AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Today, she wore a white shirt under her cream blazer, black trousers, and beige heels. She pocketed her vape after I glared at her when she blew apple-scented smoke on my face.
“I’m not telling you that,” I said. I was sorting the contracts and papers on my desk that had been piling up for five days, and it was a miracle that I didn’t snap at Clair to get out of my office because I was behind work.
But at the end of the day, nothing was more important than prioritizing Reagan.
“You just introduced her as your fiancée to me and Mont a week ago.”
“Oh, that was fake. I just needed my parents to see that I was in a committed relationship.”
“So you’re not in a committed relationship?”
“I am.”
“I–I’m confused.”
“Well, as it appeared, Reagan’s my girlfriend now. But she’s not my fiancée.” Still, a puzzled look was on her face. I wanted to laugh at her. It was confusing come to think of it. But if Reagan and I were on the same page, I was okay with it.
“You met her what—two, three months ago?” I understood where Clair was coming from and that all her interrogation was coming from a good place. She cared about me and she wanted to check that I wasn’t out of my mind.
“Soul ties, Clair. Reagan said it’s a real thing.” Yes, Reagan had talked my ear off about what soul ties were, and I knew there was no such thing as that. I had fallen in love with her because of who she was, not because of some stupid tie.
Even if Reagan hadn’t ended up in Florida, or even if her family and I hadn’t crossed paths, I knew that I wouldn’t have settled for anyone who wasn’t her. Eventually, I would find her no matter where in the world she was. It was just inevitable. Because that woman was made for me.
“And what about Ryan St. James? Are you two okay now?”
“No. But he’s in Indonesia now, which means I’m not going to see his face any time soon.”
“And the father?”
“I don’t give a shit about him as long as he doesn’t come to my city.”
“And Reagan?”
“What about her?”
“The staff are talking about her. That she’s sleeping with the boss.” I had anticipated this since the first night we slept together. It was something I didn’t have control over. But I knew that Reagan and I weren’t doing something that wrong. Everything was fair between us.
“But Reagan is sleeping with the boss. That’s a fact, but I guess that she doesn’t need to confirm or deny that. Besides, nothing has changed with her employee status here except that she’s asked to play the piano for events.”
“Don’t you think that’s enough reason for the staff to have questions? After all, you’ve given her a pass to play for the VIPs and receive a much bigger salary.”
“If any of the staff can show themselves to be a better pianist than her, then we can talk. But knowing that there is no one here better than her, she has the right to play. Don’t you think?”
“Right.” Clair nodded, unconvinced. I got the feeling that she wasn’t entirely sold about my excuse. But she didn’t say anything because she had known me since we were teenagers. I was a calculated man, and I didn’t make decisions irrationally. But Reagan? Well, let’s just say that I was sure of her from day one. It just took a little more time to understand what my feelings were than it should have.
“Clair?” I called before she could leave.
“Thanks for your discretion. And please, cut her some slack. I told her that you knew and that she could repay you by not fighting with the other employees.”
“As long as you’re happy with her, I’m going to give her the benefit of the doubt. But if she starts more fights, you’ll be hearing from me.”
“And I’ll make sure she’s going to be held accountable for that.”
The rest of the day was busy for me. I was able to finish reading half of the paperwork on my desk. And for once in my life, I didn’t worry about anything. And the fact that Ryan St. James had told me the truth, made my hatred for him less intense.
I did my research on Parker St. James, and again reviewed all our finances, the deliveries, the imports, and the exports—Ryan was right. There had been a strain on sales, and the delayed deliveries to the international market only made the decline worse. The evidence was difficult to find, it was a marginal error that had a major effect. A very minor error had cost us millions.
And when I discovered it, I didn’t feel like shit. Because Parker St. James was over. And sure, I had great hopes for it back in the day, but I was young then. And I didn’t know how to be a good businessman. I didn’t take care of it. Now that I had experience, now that I knew where I went wrong before, I wasn’t going to let it happen again.
