Chapter 45

Jay

 

 

With the day nearing an end, Jay gathered his paperwork. He’d spent the day researching the best ways to combat his problem, to no avail. There wasn’t one loop hole he could use to wiggle his way out of the deal with Renee. Considering his lawyer couldn’t find a way out, he should have known that he was locked into the deal, but he hadn’t been able to accept the obvious.

 

Just when he assumed Mitchell would be declining their standing appointment to recap the day, he heard a soft knock on the door.

 

“Come in!” he called.

 

“I heard you hadn’t left yet,” Mitchell eased his way into the office, closing the door behind him.

 

The two friends hadn’t spoken much since Jay had made the decision to sell off one of their three publishing houses, but Mitchell had cooled down significantly from their first conversation.

 

“No, I’m still here,” Jay continued to busy himself with tidying his desk as Mitchell made his way into the office, settling into the leather loveseat for the first time since the debacle.

 

“I also heard you had a lunch date today,” Mitchell instigated, clearly digging for details about his meeting with Kasey.

 

Under normal circumstances, Jay would have ignored the prying, knowing he was only searching for answers rather than asking directly. But, because he felt responsible for the position they shared, Jay chose to indulge him.

 

“Yeah, I stepped out for a bit with Kasey. She bombarded me in my office,” he exaggerated just a bit. Seeing her in his office was the silver lining to a draining and eventful day.

 

“What did she want to talk about?” Mitchell asked excitedly.

 

“I don’t know. She was very ambiguous. She had some questions about why I’d made the deal and even offered to bring over some authors.”

 

“So when is she bringing them in?”

 

For the first time, Mitchell was optimistic and excited about what could come for the company, but again Jay had to deliver bad news.

 

“Mitchell, I wasn’t going to accept some charity.”

 

“Then did you at least come clean about your reasoning?” Mitchell was baffled by this point, struggling to hold it together.

 

“And admit my failure?” Jay barked in disbelief.

 

“Jay! You’re killing me! You want to prove your devotion, but then you won’t admit it when confronted with the opportunity. You risk your company, and then when faced with an opportunity to save it, you shun it. I’ve seen you working like a mad man trying to find some resolution, a boost to bring some sort of normalcy back to this office. This is it! Kasey can bring in the authors that can turn things around! Why won’t you let her help?”

 

Jay listened to the pleas of his best friend, watching him move to the bar in the corner of his office. He shook his head when Mitchell held the bottle in the air, silently asking if he would like a drink. He’d had enough for the day, but Mitchell’s words were weighing heavy on him.

 

“Let her help?” he repeated, still uncomfortable with the advice of his business partner.

 

Mitchell should have known him well enough to know he wasn’t going to accept being rescued by a woman, regardless of how badly he was beaten. He should be able to learn from his mistakes and rebuild. Kasey didn’t need to save him.

 

While Mitchell had been along for the ride with Passions Publishing, he was not an equal partner to Jay. The publishing houses were always Jay’s alone, so the negotiation and business deal done behind Mitchell’s back was more a betrayal of friendship.

 

Despite the evidence to the contrary, Mitchell really believed that it was only a matter of time before Jay came around and got back on board to correct the course, as opposed to allowing the ship to wreck. Sometimes he just needed a nudge from someone who would tell him the truth.

 

“Well, I’ll be damned! Are you really that egotistical? The woman is a genius, Jay! She can at least bring in what she has. You wanted to work with her, right? That’s what all this is about—you not having a way to explain a misunderstanding. Jesus! The one time I can’t offer any relationship advice, you go out and give away a third of the company!” Mitchell was only half serious, and Jay knew it.

 

“I need another drink,” Jay shook his head jokingly as he walked to the small bar. Pouring a glass for him and Mitchell, he handed one to Mitchell as he settled into the seat across from him. “What exactly am I supposed to say?”

 

Mitchell grinned before taking a sip of the whiskey. “This may be difficult to process, so stay with me, but the answer is simple. Tell her the truth. Tell Kasey how you feel about her and what you were willing to sacrifice to get her back.”

 

“You think that will be enough?” Jay doubted him.

 

“Are you serious?”

