing my throat, I walked over to the elevator and pressed the down button. I was just ready to be home.
******
CHAPTER 11: BREE
I looked up as I heard the click of the lock, laying down the magazine I had pretended to pay attention to for the last hour. It was well past midnight, and I was both tired and antsy to see Jackson.
The door swung open, and he strolled through it, his coat slung over his shoulders. His eyes found mine, and he gave a tired grin. “What are you still doing up?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” I said, pushing off the couch as he threw his coat over the chair. “You look tired.”
“I am,” he sighed, crossing over to the fridge. “But I think we have finally gotten what we needed.”
“Good,” I swallowed, wiping my palms on my pajama pants.
He took a beer out of the fridge and popped the top off, throwing it onto the counter before taking a long draw. I crossed over to him, propping
myself up beside the counter and watching him nearly drain the bottle. I could see the fine lines around his eyes, the drawn look on his face and my heart went out to him. He was working so hard to turn this company around that he wasn’t taking care of himself. He set the bottle on the counter, and I reached for his shoulder, stepping into the circle of his waiting arms.
Immediately I smelled perfume.
Oblivious to my sudden observation, Jackson pulled me against him, his arms going around me. “God, you feel good,” he said, nuzzling my neck.
I couldn’t respond, a thousand emotions going through my mind. Why did he smell like perfume? Who had he been, who had been hugging him? Marti’s smirking face crossed my mind, and I felt sick to my stomach. She had thrown down a challenge last night, and I knew she was with Jackson tonight, alone, just the two of them. Had that been the real reason he had worked late.
No! I wasn’t going to think that way. Not Jackson. He wouldn’t, would he?
“What’s wrong?”
I brought myself back to reality, his arms no longer as inviting as I thought them to be. “What? Nothing. Everything’s good.” I wasn’t going to panic, I wasn’t going to jump to conclusions.
He pulled back and eyed me, concern in his beautiful depths. “Are you sure? I know it hasn’t been the easiest of days.”
I forced a smile, though deep down my stomach was in knots. Was he not happy with me now that he was back in New York? Had Marti offered him something I couldn’t? “I’m good, really.”
He leaned over and kissed me on the lips, the faint smell of beer on his breath. “I’m going to take a shower. You go on to bed.”
I watched as he walked away, waiting until he rounded the corner before I fell against the counter, tears springing to my eyes. Oh no, please not Jackson. He couldn’t, he wouldn’t cheat, would he? I couldn’t take the pain of that kind of betrayal, not so soon into our relationship.
But didn’t I know Jackson better than that? There had never been a time that I had ever remembered him cheating on his girlfriends or anything. I rubbed a hand over my face, feeling so torn at what was going on here. I wanted us to go home, now. I wanted the life we had before this trip, before Marti. I wanted….
I heard the shower start up and knew that I needed to get in the bed before he got out. Maybe something very innocent had happened to explain the perfume. That was it. When Jackson got out of the shower, he was going to be the lively billionaire I knew and loved, one that would make me forget that I had ever thought about him cheating.
Renewed with the hope, I went into the bedroom and picked out a nightie from the drawer, sliding my clothes off and allowing the silk to fall over my head, fluffing my hair out so I would look inviting. I was worried for no reason.
Sliding under the covers, I waited until the shower stopped, Jackson walking out a few moments later, naked as a jaybird. My heart started the slow thump as he climbed under the covers as well, reaching out to haul me against him. “Mmm,” he said, breathing into my hair. “You feel fucking amazing Bree.”
I curled against him, his hand heavy on my waist. “I’m glad you think so.”
He kissed my bare shoulder, his arm tightening against me. I lay still, waiting for him to make some sort of move, but it was only moments later that his soft snore filled the air, startling me. Jackson was asleep. Jackson never went to sleep without at least doing something, whether it was long, drawn out hot sex or a quickie that would satisfy us both. Actually, I couldn’t remember the last time we didn’t have sex that I wasn’t on my period.
My pulse quickened for an altogether different reason, my eyes burning with unshed tears. What was going on with our relationship? Was this the turning point where our differences in our lives started to wear thin? I had known Jackson so well as a kid, but as an adult, I realized I maybe didn’t know as much as I would have liked to. Were there some deep, dark secrets in his life that I hadn’t confronted yet? What if he was a cheater? I just couldn’t picture it. Not Jackson. Not the man who had given up everything to be with me.
Biting my lip, I stared off into the darkness. We needed to go home. That was all there was to it. We needed to go back to the place where everything was right with the world, and there wasn’t all this doubt in our relationship. I wanted to go back the way it was, where it was just the two of us, but a small piece of me worried that maybe, just maybe Jackson hadn’t been as happy as I was inclined to believe.
