Page 85 of Love on the Vine
He sat up straighter in his chair. “I am?”
“At least about me being unhappy. I’m not going to lie to you, Jin. I need to make a change. A big one.”
It had only taken me a year of numb misery and a week back to know that I didn’t want this part of my life anymore. I didn’t know what I would do next, but I was done with this.
“I need to show you something.” I had him read the latest email from Sungate Group. They’d raised their offer. I was ready to take it, but only if Jin got the recognition he deserved.
“I want to make you partner and transfer shares to you as part of your promotion. We’ll be in a better position to negotiate.”
“Jake, I can’t let you do this.” Jin balked, eyes wide. “I don’t deserve it . . . What about you? Are you sure you’re not going to regret this?”
“Stop, Jin. You do deserve it. If it wasn’t for you, this business would have been bottom-up months ago. Really. Stop doubting yourself. You’re more than capable,” I told him. His bottom lip quivered, but he cleared his throat and sat up straight as a ruler.
“I am capable,” he repeated. “I don’t know what I’ll do without you, but yeah, if that’s what you want. I won’t let you down.”
We spent a good part of an hour going over details of the buyout and the amount of input we would retain. Jin would continue as president of the company. I would step down completely but retain a board position so that they couldn’t take advantage of our winemakers. I also wanted assurance that our employees would stay on or receive an attractive severance package if they decided to leave.
“Are you ready to do this?” I asked as I picked up the phone. He nodded, and I dialed Thomas’s number.
He picked up almost immediately. “Jake, my man, this is a surprise.”
The anticipation in his voice almost made me reconsider. But I didn’t. I laid everything out on the line for him.
“I’m so glad you’ve finally seen the light. We’re going to do fabulous things together,” Thomas said. I could practically hear him preening through the phone. “I gotta say, I’m still shocked you contacted us. This isn’t like you at all to walk away from something you’ve built.”
“It’s time. My heart’s no longer in it.”
He laughed. “Your heart somewhere else these days? I don’t blame you, man, if you’re finally thinking of settling down now you’ve found the right woman.”
Jin’s eyes widened at me over the phone.
“No, nothing like that.” There was no way in hell I was discussing Olivia with him.
“Come on. You’ve got something in the works. I’m sure of it.” Thomas wasn’t going to give up. He wanted this rivalry, needed it as much as I did once. He’d be lost without it, and in a way, that was the best revenge.
When we hung up at last, an enormous weight was lifted off me. I opened a bottle of Château Lafite and we sat in my office with a view of the Bund. I poured a glass for Jin and me, and for the first time in a long time I tasted it.
It tasted like letting go.
Chapter 29
OLIVIA
Paris, late September
The metro screeched to a halt, and I glanced anxiously at my watch. Great, I was going to be late again.
So far, in the three weeks since classes had started at Ferrandi, I’d already been late twice. Even when I did make it on time, I arrived bleary-eyed and exhausted and, as a result, hadn’t made a very good impression on my instructors.
I’d promised myself last night that I would arrive on time this morning, but as usual, I’d woken up again at three a.m. and started thinking about Jake and then couldn’t fall back to sleep.
I barely had time to down a cup of coffee this morning before racing out of the apartment I was sharing with Callie, which thanks to our meager bank accounts was as far away from the school as possible. We lived in a vibrant working-class area on the Right Bank that I loved, but the forty-five-minute commute was torture when I was already running late. Squeezed in the train with the other passengers like sardines in a tin can, I couldn’t even go over my notes. It gave me plenty of time to stare at my reflection in the window though and notice my drawn face and the circles under my eyes.
Of course, I was grateful to be living with my best friend in Paris, learning to cook with some of the most incredible chefsin the world. But now there was something missing, like I was doing it all with one hand behind my back.
The only time I allowed myself to fully wallow in my heartbreak (besides the middle of the night) was on my miserable morning commute—shoved between strangers, my nose practically buried in some guy’s armpit. The rest of the time I was too busy, or I forced myself not to think about him. I couldn’t even really count on Callie to distract me. We only rarely crossed paths in the hallway as she came home from her late-night shift just as I was shuffling off to bed.
I’d seen Lucie briefly my first week in Paris and she’d told me Jake was in China, and she didn’t know if he’d be back in time for her wedding. A part of me was holding out hope that he’d call me when he got back. I still couldn’t understand how the man I’d known so intimately, who had held me after making love to me like he couldn’t let me go, could now be so silent and distant.