“Kasey isn’t the type of girl to be impressed by an attempted merger,” Jay reasoned.

 

“Then why did you do it?” Mitchell snapped, a little too quickly for Jay. It took him a moment to gather his thoughts, as he sipped from the glass of whiskey.

 

“My plan wasn’t to have an attempt, but an accomplishment,” Jay explained slowly, as Mitchell watched intently, sipping the liquor.

 

“Jay, it doesn’t matter if you succeeded or failed. To Kasey, the act is enough to show your sincerity. Women don’t care about your accomplishments as much as they value your effort. Tell her the truth.”

 

Jay knew Mitchell was speaking the truth, and looking back, he could see it written all over Kasey’s face at their lunch. She was only trying to confirm what she already knew, but he couldn’t bring himself to confess the obvious.

 

“Mitch, I’m not going to spill my heart out to a girl who threw me out of her house,” Jay shrugged, before taking another sip of his whiskey.

 

“And why do you think she showed up here today? Why do you think I let her in your office?” Mitchell asked.

 

“You let her in?” Jay asked, confused.

 

It hadn’t occurred to him to question how Kasey had gained access to his office. His assistant would have known to not let her in. It was Mitchell all along? The realization shocked him.

 

“You let her in?”

 

“Jay, you risked everything for her—I thought you would at least want to talk to her. I can’t believe you didn’t accept her offer to come back. Wasn’t that the point of all of this in the first place?”

 

Jay sat silent, sipping his drink to stall for time. Of course it was all for Kasey, but he didn’t care to admit that again.

 

He remembered Mitchell’s outrage at learning that Jay walked out of the lunch when she offered to bring authors over. It was what they needed, but he was too proud to accept her offering.

 

Jay was used to being on the hook for problems and solutions, but he was far from comfortable from needing help, and that was what Kasey was offering. She had looked at him with pity, the first emotion he was ever able to read on her face. In some way, she felt guilty for his decision, and it didn’t sit well with him.

 

“What am I supposed to do, Mitch? Go to her house and profess my love?” Jay joked, trying to downplay the words he heard escape through his lips.

 

Love? It wasn’t a word he was used to speaking. Could he actually feel that way about this woman? It was a new feeling bubbling in his chest, and he pushed it down as he tried to clear his mind.

 

“Yes! That’s exactly what you should do. As a matter of fact,” Mitchell stopped, drinking his whiskey as he rose from the leather seat, walking towards Jay’s desk.

 

“What are you doing?” Jay asked, but Mitchell silenced him with an index finger before pressing the intercom button on his desk.

 

“Jessica! Can you get Danny ready? Jay will be heading to Kasey’s house in ten,” Mitchell leaned over the desk, speaking more intently to the speaker than necessary.

 

Jessica responded with apprehension, knowing she shouldn’t accept anyone’s requests besides Jay’s, but Mitchell was her boss as well. “Okay—” she faded out.

 

Jay shook his head in disbelief. Not only was Mitchell going against his wishes, but his own staff was obeying. He second-guessed the raise he’d recently rewarded his secretary with before Mitchell plopped down on the sofa beside him.

 

“You need to go over there and tell her the truth!”

 

Mitchell finished his drink, and Jay took the glass, ensuring he was done, thinking he needed to be cut off.

 

“I’m serious, Jay. Go tell the girl how you feel. Why would you remain so reclusive after risking everything to get her back?” Mitchell paused, revealing his level of seriousness, and Jay was frozen in fear.

 

There was no way he could ever tell Kasey the things Mitchell was suggesting. How would she respond to him pouring his heart out? He hoped to never find out.

 

“Mitch, you’ve obviously had too much to drink,” Jay tried to downplay the behavior of his business partner as he walked him to his office door.

 

“Mr. Canton, Danny is downstairs,” Jessica greeted them, and Jay wanted to dock her pay all over again.

 

“Oh, I’ll walk him out,” Mitchell suggested excitedly, leading the way before Jay could come up with an excuse to delay his departure.

 

The elevator doors opened, and Mitchell began his pep talk. “Listen, if you won’t do this for yourself, she should at least know what happened and why. Tell her about your decision and why you made such a drastic move. You’re always asking me what women want. Well, this is it. They want the truth, and they like it when you express yourself.”

