16. James
16
JAMES
“ S o we have a deal?”
Catherine and I were in my office overlooking the Miami skyline, and it was finally decision time. After teasing out exactly what Lucas had offered her, I was able to make a counteroffer that should have swept all hesitation away.
Catherine looked down at her hands, but I could see the smile playing at the corners of her mouth. When she looked up at me the full smile bloomed. “We have a deal. Thank you, Mr. M-…uh, James.”
“How long have you worked with us? Two years? And you still have a hard time calling me James?”
She laughed. “We all do. It’s… I don’t know, it’s a sign of respect, I guess.”
I stopped myself from saying that she hadn’t respected me enough to ignore Lucas Rushing’s offer. It was now in the past, and I could relish the fact that I’d scored one victory against him.
“Ella is redrafting your paperwork so we can go ahead and finalize that today, but is there anything else you need from me?”
Her smile vanished, replaced by a look of concern. “No, everything is great. But… I want to say I’m sorry. For even considering going to work for Rushing Events. He came on really strong. It almost felt like he was wooing me, you know? Like a dating scenario. He sort of swept me off my feet. But I shouldn’t have listened to him. You deserved more loyalty from me than that, and I’m sorry.”
I nodded. That was his technique, and it was hard to resist his “love bombing.” Lucas was getting bolder, trying to snatch longstanding, valued members of my team. It was time to step up my game.
“No need to apologize. Not everyone plays by the rules,” I said.
“But you do, even if some of the employees call you a boss—.” She gasped before finishing the word and I couldn’t resist finishing it.
“Bosshole?” She nodded hesitantly and I grinned. “I’m aware and between you and me, I kind of like it.”
Ella came into my office just then clutching a stack of papers. “Catherine, why don’t you come out to my desk and we’ll get everything signed?”
She gathered her things and paused at the door. “Thank you, again, for this, Mr., uh , James.”
I exhaled once I was alone in my office. Now I could put my energy toward the summons.
I read through it again, and my anger reached a boiling point. How dare they? My daughter was everything to me and they knew it. There was no way the courts would side with the Dreshers; the whole thing was a massive waste of time and resources. But then the paparazzi images flitted through my mind, reminders that to the outside world I looked like someone who cared more about a good time than the health and safety of my daughter. Would that be enough to sway a judge?
I slammed my fist down on my desk then picked up my phone to call my lawyer. I had to get those pictures taken down as soon as possible. I’d buy the damn website if I had to.
“James, how are you?” Malcolm Washington asked as a way of greeting me.
“Pissed off,” I growled in response. “I just got served by Mitch and Maureen Dresher.”
He let out a low whistle. “You’ve got to be kidding me. That’s ridiculous.”
“Exactly. But all the CPS bullshit is enough suspicion to make me look bad. And those recent pap photos will probably get thrown around as well.”
“Listen, you’ve got nothing to worry about. Yes, this is an inconvenience, and yes, you’ll be putting my retainer to good use for a few weeks, but in the end, everything will be fine.”
I tried to be comforted by what he was telling me but still felt unsettled. I hated that Harper was being put in the middle of something so ugly. After what she’d been through, my daughter deserved peace, not a custody battle.
“James? You there?”
“Yeah, yeah, okay. I’ll fax over the summons, let me know if you see anything that’s dicey.”
“Based on what you’ve told me about the Dreshers, I’m sure everything is letter perfect, but I’ll take a look, just in case.”
We hung up, and despite Malcolm’s easy dismissal of the case, I didn’t feel reassured.
Ella peeked her head in my office and studied me before speaking. “Hey, do you have a sec?”
“Of course.” I’d wanted a few minutes to sit in silence, but work never stopped.
“Ted reached out and said they’ve been having major issues with the POS system at Bloom for days now. He’s been in touch with the support team at the manufacturer and they’ve done all the patches and updates they could, but it’s still acting wonky.”
“Like how, exactly?”
“Like, leaving charges off bills. Last night the servers had to go over every bill line by line to make sure that everything was accounted for. People got frustrated with the wait.”
“Shit.”
She frowned. “Exactly. He said he thinks we need a full upgrade, with a different vendor. And he suggested that you consider including Club Obsidian in the upgrade as well, to prevent issues down the road.”
“We literally just installed —”
“I know, I know,” she interrupted with a grimace. “But Ted is convinced that the legacy system is failing because the whole thing is outdated.”
“Do you understand what that means, aside from the cost of an upgrade? It means sales pitches and demos and trial runs, then staff training, which leads to everyone bitching about the new system, and glitches and delays and… God damnit .”
She looked shocked, and I winced when I realized I’d raised my voice, something I tried to never do around anyone who worked for me. They needed me to be strong, in control—and to not throw a temper tantrum when things didn’t go my way. I hated that I’d let my frustration get the best of me in front of her.
Ella stared at me. “You don’t need this right now, do you?”
“I absolutely do not,” I admitted.
“Okay, I’ll take the lead and do some more research then circle back.”
