Chapter 9 Tom
TOM
“You’re not staying here,” Kat huffs as we eat in her kitchen. I keep my posture relaxed and my expression carefully neutral.
“You won’t even know I’m here.”
“I won’t have to pretend because you won’t be here.”
“Miss Harrington—”
“We’re not doing the Miss Harrington thing again; it’s Kat.”
Resistance is normal, but unfortunately, we don’t have time for this. Royce will have more for me by the time we’re finished with dinner, and right now, everything is time sensitive.
I need the woman in front of me to understand that.
“I’m really good at my job, but the only way this works is if I have complete access to you until we find out who is behind this.”
“But why do you need to be here? This was my brother’s idea not mine. I should have a say about who is living in my house.”
I want to tell her it’s temporary but that’s not what she needs to hear.
“I believe that fire was the result of the envelope delivered here”—I nod toward where it still sits on the far counter—“not being found. That’s a serious escalation, Kat. It means the person was able to find you even though you allegedly didn’t tell anyone where you were going—”
“I didn’t; I swear.”
“They had time to find you, get the books, show up at the property, and get away before anyone saw them. It’s elaborate and fairly sophisticated for the timeframe.”
“But do you really…” She waves a hand around the room as she holds on to the last piece of fight in her. It’s not so much that she doesn’t want me here as it’s the lack of control in her life.
I get it.
And it’s my job to give it back to her.
“Yes, I do. I need to be here because you’re here.”
“I’m on deadline and I have events. I can’t just stop living my life.”
“You won’t.”
“But you just said—”
“This isn’t a punishment, Kat.” The smallest shiver races through her as she shifts on the stool, and fuck I want to know what she’s thinking.
“If you want to leave, I go with you.” She opens her mouth to protest but I just hold up my hand.
“It’s not optional. You don’t go anywhere without me, and the harder you fight this, the longer we’ll be stuck together. ”
“I don’t want to be treated like a child,” Kat cries, the last of her composure falling away.
“I’ve given up so much to protect my brother’s career—hidden myself away and done everything to make sure no one can trace Sloane back to me even though I’m dying to just shout it from the rooftops.
And now, you’re telling me that I have to make myself smaller, be less, and I just… ”
She trails off, her gaze straying to the sliding glass doors that lead to a small screened-in porch.
It’s temporary.
I almost say it and then stop myself, replaying not just her words but the sentiment, her body language, and the sadness in her tone.
“I will do everything in my power to give you your life back as quickly as possible.” Quietly, I add, “No one can fault you for protecting the people you love, but sometimes you have to take a hard look in the mirror and ask if you’re really doing it for them or if you’ve let it become a crutch, so you won’t have to see what’s out there for you. ”
“Do you believe that?”
“I do.”
“That’s awfully insightful, Mr. Oakden. Do you have a wife you haven’t mentioned?”
I snort, the sound involuntary and completely out of character. Apparently Kat knows it too if her little smile is any indication. “No. My nephew. Got to see him grow up, raised him a bit, and got him on the right path.”
“And?”
“And he fell in love with a girl who has a life in the spotlight and lives almost entirely outside his comfort zone.”
“So, he changed for her?”
“He realized he could stand to compromise to be a good partner. And she respects the time he needs to regroup when their social calendar is heavy.”
“What’s your point? Colt is the golden boy of baseball and taking Sloane Daniels public could jeopardize that. Plus there’s no telling what will happen on the children’s book side. There will be angry parents and stores that will be appalled I had the audacity to do both.”
“I don’t have all the answers, but I think if it’s something you want, you can make it work. You will always have critics; that can’t be avoided. But there’s also no timeframe, so you could set the groundwork with your team and his—create the narrative and put your own spin on the backlash.”
“Is this why you get paid the big bucks, Mr. Oakden?”
“No, that was a happy coincidence,” I tell her because the reason I get paid the big bucks is because I live and breathe my job. There’s no room for second place when you work for a company like Andrews International.
And I like perfection.
Demand it from my team.
And usually, I don’t have to convince anyone to do what I need them to do. They just do it. But Kat isn’t part of my team. She’s blessedly removed from my world and the darkness I see every day.
Or she was.
“I don’t want to add stress to an already exhausting situation, but I need you to tell me what me staying here means for you. Do you need me around or do you need me to be a ghost? Either way is fine, and I promise you won’t hurt my feelings if it’s the latter.”
“Be a ghost? My house isn’t that big. We’re bound to run into each other.”
“You’d be surprised.” She snorts out a laugh but I’m not kidding. I’m exactly who and what I need to be in any situation.
“What about food and all your promises of cooking?” She props her arm on the counter and rests her face in her palm. “You promised me dinner.”
“And that hasn’t changed. I just need to know if you want to share meals or if you want me to leave things in the fridge for you to heat up later.”
“I don’t think I can make anymore decisions today.” Slumping forward, she lets her forearm fall to the counter, her head following before turning to look at me. “I don’t want this.”
“I know.”
“I just want to wake up and you won’t be here and everything will be normal and great. Where I don’t have to worry about meal prepping or needing a babysitter to leave the house.” Belatedly she adds, “No offense.”
“None taken.”
“Fine. You can stay. But we need to figure out some ground rules.”
And now we’re getting somewhere…