Chapter ThirtySix
Flynn finally returned my hundred missed calls the next day on my way to meet Kerry Zhang.
It turned out my brother’s absence wasn’t because he was lying in some hospital bed in another country or at the bottom of a ditch, bleeding out somewhere like my worst fears imagined, but instead, he had checked himself into a rehab facility.
Pride blossomed into life when he told me. It was clear it wasn’t an easy decision for him, and he was starting to have second thoughts about it, but all that mattered to me on that phone call was he decided to finally seek some help.
It was the first step.
The biggest step.
“You’re not mad?” Flynn asked with a strained voice.
“Of course I’m not mad,” I assured him, walking toward the Reynolds building. “I’m proud of you, Flynn, and you should be proud of yourself. The fact you went and got help all by yourself, that’s nothing to turn your nose up at.”
“I guess you’re right,” he exhaled loudly. “I feel bad leaving you alone to sort out the mess I’ve created. It should be the two of us sorting it out.”
“It’s fine,” I said truthfully. “You’re in the best place, Flynn. I can handle the rest.”
“Do you think Jaxon will go for the idea?”
I stalled. The very mention of his name was a vice-tight grip around my lungs, stealing my breath.
“Actually, there’s been a change of plans,” I finally said. “Things with Jaxon have gotten a little complicated since I saw you last. I don’t think it’s a wise decision asking him to absorb the shares.”
Him and his brother weren’t getting a single finger on the shares. They’d likely tank the company before the ink dried on the legal documents.
“What’s happened?” Flynn’s voice lowered. “Did he do something to you? Do you need me to come home? I’ll leave right this second if you need me to
“No, don’t leave. Stay right where you are,” I said. “It’s nothing I can’t handle, I promise. It simply means I am going to go with plan B.”
“What exactly is plan B?”
Before I got the chance to answer, my eyes were instantly drawn to him. Jaxon stood at the front door of the Reynolds building. It was as if we were two magnets, and I was fighting the natural instinct not to allow myself to get pulled straight back to him.
“Hello? Evie?” Flynn called down the phone.
“I’m here,” I said. “Don’t worry about anything except looking after yourself. Leave the rest to me, okay? I’ll call you later.”
“They don’t allow unsolicited calls while I am in the early stages of rehabilitation,” Flynn explained. “A stupid rule, but one they will not budge on. Apparently, rules are rules here. But I’ll phone you every chance I get.”
“Day or night. Ring when you can,” I said. “And Flynn? I am proud of you.”
I ended the call just as I got to the entrance. I willed myself to keep walking, to ignore the man who simultaneously made my heart flutter and fracture.
Keep walking.
Just keep walking.
“Evelyn, can we talk?”
Though my mind told me to keep moving forward, it was my heart that overruled all rational thoughts and brought me to a standstill.
His aftershave hit me first.
It smelled like home.
Damnit. I hated myself for missing that smell.
“I don’t have anything to say to you.” I reminded myself to remain calm despite the tears that threatened to slip free. “I thought I made it clear to you not to try and contact me. I want nothing to do with you, Jaxon.”
“I tried to stay away, truly I did, but I can’t do it anymore. I can’t eat. I can’t sleep. I can’t fucking think anymore,” his voice broke. “I can’t be without you, Evelyn.”
Dark circles ringed his eyes. Hard lines curved around his lips. Even utterly exhausted, he was still heart-achingly handsome.
“The letter you left… I’m not exactly sure what Frederic said to you…”
I frowned. “Frederic didn’t say anything to me.”
“The stuff in the letter? I thought Frederic came to you and told you everything?”
A means to an end, nothing more.
A means to an end, nothing more.
Fresh waves of heartache washed over me as I tried to force the memory back into the tight, compact box I created.
“Your brother told me damn all.” I avoided even a glimpse of those stormy whiskey eyes out of fear I’d crumble. “I heard you both that day. I stopped into the office to speak to you. I thought you were in a meeting, so I waited in my office. That’s when I heard you both.”
His throat bobbed as a crack of agonized panic traced his features. “You were there?”
Unfortunately.
“Yes.”
“And you heard everything?”
“I heard enough. You used me for some twisted plot of revenge,” I said. “I was nothing more than a pawn in your fucked up plan. What were you going to do, completely destroy my father’s company and reputation and then walk away? Just leave me discarded once I served my purpose, huh? Like a piece of garbage?”
He reached for me. “Evelyn…”
“Don’t you dare touch me.” I was unable to stop the tears blurring my vision when he flinched. “You know what? I don’t give a shit. Go ahead and release whatever shit you have on my dad. Do what you always planned on doing.”
“That’s not going to happen. I won’t allow it to happen.”
