Chapter 18

 

Anna

 

“Damn, you two are good,” Kevin said as he met us at the front door of the building.

He gave Jason a hug and then shook my hand. I couldn’t remember seeing Kevin smiling as much as he was. It was like night and day compared to what he had been like the last few months I’d known him.

“It was all Anna, she kicked ass,” Jason told him.

“No, I think everyone already had their offers ready, and we just helped them see that they should move forward with the process,” I offered.

“I disagree,” Jason said without adding anything else.

“Let’s go upstairs and talk about this. I’ve already got the rest of the faxed offers, and things look amazing. Edward and Marcus are going to flip out when they see the numbers being offered here. This is much better than I imagined it would be.”

We were almost into the building when my father pulled into the parking lot driving like a maniac. He was angry, really pissed off. He was even angrier than the time I’d been arrested as a fourteen-year-old for staying out past the city curfew time. My heart instantly sank as he slammed his car door and started toward us. I looked at Jason and then Kevin, and they both knew something was wrong as well.

“Go inside,” Kevin ordered us. “I’ll talk to him.”

“No, let me,” I said. “I can calm him down.”

“Shit, how did he find out?” Jason added.

“You sons of bitches,” my father yelled at the guys. “You really think I wasn’t going to find out you were piecing the company out? How stupid do you think I am?”

“Dad, it’s not like that,” I told him. “Please come inside, and we can explain what’s going on.”

“Don’t you talk to me, young lady. You knew this was going on and didn’t even tell me. You picked them over your own father.”

His words hit me like a brick in the face, and I instantly started to cry. I hadn’t been prepared for him to be this angry with me. Yes, it was the truth—I knew about it and had kept it from him, but only because I wanted to get everything worked out first so we could explain the deal to him. I knew he was going to be angry; I just didn’t understand how bad it was going to hurt.

“Edward, let’s go inside and talk about this. I think when you calm down and see what we have started to put together here you are going to be really excited,” Kevin said calmly. “Nothing is finalized yet. We made an agreement that you and Marcus would get the final say. That is still the deal. If you hear everything we have going on, and you don’t want to do it, we won’t.”

“What about Myer’s Engineering? Bryce says he already made a deal.”

Shit. My father knew Bryce Myers?

“He made an offer, and we put a thirty-day acceptance on it. We have thirty days before it would be finalized,” Kevin said calmly.

I looked wide-eyed at Jason through my tears, and he motioned for me to head inside. I certainly wasn’t helping anything by standing there crying. If Kevin and Jason could figure it out without me, then that was for the best. I only wanted what was best for my father. I never wanted to hurt him.

When I got upstairs, I went straight to Susan’s office next to the conference room. Luckily, she wasn’t in there as I slipped onto the ground near the vent. Sooner or later, they were going to convince my father to come inside, and I wanted to be able to hear what was going on. Sure enough, five minutes later, I heard the doors to the conference room open.

“Edward, I think you are really going to like this deal,” Jason said calmly.

“I don’t care what you think,” my father replied. “Can I just talk with Kevin? I’d prefer not to talk with a child molester.”

“What?” Jason said loudly. “What the hell are you talking about?”

I’d never heard Jason get really angry, but I could tell by his voice that he didn’t appreciate being called such a vile name. He wasn’t rude to my father, but he certainly wasn’t going to just sit there and let him call him names like that.

“She’s a child, you sick bastard,” my father yelled.

Suddenly I started to figure out what was going on. Not only had my father learned about the deal, but somehow, he had figured out that Jason and I had slept together. I couldn’t just sit in the office any longer. I had to stand up to my father about this. I was a grown adult. I made my own choices.

I pushed the heavy conference room door open and stood there with my hand on my hip as I narrowed my eyes on my father.

“Maybe you and I need to talk. I’m a grown adult. In fact, I’ve been an adult for two years now, and that was a very inappropriate thing to say to Jason.”

“I saw you leaving his room, Anna.” My anger had softened my father’s fury only slightly as he continued to fume.

“Dad, what I do in my private time doesn’t matter. Right now, I really need you to listen to Kevin so he can explain what’s going on here. Listen, Dad. You know you want to retire, and I think you knew the company wasn’t doing well for a really long time. Will you please listen to Kevin, even if you won’t listen to Jason?”

