by Lexy Timms
The media fell silent, and I saw their microphones waver.
“The investigation is being handled properly and with a quiet demeanor. It has affected many local companies I know all of you have come to love. The business industry of Miami is grieving, and you stand outside of my company hounding me for the latest juicy gossip, so there it is. The woman you’re ripping apart singlehandedly fired off this investigation by not only uncovering the truth but finding the proof behind it. And I happen to be in love with her. I will no longer hide my feelings for this woman, and you will no longer picket my company. If any more personal or professional property destruction should come about because of your inability to follow laws, I will have every single one of you arrested.”
Then, without taking any questions, I stepped down from my podium and went down into the parking garage.
I pulled my keys from my pocket and searched for my Jaguar. The lights lit up as I unlocked the doors and slipped into the car. I wasn’t staying here another second. I said what I’d come to say, and it was the last time I was saying it. As I pulled out of the parking garage, cops hauled a few more kicking and screaming press away from my building in handcuffs, and a sweet victory rose up my body.
It was time for me to get back to Ashley.
I pulled into a parking space across the road and headed straight for her apartment. The smell Chinese food wafted through the door as I knocked on it. Cassidy opened it up, a huge smile on her face, and when Ashley whipped her head around, she leaped off the couch. She ran to me, and I opened my arms to her, scooping her up against my body.
I walked us both into her apartment as my lips peppered kisses along her cheek.
“I heard it all,” she said.
“I know you did.”
“Did you mean it?” she asked.
I set her back down onto her feet and cupped her cheek in the palm of my hand.
“Every word of it,” I said.
She stood to her toes and pressed her lips against mine, the taste of noodles on her tongue. I cupped the back of her head and held her to me, relishing in the moment before Cassidy cleared her throat.
“You still want your kung pao chicken, Jimmy?”
She dangled the box on the tip of her finger as a grin crossed my cheeks.
“Yes I do,” I said. “If I’m allowed to stay?”
“You’re always allowed to stay,” Ashley said. “Even if I say you can’t.”
Chapter 24
Ashley
My gut reaction was still not to go back to work, but I needed some semblance of normalcy in my life. Dwelling on my mother’s death was doing me no good, and every time I thought about her, the tears started again. I was tired of crying and skulking around. I was tired of forcing Cass away from her business because I couldn’t handle the pressure I had ushered into my life of my own accord.
So I got up, got dressed, and headed to work.
I parked across the street to get some coffee but was bombarded by the paparazzi. I slipped into the coffee shop and grabbed a bagel and a large cup, but they were waiting for me when I came out. Cameras were flashing, and microphones were in my face, and I could see the security team from the front of the building trying to get across the busy road.
“Miss Ternbeau, did Jimmy Sheldon force you into this relationship?”
I looked at the reporter like he was insane before I drew a deep breath.
“Absolutely not,” I said. “I’m in love with Jimmy Sheldon. He’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I’m sorry if you live the kind of life that feels the need to rip apart something like that.”
“So you wanted the relationship, Miss Ternbeau?”
“One hundred percent,” I said.
I held my hand up to Jimmy’s security team as the reporters continued to bombard me with questions.
“What about Nina Black? Your relationship came on the heels of that one ending? Are you scared you’re nothing but a rebound?”
“Jimmy’s prior relationship with Miss Black is neither my business nor yours. Now I remember something in Jimmy’s press conference yesterday about arrests and such if you guys didn’t stop stalking his business and picketing for statements. So I’ll give you a chance to get out of here before I call the cops myself.”
I stared down the reporter before she snickered and shook her head.
“Privileged bitch.”
“Says the woman wearing twelve-hundred-dollar shoes,” I said.
The shocked reporter looked down as a smirk drew across my face.
“Just because I don’t dress nicely doesn’t mean I don’t know an expensive pair of shoes when I see them.”
The security team was grinning at me as we walked back across the street. Part of me thought this was a bad idea. I’d lost my mother, and surely, they would dig that up somehow, plaster it all over the news and make it a part of some manipulative narrative. I was trying to hold myself together as I walked into the building. Then, I took off in a sprint toward the elevator.
I wanted to get to the safety of my office.
I was running down the hallway when a hand tugged at my arm. I went flying into a room, and the door shut behind me before I looked up to see who it was. It was Jimmy, and his eyes were aflame with something I didn't recognize.
“Should I be in your office right now?” I asked.
“The way you handled yourself out there was incredible,” he said. “I’m so proud of you.”
“Well, I’m tired of their bullshit. I’ve had enough of it for a lifetime.”
I felt my body breaking down as tears rose to my eyes. Jimmy took my food and coffee from my hands and slid my purse down my arm. He wrapped his grip around me and pulled me close to him. I lost it against him, crying with body-racking sobs as I clung to the jacket of his suit.
