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I nod. “Thanks. One other thing you should know. Jared and I weren’t fooling around or anything. We were or are dating. I don’t know what we are at the moment or why I’m telling you this. I just want you to know that I have feelings for him, and this wasn’t some ploy for me to make my way up the corporate ladder.”
David nods. “I never thought that, but thanks for telling me.”
I turn to walk away, feeling only slightly better when David calls to me, “Lacey—”
I stop but don’t look back when David finishes his sentence, “You’ll be good for him.”
I don’t turn around, instead I walk faster through the rain because I need to go find the other person I need answers from.
Chapter twenty-six
Jared
Of course it starts to pour when I leave Rachel’s. I pull over about halfway to the office. I know I need to get to the office and talk to HR, but right now there’s a more important conversation I need to have. I roll up my sleeves and look at my face in the rearview mirror. I look rough, but I don’t care. My adrenaline is pumping hard, so I shift into drive and pull a U-turn.
I probably went way faster than I should have in this rain, but when I see the pinkBaked and Sugaredsign my stomach reaches my throat. I don’t know if Lacey is going to want to hear what I have to say, but I have to try. I park across the street and dash to the door. I’m not exactly quiet when I enter and as I stand dripping wet I make eye contact with Shane.
“Jared!” Shane calls out to me.
I stand, my eyes darting behind the counter then back over to Shane and Beth. “Hey, where’s Lacey?”
Beth stands and rubs her hands together. “I don’t know. She left a while ago saying she needed to go get answers. I figured she was trying to find you.”
I sigh and look around. I pull out my phone ready to make the call when the door flies open. Lacey steps through completely soaked and I have never seen someone more beautiful in my life.
I run over to her wanting to pull her into my arms. I stop a few inches from her as I look into her misty eyes.
“Lacey—”
She puts her hand out to stop me from moving closer. “Jared. Stop. We need to talk.”
I hear movement to my left and watch as Shane and Beth make their way to the door. Shane gives me a nod as he and Beth leave knowing Lacey and I need to be alone.
I return my attention to Lacey. She peels back her hood of her white hoodie. Her wavy hair falls to her shoulders frizzy from the dampness. Her cheeks are wet and even her eyelashes have droplets of rain falling from them. She looks like an absolute dream. I stand in silence unsure what to do. She wipes the hair back from her face and as she looks over my shoulder she says “Jared. I need you to listen.”
I nod. “Okay. I’m listening.” My heart completely sinks. The fact she won’t even make eye contact is killing me. I want her to look at me, so she can see how much I want to be with her.
“Jared, I’ve loved spending time with you. And while I can appreciate the things you’ve shared with me, you have a wall that’s closing you off, and I’m tired of trying to break it down. I want you to let me in, but I’m not going to beg you.”
“Lacey---”
“No. Just wait. This might take a minute. I have a lot to say.”
I smirk but her face remains serious. Her eyes land on mine only for a brief second but it sends chills up my spine. A small wave of panic runs through me hoping whatever she’s about to say still gives me a chance.
“Then you took me off the project and didn’t even let me explain. You didn’t stick up for me or even try to listen. I felt ignored and worse of all I felt like you didn’t believe in me.”
My heart sinks so far down inside of me I think I might puke. I feel like the biggest jerk. I never want this woman to ever feel hurt by me ever again. My heart starts to race and I run my fingers through my hair. Lacey looks at me and closes her eyes. When she opens them, I see a single tear fall down her cheek. I can’t take it, so I take a step closer and brush it away with my thumb. She gently grabs my hand and returns it to my side. The dismissal of me touching her is breaking me. I see her swallow and I know she’s preparing for more, so I stay still.
“Then Jared, you lied to me.”
I tilt my head in confusion. I wrinkle my forehead trying to scan my brain for what she might be talking about. When I look at her, I can tell she’s surprised by my expression.
“Jared, why didn’t you tell me thatyouwere the one that pushed for me to be a team leader? And the grant? Why didn’t you tell me the grant was from your dad’s foundation?”
I open my mouth but close it. I never thought about these things until right at this moment. I didn’t intentionally lie to her, and now as she says it, I’m an idiot for not realizing how it looks to her.
“Lacey, I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to think I was doing you favors. I just wanted… I just wanted to see you succeed. You deserve to succeed.”
