Chapter 19

Jay

It took half a bottle of 18-year old whiskey for Jay to relax after the meeting with Renee followed by his confrontation with Kasey. He still cringed at her denial, which was almost worse than the act. He could handle her admitting that she wanted to test the waters or see what else was out there. She would never be able to convince him that he’d imagined Renee smiling and laughing while hugging her before reminding her of their meeting.

It was the lie that hurt him most, a betrayal he was unwilling to forgive. He’s spent hours replaying the scenario, hating how well Renee had played it, but finding himself grateful, because he didn’t want to be blindsided by Kasey’s inevitable departure.

She was the talk of the town, how she was building up writers. It was now obvious to him that she was merely using Passions Publishing as a stepping stone. She’d even insisted on removing the standard clause that she couldn’t work for a competing firm for two years after ending their contract of employment. Now, it all made sense.

Jay wanted to discuss his revelations with his partner, so he’d set up a round of golf. It was a sunny afternoon, so Mitchell was more than willing to join him for an early tee time, before his son’s soccer match.

“You look like you had a fun night,” Mitchell said, as the two approached the golf cart.

“Looks can be deceiving,” Jay chuckled, but it was true. He knew his friend had imagined him having a much more fun time gaining the bags beneath his eyes. Opting not to ruin his image, Jay declined to share that his only companion last night was a bottle of overly expensive liquor.

“Yeah, I bet. But from the looks of you, I should drive,” Mitchell teased, climbing into the driver’s seat before beginning their journey around the course.

“I was telling Kathy about Renee storming into the office yesterday. She couldn’t believe the audacity of that woman. Hell, neither can I,” Mitchell said. Jay was happy he’d broached the topic, because he was dying to discuss all that had happened.

“I think Jessica thought I’d fire her, but how could she stop a bull in a china shop? Renee was going to get in that office one way or another,” Jay recalled, although after a few drinks the previous night, he had debated reprimanding his secretary for not adequately doing her job.

Typically, she made sure to keep Jay’s office locked, from the remote she had on her desk, but at the end of the day, when he and Mitchell met to recap the day’s events, they often left the door open, wanting the employees leaving for the day to see them, and wanting to be able to keep track of who was leaving earlier than others.

“Don’t blame Jessica for Renee. She’s in a class of her own as far as disrespect goes. There’s nothing that poor girl could’ve done to prevent that.” Mitchell said, seeming to feel sorry for Jessica as if she’d already been punished enough.

“Maybe so. But I’ll tell you who wasn’t a sweet girl in the scenario—Kasey. And to think of how much control and trust I gave her. You know how difficult that was for me, Mitch. I bent for that woman, and what did she do? Betray me. I honestly don’t think I can forgive her,” Jay admitted what had been bothering him for half a day now.

“It’s not that, Jay,” Mitchell started, but Jay interrupted him.

“Of course, it is. Don’t tell me you’re still believing her bullshit loyalty. She set up a meeting with our competition, and I let her know how unacceptable it was.”

“What did you do?” Mitchell blanched, pausing mid movement as he reached for a golf club.

“I told her she’s too smart to play stupid. After Renee left my office, I followed her out. She was in the parking lot, hugging Kasey as she looked back at me with a ‘fuck you’ grin. She knew how much I invested in bringing her onboard, and she couldn’t stop herself from gloating before she stole her from under my nose.”

“I confronted Kasey as soon as Renee left, and she had the nerve to act aloof about the whole thing, claiming she didn’t know what I was talking about. Yeah right. She had three boxes with her, so who knows if she’s even planning to come back on Monday. For all I know, she’d packed up her things to sneak out like the coward she is.” Jay was seething as all the anger boiled back up.

He was hurt by Kasey’s betrayal, and frustrated with himself. While he cared for his employees, and loved his company more than anything else, he’d never found himself so invested in any employee before, and the one time he did, she crossed him in the worst way.

“Are you serious, Jay?! The woman had just come into your office gushing about a new author she planned to bring to the company. You can’t deny the genuineness she’s displayed. You went out and embarrassed us both without so much as consulting with me?” Mitchell faced Jay with intensity in his eyes. He was upset, and Jay had never seen him so confrontational.

“Mitch, you heard Renee. And I saw her outside with Kasey. She looked like she’d seen a ghost when she saw me. I could tell she was afraid of my reaction, caught red handed like that,” he tried to explain, knowing his best friend could not understand what he did after seeing Kasey in the parking lot.

“Jay, Renee was fucking with you. I’ve got two sources in her office. There was no meeting with Kasey, she was only saying that to rile you up, and look what you did. Now, she’s probably going to take her up on the offer, because you’ve disrespected her after we finally got in a good groove together.”

The words hit Jay like a ton of bricks as his mind raced to think back to the previous day’s events. The look of fright on Kasey’s face was certain, but now that he recalled the anger he felt while walking towards her, he wondered if it was only a reaction to him.

“Think about it—why would Renee reveal her strategy to us, Jay? If she was smart, which she is, she’d sign Kasey and then come gloat, not the other way around.”

That made more sense than any conclusion he’d been able to draw the previous night, and Jay felt like an idiot as he realized how dumb he’d been to walk right into the trap Renee had so sloppily laid out. She’d angered him so that he wouldn’t think clearly, or strategize. When he saw Renee talking to Kasey he didn’t think to ask Kasey what had happened, because he was already too upset.

“You’ve got to fix this, Jay. We cannot stand to lose Kasey, she’s the best move we’ve made in years.” Mitchell rubbed his forehead, and Jay knew how badly he had messed up.

“What if it’s too late, Mitch? I know I was horrible to her, and she’s not the type of woman who stands for something like that—especially after we’d come to an agreement.” Jay said, knowing Kasey must feel blindsided by his behavior.

“Well, you have until Monday to figure out how to fix it. Until then, maybe you should focus on that, and forget about this game,” Mitchell returned the club to his golf bag.

Jay was dumbfounded by the change in events. It was he who had betrayed Kasey in the end, and the understanding made his stomach churn with shame. She’d done everything in her power to show him she was committed to his company, exceeding every expectation he set for her, and all it took was a rumor from a woman he knew could not be trusted for him to throw everything out the window.

Mitchell was right, he had to find a way to make things right and convince Kasey to stay at Passions Publishing. He knew the value she added, and how difficult it would be to lose her. But what could he say or do to combat the wrong he’d done? He found himself at a loss for words, but knew he had to find a way. He was determined to make it up to Kasey, no matter what it cost him. He just hoped it would be enough.