Ruthless Renovator : A Hero Club Novel

by Paisleigh Aumack

  “Fuck, man. Sorry. Lost track of time listening to Josselyn’s show out on my deck. I’ll be there in twenty minutes.” Graham and I were friends but this was still technically a business meeting. Being late was never good when it came to Graham and his expectations. He was kind of a bastard and known for it. For whatever reason though, he always was cool with me.

  “Don’t worry about it. I just finished FaceTiming my son and the nanny so I am in a good mood. I’ll see you when you get here,” Graham had stated. Man has been deliriously happy since he met Soraya and she gave him her heart and his son. Lorenzo was a cute-ass kid too. His daughter, Chloe, was beautiful. Chloe wasn’t biologically Soraya’s but she loved that little girl like she was. They made it work and look easy.

  “You sappy bastard. See you in twenty, fucker,” I said and disconnected. I was already on the move after I realized I was late, so I hopped in the Chevelle and got my ass to The Proud Lantern.

  _______________

  When I finally arrived at The Proud Lantern, I spotted Graham immediately and joined him. We did the customary handshake-back-slapping type of greeting and insulted each other, which was our way. We sat, ordered food, I ordered a drink, and we started to talk about the upcoming skate park reveal in Venice. Graham was concerned we didn’t have an entertainment draw to the event, so he wanted to discuss options. There was mention of local bands, a DJ, and maybe even a demo. In the skateboarding world, a demo was where a well-known skater performed tricks as an announcer educated the audience on what the specific trick actually was and how it was done. Having a demo at a skate park opening was a no-brainer. And if I got my way, I knew exactly who I wanted to perform.

  “You do realize the overhead for this event is going to be massive. Insurance alone is going to crush the budget. But I believe the demo is exactly what we need. We can charge a bit more for tickets and it should cover everything. With how many people we already have projected to attend, adding in an amazing skater would set it over the top,” Graham advised me.

  “I know a skater who would be perfect. She is retired now but she is the best. I am sure I can convince her to do this. It could be mutually beneficial,” I informed Graham. He raised his eyebrows in surprise that I had someone in mind already.

  “Who?” Graham asked curiously.

  “Her name is Josselyn Easton. We sort of worked together when she was pro.”

  “You have got to be fucking kidding me, right?” Graham questioned strangely.

  “No, man. She was the best fucking skater in the world. The best I have ever seen. Better than I ever was or could have been. Joss has a talk radio show now on satellite and is pretty successful,” I answered.

  “Yeah, asshole. I know. I also know who Joss is. My wife and Joss have known each other for a while now. They talk regularly. Actually, she met up with Joss and Arden the other day here for drinks.” Graham shocked the shit out of me by saying. How the hell did Soraya know Josselyn?

  “What the fuck? How?”

  “Soraya did an interview for Joss when the column went national. It was gaining attention fast and Soraya wanted to build readership. They immediately clicked and they have been friends ever since. If you know Joss, and know her show, how do you not know this?” Graham asked but went on, “Joss always advertises the column on-air.”

  “Things happened with Josselyn and me after Joss’s final skate. We’ll just say things aren’t exactly copacetic between us at the moment. Trust me, I’m working on it. But she is a skater through and through. She will do this, even if I have to use you and your wife to make my argument.”

  “What exactly are you working on? I know you, dickhead. Don’t play games with her. She has come to mean something to my wife; therefore she means something to me. She is one of my girls and no one fucks with any of my girls. Got me?” Fucking hell. This meeting went straight into the damn toilet.

  “Correction, asswipe. Josselyn is my girl. Has been since I laid eyes on her when she was sixteen. I fucked up with her but I am going to make it right, even if she resists,” I laid it out for Graham, hopefully not missing my tone. There was no way in hell anyone, not even Graham, would stand in my way. There were other investors out there if he didn’t get my meaning. Or I could always branch out on my own.

  “Take it easy. I understand where you are coming from more than you know. Just don’t make me choose sides because, Zane, I’ll pick my wife’s side every time.”

  “I know that and would expect nothing less. I also know that, when it comes to Josselyn Easton, I have my work cut out for me. But I never play a game I can’t win,” I told Graham on a smirk. Just thinking about how she absolutely hated me made me realize this was going to be way more fun than I originally thought. The thought of the type of games I really wanted to play with her sweet body had me adjusting myself under the table.

  “You may just be more of an arrogant bastard than me. Listen, if you need any advice, you can always write to Soraya. She is brutally honest and will give it to you straight,” Graham laughed out.

  “The last thing I need is your wife busting my balls.” Soraya was notorious for giving back as well as she got. I’d never met a woman who had such a quick wit about her, besides Josselyn.

  “You’d be lucky to have her bust your balls. Anyway, talk to her about doing the demo,” Graham started and moved to get up. “Let me know how it goes. And, Zane, it better go well, if you catch my drift.”

  Just like that, Graham Morgan was gone.

