Chapter 7

Jay

It was a cool evening, and Passions Publishing had spared no expense, making its annual company celebration one to remember. Held on the first floor of the publishing house, there were round tables as far as the eye could see, each topped with white table cloths and full dinner settings. It was the cocktail hour that preceded the event, when Jay arrived to find Mitchell speaking sternly with one of the venders.

Glancing around, he felt proud of the turnout after weeks of planning by their event coordination team. Everything came to life just as they presented on storyboards when they first pitched the white theme. There were ice sculptures set up every few tables, and the white rose centerpieces were a nice touch, he thought.

Although he’d yet to hear from Kasey since bombarding her at her office, Jay was prepared in case she did show up, wearing his signature black Tom Ford suit tailored to fit his tall frame perfectly. As usual, his hair was slicked back, and a brilliant timepiece adorned his left wrist.

“Everything alright?” Jay asked Mitchell as the man he was speaking to walked away.

“Just technical issues—dimming the lights before your speech, that sort of thing,” he explained with a shrug of his shoulders.

Mitchell was never to be confused with the sexiness women associated with Jay, but he too was demanding second looks in his charcoal suit with matching tie. Everyone at Passions Publishing looked forward to the celebration event, where awards were given for the success achieved throughout the year. It was their prom, and the staff planned accordingly, looking their very best.

“I haven’t heard from Kasey since I went to her office,” Jay called out the elephant in the room, knowing his best friend must feel it was a misstep.

Mitchell had warned him that things with Kasey wouldn’t be easy, but he couldn’t resist trying things his way. What he’d planned to be a bold gesture she couldn’t refuse, had proven to be unsuccessful, since he’d not received so much as an email from her despite giving her full access to him, something he hardly ever did.

Jay was notoriously private, never giving out his personal contact information for business. He carried two business cards—one with the ways you could reach him through Passions Publishing, and the second with his personal cell and email. Kasey received the latter, a huge sign of openness from Jay, whether she knew it or not.

In the past day, he’d wondered if she still had his business card, right before he’d imagine her calling about the party. But she never called, so he figured she’d thrown the card out, underestimating its value.

“You’re just going to have to use a different approach. She may not be a hard sale type of agent,” Mitchell assured, never for a moment doubting Jay’s ability to close a deal.

“Yeah. I told her I wouldn’t be giving up, so she should expect me back if she didn’t decline the offer,” Jay added with a smirk, remembering the look on her face. He couldn’t tell if she was intimidated by the fact that he’d showed up at her office unannounced, or thrilled. There was something electric between them, at least he felt so. Kasey, on the other hand, had done a great job at reserving her feelings. Jay prided himself on reading people, but searching her deep brown eyes had left him clueless.

“It seems she doesn’t want any more of your pop-up visits,” Mitchell smiled, taking a glass from the tray of a passing server.

“What do you mean?” Jay asked, as the waiter offered him a drink.

Tilting his head towards the front entrance, Mitchell answered his friend without a word. Following his head movement, Jay’s eyes fell on Kasey, dressed in a beautiful red dress that hugged her in all the right places. She looked a bit intimidated as she glanced around the huge conference hall, which had been converted into a ball room.

Her rich brown hair hung in bouncy waves, a flicker of red hidden amongst the strands. When her eyes locked with Jay, he felt it in his groin, the gleam in her eyes apparent as she spotted the one person in the room she knew.

“Champagne, sir?” The waiter asked.

“Oh, uh-yeah,” Jay stammered, selecting two champagne flutes from the tray before excusing himself from Mitchell to meet Kasey halfway through the room.

“You made it,” he said, as he greeted her with a smile.

“I did,” she returned the favor while accepting the glass of champagne.

Back in her presence, Jay was sure he hadn’t imagined the sparks between them. There was a comfortable silence as they both sipped the bubbly liquid, glancing over the glasses to get a good look at each other.

“Let me show you around a bit,” Jay finally suggested.

Walking through the gala, he was sure to point out all the accomplishments of Passion Publishing from the past year. They topped the selling list for more genres than Kasey’s employer even featured. Jay was proud as he announced each victory, before sharing the strategy and person responsible for the success. His company was his life, and he would always find immense joy in sharing how great his team worked together. He was bragging, but hoping to entice her with what she could be a part of.