That was one of the things I appreciated about Ella. Her ability to read the room and take initiative. She was capable enough to allow me to get the hell out of my office and go exactly where I needed to be.
Home. With my girl.
Girls . Yes, I wanted nothing more than to be with Harper and Kaitlyn.
“I’m going to head out for the day. Text me if you need anything.”
“Of course. And don’t worry, we’ll figure it out.”
I finally allowed a smile. “I appreciate you. Thanks for all of your hard work.”
Half an hour later I had three bags filled with nachos, tacos, and churros from Abuela’s and was speeding toward home. I’d texted Bernardo and he let me know that Harper had eaten dinner and was already in bed, but Kaitlyn was out for a run and hadn’t requested dinner yet. I let him know that I’d taken care of the meal for Kaitlyn and me, so Bernardo could head home for the night.
After getting caught in a frustrating traffic tie-up, I finally waved at Miguel and headed up the driveway. All I wanted was to sit down and hear about what Kaitlyn and Harper had gotten up to all day. The daily updates always filled me with hope, and right now I needed a hit of that feeling. I found Kaitlyn sitting outside by the pool, so absorbed in the book she was reading that she didn’t even hear me walk up. I studied her as I got closer. She had one leg hitched up on the lounger making her calf muscle pop and her terrycloth shorts rise high enough that I could see the curve of her ass. All the running she was doing was clearly having an impact. Her hair was still damp, twisted up in a clip with a few tendrils curling around her face.
“Hey there, hungry?” I held up the bags so she could see the Abuela’s logo.
She smiled, but her expression shifted when she saw my face. “What’s wrong?”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
Kaitlyn stood and walked closer to me, staring into my eyes. “You look, I don’t know…shell-shocked. Did something happen today?”
There it was again. That perception that allowed her to see through the facade I usually relied on. I debated mentioning only the challenges with Catherine and the POS system, to avoid thinking about the summons, but in that moment I felt the need to unburden myself and tell her everything.
Her expression went equal parts grim and angry as I told her about it. Instead of brushing it off with platitudes as if it wasn’t a big deal, she placed her hand on my arm and stepped closer.
“I am so sorry, James. That’s the last thing you need. I’ll do whatever I can to support you and Harper during the trial.”
Maybe it was my exhaustion, or the fact that a freshly scrubbed, wet-haired, barefoot Kaitlyn was irresistible to me, but before I could think about it I wrapped my hand around her wrist and pulled her closer. She stumbled, bumping up against my chest, and her eyes went wide.
For a moment we stared at one another in silence. Everything around us seemed to go still, and the air became heavy with the promise of what might come. Her lips were slightly parted, like she wanted to say something but couldn’t find the right words.
But she didn’t move away. Not even when I leaned closer, testing the waters. The way I’d done the first night we’d hooked up.
She met my eyes, challenging me like she always did. Daring us both to make that leap.
Then she closed her eyes, and surrendered.
It was all the invitation I needed, so I bent my head to place my lips on hers. She melted into me as we kissed, and it felt like we were both experiencing the same relief that yes , this was exactly what we wanted. What we needed . Her arms circled behind my neck, and I felt the familiar pulsing between my legs as she pushed her body against mine.
My kisses became more urgent, like I had to take as much of her as I could while I had the chance. I could still taste the toothpaste on her tongue, smell the sweetness of her damp hair, and all I wanted to do was throw her over my shoulder and steal away to my bedroom to breathe in the rest of her. Because I knew exactly what she meant when she threaded her fingers through my hair and ground her hips against me.
Fuck, I wanted her. This time, without interruption. Without the real world intruding. I wanted to make her scream with pleasure, and forget the problems pressing down on me, and…
The realization that I was about to make a mistake came out of nowhere.
The timing was wrong, and so were the reasons. She deserved more than to be someone just to make me feel good when I was having a lousy day. When we ended up back in bed together—because I was becoming increasingly certain it was a when, not an if—I wanted the moment to be about nothing but us. And that meant that here, now…I had to stop.
I tightened my grip for a moment then, reluctantly, pushed her away.
Her confused expression was an arrow through my heart.
“Kaitlyn…not like this.”
I could’ve sworn I saw her pout, but she didn’t say a word to me.
“Let’s try something different,” I continued, trying not to focus on the throbbing between my legs. “Can we go on a date? A real date, not just take-out tacos?”
Her expression immediately lifted, the jutting bottom lip disappearing into a wide smile. “Are you serious?”
I nodded.
“When? Where?” she asked excitedly. I loved that I could make her smile like that.
“Well, I wouldn’t want these fine tacos to go to waste, so we can enjoy these tonight and then plan for an evening out tomorrow night. Does that work for you? Be ready at five-ish…”
“But what about Harp?”
I loved that Kaitlyn had picked up on the nickname I used for her. “Her Grandy has been pestering me for another sleepover, so we’ve got that covered.”
Kaitlyn clasped her hands under her chin like a real-life Disney princess, her eyes wide with excitement. “Yes. I’d love that.”
I didn’t tell her that I was probably more excited than she was.