My father was quiet for a long time before he finally nodded toward Kevin. “Just Kevin,” my father said as he refused to look at Jason.

Jason stood up and walked out of the room without saying a word. I followed behind him and we went to his office to sit down while Kevin and my dad talked about the deals.

“I’m sorry he said that to you.”

“Ha, well that was a shock. And pretty much made me want to punch him.”

“Yeah, he wasn’t thinking straight. Please don’t be too angry with him.”

“Well, let’s just worry about the deal for now. Obviously, I can’t control what he thinks of me. But it would be really great if he did like me.”

“He’s really a great guy. I’ve never seen him like this. It’s probably just the overwhelming emotions about seeing us together and having all this going on with his company. I’m sure Kevin will be able to get through to him so he understands.”

We sat there silently while Jason played with the papers on his desk, and I scrolled through the endless social updates on my telephone. My stomach turned with anxiety as we kept looking down the hall to see if Kevin and my father were still in there talking. I wanted to go look in, but my father was facing the door and would have seen me the second I got close enough to look inside.

“Want to go listen at the vent?” I offered as another half hour had passed by.

“In Susan’s office?”

“Yeah, at least we will know what’s going on?”

“No, I’m fine here. You can go if you’d like, though.”

“No, I’ll stay here with you.”

A total of two hours went by before Zelda showed up at Jason’s door and told us to go into the meeting. My heart pounded as we walked down the hall and into the conference room. Kevin was smiling and looked at ease, which was a great sign, and my father didn’t look like he was in quite as bad a mood.

“We called Marcus to come down. He should be here shortly,” Kevin said.

“Anna, why don’t we step into the hallway for a minute?” my father asked.

“Yes,” I said without hesitating.

I’d never had my father be this upset with me, and it was tearing me up inside. Even though I knew he was wrong, I desperately wanted to make up with him. He had to know that I was a grown up, he’d been pushing me to be more independent for years.

As we walked out of the room and stood in the hallway, we quickly realized that it was no place to hold an intimate conversation. My father pointed to the room next to the conference room, Susan’s office, but I brought him to the other side of the floor where the small meeting room was at.

“Dad…” I said as we sat down, and I prepared to argue with him.

“You are in this thing of your own doing, aren’t you?” he asked.

“Yes, Daddy. I like him, and he likes me. Just like it’s supposed to be. And if it makes you feel any better, I really do care about him a lot.”

“Nope, it doesn’t make me feel better.” My father chuckled a little, and it was at that moment that I knew we were going to be okay.

“So why were you at the hotel following us? You didn’t trust me?”

“Should I have? You lied to me,” he retorted.

It was true; I’d lied to him on the phone a couple times since I’d found out about the sale. But I didn’t do it maliciously, and I certainly only had his best interest at heart. That was going to be hard to explain that to him, though.

“Dad, I was upset at first as well. But can you please just listen to them with an open mind?”

“I listened to Kevin, and I’m still angry. But we will see what Marcus thinks when he gets here. I just don’t understand why they can’t just help us turn the company around and keep it like it is? That’s what I want.”

“Why?”

“Why do I want to keep the company like it is?”

“Yes. I mean I know you don’t want people to lose their jobs, and this new plan will ensure that. Why else does the company need to stay exactly like it is? It’s the twenty-first century, Dad. Sooner or later, we are going to have to adapt.”

There was a knock at the door, and Zelda peeked her head in. “Marcus is here, just letting you know. No big hurry, take your time,” she said with a huge smile on her face.

The amount of excitement going on in the office on this day was ten times what it had been on any previous day that I’d worked. It looked like Zelda was really enjoying the bolt of excitement.

“We will be right there,” I said as she closed the door behind her. “Dad, do you understand what I was saying?”

“Do you understand what it’s like to trust someone and know they were willing to lie to you for weeks? That’s how I’m feeling right now, honey. I just don’t know why you didn’t come and tell me. Just a little clue would have helped. Something so I knew you were really looking out for our best interest.”

I rolled my eyes at my father and his guilt trips. I’d worked really damn hard to ensure his best interest had been looked out for. But I knew him well enough to know that I couldn’t be arguing with him if I wanted him to be able to listen to Kevin and Jason as they explained what was going on.