******
CHAPTER 12: JACKSON
I pulled my buzzing cell phone out of my pocket and tucked it against my shoulder as I shifted the papers in front of me. “Yeah?”
“Jackson.”
“Father,” I said. “What can I do for you?”
He chuckled into the phone. “What makes you think I want something done?”
“Because you are just like me.”
“Ah yes,” my father answered. “I guess you are truly my son. No, I don’t want anything. I am just calling to tell you what a damn good job you are doing there, son.”
I leaned back in my chair. “Thanks. It hasn’t been easy.”
“And you were right. Your new marketing coordinator has definitely paid off dividends. I would say she’s worth every penny you are paying her.”
I looked over at Marti’s empty desk, glad that she wasn’t in here right now. She had gone out to get lunch for us, and though I didn’t care to admit it, I wouldn’t have been able to do all of this without her. “She’s definitely something.”
My father chuckled. “She must be a looker then. Don’t tell Bree. You know how sensitive women are about other women.”
I sighed inwardly. The last thing I wanted to talk about was my problems with Bree. Things were beyond tense between the two of us, and I was at a loss about how to fix the damn thing. I knew she wasn’t happy here, but my work wasn’t done yet.
“By the way, your mother and I have been discussing your performance in New York.”
I laughed then. “What am I? Ten?”
“Well semi-retired life doesn’t suit us very well. What else would we have to talk about?”
“Maybe how you are going to spend your pile of money?”
It was his turn to laugh. “We wouldn’t have that pile of money without you and the mess you are cleaning up. Have you given any thought to moving back?”
“What?” I asked, surprised.
“You’re so damn good there. Why wouldn’t I want you to be there?”
I didn’t answer, conflicted by this sudden turn of events. Of course, I wanted to be in New York. I hadn’t wanted to leave.
Until I had met Bree. There was no fucking way I was going to ask her to leave the vineyard, her father just because I was a superstar in New York. I was going to clean this mess up and then we would head back home. “Don’t you want me close?” I teased.
“Of course,” my father answered with a chuckle in his voice. “But if you are making me money, I can come to you. Think about it, Jackson. We will see you soon.”
He clicked off, and I dropped the phone on the desk. I knew he was telling the truth. They didn’t need me close nor did they really need my help unless it came to the company. For years he had run this company, and now it was my turn.
So, could I walk away once I got this sector straightened out? The thought made me slightly ill to think I was putting all this hard work into something that could fall flat on its face as soon as I walked away.
With a sigh, I looked down at the mound of paperwork that I had still had left to do. There were budgets to review, proposals to sign off and the timeline of the new campaign to roll out. Not only that, I still had to work on the plan to turn over this baby to the next person so we could go home.
But my thoughts kept drifting back to Bree and how I hadn’t spent a ton of time with her during our stay here. I had been so damn tired last night that I had passed out on her without so much as a word, one that I sorely regretted this morning. I missed how our time had gone
from every waking moment together to just seeing each other in passing. I knew if I stayed here, that would be how it would turn out and no doubt our relationship would suffer because of it.
It already was.
Looking down at my watch, I grimaced as I pushed away from the desk. I could easily spend another few hours here, pouring over documents and approving campaigns until my eyes were crossed. Or I could go home and take Bree out on the town, show her some of the sights and just spend the day with her.
Grinning now, I walked out of the office just in time to see Marti coming off the elevator, two sacks in her hands. “Lunch is served,” she said breathlessly, holding up the paper bags.
I shook my head. “I’m calling the day off, going home.”
Her smile faltered. “What?”
I ran a hand through my hair. “Listen, why don’t you knock off as well? We’ve been busting our asses lately and deserve some downtime.”
She set the bags on the nearby desk, disappointment written all over her face. “Um, sure of course. Whatever you think is best.”
“Thanks,” I said, heading to catch the elevator. “Have a good afternoon Marti.” Down on the street, I didn’t call the private car, choosing to walk down the bustling sidewalk that was New York. I was already contemplating where to take Bree first, my mind trying to sort out what she would like to do. The weather, though chilly, was perfect for a walk through Central Park or an afternoon spent walking on the lower half of Manhattan. Whatever we did, it was going to be better than sitting in the damn office all afternoon.
A block from my apartment building I picked up a bouquet of fresh flowers, hoping that this could be a peace offering between us, a do-over for the last few days. I wanted this day to be the best of her life, the one she remembered about this trip most of all.
It was time to get back to being us.
******
CHAPTER 13: BREE