“I can’t believe your father agreed to sign those shares over to you,” Bennett said, leaning back in his office chair.
I shrugged. “It’s for the greater good. He doesn’t want to be in bed with Adam after what he did to Quinn.”
Quinn made sure of that after she spoke to our father and gave him all the gory details, along with the sad little girl act she had always excelled at. Since the share transaction had already gone through, there was no way of forcing Adam to reverse the sale. That’s why we were at Flux in the middle of the afternoon with Bennett and Ian, finalizing the paperwork required to complete the last step of our plan. This was the only feasible course of action.
While we were waiting for Bennett’s assistant to return with signed copies of all the documents, Quinn’s phone started to go off the hook with texts. One, two, three pings chimed in quick succession.
She looked up at us, pale blue eyes wide. “It’s Adam. He’s pissed, and he wants to know where Thayer is.” It was the first day since Adam had returned from his business trip, which meant she’d left early in the morning to avoid him. At least she’d only had to fake it via calls and texts for the past week. Pretty soon, she wouldn’t have to pretend to tolerate him at all.
Bennett caught my eye, his expression questioning. A slight ripple of fear shot through my body. Not because I was afraid of Adam, but because I hated confrontation in general.
“Go ahead,” I said. “Tell him I’m here.”
Ian looked at us dubiously. “Are you sure you want to let him come up?”
“Might as well get it over with.” I crossed my legs, pretending I actually believed that myself.
The mood in the room shifted, turning tense. Bennett’s assistant returned and we signed our respective documents, trying to make small talk as we waited for what was coming next.
Not even ten minutes later, Adam stormed into Bennett’s office. His face was scarlet, eyes bulging with anger.
“Why does this share certificate my lawyer sent over say Thayer Montgomery?” Adam roared. He weaved around the chairs, ignoring the fact that Quinn was sitting with us, and thrust a sheaf of papers in my face. “Know anything about this?”
“What’s that now?” I peered over at the papers in his hand, playing dumb.
“My company,” he snapped. “It says you own thirty-five percent.”
I pretended to frown as I scanned the document. “I guess it does say Thayer Montgomery, not Thomas Montgomery.” I smacked my forehead. “Oh, that’s right. Daddy signed his shares over to me as an engagement gift. Us women folk have a hard time keeping track of that stuff sometimes.”
The color drained from Adam’s face. “Thomas did what?”
“Wasn’t that sweet of him?” Quinn chirped. “Then again, he wasn’t too happy with you when he found out about you and Millie.”
“Millie?” Adam whirled around to face her, doing his best impression of an innocent man. It wasn’t a very convincing act. “What are you talking about?”
“Save it, Adam. I saw everything in your text messages.” Quinn gave him a disdainful ‘you’re beneath me’ look, and I couldn’t have been prouder. “The movers are packing up your stuff as we speak. They’ll leave it for you in the building lobby.”
Adam’s jaw tensed, but he clearly thought better than to argue with her in front of us. Likely, because he had other dirty laundry that would come out if he did. He returned his attention to me, eyes gleaming with malice. “Why do you want shares in my company, anyway?”
“That’s where you’re confused,” Bennett told him. “It’s not your company anymore.”
“That’s right,” I said, leaning against the desk beside him. “Bennett picked up a few shares privately from your other investor. That makes for seventy percent ownership between the two of us.”
Adam’s mouth hung open. He blinked, rapid-fire, and for the first time since I’d known him, he was lost for words. Quinn watched the spectacle unfold from her chair beside us, her expression impassive.
“According to the bylaws, two-thirds of the shareholders have to agree to pass a motion. Which means we amalgamated AM and Flux under one umbrella this afternoon. Still kept the name Flux, obviously. I guess you work for me now.” Bennett smirked. “Or did, anyway. You’re fired—for cause. Which means you won’t be receiving two weeks’ pay in lieu of notice.”
“You can’t do that.” Adam waved the papers like a weapon. “I have rights, even as an employee.”
“At-will employment laws say otherwise. Though if you’d like to fight about it, using your position within Flux to further your interests is also a valid reason, according to my lawyer. And we haven’t even touched on your little donation to the mayor. Or misappropriating company funds.”
“Speaking of your share.” Bennett paused. “I’m going to buy you out for sixty cents on the dollar. And you’re going to take it.”
“Or else?”
“I don’t think I need to spell that out for you.” Bennett thrust a paper in his face. “Here are the details of the offer.”
On paper, it would raise too many flags to take Adam’s company without compensating him in some form. But the amount he was about to walk away with meant he was taking a massive hit.
Adam’s hands were dirtier than Bennett’s, which meant there wasn’t a whole lot he could do, either. If push came to shove, Bennett might have gotten a regulatory slap on the wrist, maybe some penalties from the IRS, but bribing an elected official could earn Adam time in prison.
Adam’s face reddened, vein in his forehead bulging. He looked back up. “This is less than sixty cents on the dollar.”
