Page 84 of The CEO Enemy

I love Jess, and I don’t want to go back to the way things were before.

I take a sip of my coffee, then finish it in one fell swoop. Connor looks at me with amusement, shaking his head.

“How have you not put that together?” he asks.

“I have,” I say, “but I haven’t heard it out loud yet.”

“Well, there it is now. So what are ya goin’ to do about it?”

Good question.

What am I going to do about it?

For starters, I need to make her see that that stupid rule of hers is doing more harm than good. She’s trying to protect herself, and I can’t blame her for that. I know what a number the shithead pulled on her, but there’s something there between us, something special. It shouldn’t be thrown away. If anything, what we’ve been through has proven how right we are for each other, how much we complement each other. I can see it every time she looks at me, but she’s pushing what we have away—like she did last night.

“Easy. I’m not giving her up,” I tell him. “I’m going to keep her.”

Connor grins. “That’s the stuff. Show her who’s boss. Show her how much you feckin’ love her.”

“All right, back to business. Anything else that I need to know?”

Connor shakes his head. “Nope. All runnin’ smoothly.”

“Good.” With a nod, I grab my laptop to dive back into the numbers I need to prep for the quarterly board meeting.

“Wait. What’s the story now that you’ve ignored your dad’s ultimatum? Will he actually kick you out?”

“Empty threats,” I say. “He won’t fire me.”

“Yeah, probably all bark and no bite. You’ll be grand.”

Revitalized and determined, I hop on my motorcycle and head to the hotel, my mind racing with thoughts. Jess might think our relationship is a dead end, but that’s far from the truth. It’s the only explanation as to why she suddenly acted so distant last night and still hasn’t texted or called me back. She must be starting to feel the same way I do and got cold feet.

That’s why she basically kicked me out. There can’t be any other reason.

In a few short weeks, Jess has weaved herself through my life and my thoughts. She’s the first thing I think about when I wake up and the last thing on my mind as I fall asleep.

Like I told Connor, I’m not giving her up. Not on this partnership and certainly not on this relationship.

28

SEAN

At about two p.m., I arrive with my “johnny cakes” gift in hand, and walk past Sarah’s empty desk. I assume she’s either taking a break or making a coffee run. A sense of déjà vu washes over me as I spot Richard Rutherford. He’s sitting on the visitor’s couch, waiting. For a brief moment I wonder if he enjoyed the art piece looking exquisite in the lobby. Of course, I’d never actually inquire.

When he notices me approaching, he gets up.

“Mr. Blackwood,” he says, standing tall, impeccably dressed as always. “Good to see you again.”

He’s holding a huge bouquet in his hand. Did he bring her flowers? I’m well acquainted with the costs of flowers and the extravagant requests of the one percent elite who frequently stay in our priciest hotels. The exquisite orchid bouquet he’s holding is an opulent creation with a price tag in the thousands.

“Mr. Rutherford, how do you do?” I ask, shaking his outstretched hand. “You brought my fiancé flowers?”

“Well—” he starts, glancing down at my plain gray pancake box, somewhat greasy on the sides.

I’m not worried, nor jealous—why would I be? Clearly, he doesn’t know anything about Jess if he thinks he can impress her by throwing money around. Still, I cannot wait to hear what he has to say. After all, she’s my soon-to-be-wife, so what the hell is he doing here with flowers?

Before he has a chance to answer, Jess turns the corner. “What are you doing here?” She marches toward us, ignoring me, eyes on Rutherford. If looks could kill, Rutherford (and his bouquet) would be pushing up daisies.

---