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Silas stood still, plate in one hand and mug in the other, and watched Rowe for a long moment. He flicked his gaze to me and let out a deep breath.
“That segues nicely into what we most need to discuss.” Kenji took one of the rolls Rowe dished out and brought it to the dining table, then grabbed his laptop from his suitcase. “What happens next?”
“Rowe comes first,” I said before anyone else could speak. “I’m as eager to kick Justin’s ass as any of you, especially after hearing he and Austin might’ve been neck-deep in some kind of conspiracy, but we need to protect Rowe’s IP and Sterling Chase’s own interests before we ride in to save this woman from making a mistake or doing anything else about Justin.” I looked around at my friends. “Agreed?”
Zane licked icing off his thumb. “Yes. I think we all agree.” He pulled a bottle of water from the fridge and sat down beside Kenji. “Right, Silas?”
Silas gritted his teeth but nodded, taking a seat across from them. “Fine. What’s the plan?”
We all took seats around the table. I sat down next to Dev and motioned Rowe to the chair beside mine at the head of the table.
I let Rowe take the lead in outlining the plan we’d come up with to confront Austin as a group quietly, in a way that would minimize the chance of media exposure that none of us—including Rowe—wanted. I felt an unexpected pride andrightnessat the way they all nodded along with what he was saying.
“A couple of people from Legal will be there, of course, to keep an eye on everything,” he finished. “Margot said she knows tensions will be high, but if you want to keep Austin from contacting thePostto air his grievances, everyone needs to stay calm and professional—”
“Easier said than done for some of us,” Landry interjected, raising a sculpted eyebrow at me.
“Oh, I’m cool as a cucumber,” I lied. Just thinking of the way Austin had defrauded Rowe made my fists clench. “Worry about that one.” I tilted my chin toward Silas, whose jaw ticked with anger.
“Oh, Bash.” Dev draped an arm over my shoulder and pulled me against him. “You’ve never been cool, baby, but I love you anyway.”
Rowe’s eyes narrowed on Dev’s hand with laser focus. It took me a moment to realize he was jealous or possessive. Whichever emotion it was, I liked it.
I liked ita lot.
I grabbed Rowe’s hand and kissed it before holding it in my lap. The pink flush on his neck and cheeks thrilled me, as usual. Would that ever get old? Would he give me enough time for it to even be a concern?
Silas’s eyes rolled. “Can we focus, please? You had a conference call with Clarissa yesterday, Bash. Walk us through it.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him off, but I knew what he would say. His opinion about my sudden “relationship” was clear on his face. And up to now, it had made me doubt my feelings for Rowe. But I didn’twantto doubt them. After the days we’d spent alone together, I wanted him now more than ever.
I launched into a long explanation of my video call with Clarissa the day before. It had been a difficult and emotional one—Clarissa blamed herself for not seeing the signs and not supervising Austin more closely, just like I did, even though I’d assured her no one held her responsible.
“And we’re sure she wasn’t involved? Zane asked. “I mean, I like her fine, but she and Austin started at the same time…”
I spread my hands. “As sure as I can be. There’s no evidence tying her in, and she seemed genuinely upset. But really… I don’t know. I don’t know how many people at the company are involved.”
Rowe must’ve heard the catch in my voice because he took my hand this time, holding it firmly. “I don’t know her at all, but I can tell you, she looked genuinely shocked. She offered to resign, and Bash told her not to. I believed her.”
The others nodded thoughtfully.
“Tomorrow, she’s flying back for the Innovation Awards, so you can try to get a word with her Saturday night. I warned her to keep things normal with Austin between now and then.” I took a deep breath. “But that brings up another subject. I asked Clarissa to make a list of all Austin’s current projects. I’m going to reach out to the contacts there personally next week and transition them to someone on Austin’s team or take them on myself if necessary. But his team’s primary focus of late has been Daisy Chain—formerly known as MRO. We hit pause on beta testing, but we’re going to need to make some decisions about the project.”
Rowe squeezed my hand before standing up. “That’s my cue to leave. I’m going to go for a walk on the beach and give you guys a chance to speak privately.” He looked around at my closest friends. “Just know that I believe strongly in this project, and I’m not about to abandon it. But I will understand completely if it’s not the right fit for Sterling Chase moving forward. Either way, thank you for helping me protect the intellectual property. I appreciate it.”
Once he’d left through the glass doors and began making his way down the boardwalk toward the beach, Dev exhaled. “He’s different than he was when I met him at the stables.”
“How do you mean?”
“Gutsier,” Dev said with a shrug. “Just as sweet but more confident. I think you’re rubbing off on him.”
“Twice a day, if the scene we walked in on was anything to go by,” Landry said dryly.
Kenji elbowed him remorselessly.
“I didn’t talk to him much the other day, but he’s really cute,” Zane added. “Very hot in a Disney princess kind of way. And his cinnamon rolls are orgasmic.” He gave me a mischievous look. “Maybe I’ll write a song about him. Guyslovewhen you write them a song.”
I glared, and everyone burst into laughter. Landry leaned over to give Zane a knuckle-bump.