“I subtracted what you stole from Flux.”
“I have personal debt,” he snapped. “This would leave me underwater.”
“Am I supposed to give a shit?” Bennett asked.
Adam spun around and sneered at Quinn. “I suppose you’re in on this too?”
“You bet I am,” she said. “Couldn’t happen to a nicer guy.”
“Look on the bright side,” I said. “The store’s always hiring. How do you feel about underwire versus soft cup bras? Don’t worry, I’m sure you’re a fast learner.”
“Fuck you,” he spat. “Frigid bitch.”
Bennett must have teleported, because one minute he was seated at his desk, leaning back in his chair with a smug look on his face, and the next, he was across the room standing toe to toe with Adam with a homicidal gleam in his eye.
“Bennett. Don’t let him get to you.” I stepped between them and touched his forearm, trying to move him back, but he was a wall of solid muscle, and he was pissed.
Bennett’s hand landed on my hip, gripping firmly, and he wordlessly moved me aside, which I took to be a bad sign.
“What the fuck did you just say to her?” He took another step toward Adam, who looked back at him with a defiant smirk.
“I said, she’s a frigid bitch,” Adam repeated. “Good luck marrying that.”
Before I realized what he was doing, he lunged forward and punched Adam square in the jaw. Adam staggered back, holding his face with a look of disbelief. Bennett backed away, shaking out his fist, but the smile on his face was clear. And while I normally didn’t condone physical violence, it was hard to hold back a smile of my own. I think I managed, but barely.
Quinn, on the other hand, was beaming like a Cheshire Cat.
“What the fuck?” Adam glanced back up at him, leveling him with a searing glare. “You just assaulted me. I hope you look good in orange, Bradford.”
“I think all the witnesses here would agree that you hit me first.” Bennett scanned the room, and the three of us nodded. “That was merely self-defense. It’s not my fault you can’t land a decent hit.”
Adam gaped at Bennett, apparently lost for words, while Bennett walked around to his desk and paged his assistant. I couldn’t remember the last time he’d looked so relaxed. “Please have security come escort Mr. Matthews out of the building. And bring me a bag of ice.”
AFTER SECURITY DRAGGED A RANTING, raving Adam out of Bennett’s office, Ian and Quinn claimed they had other obligations, leaving the two of us alone. Bennett and I stood on opposite sides of his desk and looked at each other, neither of us sure what to say. The tension in the room was tense, ridden with angst and full of unsaid words.
“You shouldn’t have hit Adam,” I finally said. “Especially not because of me.” The last thing Bennett needed was some kind of legal trouble from punching Adam, no matter how much he may have deserved it.
“Are you kidding?” Bennett grinned, and I tried to ignore the flutters it stirred in my belly. “I’ve been dying to do that for nearly a year. He just finally gave me a good enough reason.”
“Well.” I cleared my throat, reaching for my wool peacoat and leather handbag. “I guess everything is settled. Adam is out of Quinn’s life, and you got what you wanted.”
His smile faded as quickly as it had emerged. “Not everything.”
“Don’t start, Bennett. I don’t want to fight.” My throat tightened.
“Neither do I,” he said, stepping around the desk to close the distance between us. His cologne permeated the air, evoking a kaleidoscope of emotions that I couldn’t even begin to process. “That’s why I apologized. And I’ll keep apologizing until you forgive me.”
Tears swelled behind my eyes, and I nestled my head against his shoulder so he couldn’t see. Being close to him felt so familiar; so easy. But I still wasn’t completely convinced that meant it was right.
“I told you,” he said, gently rubbing my back. “I’m not making the same mistake twice. You can be pissed at me for not listening, but at least then I can say I tried.”
Words failed me, and I didn’t respond. It was like standing on the precipice of a cliff. I didn’t know what was at the bottom. It could have been the best decision of my life, or the worst. The biggest gamble I’d ever make… but I wasn’t sure my heart could take the loss.
After another bout of silence, I spoke up again. “Bennett?”
“Yeah?”
“Why didn’t you kiss me in the bathroom at the party, back in high school?” The very act of asking was like ripping off a scab, transporting me back to when I was an insecure sixteen-year-old again.
He huffed a low laugh, shaking his head. “I should have, but I choked. I didn’t want our first kiss to happen with Millie on the other side of the door.”
“But our first kiss was a fake kiss.”
“Was it? Because the only person I’ve been lying to is myself.”
Another wave of tears sprang to my eyes, overflowing before I could stop them. I wiped them away with the back of my hand and tried to blink them away, but it was futile.
“Thay.” Bennett turned to face me, ducking his head. There was a sadness in his eyes that cut me to the core. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—”
“It’s fine,” I cut him off, pushing away from him. There were too many things swirling around my brain, too many conflicting emotions warring within my heart. “Let’s just get through the engagement party tomorrow, okay?”
His expression fell and he looked like he wanted to argue with me, but then his jaw set, and he nodded. “Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
