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How dare he?
I’m formulating a response when he says, “Drink your coffee and eat some breakfast. We’re leaving in ten minutes.”
He strides out of the kitchen before I can instruct my mouth to open and tell him what he can do with that directive, let alone what I think of the other bullshit he just said to me.
I stew on this for a few minutes, preferring to focus on Jameson than on my ex-husband.
While I stew, I eat one of the pastries Jeff prepared for us and drink some coffee. I think about how Jameson is surrounded by people who know how to make great coffee. And I contemplate how I can convince Jeff to come with me when I divorce Jameson.
Fifteen minutes, later, Jameson and I are in the car on the way to work. He’s on his phone with Hudson and I’m going through emails. I switch to my messages when a text comes through from Lara.
Lara: I’d just like to reiterate that I’m sending Ian Swift a bag of dicks.
Adeline: I thought you were going to make him EAT a bag of dicks?
Lara: I thank you for the reminder of my intentions. THAT is EXACTLY what I’m going to do. I’m also doing the same to Thomas. Scratch that. He’s getting a truckload of dicks.
I laugh, drawing Jameson’s eyes. I hold his gaze for a moment before going back to Lara.
Adeline: What’s he done now?
Lara:Oh, honey, what HASN’T he done is more the question.
She calls me.
“I can’t wait to see you source so many dicks,” I answer with.
She doesn’t laugh. Not a good sign. It means she’s stressed. “We’re going to need another strategy session. And a photo shoot with Jameson. And a million more of his kisses going viral. This is bad.”
“Okay, tell me, so I can be the judge. We both know you’re a little hardcore sometimes.” I love that she goes above and beyond while trying to protect my brand. But it does mean that sometimes she worries about things that don’t need worrying over.
“Addy, the next time you get married, he’s going to have to go through me first, and he’s going to have to sign a fucking ironclad contract that will give me superpowers over him. Thomas is screwing you royally here. If I ever come across him in person, he’s going to hear exactly what I think about him.”
I suspect she’s blowing this out of proportion.
I know that what Thomas is doing is causing her a headache and me a PR nightmare, but it isn’t something that will ruin my brand. My company is too strong foundationally for it to do that.
“I’m not getting married again,” I say. She’ll assume I’m saying that because I intend to spend the rest of my life with Jameson, but I truly mean it; after I divorce Jameson, I’m not ever marrying again. My marriage to Thomas was enough to cure me of wanting to commit to a man in that way again.
“Well, just know that if you do, I’m in charge of making sure you never get screwed like this again.”
And there goes my sentimental side. The side I tried to put away while building my company. It’s a tough gig being a woman who prefers to bring her soul to her business, and I’ve had enough people tell me there’s no place for it here. I beg to differ, but still, I spent many years trying not to let it show. These days, I embrace it, and it hasn’t let me down.
One of the reasons I adore Lara is because she brings her soul to work every day too. It’s not her job to protect me in this way, but I know from experience that she means every word of what she’s saying.
“Got it,” I say. “You’re in charge of my next marriage contract.”
Jameson’s brows lift as he watches me.
I’ve finally met a man who can multitask.
I never thought I’d see the day, but here we are. He’s carrying on a conversation of his own while eavesdropping all over the place on mine.
Lara interrupts my thoughts on his multitasking skills when she says, “I just saw a reel from Todd Boise. It was a snippet from an interview Thomas has given and it looked like it’s full of more lies.”
I understand why she’s concerned. Todd runs the current hottest Insta gossip page with hundreds of millions of followers. However, I don’t hold the same concern.
“Okay, here’s what we’re going to do,” I say. “Nothing.”
