CHAPTER 32
Zack Forte came striding into CPARC’s main room, past the printer, all the way to Haley’s desk, waving a paper like a windshield wiper. “What the hell is this, Cooper?” he boomed.
It was humanly impossible for the man to be anything but loud.
Haley pressed her hands on the desk, pushing herself to her feet, fighting a wave of nausea in the process. Did Forte realize he was the human embodiment of a tornado? Loud, chaotic, and unstoppable.
“Well?” he asked, eyes flashing as he came to stand in front of her. “I offer you a promotion and this–” he rattled the paper. “Is how you thank me?”
Haley sighed. She’d known the second she’d hit send on the email that he wouldn’t make this easy for her. “But I lost a drone.”
“Well it’s a good thing I have a garage full of replacements. Just don’t do it again.”
“And I stopped my field work.”
“To help a town recover.” His voice dripped with incredulity. “I seem to recall we all stopped working.”
He didn’t understand. But she didn’t expect him to. Heck, she didn’t even understand it herself. All she knew was that she couldn’t go another day at an impasse with Axel. It was killing her. She saw no way to have both him and her career. Warren’s voice echoed in her head. Make the most of your second chance. Life’s too short to spend it alone.
“All anyone could talk about when I was in town was how heroically you acted. That your actions saved lives.”
She should feel happy about that. Satisfied. Proud of herself. Mission accomplished and all that. It’s what she’d worked for her whole career. So why did she feel so empty?
Forte continued without waiting for her to respond. “The Police Chief – Kincaid – took me aside to make sure I understood how you put yourself in danger to make sure he could get as many people to safety as possible. And Eddie Hansen called me a week ago to let me know you’re welcome back any time. That you’d exhibited ‘the utmost professionalism’ your entire stay.”
She covered a laugh. Total lie. But maybe it was Eddie’s way of quietly letting her know he approved of her after all. Things had changed between them the day of the tornado. When she’d reached out to comfort him. Maybe that was all he needed. To know that she not only loved Axel, but the rest of them too.
“So what’s it going to be, Cooper?” Forte crossed his arms expectantly. “You going to accept the position of Field Director or do I have to fire you?”
But she’d… “What do you mean?”
“Well?”
But she had resigned. She’d read the email three times over before sending it. “I’m not sure I follow.”
“Maybe this will help you.” He tore up her email into little pieces and sprinkled them on the floor.
“But I–”
“Let me spell it out, Cooper. You’re the best we’ve got. The most capable. The most talented. I’m not going to take no for an answer.” He narrowed his gaze at her. “Even when Axel Hansen is what stands between me and my number one candidate.” He looked at her meaningfully.
So much for her careful attempts at discretion. Nothing got past him, did it?
He didn’t understand how she’d agonized, how she’d tied herself up in knots coming to this decision. But she would regret to her dying day choosing her career over love. Two and a half weeks had been more than enough time for the reality of potentially losing Axe a second time to sink in. Never again. Tornado intercept probes made cold bedfellows. Even if the loss of a career hurt, losing Axe would hurt worse, by magnitudes.
“No.”
Zack Forte threw back his head and laughed. “Nice try. I’ll double the salary.”
“No.”
“And the vacation.”
“Are you nuts? You can’t do that.”
He laughed again. “The benefit of working outside the federal government. We’re a private company. I can do whatever the hell I want.” His eyes grew serious. “Look. I know this situation hit you hard. I can tell. And it’s obvious you and Hansen are nuts about each other. You’d have to be blind not to see it. But I’m not about to let love stand in the way of a good business decision.”
What was it Axe had said? “People before money, sir.”
“Who says you can’t have both?”
“Me.” She gestured. “My life.”
Forte stared at her hard. “What do you want, Coop? You want the whole ice-cream sundae? Then you need to ask for it. I didn’t get to where I am today by playing small.”
That irked her. “Are you suggesting I’m playing small?”
“Name your terms.” He looked entirely too pleased with himself.
Fine.
If this was how he wanted to play it, she’d ask for the moon with a helping of stardust. “I’d like to work remotely from Prairie.”
“No can do. At least not year round. Field Director position is hands on and needs to be here at the lab.”
Now he was just pissing her off. Was he just messing with her? Engaging in some sick kind of torture? “Then I quit.”
He shook his head, tsking. “Coop, I need a Field Director who is skilled in the fine art of negotiation, not someone who’s going to take her ball and play in another sandbox the second things get difficult. When you’re in the same room with the big boys at NCAR and NOAA or NASA, you’re not going to get everything you want.”