“Grown a set of morals all of a sudden, have you?” I spat. “You’re a joke, Jaxon. Do whatever the hell you want. See if I care.”
Except I did. I cared more than I wanted to.
I cared so fucking much it was killing me.
“Let me explain, please, douceur.”
That damn nickname. He may as well have reached into my chest with a shard of broken glass and cut my barely beating heart out to smash between his hands in front of me.
“I trusted you,” I whispered. “You made me believe that what we had was real. All those months were nothing but a lie. I guess it must have made you laugh watching me fall in love with you. Probably made it easier for you, huh?”
“It wasn’t all a lie,” he said desperately. “If you let me explain, then you’ll know that what I feel for you is the furthest thing from a lie. I’m in love with you, and I can’t lose you. I just can’t.”
I’m in love with you.
Although my anger for him burned bright, I couldn’t deny how being this close to him made me miss him ten times more.
I hated myself for missing him.
I’m in love with you.
Those words broke the dam within me.
“Don’t.” Tears slipped free. “You and your brother can both go to hell. I was na?ve trusting your brother in business.” I finally met his gaze. His glossy eyes caused my stomach to knot. It took all my strength to ignore my need to comfort him. “But I was a complete fool for ever allowing myself to love you, and I will never forgive myself for that.”
“You win.” I extended my hand. “You were right. I was never cut out for this because we both know this is not my dream.”
Kerry blinked slowly three times. “I beg your pardon?”
It was both the easiest and hardest decision.
Neither Flynn nor I wanted anything to do with our father’s business. We both agreed that we loved our father dearly, the man who spent his life raising us, but neither of us cared for Lexington Reynolds, the diamond billionaire.
That man made a lot of shitty decisions and ruined a lot of lives to get to the top.
Something neither of us wanted any part of.
With no one else to turn to, the only person who made sense was the only other person I knew who cared as much about the business as my father.
Kerry lived and breathed for the company. She already owned the second most shares, making her the logical and most obvious choice.
“The job and a portion of the family shares are yours.” I opened my laptop bag and pulled out the papers confirming it. “All you have to do is sign these, send them to legal, and the job is yours.”
“Is this some kind of joke?” Kerry eyed the papers with suspicion. “You know I don’t care for jokes. They mask the importance of situations, and I cannot abide that.”
“Oh, I’m aware.”
The woman was as serious as taxes. There was a reason she excelled exceptionally in the company but appeared to have next to no social life. She took everything she did in life seriously, including interactions with other people.
“Why are you doing this?” Realization sparked to life as she thumbed through the papers. “I don’t understand what sort of game you are playing here.”
“No game,” I assured her. “The year is almost up, meaning it’s nearly time for me to step down. This was always only temporary for me.”
“But your brother?”
“He doesn’t want the job,” I said matter-of-factly. “I understand my father always wanted this to remain a family business. However, the likelihood of the company succeeding under Flynn is highly unlikely. You said it yourself, we’d ruin what my father worked tirelessly to achieve.”
Kerry’s brows knitted together. “Perhaps I was too harsh with you in the beginning. In time, you would learn. Your husband, he can keep helping you.”
I shoved away the image of Jaxon standing outside, his shoulders slumped and the raindrops on his cheeks looking awfully like tears.
There were only so many times I could let him break my heart.
Everything he said outside was tainted by the words he shared with his brother. He said he was in love with me but all I could hear was how I was nothing more than a means to an end.
How was I supposed to believe him?
I shook my head. “Neither of us have the love for this place like my father or like you. This world is your world, not mine. Not Flynn’s, either. I know that by entrusting you with this company, you will keep my father’s legacy alive.”
The cogs set into motion behind her eyes. “You’ll need a vote from the board to do this.”
“Well, it so happens that I only need the two biggest shareholders’ votes of approval to promote you to CEO.” I smiled. “Oh, and look, the two biggest shareholders are right here in this room. I’ve already wholeheartedly voted yes.”
“You’re completely serious, aren’t you?”
“Completely.” I nodded. “If you agree and sign the dotted line, you will get thirty percent of my shares. I’ll still hold onto the rest and am willing to vote on any future decisions as an acting board member, but otherwise, the job is yours. So, what do you say?”
For the first time working alongside Kerry, she truly smiled.
The rest of the afternoon was meetings with legal, human resources, and public relations. Thankfully, everyone was more than welcoming to the idea. Proving to me that Kerry was the natural and right choice. The company was in her safe and very capable hands.
By the end of the working day, it was publicly announced that Kerry Zhang was the new CEO of Reynolds Regality Jewels.
I could finally start to breathe a little easier, knowing that although my love life was in complete tatters, the other parts of my life were starting to fall into place.