“I can’t deal with them right now,” I said breathlessly.
“And you won’t have to any longer. I got their names from the broadcast, and I’ve contacted their bosses.”
“Wait. That was live?” I asked.
“Don’t worry about it. You did wonderfully. Ross actually applauded you.”
“Ross saw it?”
“Stop. Worrying. Just lean into me.”
“It’s all too much. It’s still too much. Why can’t I handle this, Jimmy? Why am I so weak?”
“One, you’re not weak. You’re far from it. And two, you just lost your mother,” he said.
“Oh, Mom.”
“I want you to take off until after the funeral.”
“I can’t do that,” I said.
“You can, and you will. You need to. Planning this funeral is going to take every ounce of energy you have, and you should devote it to that and nothing else.”
“Ross won’t like that,” I said.
“Ross doesn't have a say in it. As the owner and operator of this company, I’m telling you to take the time fully and completely off until your mother’s funeral is over.”
“But it took all this energy to get in here,” I said.
“Then I’ll help alleviate the energy it takes to get out of here,” he said.
I nodded as I picked up my things and Jimmy escorted me back downstairs. He walked me across the street to my car and even held my door open for me. There were still a few journalists on the sidewalk, but I could tell they were wary of approaching. Jimmy was holding fast to his “arrest any journalist in sight” threat, and it was making them fearful of approaching.
Why didn’t they simply go away?
I watched Jimmy recede in my rearview mirror as I drove back to my apartment. I went through another box of my mother’s things before deciding to go see Cass at her bakery. I’d pulled her away from it enough, and I felt bad for her having to put up with all my bullshit.
So I swung into her favorite wing place and got us some lunch.
“Ashley? I’m shocked to see you in here.”
“Wings and girl talk to get my mind off stuff?” I asked.<
br />
“I saw that impromptu interview on the television this morning. You owned that shit. You should be proud.”
“I’m over all of that media bullshit,” I said. “This is a little bit of a thanks from me for keeping my mind off things and putting up with my antics while I was putting up with everyone else’s.”
“Just a bit? Good. Because it’s going to take a lot of wings to make up for that.”
“Trust me. I know.”
“So what do you want to talk about?”
“Anything other than my mother, Jimmy, work, or the press.”
“So ... how’s Chipper?” she asked with a grin.
“You’re a dick.”
“And you’re going to be okay.”
I watched Cass put her hand on top of mine as I sighed heavily.
“I miss her,” I said.
“You will, but if she’s not here, that means she’s no longer trapped in a body that can’t remember the world around her. Now, she’s free.”
“Why doesn’t that bring any comfort?” I asked.
“Because you want your mother. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
“When will it stop hurting?” I asked. “When will my heart stop feeling like it’s being crushed in a vice?”
“When you learn to live your life without her. In some ways, you already know how. Now it’s a matter of knowing how to survive without constantly having to worry about her medically and physically.”
“I miss the person she used to be. In some ways, I’ve already grieved over that.”
“I figured,” she said.
“Does that make me a bad daughter?”
“No. It makes you a practical one. And we all knew your mother. She was nothing if not practical.”
“That woman could use reason to get out of any corner you backed her into.”
“She was a fighter,” Cass said. “All her life. And now? She can relax because she doesn’t have to fight her body any longer.”
I felt an odd blanket of peace fall over me as those words graced my ears.
“I love you, Cass,” I said.
“I love you, too, Ashley.”
Chapter 25
Jimmy
One Week Later
After an entire week and having the police arrest and detain over thirty journalists and reporters, the media was finally dying down about my relationship with Ashley. The funeral for her mother had been three days ago, and Ashley had resumed her duties at work. I could tell she was still in a haze, but her simple presence at the board of investors meetings brought peace down on all of them.
They enjoyed having her back, and so did I.
I wanted to take Ashley out on a date, but I was concerned it was too soon. I knew things were still delicate, but I also wanted to take her mind off things she was still thinking about. I could see her zoning out sometimes in her office, staring out over the expanse of Miami or staring blankly at a wall.
I also wanted the chance to privately prove that what I’d said to the press was true.
I wanted her to know I was still there for her during this hard time. Even though the press was dying down and there was no more funeral to plan, I wanted her to know I knew she was still in pain, and I wasn’t shying away from that simply because she wasn’t approaching me at work.
So I picked up my phone and called her office phone.
“Ashley Ternbeau.”
Her voice sounded so empty and defeated.
“How are you feeling?” I asked.
I heard her sniffle, and it broke my heart.
“A lot. That’s really all I can say.”
“With the media dying down and people leaving us alone, I wanted to ask if you wanted to try the beach house again.”
“I don’t know, Jimmy.”
“A home-cooked meal. The sun setting. A glass of wine. Talking or no talking if that’s what you prefer. We could walk along the beach. Or go get another cup of that coffee.”