She rolled her eyes, not caring that it was unprofessional and might piss him off. So what? Anger simmered through her. “Of course not,” she snapped back. “We’d meet in the middle.” As the words left her mouth the pieces slid into place. Suddenly, she was fourteen again, and feeling chastised by Mama June. She’d walked right into his verbal trap. No doubt about it, she’d completely underestimated Zack Forte. Sure he was a big blusterer with an even bigger bank account, but he was shrewd too, and he’d known exactly which of her buttons to push. Her estimation of him upped a notch.
“Meet me in the middle, Coop. Make me an offer I can work with.”
Her mind filled with the possibilities. “I- let me come up with something overnight?”
“Take whatever time you need. Talk to that man of yours. Act like you have the job, and think about it for a few days. Try it on like a… a coat.”
A coat?
The man had either lost his mind, or he was the most brilliant negotiator she’d ever met. Given his billionaire status, he was probably the latter.
“Please?” He flashed her a smile that was all charm. “Just for a few days?”
“Fine. I’ll think about it and come up with a proposal.” And she would. On paper, it was her dream job. And with double salary and vacation, she’d be in a sweet spot to raise a baby. And, maybe, just maybe by negotiating reasonable remote time, she and Axel could cobble something together that would meet both of their needs.
Internet at the Hansen’s hadn’t been as awful as she’d been prepared for. She could ask Forte for a high speed computer that they could run through the wall instead of over wifi… What would Axel think? Long distance scared the shit out of her, but it was better than nothing. And Prairie was only three hours. If she left early on a Friday afternoon, she could be in Prairie by dinner time.
It would at least work for most of her pregnancy. And that would buy them time to figure out the rest.
She called Axel as she left the building.
Voicemail.
Damn.
When they’d hung up the night before things had been… tense. Heck, who was she fooling? Most of their conversations over the last two weeks had been tense. But maybe now that she had a plan, they could break their impasse. She was willing to try.
She pushed away the burgeoning nugget of worry as she slipped into her car. Axel was probably out of range. Or working on a cleanup site. He’d see that she rung and call when he could. Nothing about his recent behavior made her think anything different. He’d returned every single one of her calls. And she, his. Even if it took a few hours. So why was she suddenly so overcome with worry?
Halfway home, her phone rang. “Axe.” She smiled into the phone.
“Hey, babe. Where are you?”
“Almost home. You?”
“Just got home myself.”
A picture of him pacing in the small living room floated in front of her. “Hard day?”
“Not so bad today.”
She could hear the smile in his voice. He sounded… happy. Her heart gave a little extra kick. “You sound like you had a good day.”
His laugh crackled through the phone. “Yeah. You could say that. It’s better now, though.”
She grinned. She liked it when he flirted with her. It turned her insides to jelly. And lord knew, things had been so serious, lately. Happy felt… good. Even if it was only for a moment. As the silence briefly settled, her pulse began to flutter erratically. Her hands grew sweaty as she clutched the steering wheel. “Soooo.” Why was she suddenly nervous? Taking a deep breath, she plunged in. “I’ve been thinking.”
“So have I.”
Okay. That was good, wasn’t it? Her stomach started doing jumping jacks. “I know we’ve been stuck…”
“You could say that.”
Just do it.
Just say it.
Oh God. She couldn’t do this while she was driving. It was only two blocks from home, but she pulled over. “So Forte offered me a promotion with double the salary and double the vacation,” she rushed out.
“Haley.” There was something firm in his voice that pulled her up short.
“Yes?”
“Where are you?”
“In the car?” She turned off the radio.
“Let’s talk about this when you get home.”
Her heart sank the tiniest bit. But it made sense. She shouldn’t talk about something this big in the car. Looking over her shoulder, she pulled back onto the street. They could make small talk for two blocks. “Fine. It’ll just be a second. I’m only two blocks away.”
“Good.”
He sounded entirely too happy. “Axe?”
“Mhm?”
“Everything okay?”
“Yep. Congratulations on the promotion. That’s great news.”
He sounded sincerely happy for her, and that made her heart do a little dance. She turned onto her street. “So here’s what I’ve been thinking–”
“Are you home yet?”
“Almost.” As the words left her mouth, her house came into view. And her heart promptly started pounding. “Axe?” She pulled into the driveway and cut the ignition.
“Yes?”
“Am I seeing what I think I’m seeing?”
He shrugged, pulling himself off her front steps, phone still to his ear. “I don’t know.” He grinned at her. “What are you seeing?”
Him.
Strong, warm, and looking utterly delicious.
Her body began to vibrate as she gazed at him hungrily. It had only been a few weeks, but she drank him in like water in the desert. Wanted to run her mouth across the stubble at his jaw, draw her fingertips up the muscles on his thigh. Rub herself against him like a kitten in heat. Feel his mouth on her, hot and needy.
