Page 16 of Return to Lovett Cove
Jasmine grunted and collapsed into her seat. No, she wasn’t supposed to be drinking coffee after surgery. The caffeine would undoubtedly produce more acid in her already sour stomach, but she’d barely slept a full night since returning to Philadelphia from Lovett Cove three days ago. She was determined to win the promotion even if it?—
Killed her?
No, she wasn’t dying. The ulcer was gone. She had work to do.
Jasmine opened her portfolio, flipped to the next page of her to-do list and sucked in a breath.
The photograph of her and her sisters on the beach. Smiling. Forgetting for a moment all the struggles they would face back home.
I was happy there. Iamhappy there.
Lovett Cove was a different pace. A different warmth.
Her mother’s B&B was now on the market, according to the email she had received from a real estate agent who wasn’t River.
Since pushing River away after their kiss?—
Their kiss.
Disappointment surged up, causing her eyes to sting. Jasmine understood why River didn’t want to conduct business with her, why he wanted to limit their contact. He’d put his heart out on the line, kissed her till her toes curled, and she threw it all away to be back in an always-freezing office, barely able to stand up straight, running her poor, faithful assistant ragged, destroying the last strands of her pride for a job that would give her everything she thought her mother wanted for her.
Jasmine grimaced at her coffee cup as though it were the root of all her problems. “Fine, no coffee,” she resigned. “But I need a pick-me-up.”
Kennedy handed her an open jar of peanut butter with a spoon sticking out of it. “You started this earlier.”
Jasmine groaned but accepted the food. The strong, nutty smell turned her stomach. “No.” She set the jar down on her desk.
“Fruit?”
“Too healthy.”
“Tuna sandwich?”
“Too smelly.”
Kennedy fell back against her seat, holding her stomach as she laughed. And laughed.
“You’re delirious,” Jasmine observed.
Kennedy shook her head but couldn’t stop laughing.
“And I’m delusional to think this is ever going to work.” Jasmine stared at the to-do list in her planner. She’d given her insides to this company, and this was the first time she had ever questioned the cost. Thanks to River and her mother’s beautifully run-down inn, Jasmine could see another future. One that involved sand dunes, biscuits and honey…
And a man who’d care for her. Who wanted to be withher. The workaholic.
“Jasmine? You look exhausted.”
Jasmine sat upright and grinned so widely Kennedy looked at her with alarm.I must look crazy.Unlike her boss, Monica, who was the epitome of boss girl who dressed smartly and never appeared unruffled by life or work. Monica stood in the doorway, her concerned gaze running over Jasmine. “Are you okay?”
“Monica! I couldn’t be better.”
“Are you sure? Didn’t you just have surgery? And for an ulcer. That can’t be an easy recovery.”
“Not. At. All.”
Monica’s grin was shaky. “Perhaps I can offer you something that’ll make it better. The partners and I have discussed it, and we want to offer you the promotion. Congratulations, Jasmine, you are a vice president!”
Jasmine stood slowly, conscious of her sore abdomen. With her back straight and her shoulders back, Jasmine felt peace fill her as the words came. “Monica, I want to thank you and the partners for this amazing opportunity, but I have to decline. In fact, consider this my notice.”
