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Conrad’s chin lowered, and his wide brow folded in confusion. His eyes flicked down to Flynn’s logo on my chest before glancing back up at my face. “I don’t understand. Why in the world would you be working here if you hadn’t closed the deal?”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw my mother move forward as if she was going to intercede. The fiery burn of anger singed my vision as I shot her a look that hopefully said,“Do it and perish. Violently.”
“Because I believe in this product,” I said calmly, willing Flynn to believe the truth of my words. “I believe in this company. I believe in Flynn Honeycutt.”
He huffed out a laugh. “So you’re leaving Fortress so you can spend your time hawking the wares of someone from a little nothing of a town in nowhere, Connecticut?” he blustered.
Instead of correcting him—instead of reminding him that Flynn’s mead was the vaunted “ware” that had become famous on social media because it had actually impressed someone enough to make a big deal out of it, and instead of reminding him of the name (and state) of my town—I simply shrugged. “Why not?”
“Jonathan.” Conrad’s tone turned conciliatory. “Let’s not be hasty. If you need additional time off to spend in Honeybuns, I’m sure that can be arranged. And a small increase in salary—”
“Will change nothing,” I interrupted.
Flynn stepped up next to me, his solid presence grounding me in a way only he had ever been able to do. “Jon,” he said in a low voice. “Could I please have a quick word with you. Privately.Now?”
“It’s all good, Flynn,” I assured him. In a whisper only he could hear, I added, “I’m so sorry, baby. I promised I’d fill you in on everything later, and I will. Trust me?”
“Yes, but—”
“Finish your meeting, okay? Focus on what’s important.”
Flynn’s face took on the stubborn, defiant look I’d seen so many, many times over the years. In one deliberate motion, he grabbed my hand, laced our fingers together, and pressed himself to my side. “I am,” he said.
I sucked in a breath. I wasgoing to love this man until the day I died.
Turning to my former boss, I continued. “What it boils down to, Conrad, is that I’m tired of working hard for someone else’s gain. I’ve grown Fortress’s bottom line for years, and instead of rewarding my hard work, you decided to give me extra challenges. I completely understand your desire to keep me hungry—it allows you to keep more of the profits for yourself, and that’s your prerogative as the CEO. But it’s made me realize that I’d like to be my own CEO. So I can run the business the way that works best for me. In a way that’s in line with my values.”
“Oh,really.” Conrad’s nostrils flared, and he darted an angry glare at the spots where Flynn and I touched. “I see what’s happening here. Well, if you’re planning to start a company in the beverage industry, you’d best think again. That would violate your noncompete agreement and cause you a heap load of legal troubles.”
“Somany legal troubles,” Jeff agreed. “You’ll betoast.”
I felt Flynn stiffen in anger at my side, so I gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. “I expect you’ll do what makes the most sense for Fortress. However, be aware that earlier this summer, when I was researching past contracts I’d negotiated for the company, I happened to take a look at my own employment contract. Turns out, I never signed a noncompete agreement. I requested red-line changes to it, and your attorney never got back to me with a new version to sign.” I shrugged. “Seems like Fortress isn’t so great with the follow-through.”
Flynn clapped a hand to his mouth, and I felt his body jerk as he tried to hold back a snort of laughter. I relaxed against him, and he wrapped an arm around my back.
“Hmph.” Conrad seethed. “Don’t bother coming back to the office after this, Wellbridge. You’redonewith Fortress.”
“Done,” Jeff stressed. “Sodone.”
I shrugged again. In my email, which I’d also sent to HR, I’d stated that I planned to work out my two weeks’ notice from home, but I was happy to let Conrad think it was his idea.
Conrad’s jaw ticked. “You’re making a huge mistake. Don’t expect Fortress to clean up your messes when you disappoint whatever clients you manage to scrape together.” He pointedly looked past me to the Honeybridge Mead signage, as well as the industry representatives and reporters currently filling the booth, and raised his voice. “We will make it very clear to our clients that if any of them leave us for you, we will not take them back when you inevitably fail to deliver.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I said with a cheery nod. “But I won’t fail.” And from the look Alice had given me earlier, as well as the conversations we’d already had with some soon-to-be-former Fortress clients, many people would rather take a chance on Rainmaker Holdings than deal with Fortress’s business practices. “We’ll be just fine.”
“Can’t say I’m disappointed to lose the Honeywax deal anyway,” he bluffed. “Especially now that the chair-manufacturing facility’s off the market, so there’s nowhere to expand.”
I tried to hide my surprise. I hadn’t heard that the Hornrath Chair Company had been purchased, but I’d told Hayden days ago that the deal was dead, so he had no reason to keep me informed. I was sad that Flynn would lose the opportunity, but we’d find him something else. Something better.
Conrad couldn’t resist one last bitter dig. “All in all, Honeydew doesn’t live up to the hype, JT. You’re welcome to it.”
This time, I couldn’t help giving him the reaction he’d been looking for. My hands clenched into fists, and my mouth opened in an angry retort. The fucker could say what he wanted aboutme, but Flynn—
Flynn’s fingers pressed into my waist, anchoring and calming me, and I managed to take a deep breath and bite out, “Honeybridge Mead doesn’t needFortressorme.”
In my peripheral vision, I saw the Ren Faire people exchanging impressed looks.
Conrad smirked. “Don’t underestimate the contacts I have in this business, son. Honeybunny might have a good reputationnow,but once I explain—”