“I noticed you’re breaking into the romance field. We’ve topped that genre for five consecutive years,” he revealed, a fact he’d practiced telling her, sure she would be impressed.

“I do my research. I know how many categories you guys top,” she nodded, taking the last sip of her champagne.

Jay could sense that she wasn’t at all impressed, in fact, she seemed bored with his tour. Mitchell was right, there was nothing ordinary about this woman. She was like no other agent he’d ever known, but it was more than that. She intrigued him on levels that went beyond the business. Something about her drive, and the way the glitz and glamour didn’t affect her the way it invariably impressed most women. He liked it.

Of course, he would have been happy with winning her over, but she was making him work for it, a rare challenge, which he enjoyed.

“Come. I want to show you something else,” Jay took her empty champagne glass as he offered his hand.

The two seconds of contemplation felt like a lifetime, but when she placed her petite hand in his, her red manicured nails gently scratching his skin, Jay knew he was in trouble. He had to touch her, and now that he’d felt her soft skin, he wanted more.

Moving briskly through the party, avoiding everyone that wanted a few minutes of his time, he ushered Kasey into a large elevator at the back of the conference hall, discarding their empty glasses on a round table.

“Where are we going?” she asked, as he placed a plastic card over a security screen. A soft beep and green light alerted that some security level had been achieved before the elevator ascended floors rapidly.

“I said I wanted to show you something,” Jay bit his bottom lip to fight the urge to smile.

The elevator doors opened to an entire glassed-in floor, displaying unobstructed views of the city. Her gasp was undeniable, and Jay finally thought he had a chance at closing the deal. Kasey wasn’t impressed by the awards, because she knew with the army that came along with Passions Publishing, nothing was impossible. It was almost like they were expected to win with so many resources and limitless budgets.

But what she did care about was this city, which she had obviously made the decision to remain in. Like Jay, Kasey was a talent too big for a small city in the Midwest. People like them usually left Saint Paul to swim in larger oceans, like New York or Los Angeles. It was rare to find someone who loved Saint Paul as he did, but from the shimmer in her eyes as she looked down at the skyline, he knew Kasey was finally impressed.

“What do you use this for?” she finally asked, her words faint like she was out of breath.

“This,” he said, raising one eyebrow.

“To showoff for women?” she playfully asked.

“To impress the unimpressible.”

“What’s this about, Mr. Canton?” Kasey asked, trying to reclaim her composure, but it was too late. Jay could tell she was moved by his reveal, and it was time to go in for the kill.

“I want you to come work for me, Kasey. You’re a rare talent, and I want you to take our writers to the next level. You connect with authors in a way most people can’t, and I admire that.”

She was weighing his words in her mind, he could tell. It was the way people looked at him whenever he sold an idea, silently debating whether to trust him or not.

“Does your boyfriend not want you working for such a large publishing house?”

It was a longshot and he knew it, but the possibility was driving him crazy. She was so focused, but there had to be a personal side to Kasey. Was that what was holding her back, because he knew she felt what was between them, and if she were in a relationship, that could be enough of a reason to steer clear of him.

“Jay, if you want to know if I have a boyfriend, just ask already,” she rolled her eyes, calling him by his given name for the first time.

There was a second when her eyes dropped from his, and he knew she was eyeing his lips. Did she want him to kiss her? Cautious not to misread the signals, Jay decided not to act, and instead asked what he wanted to know.

“Is it a man that’s keeping you from me?” It was a sincere question. He wanted to know why she wouldn’t work for him, but it was deeper than that. He wanted to know why she wouldn’t bend for him, she seemed immune to his typical seductive selling strategies.

Their eyes locked for a long moment before Kasey stepped forward, closing the distance between them.

“No.”

Her lips were on his before he could respond, and she tasted like sweet strawberries. His instincts took over as his hands found her hair, running his fingers through the long waves, gently tugging at the strands while their tongues entwined, gently, as if introducing themselves. Leading her backwards until her back bumped against the glass wall, Jay pulled at her hair, causing her head to fall back before ending their kiss and running his tongue along her exposed neck.