Realization slammed into her. She’d missed him more than she was willing to admit, because by admitting it, she’d also have to acknowledge what she’d walked away from. Again.
But never again. She wasn’t letting him out of her sight ever again.
“What are you doing here? On a Wednesday?” Her voice rose and faded into a squeak. “Don’t you have… horsey things you need to be doing? Or… or cleanup?”
His eyes were bright, boring straight into her.
But he shrugged easily, still talking into the phone. “It’s possible I’ve come up with a solution.”
“One that works for both of us?”
He gave her a slow grin and nodded. “But you might want to get out of the car now so that I can tell you.”
With a shaking hand, she pulled the emergency brake and pushed open the door, breaking into a run. In two steps, Axel was down the stairs, and in two more steps, he’d met her halfway across the yard, scooping her into an embrace and spinning her until she was dizzy.
She lifted her legs, squeezing his hips as his mouth crashed into hers. She didn’t care what the neighbors thought – she kissed him back with everything in her. Tongue tangling against his, hot and demanding. Telling him with her body what couldn’t be conveyed over the phone. That she loved him and couldn’t, wouldn’t live without him.
“How, tell me how?” she asked when they finally came up for air.
His hands squeezed her ass and she wriggled against him, nerve endings alight. “Bottom line. I can’t live without you. And you can’t live in Prairie. So after talking to Gunn and Hope, we decided they’d buy out my share and I’d start a satellite operation here.” His eyes grew soft. “That is… if you’ll have me?”
She didn’t think it was possible to experience this level of giddiness, of joy. But here she was, in Axel’s arms, feeling as light as air, and incandescently happy. This man. This sexy, tough on the outside, sweet marshmallow on the inside of a man, wanted her. “Yes. Yesyesyes,” she exclaimed, seeking his mouth again.
He was hers. Body and soul. And she belonged to him. Forever.
She pulled back. “Okay, but where?”
He released her, letting her slide slowly down his front, but keeping her pressed close. “If you don’t mind a bit of a commute, I found a small hundred acre spread about forty minutes outside town. Good pastureland, a swimming hole. A little farmhouse.”
Her pulse buzzed in her ears. Haley couldn’t believe what she was hearing. A life with Axel, and her job. “With a storm cellar or a basement?”
He kissed her on the nose. “Both. And enough rooms to grow a family if you like.” He waggled his eyebrows at her.
She laughed, giddy with the surprise of it all. “Sounds perfect. But what will you be doing? Forte is willing to work with me, so I’m sure I can negotiate for telecommuting if you’d rather be in Prairie part-time.”
Axel’s eyes grew bright with excitement. “Funny you should mention telecommuting. I finally convinced Pops to let me increase our web presence, so I’ll be doing marketing for Hansen Stables remotely. We’re also officially partnering with Hope, and moving into natural horsemanship. So I’ll be doing a bit of that down here as well.”
Her insides went all soft and melty. Was she living in some kind of a fairy tale? This was a dream come true. “That’s wonderful. How did you convince him?”
Axel shrugged. “We had a heart to heart, and honestly, it went better than I thought. I think Warren’s death has made him realize he needs to change. And it’s not like I’m moving across the country, or won’t ever come back.”
“I-I want our child to know his grandparents,” Haley murmured shyly.
“Or hers.”
She let out a giddy laugh. “Or hers. I love your family’s ranch.” She cupped his cheek, enjoying the scrape of his whiskers against her palm. “But I love the idea of our own place too. One where we can make memories together… as a family.” Her heart pounded loudly as she voiced her deepest yearning.
Axel covered her hand with his, staring at her with a curious light in his eyes. “There’s just one more issue we have to iron out.”
“Oh?”
He nodded. “Shut your eyes.”
“Okay?” What could they possibly have left to discuss? But she shut her eyes, and immediately felt the loss of his warmth when he stepped away. Then he took her hand and opened it. Something small dropped into her palm. “Axe?”
“You can open your eyes now.”
Her eyes flew open and darted from Axel on a knee to the simple diamond ring in her palm, and back to Axel. He had the sweetest grin on his face. A hopeful, light-up-your-insides-with-sparklers smile that set off Haley’s nerve endings in all the right places. Her pulse began to thrum as adrenaline shot through her. “What is this?”
“I’ve always loved you, Coop. From the moment I saw you at Cissy Castro’s spring break party all those years ago. I knew you were the woman for me. If it’s not too late, if you believe in second chances, will you spend the rest of your life with me?”
“Starting now?”
“Starting now.” He tugged on her gently, pulling her to his knee and nuzzling her neck, before kissing his way across her jaw and finally teasing her mouth open to kiss her until she was dizzy.
“It’s never too late,” Haley answered between kisses.
“So that’s a yes?”
She nodded. “Always and forever.”