Chapter 14
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
GREYSON
“Say that again?” Quinn says.
She’s sitting across from my desk, tapping a stylus against her laptop, but her pinched voice is grating on my nerves, so I stare out my office window.
“Savannah and I are getting married. Put out a press release.” My flat tone is at odds with every emotion I possess—they’re firing on all cylinders inside my mind.
The moment Savvy fainted, I knew, in my gut that she was hiding more than a past—she’s hiding a demon she can’t fight on her own.
Could it be stress that caused her reaction? Maybe. But it’s more likely that she hasn’t been taking care of herself properly.
Thanks to my father, I never got to find out if my sister would have overcome what haunted her, but I’ll be damned if I sit by and allow our friends and family to lose Savvy to a disease I know she can beat, even if that means I stay by her side twenty-four seven to ensure that she does.
Then there’s the issue of the pictures. Those goddamn pictures the world should never have seen. She’s definitely underage in some of them, and I will bury whoever thought it was a good idea to publish them.
“That’s what I thought you said.” Quinn’s voice registers, but I’m only partially listening. “But exactly how is this supposed to solve anything?”
I’m still working that out. Pops backed me into a corner, and my competitive side overrode all common sense. Why the hell do I rise to every challenge Pops sends my way? It’s as though that old man reverts me into a squabbling prepubescent with every conversation.
There’s just something about Savvy—the weaknesses she fights hard to never show—that has me in a constant state of reaction instead of pro-action.
“Greyson, I told you that Omni-Reyes was taking a hit. This scandal isn’t helping. Since you took over, your…history has made people question the integrity of Omni-Reyes, and Braxton leaving you on your own to handle every obstacle is, quite frankly, selfish.”
By history, she means my DNA. Darren Wells, my father, is a monster, has always been a monster, and will always be a monster, but her verbal attack on Braxton is a line I won’t allow her to cross.
Regardless of how far I go, I’ll never outrun Darren’s shadows, but Braxton has always been the one to turn on the light and fight them at my side.
“You will not disrespect Braxton again. Is that clear?” It’s a demand, not a question, so I don’t give her time to respond.
“You and your godforsaken crisis PR manager are the ones who suggested flaunting our happy family in the first place, Quinn. Isn’t this exactly what you wanted a few months ago?
A solution for public perception? What better way to show I’m a committed family man than with a wife?
It did wonders for Braxton’s reputation. ”
“Understood,” she bites out. “But Braxton isn’t the head of Omni-Reyes anymore—you are.
This company was built on the foundation of traditional family morals, so showcasing that family you’ve fought so hard to protect makes the most logical sense, considering your…
past. But when Kristen suggested this, she didn’t mean you should marry a stripper. ”
“She’s not a stripper.” Aggression swirls in hazy grays around my vision as I speak.
“Not anymore, but after this article came out, I did some digging. She was, in fact, a topless dancer. Omni-Reyes built its reputation on loyalty and family. We’re the number one source for information because people trust us.
We are the Heartmark of news. Tying yourself to her goes against everything this company was built on. ”
Truthfully, I don’t give a shit if Savvy was a stripper, an exotic dancer, or a fucking circus clown. My gut tells me there’s more to this story, and I won’t walk away from her now.
“It’s done, Quinn, and I suggest you watch the words you use when speaking of my fiancée and my brother. Tell Kristen to make the announcement. I’ll handle the rest.”
My office door nearly comes off the hinges as it crashes against the wall. Even Savvy seems surprised by the force of it as she enters my office like the goddamn hurricane that forced us together.
My fists tighten on the towel that’s draped around my neck. I hadn’t expected Quinn to be waiting for me in my office when I came out of my private shower, so I hadn’t finished getting dressed yet.
The skin around Savvy’s eyes pinches as she stares from my naked torso to Quinn.
Interesting.
Jealousy looks good on her.
“You arrogant piece of shit.” Savvy came for war. “How dare you decree anything regarding my life? This isn’t a fairy tale, and you don’t get to pretend to be the white knight. You don’t even like me half the time.”
“Oh, I think he likes you just fine,” Sage says, entering behind her with Braxton and Madi on his heels.
My nephew is a modern-day Einstein, and he has the highest emotional IQ of anyone I’ve ever met. It would make him dangerous if he possessed even a single malicious intent.
“We are not doing this,” Savvy hisses. “This is the worst idea I’ve ever heard in my life. We’ll kill each other.”