“We can talk about it more later,” I said. “How about we get you to the conference room so you and Marcus can figure out what you’d like to do?”

“Fine, but we are going to talk about this later.”

“Okay, Daddy,” I said and gave him a big hug.

Right away he squeezed me tight and kissed my cheek. I knew we were going to be just fine. It might take him a little bit to see where I was coming from, but I knew he’d feel better after he heard more about the deal and saw it was a great plan.

I walked him to the conference room and opened the door so he could go in. I was about to leave when I heard Jason say my name.

“What?”

“I asked if you could sit in with us. Since you were the lead on several of the deals, I think it would be appropriate for you to share the information on those.” Jason was holding back a smile as he urged me to come in. I could tell he was making it clear to my father that I had helped a lot on the deals. Of course, my father didn’t like the deals at all right now, so hopefully, when he heard everything, he would be happier with me.

“I can talk about the Myer’s Engineering one,” I offered.

For the rest of the afternoon, Jason, Kevin, and I explained the process of selling off the different divisions. I didn’t do much except talk about the companies that I’d met with and some of the specific offerings like how Myer’s offered to pay full benefits and extra vacation.

Marcus and my father were interested. I could see it in their eyes when I handed them the money offer for the engineering division. It was more than what my father needed to retire, and I knew it. For years he’d wanted to ensure his employees could thrive, and he was finally going to be able to do that. Every company that was interested in purchasing a division was excited to have the opportunity. They weren’t buying the divisions because they wanted to close them; no, these companies were growing and needed to add trained staff. It was the perfect combination, and my father knew it.

As the four men continued with the meeting, I took a break around five o’clock to use the restroom and get something to eat. It had been a very long day, and we were nearly finished going through the details. The next big step was going to be to see if my father and Marcus would agree that it was the right thing to do.

After spending just ten minutes freshening up and getting a drink, I came into the hallway to see all the men standing there and shaking each other’s hands. Marcus was patting them on the back and thanking Kevin and Jason for everything they had done.

“Wow, what did I miss?”

“I see what you guys are trying to do here,” my father said. “This was what I wanted. Well, not this exactly. But I really did want to retire. I just wasn’t willing to do it until I knew the employees could thrive.”

“Of course, we would have preferred to keep the company together, but these companies are all amazing,” Marcus added. “We will continue looking through everything, but at this point, I don’t see any issues. I think we’ve got a deal.”

“Thank you two for spending the day with us and letting us show you what we saw in this deal,” Jason said as he shook my father’s hand.

“You and I are still going to have to do some talking, young man,” my father replied as he held onto Jason’s hand firmly. “But we can do that after this business is all figured out.”

“Yes, sir,” Jason said as if he was a teenager standing in front of his girlfriend’s father. “I look forward to it.”

I gave my father a hug and stood in the hallway with Kevin and Jason as the two men left in the elevator. What a day we had just had. It was the definition of a roller coaster with the ups and downs I’d experienced both physically and emotionally.

“We are going to your father’s house for dinner on Sunday,” Jason said as we all walked down the hall toward their offices.

“We?” I asked as I looked at Jason and then Kevin.

“Not me.” Kevin laughed. “I think you two will have to handle this one alone. I’m not coming near that explosion.”

“Dad invited you to dinner?”

“Don’t look so surprised; I’m pretty damn charming. He invited me and Clyde to come. Isn’t that awesome?”

“Yeah,” I said as I tried to take in what was happening.

Not only had my father agreed to the business plan, but he had done a complete one-eighty and was inviting Jason to the house. This was blowing my mind. Maybe my little talk with him had actually gotten through. Or perhaps he just planned on continuing to call Jason names when he arrived, but I doubted that.

Kevin smiled at us. “Okay, lovebirds, I’m going home. We can finish the details in the coming weeks.”

“Thanks for everything, Kevin,” I said as I shook his hand. “I just wanted to let you know that I’m not going to be staying on here any longer. Not as a regular employee or a contractor.”

“What?” Jason said in shock.

“What are you going to do?” Kevin asked me.

“I’m going to college. I’m going to start at the community college since I can do a late start for this year, and then I’ll transfer to the university next year. I’d like to get my MBA.”