  I had another beer and thought about how to approach the demo with Joss. Over dinner? On-air? Putting her on the spot on-air would be a dick move. Right? Or would it be the perfect opportunity to corner her and force her hand into helping me? Dinner would be a tough sell because she’d have to be alone with me and so far that seemed to be a no-go.

  On-air it was.

  Fuck, but I was such an asshole. I knew this would just pile on to the shit I had to fix but no one but Joss could do this for me.

  On a determined sigh, I paid the bill, went to my car, tuned into the end of Josselyn’s show, and made my way back to my house. Joss ended her show today with a heartfelt speech about her mom and how she missed her everyday. Joss also mentioned, even though he split and she hadn’t heard from him in a long time, she hoped life had been kind to the man who tried to raise her. It wasn’t like Joss to be emotional about her father. But then again, I didn’t know this Joss very well.

  That would change very, very soon.

  CHAPTER 7

  Check Your Speed, Mario Andretti

  Joss

  I HAD BEEN stressing out for the last few days. Now, it was the day Zane’s interview was happening and I had already consumed three lattes. Usually they calmed me down when I was in situations like this, but there was nothing that could possibly calm me down. This entire interview was a mistake. Allowing Zane to get to me in any way was an even bigger mistake. I couldn’t let him do to me today what he’d done at the pre-interview conference. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that he was going to play games with me on the air. So, I prepared for anything he could possibly say to me, but I just had this sinking feeling in my gut I was in way over my head today.

  I opted to drive my Prius into the radio station today instead of skating, but my board was in my trunk in case I needed a different way to calm myself down. When I arrived, much earlier than I usually had, the office was completely empty. The sun hadn’t risen yet, and the only light in the office was shining in from the stairway doors rectangular windows. I wasn’t sure if I had ever been there when there wasn’t anyone else around. With the way that things were right now, it gave me the creeps. My own shadows were starting to freak me out as I made my way to my office.

  Just as I went to flip on the switch to illuminate my office, the hair on the back of my neck stood up and I whipped around to see what caused it. My heart raced as I clenched my chest and saw Bruno slipping out of Wes’s office. He closed the office door with a slam and turned to
me. His face looked off. Bruno wasn’t my favorite person at work… ever, but his eyes seemed distant and empty versus the lust usually present whenever a female was around. He was always a dick but the difference in the way he carried himself at that moment sent pure terror through me. I reached inside my office and felt the side of the wall for the light switch when Bruno started to move. Instead of charging me like I had thought he would, he took slow, meaningful steps toward me. As he got closer to me, I stood frozen in my spot right outside my office but I stared at Bruno. I watched him shake his head as if to clear the distant, empty look from his eyes and replace it with his normal lust-filled glare.

  “Josselyn. What brings you in so early today?” Bruno asked me, as he slid his knuckles down the arm not reaching inside my office. At the feel of him touching me, I snapped out of my stupor and shrugged his hand off of me. My arms returned to my sides and I clenched my hands into fists, ready to strike out if I needed to.

  “It’s Zane’s interview today. I wanted to make sure everything went off without any issues. That is what I was threatened…I mean told during contract negotiations, right? The better question, Bruno, is why were you in Wes’s office?” I countered in a sugar sweet sarcastic tone.

  “Wes asked me to leave him a copy of the ratings from yesterday on his desk this morning when I got in, so I did. You know, Josselyn, it’d do well for you to watch how you speak to me. I am your boss. All of this,” he started, as he swung his arm out and turned in a circle for dramatic effect, “could be gone in the blink of an eye if you aren’t careful.”

  “Mr. Haynes, was that a threat?” I tilted my head to the side. Clearly, he thought I could be pushed around.

  “No, beautiful Josselyn. It’s more of a promised warning, if you will. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a conference call with the East Coast to be on in,” he paused to look at his watch then continued, “fifteen minutes. Have a good show today.” Bruno finished on a wink. When he turned to walk away, my fucking unfiltered mouth just had to respond.

  “I’m not your typical female, Mr. Haynes. You’d do well to remember that. You can threaten, warn, or promise whatever the hell you want. We both know I am not scared of losing my job and that it’s only a matter of time before this odd, creepy pattern of yours is discovered. Your days are numbered. And I’m not the only one who sees it. I suggest you keep your hands to yourself from here on out and your snide, sexual comments to yourself.” I didn’t wait for a response from Bruno. As much bravado as I showed, I was terrified of him so I went inside my office, closed and locked the door, and immediately pulled my phone out of my bag and dialed Wes.

  “Yeah,” Wes answered in a sleepy voice that, if I was honest, was pretty fucking sexy.

  “Wes, it’s Joss. When are you coming into the office?” I asked him, and even I could hear the fear in my voice.

  “Joss?” he sounded confused. It was understandable because I very rarely called Wes and never this early in the morning.

  “Yes. When will you be here?” My voice had grown a bit frantic.

  “In about an hour, Joss. What’s going on? Are you okay?” Wes asked, sounding panicked now.

  “Yeah. I’m okay but I just had a head-to-head with Bruno. And, Wes,” I called and waited for him to answer me.

