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He read off some more of the comments, but before he got the idea of making her a ten-course meal, she headed back to her place.
“Workout with the guys tomorrow?” Grady asked, walking Reese to the door.
“I have a meeting from hell with John in the morning. Could we do the day after?”
“Sure.”
She headed home feeling good about her situation. She was on the road to rebuilding what she’d lost, and she had Grady to thank.
* * *
John, Daria, and Marnie showed up before Reese had even put on the coffee, and she was an early riser. They sat around her large kitchen island while she pulled out mugs, cream, and sugar. Daria had a folder in her hand, and Marnie was setting up her laptop. Everyone seemed to be preparing for something.
What is going on now?
Reese poured the coffee and took a seat herself. She was trying to read their faces, but Marnie was focused on her computer screen, Daria was shuffling through papers, and John had on his resting stone-cold face.
“The video was a success. Daria has all the stats, and it seems the response was overwhelmingly positive. Of course there were a few people who were negative, but the stats indicated that those numbers weren’t out of whack. We would like you to do another of those videos with Grady, maybe a few more. We’ll hire a professional videographer and select the right clothing for each one.”
“I have a videographer.”
John pursed his lips. “While the quality of the video was sufficient, we need a professional. I understand Grady’s sister did the video. I’ll make sure she’s taken care of and that we find some other opportunity for her.”
That didn’t satisfy Reese, but she’d let it go for now. “I was thinking of doing a video with Cam.”
“Yes, that would be fine. But I think people really responded to Grady,” John said, his tone dismissive. “Daria is going to set up locations, a videographer, and all the other details.”
“Will I have any input?” Reese asked, sipping her coffee.
“Yes, of course. Daria will coordinate it all with you. Now on to other matters. We have been discussing what to do with the Jennifer situation. We’ve been throwing around a lot of ideas these past few weeks, and we think the best way to shut her up is with a lawsuit.”
Reese nearly spit out her coffee.
“Lawsuit? No way!”
Marnie looked up from her laptop and slowly shut the lid. “It’s not the best solution, but it would make her rethink any next move. Based on the evidence we have and the statements we’ve taken, we believe a lawsuit would make her take pause. She also can’t afford to fight us.”
Reese thought of Jen’s kid. She may have hated everything Jen had said and done, but it wasn’t her kid’s fault. “What if we do some sort of mediation with her? Why do we have to go straight to a lawsuit?”
“To frighten her to stop. If we can get all the emails and texts, she’s sunk. A lawsuit usually gets people back in line.”
Reese didn’t like this side of Marnie.
“I prefer mediation. Maybe if we talk this through with her, explain the situation to her, she’ll back down and retract. Lawsuits look ugly, and don’t we want to rehabilitate my reputation?”
John’s jaw tensed, but he nodded. “Yes, we do. We’ll discuss this further. But we need to neutralize her soon. And that brings me to the last thing I wanted to talk to you about.”
Something about his tone put her on guard. “Okay,” she said cautiously.
“We need to work hard to give you that squeaky-clean image again. Right now, people are on the fence, not sure if they should trust who they thought you were or trust what Jennifer is saying about you. It doesn’t help that your idiot ex-boyfriend has been making the rounds. I’ve had a few people tell me that he’s talking about you at golf tournaments, fundraising events, any place he can get his sorry ass invited to. Thankfully, he hasn’t gone to the media. I needed to come up with a solution. So that means we need to get you a boyfriend. Of course, we would have liked that person to be Cam, but he’s engaged, and I don’t think he’ll call off his engagement for this endeavor. So I have the next best person in mind.”
Reese hated Jordy now more than ever. No doubt he was dropping her name to get invited to all these functions. But the horror of what John was suggesting was sinking in. A fake boyfriend? The thought of having to pretend to care about someone. No! She couldn’t do that.
“I don’t like this idea already. Is this some person I’ve never met? That I need to trust? No, this is a terrible idea.”
“You don’t even know who it is. He’s not only beloved, he’s currently single.”
“I’m a firm no.”
