Chapter Six
Sadie
Monday mornings are the bane of my existence. This Monday morning, however, is ten times worse.
Jake’s legal assistant, Candace “call me Candy,” is avoiding me like the plague, which isn’t the easiest to do, since as a paralegal, I work directly with Jake. If it were any other job, I would have thought about walking out by now, because dealing with Jake trying to corner me at every turn is getting old.
Working for my father is a pain in the ass. I wish I could just waltz into his office and say “I quit.” But I’ve only gone against my parents a handful of times, and one of them was when I refused to stop hanging out with Mandy and Ash in the eighth grade.
My parents—my father especially—aren’t the biggest fans of the Levine twins. They disapprove of Mandy’s body art and her various jobs she works to put herself through school. She doesn’t have well-to-do parents to send her to college like I did. I have mad admiration for Mandy. She’s almost done with her business degree, and what my parents don’t realize is that she has plans to open her own tattoo parlor.
Her future is wide open in front of her, unimpeded by parental expectations, because her parents didn’t put her through college.
She didn’t break her father’s heart by deciding not to go to law school.
“Sadie, can I see you in my office for a moment?”
“Sure,” I tell my dad. “I’ll be right there after I put these away.” I hold up the files I was working on, and he gives me a brisk nod. As I make my way through the office, I wonder if this impromptu summons has anything to do with Jake.
News broke this morning that Jake Jennings—or JJ, as my father calls him—is getting his precious promotion.
I return to Dad’s office and find him and the other partners, along with Jake, seated in leather high back chairs. The space has a masculine atmosphere, with tall mahogany bookcases lining one side of the room and an executive desk situated on the other. Floor-to-ceiling windows offer a view of the city.
One glance at the ornate clock on the wall tells me the lunch hour is almost upon us, and though everyone at Sawyer and Bennett—from the partners to the lowly assistant staff—have a habit of taking working lunches, today is obviously not one of those days.
The men are holding amber-filled tumblers. Even the lone female partner is seated, legs crossed at the ankle as she clutches a glass between her manicured fingers. She probably needs the booze to survive the testosterone in the room. Jake rises to hand me a drink. I gaze down into the liquid and wrinkle my nose.
“Now, sweetheart,” my father says in his deep, booming voice, “I know bourbon isn’t your drink, but we’ve got cause for celebration. I figured you’d want to be here to congratulate JJ on becoming the latest junior partner at Sawyer and Bennett.”
Jake aims a wide smile at me, his teeth perfect and whiter than the paint on the damn walls. He drapes an arm around my shoulders and raises his glass. “To new beginnings.”
“To new beginnings.” The toast echoes through the room amongst clinking glasses. I tap my tumbler against Jake’s before moving out of his reach. To make my father happy, I take a small sip, then I wait a couple of minutes until they’re deep in conversation before setting the glass onto a table.
“We’re putting on a celebratory dinner this Friday night. JJ has worked hard for this, so I hope you’ll all attend.” He trains his brown eyes on me, and I don’t miss the flash of reproach in them. “That goes for you as well, Sadie. JJ should have your support.”
With narrowed eyes, I glance at Jake, who is suddenly avoiding my gaze. Shit. I promised him I wouldn’t air our dirty laundry in front of my father, but he obviously didn’t feel the need to do the same. I can only imagine how he spun the story in his favor.
“Of course,” I agree, hoping no one notices the slight tremble in my voice.
One by one, everyone in the room rises to leave, shaking Jake’s hand on the way out. Once it’s just my father, Jake, and me, the tension in the room is so thick you could slice it with a knife.
“You’ve done good, son,” my dad tells Jake, slapping him on the back. It’s not often that I let my father’s disapproval get to me, but seeing the pride in his expression for Jake burrows under the scabbed-over scars of my youth.
My father will never forgive me for not going to law school.
“Thank you, sir,” Jake says, his wide grin still plastered across his face.
“Sadie, don’t be rude. Congratulate JJ. Now’s not the time to allow hiccups in your relationship to impede on such an important accomplishment.”
Jake pushes his hands into his pockets. He’s still unable to return my stare.
“Congratulations,” I say, my voice monotone. “I know this is what you’ve always wanted.”
“Thank you. It is.” He tilts his chin up then, and a rock of dread falls to the bottom of my gut. The smile is gone from his face—in its place is a formidable line of determination.
He hasn’t given up on us yet.
“I need to speak with my father in private.”
“Of course, Sadie.” As Jake passes by, he leans down and brushes his lips across my cheek. “We’ll talk later.”
If I have my way, we won’t, but I don’t voice that intention. His confident, quiet steps carry him out of the office, and he closes the door with a small click.
“So Jake told you what happened, I take it?” I have no doubt he kept several details hidden, but I want to hear the tale he spun to my father.
“Sit down, Sadie.” He gestures to one of the many chairs in his office.
I consider standing my ground, but one look at my father’s rigid posture has me sinking into soft, malleable leather.
“JJ did come to me about this problem the two of you have been having.”
I raise a brow. “Is that what he’s calling it? A problem?”
“I’m not going to defend his actions, but a man under the type of pressure JJ endures is bound to make mistakes.”
Unbelievable.
“Now, sweetheart. The question is what do we need to do to fix this?” My father brushes his thick hair back. He’s a handsome man, appearing younger than his fifty-two years, with dark hair sprinkled with the first signs of gray, and vibrant, sometimes vicious brown eyes. I certainly didn’t get my looks from him.
Some say I’m a spitting image of my mother. I’d have to agree—right down to her inability to say no to my father. He’s always run our household with an iron grip. And my mother and I have always fallen in line.
Not this time.
“It can’t be fixed.”
“Nonsense. Everything can be fixed.”
Meaning he never fails to find a way to get what he wants. It’s the lawyer in him. Being a defense attorney isn’t just a job to my father. It’s a passion. A calling. A way of life.
And if his only child won’t follow in his footsteps, the least she can do is marry an attorney of his choosing. I can already see it coming, and my skin breaks out in a cold sweat at the realization.
“He’s been fucking his assistant,” I say, my tone flat and disinterested. Because I am. Jake was attractive for a hot minute, but the moment I watched another woman go down on him and failed to feel my heart crack told me everything I need to know. “I caught Candy giving him a blow job in his office the night of his birthday.”
“There’s no need to use such obscene language, Sadie.”
Oh, for fuck’s sake.
I bite my lip since arguing with him never helps anyone.
“He’s a good man, Sadie. He made a mistake, but he’s owning up to it. He’s willing to do whatever is necessary to make it up to you.”
My jaw slackens. Jake actually told him the unvarnished truth, but my father is still defending him. I’m utterly stupefied as I rise from the chair, more hurt over my dad’s reaction to Jake’s betrayal than I am the actual betrayal.
“I should get back to work,” I say, blinking to hold back the threat of tears.
“That’s my girl,” he says, a note of pride entering his tone. “Don’t forget. This Friday. JJ will pick you up at six sharp. It’s a formal gathering, so use the credit card to buy something appropriate.”
As I leave my father’s office, I have trouble drawing a deep breath. Jake and Friday and appropriate formal wear—all of it tightens around my neck like a noose I can’t escape.