 

The elevator doors slid open on the main floor, and Jay immediately pushed the button for the eighth floor. Looking at Mitchell, he spoke. “I’ve got it from here. You go cool off in your office.”

 

Without looking back, he walked to the waiting car as Mitchell yelled out from behind him, “Call me with an update!”

 

“Hey, Mr. Canton,” Danny greeted his boss, unsure of his mood.

 

“Let’s get this over with. Take me to Ms. Wright’s,” Jay climbed into the backseat.

 

Danny drove the entire ten minute ride in silence, not wanting to upset Jay any further. Jay, on the other hand, was in deep thought, contemplating ways to approach Kasey. She had made it clear that she wanted to help over the course of their aborted lunch, but Jay was far from accepting charity.

 

When it came to women, he wasn’t used to accepting their help, and now he was on the way to ask for it. It was Jay’s feelings that complicated the situation, because he couldn’t be sure that having Kasey solely in a professional realm would be enough for him.

 

Before he could strategize a game plan, Danny slowed at the curb. Jay looked around confused, he hadn’t even noticed pulling into her small development. They had arrived, and the time had come for him to eat the slice of humble pie Mitchell had loaded onto his plate.

 

“Stay here. This might not take long,” Jay grumbled, before opening the back door and letting himself out.

 

Kasey’s old Honda was parked in the driveway, so he was sure she was home. In the back of his mind, he had hoped she’d be gone and let him off the hook, but instead, it looked like he would have to face the woman who had torn his world apart, not only once, but twice.

 

There was no point in denying his feelings any further. Both times he had lost Kasey, there was nothing that could fill the void left in her place. She meant more to him than anyone else, but why he couldn’t easily express that, he didn’t understand.

 

The walk to her front door was long and dreadful. Jay must have turned to look back at Danny at least four times, searching for any reason to abort his mission. He took two deep breaths, running his fingers over his styled hair, ensuring not a strand was out of place. With unsteady hands, he knocked on the door, his heart beating out of his chest with anticipation.

 

Kasey opened the door with a carefree look on her face, one that he rarely saw. She was always so driven and focused, it was a privilege to see her so relaxed. Unfortunately, it did not last long, as her smile faded when her eyes landed on Jay. His stomach sank as he forced the words from his mouth.

 

“Don’t shut the door,” he started, afraid that her reaction meant she didn’t want to hear another word from him. She’d given him another chance at lunch and he walked out like a complete jerk. While Kasey didn’t respond, she didn’t shut the door, so in his mind that was a good sign.

 

“I know that what you said at lunch came from a good place. You only want to help, and I appreciate that. I shouldn’t have pushed you away, but I was caught off guard and didn’t know what else to do,” he continued, searching her face for any reaction, but she remained motionless.

 

“I made a deal with Renee for her to take over one of the Passions Publishing houses in exchange for your return. I didn’t know how else to get you back, and at that point I would have accepted having you in a professional realm over losing you completely.”

 

Kasey didn’t say a word, so Jay continued. “I now know that’s bullshit. I don’t want you as my employee, I want you as,” he hesitated, searching for the word. “Everything. I want you as everything. What we had was perfect, and I blew it.”

 

Kasey swallowed hard, and he felt the urge to explain. “That number you found was from a girl at a coffee shop. It was from before we began dating, and I never even called her. I’m sorry you had to see it, but it wasn’t what it looked like. I don’t want her, or anyone else.”

 

“You are the only woman I want, Kasey. You have to believe me.” It was a plea, a pitch, and an apology all wrapped up in one. It was the truth, and regardless of her reaction, Jay tried to convince himself that the relief was worth it. The seconds felt like hours as he waited for her response.

 

Kasey stepped towards him, reaching towards his neck with both hands. Everything seemed to move in slow motion as her lips pressed against his, in a sensual and meaningful kiss. She forgave him with her tongue as she gently tugged his hair at the nape of his neck.

 

Without thinking, Jay lifted her, walking into her narrow foyer as she wrapped her legs around him. It might not have been permanent, but for the moment, he had his girl back, and everything was right with the world.