“From a strictly professional standpoint, if you’re discussing the pending marriage, I have to agree, Greyson.” Quinn steps forward but smartly retreats when Savvy’s fiery glare lands on her. “This won’t help the situation.”
“This has nothing to do with their engagement, Quinn.” Why is Brax lying to my assistant?
Savvy opens her mouth to fight him, but he’s focused on Quinn.
“Can you give us a moment?” Braxton poses it as a question, but the order is clear.
“This is a family matter first and foremost.” Quinn’s entire form stiffens.
“We’ll worry about the professional side of this once my family is on the same page. ”
A year ago, I would have argued that Savvy isn’t family, but since Braxton found Madi, his definition of family has expanded from Sage and me to an entire community that gives me a headache.
“Of course.” Quinn’s words are clipped, and while I appreciate her ability to reason without emotion, Braxton’s family is an emotional tsunami. “Family stands by family, or at least they should,” she mutters. “Who was there for Grey when you left him all alone? Me, that’s who.”
I furrow my brow as Quinn gathers her things. What the hell is she talking about? I’m about to ask when Savvy’s movements catch my attention. She’s a caged tiger pacing the room right now. If we were alone, the sex might actually bring down the building.
The second the door closes behind Quinn, Savvy—raw and unfiltered—explodes.
“You don’t make decisions for me, Drill Bit.” She shakes her head. “I mean it, Greyson.”
“I prefer Patch Daddy.”
Madi and Braxton sit on the sofa across the room chuckling, while Sage slips into a chair positioned in front of my desk.
The kid’s put on a lot of muscle since he’s been working out with the football team, but sometimes when I look at him, all I can see is the five-year-old who used to crawl into my bed in the middle of the night because he was scared.
“Monroe.” I pinch the bridge of my nose and turn back to the window. “It’s not a real engagement.” Damn it. This woman is giving me indigestion again. I press a fist to my chest, but it only causes my pulse to quicken even more.
“Obviously. But it’s not a fake one either. I’m not doing this with you. Not now, not ever.”
My gut clenches as though someone kicked me, and I reach for my lucky coin. Rubbing my thumb along the raised words, I allow the familiar motion to soothe my rough edges.
Why is her dismissal of me so damn irritating?
“What are you trying to fix, Grey?” Braxton knows me too well.
“Everything.”
“Everything.” Savvy snorts.
My muscles release, knowing we’re about to get into it.
Fighting with this woman is better than meditation—I can’t deny how my muscles and my mind relax with each shot fired, regardless of how fucked-up that is.
A smile tugs at my lips, and I allow it to grow as I turn to face her. Standing with a hand on her hip, her shoulders squared, and a toe tapping against my floor, she’s a goddess.
An infuriating, lying, sexy, stubborn goddess.
“Yes, Monroe. Everything.”
“Ah, care to elaborate?” Madi asks.
“Sunshine Studios’ stock tanked three days ago and isn’t projected to recover in the current climate.
Omni-Reyes slipped to second place on Forbes for the first time in over twenty years.
Someone is personally attacking your character, Monroe, and with the way the story took off when my name was attached to it, it means I’m the accelerant here.
I’m the common denominator in all of this, so I will fix it however I see fit. ”
“I—”
“Can We Talk About That?” —I say, interrupting her—“is still number one on the podcast charts, but The Matchmaker Manual, Flirting with Fear, and all the other podcasts Sunshine Studios has acquired have fallen in ratings and lost sponsors. Do you know what that means?”
“Sunshine Studios is still new, Grey. Even under the Omni-Reyes umbrella, we’re bound to have some boomeranging.” Braxton doesn’t sound confident, and Savvy catches it too.
With measured steps, I stalk Savvy. It appears that’s the only way I’m capable of approaching this woman. “It means that people are tuning in to listen to you because of the media shitstorm, but that frenzy is also hurting everyone else, and when it dies down, so will your ratings.”
“I don’t care about ratings,” Savvy snarls. “Not mine, anyway.”
Of course she doesn’t. She’s consumed by trying to protect everyone around her, but I don’t know why. Though she doesn’t care that Can We Talk About That? might fail, she’s worried about Madi’s podcast, The Matchmaker Manual, and Clover’s Flirting with Fear.
“I know you don’t.” I soften my tone, even though it takes great personal toughness to do so. “The problem is, you’re now associated with me, and the Wells name is biting us both in the ass, but I promised Ace that I’d never allow our family to fail. Unlike you, I don’t lie.”