“I’ve been craving that coffee,” she said.
“What do you say? Today, after work? Maybe spend the night? Or the weekend?”
“I don’t have any clothes with me,” she said.
“Do you have some in your closet?”
“None that are appropriate for the beach.”
“Then, we’ll stay inside. Watch the beauty from the comfort of my bed,” I said.
“That actually sounds nice.”
“Come by my office once you’re done for the day, and we’ll head out,” I said.
The day inched on, but it finally drew to a close. Ashley was standing at my door waiting for me with a couple of outfits folded up in her purse. I placed my hand on the small of her back before I locked up my office, and then the two of us headed down to my car.
We drove out to my beach house with the windows rolled down. Ashley’s beautiful hair was flying around her face, and she looked relaxed as she closed her eyes. She leaned the seat back and drank in the feel of the salty air on her skin, and I revved the engine for her listening pleasure.
A small grin appeared on her cheeks, and it made my heart hammer against my chest.
We pulled up, and the smells from dinner were already wafting out the windows. Ashley threw me a confused look as I ushered her up the steps. I’d hired a personal chef for the evening, and he was almost done as we walked through the doors.
There were even glasses of wine waiting for us.
“Jimmy. What is all this?” she asked.
“A free night for us to talk or sit in silence and watch the waves roll in,” I said.
“Thank you so much,” she said.
“Anything for you.”
We dropped our stuff on the couch, and I gestured to the chef to bring our food out onto the porch. He served us, and I handed him his check before he cleaned up and left. The food was amazing. Mouthwatering, even. The chicken melted in our mouths, and the vegetables were cooked perfectly. The homemade honey bread was fantastic.
We stuffed ourselves full, leaving no leftovers for us to pack up.
We sat in silence, finishing off the bottle of white wine that had been paired with dinner. We watched the sunset over the ocean, and Ashley seemed a little more okay. She sipped on her wine and relaxed back. She stretched her legs out and crossed them at her ankles. Her body language was very open for everything she had been through, and I debated on whether this was the right time.
There was nothing I could do to take her pain away, but I wanted her to know I was there for her, and I was never going away if she didn’t want me to. I stuck my hand in my pocket and fiddled with the small box.
Ashley caught the movement.
“What is that?” she asked.
“What is what?”
“That thing you’re playing with. I saw it that day you pulled me into your office before the nursing home called.”
I guess it was going to be the right time.
I pulled it out of my pocket and held it between my fingers. I turned the box around, trying to formulate my words as best as I could. Ashley shifted in her seat, her body turned toward me as her eyes looked me up and down.
Then I turned toward her and sat the box on the table.
“I know there’s nothing I can do or say to take your pain away, Ashley, but I want you to know that I’m here for you.”
“I appreciate that, Jimmy.”
Her eyes were locked on the box as I picked it up and opened it. The diamond and the aquamarine stones caught the rest of the setting sun. Ashley gasped when she saw it. I slid it across the table toward her and folded my hands together.
“Jimmy, what is this?” she asked.
“There are no words to describe how happy I am that you let me back in,” I said. “When I thought I’d lost you, it ruined a part of me inside. I couldn’t get you out of my head, and everywhere I looked I saw something that reminded me of you. You seeped into my veins, Ashley. You imprinted yourself on me in a way no other woman has.”
/> “Oh my gosh,” she whispered.
“I love you more than I’ve loved anyone or anything on this planet. I was ready to burn my company to the ground if it meant keeping you, if it meant getting the press off your back and allowing you to live the quiet life you want.”
“Jimmy,” she said.
“Will you take a walk with me?” I asked.
Her eyes whipped up to me as I picked up the box and held out my hand.
She took it and allowed me to lead her down to the beach. The last of the sun was guiding our way as I walked her out to a patch of sand. There were rose petals in the shape of a heart, standing directly in front of the last sliver of sun. I got down onto one knee and held the box up, watching as Ashley’s hands flew to her lips.
“I know it might be too soon, but the moment I saw this ring, I thought of you. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw this moment. On the beach. With the sun. And with you. I want to marry you, Ashley Ternbeau. I want to live the rest of my life burning everything to the ground as long as it makes you happy. I want you to have everything you could possibly want, and I never want you to wonder if you’ll ever be alone. Because you won’t be. I won’t allow it. I want to run this company with you, but more than that, I want to run this life with you. We don’t have to get married anytime soon, but Ashley, will you marry me?”
Tears were streaming down her cheeks as she knelt in front of me. Her hands smoothed up my chest to wrap around my neck. Her eyes reflected the moon and the stars as the sun turned its lights off in the distance, and as she pressed her lips into mine, I felt her answer.
“Yes,” she said into my lips. “I will marry you.”
Chapter 26