“How the hell did you get this all figured out so quickly?” Jason protested.

“Thank you for all your help,” Kevin said as we both ignored Jason for the moment. “We were lucky to have you and can’t wait to see what you do with that MBA of yours.”

Kevin gave me another handshake and then went to his office to grab his things. Jason stood staring at me the whole time and didn’t speak again until Kevin had passed us and left in the elevator. “What the hell, Anna. You’re leaving?”

“I would have thought you’d be happy for me because I’m going to college,” I said with a slight smile as we sat down on the small couch in the hallway.

Jason grabbed my hand and put it up to his heart where I could feel it throbbing out of control. We were silent as we sat there for a few minutes. My hand stayed on his heart even as he tried to talk. “I didn’t think you would leave. It’s stupid, I know. But I thought you might want to stay on since you were so good at doing the deals.”

“I’m sorry, but I’m not sorry at the same time,” I said softly. “I think this is what I want to do, and I’d love it if you supported me in this wild dream of mine.”

“Oh, crap, Anna. I support you. I’m excited for you. This is really great,” Jason said with more enthusiasm. “I’m just bummed for myself and being a typical jealous guy. Really, I am so happy for you.”

“That’s more like it,” I said as I climbed onto Jason’s lap and straddled him right there in the hallway of the office.

“Is everyone gone?” he asked as he looked around nervously.

“I quit, remember, what does it matter?”

His hands grabbed onto my ass as I leaned down and kissed him softly. Slowly, we moved our mouths and tongues together as my hips slid back and forth against him playfully.

“Are you free Friday?” Jason asked between kisses.

“This Friday or next Friday?”

“Every Friday?”

“What are you talking about?” I asked a little confused by what he was saying.

I tried to go back to kissing him, but he pushed me away a little so we could talk. His hands stayed on my ass, though.

“Can you keep Fridays free for me? I’d like to take you out,” he asked.

“Every Friday? That seems a bit excessive. How about we plan for next Friday, and then I’ll look at my schedule,” I teased him.

“Actually, that’s not going to work for me. I’d really like to see you every week.”

“Wow, you are getting a little unruly aren’t you,” I said as I let my hands run up and down his chiseled chest. To be honest, I would have kept every day of the week available for Jason, but I was trying to see where he was going with this. Did he just want a booty call once a week or was there more here? Because I felt like there was much more between us than just a booty call.

“Listen here,” Jason said. He stood up with me in his arms and then put me on the couch and stood in front of me looking all authoritative. “I would like to date you. Not one date, not two dates. I would just like to date you. Like normal people do. I don’t care if it’s Fridays or Sundays. I don’t care if we go eat or play on that damn trampoline of yours. I just want to make it clear that I’d like to have you in my life.”

My heart must have flipped as I put my hand against my chest and felt the pounding that was happening. I had so much to say, so many ways that I could have said yes to him. But instead, I sat there stunned and grappling for the right words that just wouldn’t come. Finally, I grabbed his hand and held it against my chest so he could feel how hard my heart was beating.

We stayed there silently looking into each other’s eyes as I nodded my head yes to his offer.

“Is that a yes?”

“Yes,” I finally managed to say.

“Oh, shit yeah,” Jason said as he scooped me up into his arms and twirled me around in the middle of the office. “I was going to die if I found out you were just using me for sex,” he said with a huge smile.

He slowly let me down to the ground, and our lips met each other as my toes touched the ground. Every emotion was flying through my body at the same time, and I could hardly think straight. My knees wobbled with the excitement, and Jason kept his arm around my waist to steady me.

As I got lost in his eyes, I ended up laughing at the thought of how I’d had a crush on him for so long. What had started so innocently had developed into something truer than I could have imagined. Back then I hardly knew what love was, but as I stood there looking up at Jason, I had a new understanding of that powerful emotion.

“There is something I need to tell you,” I said softly as I wrapped my arms around him. “Promise you won’t get mad?”

Jason furrowed his brow and looked down at me with a bit of worry as he waited for me to tell him something horrible. I could hardly keep a straight face though and finally burst into laughter.

“What is it?” he asked with concern.

“I did want you just for sex,” I said with a smile. “But I think I’ll keep you around. I mean at least on Fridays,” I teased as we kissed.