Page 7 of Give Me More
“But your words could harm us all and I’m not willing to take that risk.” Especially not since he was soon to be running the company. The personal consequences aside, RGF may be at the top of the industry presently, but he knew all too well how easily the tide could shift. Scandal, whether based in truth or manufactured, was one of the top game changers.
She opened her mouth to say something else, but then clapped her lips shut and took a deep breath. Releasing it slowly through her nose, he watched her shoulders relax as she tried to gather her emotions. Grace didn’t play games. A person always knew where they stood with her because she was often brutally honest. Right now, she was trying to remain calm, likely trying to think of a way to convince him she could write this story without damaging his family’s reputation. He should probably tell her right now it was a futile mission.
“I’m not going to leave,” she said, her voice as calm as the soothing colors in this space. “I have a job to do and I know you can relate to that. All your life you’ve done nothing but work toward the goals you set for yourself, and now the position your father groomed you for is waiting for you to claim.” She nodded. “Yeah, I’ve heard the whispers about Ron possibly retiring this year. That’s not news—your father alluded to it in one of his press conferences about the wedding a few months ago.”
“That has nothing to do with this.” He had no idea why he bothered with the denial. Grace knew him just as well as he knew her.
“It has everything to do with this, and I’m here to reassure you there’s nothing to worry about. The story I plan to write will only shed light on the past and uplift two powerful men for the generations coming after them. For Black professionals like you and the generation after that, to show that despite the odds they can succeed.Wecan overcome the odds and shine just as bright as anyone else.” She sounded like a motivational speaker, her tone uplifting and poignant.
“They’re already trailblazers in the fashion industry, role models for others coming up in the trenches. You bringing up the past can only hurt them now.” He was positive of that, because while other reporters had mentioned the feud, he knew Grace. She worked better than that. She wasn’t going to write a snippet about the feud; she’d dive deep, add every detail she could find and print a thought-provoking story that he feared might harm his family more than help them this time around.
“Why won’t you just leave?” he implored, frustration and lingering pain etched in his tone. “You did it before, you can do it again.”
His words were meant to sting, to anger her and push her away.
Instead of acknowledging the momentary slap of irritation, Grace took a step closer to him. She squared her shoulders and tilted her chin, holding his gaze. “This isn’t like before. And I’m not leaving. If you call my editor, I can assure you he’ll buckle down on this story. He might even print something about your threat to stop it, spinning that to suggest some type of guilt or cover-up on behalf of the Golds.”
Eddie would also undoubtedly have something to say about her personal relationship with RJ already interfering with her job. The very thing he’d warned her about.
When RJ lifted his hands and dragged them down the back of his head in the way that told her he was frustrated but listening, she pressed on. “This is an important story and you’re too good at what you do to not consider the positive implications it could have on your company. Any exposure is good exposure.”
“Don’t do that.” He moved closer so that only one of the square tables stood between them. “Don’t try to put a sales spin on this.”
“Why not? You know it’s a proven tactic. Just like Riley and her fiancé allowed the media into certain aspects of their wedding planning. And Major and Nina were part of that fake engagement promotion before actually falling in love. It all increased your bottom line, putting RGF well ahead of King Designs for the last two quarters.”
Yeah, she’d kept tabs on RGF and the family she’d once been a part of, because she cared about them almost as much as her own family. She’d grown up the youngest of four sisters. Hope, the newly engaged concert pianist, was the oldest; Charity, the happily married psychologist with four children, was second; and Trinity, the obstetrician who’d been married for three and a half years, had yet to give their parents, Milton and Videtta Hopkins, any grandchildren. Trinity was just two years older than Grace at thirty-six. Grace had come from a big, loving family, but there’d always been sibling rivalry. Her relationship with Riley Gold had been totally different from what she’d experienced growing up in Westchester. With Riley, there’d been no competition, just a normal friendship with the young introverted Gold daughter who would go on to become one of the most talented and influential women in the fashion industry.
“Why did you keep track of what was happening in my family?” RJ’s gaze was pointed, his proximity suddenly intense.
RJ stepped around that table to stand just a couple feet away from her, and suddenly the space felt small. “I’m a reporter,” she said with a shrug. “And our no longer being a couple didn’t mean I stopped caring about them.”
If her tone was a little huskier than it had been, she totally planned to ignore it. Writing this story was her goal, and getting past RJ’s gatekeeping was an obstacle she had to overcome. Neither of those things could afford the interruption of her body’s immediate response to his.
He looked way too good standing there with a suspicious expression on his beautiful face. Today he wore khaki shorts and a crisp white polo, like aGQcover model at the beach. Her breasts immediately felt fuller, her pussy aching with need even after that shattering orgasm she’d had last night. Nothing about this situation was simple, but the past wasn’t something she wanted to keep dwelling on.
She could write this story with or without RJ, but because of the past she should’ve known would be this prevalent between them, the small measure of guilt she still felt from walking away from him, and the love he’d so freely offered her long ago, she wanted his approval.
That thought had occurred to her late last night as she’d lain in bed thinking of their impromptu reunion. She’d left him to pursue her goals on her own. To be here now, in this place, wanting him to accept her as a journalist, was a bit ironic.
“Keep your enemies close. Remember you used to say that?” She knew he not only recalled one of his favorite quotes, but that he’d probably already been thinking it. “Since you already know who my sources for the story will be, what if I give you a summary of my meetings with them so you have some idea of what’s being said?”
It was an olive branch, one she didn’t have to offer. One she probably shouldn’t have offered because it could be construed as showing bias and if Eddie found out he’d definitely yank her off this story and probably never hire her again. Yet she wanted RJ to believe that she’d protect his family with the same fervor and loyalty as him. She wanted to make amends.
He tilted his head, contemplating her words. RJ considered a situation from every angle before making a decision. He possessed a brilliant analytical mind that some overlooked because they were too in awe of his handsome features, deep umber-toned skin and muscled physique.
“You expect me to trust you?”
“I expect you to remember.” Even though she kept telling herself not to focus on the past. “To reach deep down inside to that time when we both trusted each other implicitly. You knew back then when I was covering some of the Fashion Week shows that I’d never write anything false or harmful about your family.”
Of course, that had also been the time they’d been sleeping together every night, cuddling in each other’s arms in the early morning and promising to love each other forever.
“You sure you want me to remember, Gracie?”
He closed the space between them with one quick movement, standing only a breath away from her now as he lifted a strong hand and cupped her neck. She moved with the action, didn’t have much choice over her faithless body, stepping into him and the intense partial embrace. He’d begun calling her Gracie a few months after they’d started dating and she’d taken it as an endearment, her heart fluttering each time she heard it. Today was no different.
“I want you to...” She paused, the next words lodging in her throat. What the hell did she want at this moment? So many things were flying through her mind. Snippets from their past, touches, kisses, declarations of feelings she hadn’t felt in far too long. She couldn’t concentrate.
“You want me to what?” His question was a mere whisper as he lowered his face to hers. “To kiss you? To touch you?”