  “Yeah?” I could tell Wes was alert now and I could hear he was on the move.

  “It wasn’t like any of our other encounters. This one scared me. I am locked inside my office but still freaked out. Can you head in now so I’m not here with him alone?”

  “On my way now. Be there as soon as I can. Stay in your office with the door locked. Only open it when I get there and knock three times,” Wes ordered.

  “Okay. Thank you, Wes.”

  “Anything for you, Joss. You know that. See you soon.” He hung up, and I let out a deep breath and relaxed into my chair a little bit.

  Twenty minutes later, I heard the three knocks and calmed down instantly. Wes was protective of the women he worked with and I knew that was all this was, but at the sight of him in that moment, I could have kissed him.

  _______________

  My mood had already been all over the place and that morning’s incident hadn’t helped any. Now we were about a two or so hours out from sound check and I was a mess. Arden was in my office trying to calm me down, but nothing was working. I was wound up tight and couldn’t get a handle on any of my emotions. Wes talked to me and documented everything but it didn’t mean Bruno was going to stay away from me. Men like him didn’t enjoy having their egos stomped on. Especially one who thought he could have any woman he wanted.

  I needed to skate.

  That would calm me down.

  Without saying a word to her, I left my office and Arden stared after me, calling out my name. I ignored her and went down to the employee-parking garage, grabbed my board from my trunk, popped in my earbuds as I scrolled to the playlist I wanted, and set out on my mission to calm myself down. As I was soaring down the hill toward the exit to the street, a navy blue Chevelle came barreling in the garage, just missing me. The driver honked and screeched to a halt. I had stopped as well and was standing there, board under my armpit, staring as Zane tore out of the car after he parked it in the closest spot to where my life had almost ended.

  “What the hell are you doing, Josselyn? Trying to get yourself killed?” he yelled as he approached me, anger clearly written across his face.

  “Yes. That’s exactly what I was trying to do,” I said on an eye roll. “Next time when you enter the garage, check your speed, Mario Andretti. It’s not a fucking racetrack. People are walking to and from their cars.”

  On a sinister smirk that I wanted smack off his face, he admitted, “You’re right. I flew in here like there was a fire. I wanted to get here early and maybe talk to you before the interview. But it looks like you’re on your way out.”

  “I’ll be back in time for your precious interview. Actually, I’ll be here for sound check,” I retorted.

  Taking his silence as the end of our interaction or whatever you want to call it, I set my board down and started to move when Zane called out from behind me, “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you on your board. You’ve never looked better.”

  Without turning around, I gave him my two-finger salute and kept on riding.

  I didn’t want to but I smiled as I heard Zane laugh.

  Just like that I felt the calmness wash over me and I had forgotten what transpired that morning.

  Shit.

  The fact Zane was able to do that after just two minutes in my presence, when nothing else seemed to work that day, I knew I was in trouble and this interview was going to be brutal on my emotions. Still, it had to mean something that he could calm me so quickly, right?

  Ugh. I didn’t want to even go there. We just needed to get through this somewhat unscathed and then we’d be out of each other’s lives again. Zane would forget me again and I could continue therapy for the next thirty years to try and forget him again.

  My music cut off and Wes’s ringtone played in my ear.

  “Yo.”

  “When did you plan on gracing us again with your presence? Zane is here and sound check is in thirty minutes,” Wes inquired.

  “Be there in ten. Sorry, boss man. I didn’t even realize I had been gone that long already. I needed to clear my head and skated down to the boulevard but had already turned back,” I answered.

  “Get here. We don’t need any more reasons for that dickhead to be up our asses. You got ten minutes, Joss.”

  “Take it easy. I said I’ll be there in ten, so I’ll be there in ten. Geez.”

  Wes hung up. Seemed like his mood deteriorated throughout the day as well.

  Superb.

  This is going to be a shitshow.

  _______________

  Sound check went off without any issues, except the obvious fact that Zane was across from me in the studio. Yes, I’d made it back in time. I was a pro skater for
fuck’s sake and I could fly on my board when I needed to. Wes, as usual these days, was surly and growling at everyone. He had Arden in the booth with him today and whenever it looked like Arden said something, Wes looked at her like he wanted to bite her head off.

  As I looked around the studio, I thought about Bruno and what he said about this being taken away from me if I didn’t toe the line with him. I loved my job but I wouldn’t cower to anyone.

  “And we’re on in three…two...one,” Wes chirped into my headphones.

  Just like that I went into show mode. Maybe I took a little more time on the intro but so what? It was my show and I was allowed to stall if I wanted to. At least until Wes gave me the signal to wrap up the intro and get into the interview. Damn Wes.

  “Ladies and gents, today in studio we have a very special treat for everyone. He was a pro skateboarder who shot to fame quicker than almost anyone in the sport with his natural talent and fearlessness, attempting tricks never done before. Now, he is renovating the skate parks that have been so good to him. Without further ado I give you, Zane MacIntyre. Welcome to The Josselyn Easton Show, Zane,” I finished as professionally as I could.