Chapter 31
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
KEATON
I stare at the phone for several minutes before I decide to get back to work. We can still get the company. HANNETH is big, but we’re not a small company.
There’s no we, Keaton.
After all, this is Aslan’s business, and his brothers and sisters are the ones who make the decisions.
I try my best not to think about the job offer, but it’s almost impossible.
I could be a COO and move to another state to start again.
Sure, it’s not Arizona, but Washington is also a lovely state.
There are long-term facilities, doctors, and colleges.
Not that it matters. Savannah isn’t leaving with me.
Why am I even staying?
And maybe the reason why I busy myself and avoid Aslan is because he might just say something like, I’m not ready for a position like that. But I am, and why can’t I say yes?
Nothing keeps me in this company or this state.
It’s around lunchtime when someone knocks on my door.
“It’s open,” I answer.
Aslan enters, holding a takeout bag. “Have you eaten anything?”
“The bagel I brought from your place.”
He shakes his head. “There are days when you forget to take care of yourself.”
I stare at him for a few seconds, wondering if he cares about me, worries because I seem lost, or loves me as I love him. If we were in Hawaii, I’d think he’s in love, but I know better, don’t I?
“Thank you.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” My voice comes out in a whisper.
He closes the door and leans against it. He looks so delicious with his pinstripe suit and that attitude that I know is a charade. “What’s happening, Keat?”
Can we go back to Hawaii? Can you kiss me? Will you ever be able to love me?
I don’t want to hear the word no today. Maybe tomorrow or Wednesday when I tell him that…I don’t even know what I’m going to say. HANNETH won’t back down. Am I going to entertain their proposal?
I flick my wrist a couple of times, brushing him away. “I have work to do, Spearman.”
“Something is upsetting you or troubling you. Is it your mom? We can call a doctor, change her to a different place.” He waves the bag of takeout. “Maybe you’re hungry.”
He walks closer, setting the food on top of my desk. “I was thinking we can eat lunch together. Either here or in my office, whichever is more comfortable.” The smug smile makes my heart skip a few beats.
“You do have a cozy office,” I say provocatively.
He wiggles his eyebrows. “You can move in with me.”
“There’s no space for the two of us.”
“I’ll redo the entire floor so our offices can be next to each other.”
Knowing where he’s going, I have to stop him. “We can’t have sex in the office.”
“We can,” he argues, opening the takeout bag. “What happened with Ethan Killion?”
I stare at my screen, breathing a little faster than usual.
“Keaton?”
“He offered me a job,” I mumble.
I don’t dare to look up at him, afraid of his reaction. He will tell me to pack and leave, say I’m replaceable or…why am I afraid of his rejection?
It’s not fear of him, but myself. I know in my gut that I’ll be stupid if I decline without considering what’s best for me. I can’t just let a great opportunity go because of a man. A man who can’t commit to anything but his company and his family. I’m neither one of them.
I have to think about myself.
Finally, he asks, “What do you mean he offered you a job?”
“Exactly what I said. He wants me to be the Chief Officer of Operations of HANNETH.”
“No,” he barks.
I look up at him.
He’s furious.
If he were a dragon, he’d be breathing fire. “You can’t be his fucking COO.”
The way he says it, I hate it. “Why not? Do you think I’m not capable of holding a position as high as COO? I can. This isn’t the first time someone has approached me. Plenty of headhunters have offered me positions and salaries better than what Spearman LP gives me.”
He sets his hands on the desk, leaning close. His brows furrow. “You work for me and no one else.”
I huff. Who does he think he is? “I’m not your servant. If I want to leave, I can give you my two-week notice and just go wherever my heart desires.” My voice bounces against the walls.
“You belong to me,” he says harshly.
He’s being so, so…so unreasonable. I don’t know this man, and I don’t like him.
“Funny, I don’t. There’s no place in my contract where it says that in exchange for the salary you pay me, you can have my eternal devotion.”
We stare at each other for a long time. It’s a challenge.
We’re both breathing fast. At some point, he slams his hand on the desk.
“I don’t understand why we’re having this conversation.
Where are your loyalties? It’s just about the money, isn’t it?
It’s always about the wealth and who gives you more. ”
“It’s about my future.”
He walks toward the door, opens it, and says, “Leave.”
I blink a couple of times, overwhelmed by his attitude, his voice, and so many emotions that I can’t understand. “What?”
“Leave, now,” he repeats.
This isn’t how I thought the conversation would go, or maybe it was. My mind and heart are having trouble catching up with what’s happening. I don’t understand if I should get under my desk and cry or leave and never look back.
“What part of get out of my building do you not understand?”
His words hurt so much. From all the scenarios I expected to see, this was the last one. “Are you firing me?”
“I’m just speeding up the process. We knew this was going to happen. If it’s not Seattle, it’ll be Arizona. That’s what you said yesterday, isn’t it? When you got the email from the realtor.”
All I said was that maybe I should book a flight on a few weekends to check out houses. What did he expect me to do, live in my car? Wait, I can’t. I don’t have a car either. He’s dismissing me as if nothing happened between us. Here I am, in love with the man, and he’s… “So, what about us?”
“Don’t worry, I’ll let my family know that you got a better offer, and you can’t commit to one person.”
His words are worse than a slap in the face. I start putting my things away, setting my badge and everything that belongs to Spearman LP, including the phone I’ve carried for the past six years, on my desk. I shouldn't have canceled my cellular service.
When I look up, he’s gone. I don’t get a goodbye. I never get those, and maybe it’s for the best.