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What did she tell them I was offering?
I walked around the table, expecting her to have done something crazy, like taking half of my net worth or some shit like that. But as my eyes scanned the negotiation page, my heart sank.
Just finishing school.
“That’s not enough,” I said, looking up to Genna, who looked confused. “I also intend to pay for the house she’s living in—or buy her one that she wants.”
Genna made a disapproving expression. “Um…you’re talking about a lot of money, Jackson…”
“No need for the house,” Lena said, not looking up at me as she continued to flip through, initialing and signing her name. “I can figure that out.”
“No, that’s part of the deal.”
“I’ll have it written up,” Genna said, catching my warning glance. “It’ll be an additional bonus.”
My jaw tensed. “Do it now.”
Genna nodded and slipped from the room, leaving Lena and me alone. I stared down at Lena, frustrated and hurt by the way she had ignored me.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were taking the deal?”
She shrugged. “It’s really none of your business. It’s just between me and your PR team—and lawyers.”
“But I texted you…I called you.”
“Okay.”
“What the fuck, Lena?” I seethed, trying to keep my voice down. “You can’t just ignore me.”
“I can.” She finally looked up, meeting my gaze with daggers. “This is business only. I will do whatever is asked of me, and nothing else. I don’t want to be friends. I don’t even want to be acquaintances with you, Jackson.”
I blinked, painful emotions filling my chest. I didn’t even know what to say to her, so I just pulled out a chair and took a seat. My bad timing had led to her actually hating me.
“I’m only doing this because it alleviates my parents’ guilt about not being able to pay for my school,” Lena said, her voice suddenly much less cold. “If I had any other way, I wouldn’t be doing it.”
“Right.” My voice was quiet—and almost timid. “Whatever you wanna do, Lena.”
She looked up at me, finally signing the last line. “Thanks.”
I couldn’t tell if it was genuine, and it didn’t matter either way. I took my gaze elsewhere, my mind filling with memories of her beneath me, calling out my name like I meant something to her.
I should’ve asked her some other way.
But it was too late for that. I had royally fucked this up.
“Okay, here’s the add-on,” Genna said as she stepped back into the room. “You can sign that while I tell you what we’re thinking.” She sat the paper down in front of Lena, who scoured it.
“This is too much,” Lena said before Genna could start. “My house is a rental—and I don’t even know if it’s worth half a million.”
I beat Genna to the punch. “Leave it. Just sign the fucking paper, Lena.”
She glared at me, but actually did, giving me a little relief. The least I could do was make sure she was set up for success in one way or another. It just seemed like the right thing to do after everything…
“Okay, so what we’re thinking is that we want the proposal to happen at the wedding.” Genna’s comment stopped Lena in her tracks.
“I don’t want to ruin my best friend’s wedding by putting the spotlight on us,” she said, her voice tinged with worry. “That’s not fair to them. Besides, their wedding is real. They really love each other.”
So they think. But I do agree.
