Page 19 of Hers to Love
Marshall only smiled.
Kori quickly put up a hand. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked. It’s none of my business.”
Marshall’s smile faded into a pensive look. He shrugged. “You’re my assistant. You should know me better than most, even if it’s only been two sessions. The therapy session went fine, thank you. Still doing preliminary work. Takes me a while to open up. Haven’t been able to get too deep into the weeds.”
“Of course, of course. Right.”
Why hadn’t she thought about that? Her expectations were unrealistically high after her experience with Brigham. She couldn’t expect Marshall to have a revelation and immediately know what to do to fix his life in a couple one-hour sessions.
As embarrassment nauseated her stomach, she chewed on her piece of bread while staring at the crumbs on her plate.
“But don’t worry. Iwillbe going back. Every week until I think I’m okay to move forward without it. I’ve realized that I haven’t really had someone to talk to since the divorce. It’ll be good for me to get a few things I’ve bottled up out in the open. Not sure why I hadn’t gone sooner. Sabrina’s always saying I should. I have a life coach for a daughter and don’t even listen to her.” He laughed.
Kori could take a guess why he hadn’t gone. A powerful man having to admit he had issues and needed help? Brigham refused to acknowledge his own faults. Someone like that could wield their influence for evil, which Brigham did. Kori felt bad for the person Brigham had found to replace her and hoped that person had a strong sense of self-worth and could walk away if needed.
“I’m glad you’ve found it helpful,” Kori said with an encouraging nod. “These next three months are probably going to be incredibly stressful, especially when it comes out that…” She couldn’t say it out loud. If she did, then it would be true.
Marshall nodded slowly. “Yes…when it comes out. Hopefully, the board will keep it a secret until the day I walk out. Guess I better learn how to handle the embarrassment now.” He gave her a wry smile.
“I’m sorry, sir.”
He shrugged. “Don’t be. You said I’ve been an incompetent boss—”
“I never said—”
He laughed, reached across the table, and briefly squeezed her hand. “I’m kidding, but you know you implied it.”
Sheepish, Kori bit her lip and stared at her food. It was delicious. She took a large bite to keep herself from saying anything else stupid.
“Look who’s embarrassed now?” Kori continued to stare at her plate, and Marshall laughed. “You have guts, Kori. I admire that. Hey, look at me.”
Kori lifted her eyes to his. Her belly warmed, and it wasn’t because of the food. The intensity in his eyes took her breath away.
“Don’t ever think you can’t tell it to me straight.”
“You’ve certainly taken a lot of it from me.”
The side of his mouth curved up, dimpling his cheek. “And it’s been incredibly humbling…and motivating.”
“I want you to be honest with me. And I’ll be honest with you. Deal?”
With his ex being a cheater, it didn’t surprise her that he put a high value on honesty. She smiled. “Deal. I’m sorry—”
“No apologies. I deserved it.”
“You mean you enjoyed it?”
His head went back, and he laughed. She enjoyed the deep, genuine sound. How it wrapped itself around her heart like a warm, comforting blanket. She let her guard down, and it felt good to trust again. Marshall had is own issues with trust. Who could blame him? Perhaps their faith in people could be restored by trusting each other.
Marshall settled, and his brow furrowed. He looked down at his plate. Kori wanted to reach across the table and take his hand like he did with her, an overwhelming urge to comfort him going against her good reason. She kept her hands firmly in her lap. A clear boundary had to be maintained, no matter how much she trusted her boss.
They were losing their jobs. Making their relationship a gray area wouldn’t help at all.
Chapter 9
This was the best decision…
The food was delicious as always, which made the walk back to the hotel slow and leisurely. Marshall was glad for it. He enjoyed Kori’s company. She was a calming influence on his anxieties, and he felt more centered now than he had in a year. She was steady and a natural planner, where he could be a little more free-spirited as a visionary.
