Page 17 of Baiting His Bride

I straighten and clap him on the shoulder as I move to leave him to oversee the operations alone. “I’m sure, little brother. And someday, when the right person appears in your life, you’ll understand.”

Mallory

The large, bitterly cold conference room on the ground floor of the Bennett Media Group high-rise is buzzing. The energy in the air is palpable as I glance around. But it doesn’t come close to matching the adrenaline racing through my body.

I could barely sleep last night, tossing and turning, and when I finally dozed off, my dreams were filled with sweet talking mixed with a panty-melting playful smile and a dose of sparkling, crystal-blue eyes for good measure.

Everything about the scene here is familiar, but also completely foreign. I’m not used to being on this side of the microphone, not used to sitting in one of the dozens of rows of chairs set up for the audience. No, I’m usually the one prepping to share big news or teeing up Luke to speak on behalf of AV Industries.

“Mallory, is that you?”

I spin to find Barbara Simon, the editor-in-chief of the other dominant newspaper in town, peering at me through her signature cherry red-framed glasses.

“Whatever are you doing here?” she adds, apparently not requiring verbal confirmation it’s me.

“I’m here for the press conference,” I reply, sticking to the truth.

Still frowning, she seems to remember herself. “Yes, well, it’s always good to stay abreast of what the press is up to, hmm?”

“It is.”

“And,” she adds, leaning forward, “from what I hear, there’s quite a shuffle coming around here.”

A shuffle?

My throat constricts. This is it. The day Carson’s grandfather has finally decided it’s time to step down and name his grandson, the man who’s been raised to lead Bennett Media Group, as CEO. The confirmation is sobering but also the closure I need to move on and finally put Carson Bennett out of my mind for good.

Now, I’m glad I came. This morning, when I was lying in bed with a pillow over my face, I’d considered not getting up. Considered not coming to see this in person. It wasn’t my curiosity that finally forced me up and into the shower. No, it was the jar of maraschino cherries wrapped in the small mint-green box sitting on my nightstand, and now tucked safely in my purse, that did the trick.

My watch vibrates as the clock strikes twelve. Silence ripples across the crowd as Carson’s grandfather, a dignified man in a tailored navy three-piece suit with a coordinated handkerchief, emerges through a side door, followed by his grandsons. Mr. Bennett, Sr., as I’ve always heard him referred to, slowly makes his way to the podium, while Carson and Henry take a seat at the table at the front of the room.

Barbara nods in my direction before heading up front, but I barely acknowledge her smile. Because Carson’s gaze locks onto me and steals my breath. It’s the first time I’ve seen him in person in four months, but he looks exactly the same, if not better. And damn, he’s still as magnetic a force as ever.

Cameras click behind me at an alarming rate and snap me back to the present. I slip into the closest empty seat in the back row, ducking out of the way of the photographers with tripods lining the rear wall.

“Thank you all for coming,” Mr. Bennett, Sr., says, surveying the crowd. “As many of you might have expected, now that I’ve reached the milestone of sixty years since starting Bennett Media Group, in the back of a bicycle-repair shop on the south side, and turning it into the vast portfolio of companies it includes today, it’s come time for me to step aside.”

A murmur runs through the room as reporters nod and exchange smug, self-satisfied looks. But I stare straight at Mr. Bennett, Sr., unmoving, every muscle in my body tense.

“What you might not have expected,” he continues, pausing thoughtfully, “is that I’m proud to name my grandson, Henry Bennett, as the new CEO, effective immediately.”

And with that, the air is sucked from the room. And my lungs. Knotted brows and questioning glances replace the confident smiles. My eyes fly to Carson’s. He’s watching me, and a slow, lazy smile spreads over his face. One I don’t understand.

What is happening right now? Carson was set to take over. He was supposed to be the next CEO.

Heads across the room swivel to follow Carson’s gaze. Hundreds of eyeballs stare directly at me. I sink lower in my seat as Mr. Bennett, Sr. continues, either oblivious to, or choosing to disregard, the reaction.

“I’d like to welcome him to the microphone now to share a few words on the future of Bennett Media Group.”

Henry, who could double as Carson’s twin, if it wasn’t for his pinched, studious expression, rises and shakes hands with his grandfather, who steps to the side and waves him forward. But I can’t concentrate on the earnest remarks of gratitude for his grandfather’s leadership, appreciation for the thousands of Bennett Media Group employees, and confirmed commitment to its hundreds of thousands of customers.

My brain spins as if it’s caught in a category five tornado. And the question running through my mind is obviously shared by many, but for not-so-personal reasons, because as Henry turns the microphone back over to his grandfather, a reporter in the front row calls out, “What about Carson Bennett?” as if he’s not sitting right there at the table, his eyes still dancing.

“Good question,” Mr. Bennett, Sr. acknowledges with a chuckle. “I was just getting to that. I’d also like to take this opportunity to announce that, effective immediately as well, Carson is stepping down from his role as Vice President of Bennett Media Group.”

My jaw drops. Both literally and figuratively. I want a man who isn’t press but is Carson actually relinquishing a position as CEO of his family’s company because of me? Surely not. It’s…unfathomable.

But Mr. Bennett, Sr. continues, raising his voice over the buzz of the crowd. “He’s decided to follow another path. One that, to be honest, I couldn’t be more proud of. Starting today, Carson will be the Executive Director of the Bennett Media Group Foundation, the non-profit organization many of you might not realize he was integral to helping found.”

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