"Jody is the redhead?"
"Yeah."
He sucked at names, he decided. "What's nearby?"
"Anything. That's the glory of the city, right?"
He chuckled in agreement. "Deli?"
"Two blocks over. Best one I've ever eaten at."
"I'll get my coat and meet you by the elevator in five."
* * *
Chloe watched him walk out of her office. Still, he wasn't bad to look at.
She closed her laptop and shoved the notes she'd taken into her drawer haphazardly. Maybe the day wouldn't have been so bad if she'd done like Jody had suggested and gone out of the office. But wasn't she mad at Jason too?
No. That was the problem. As much as she wanted to hate him for taking her job, she was finding it hard to actually not like him.
She'd hit him in the head with a stapler, causing him to get stitches, and still he was kind to her.
Maybe it was time for a change. She thought about Melanie Peet's little gift shop in Aubrey Heights and how excited she was to show Chloe around. And what about that quaint coffee shop that had opened up? Christmas was magical there.
Christmas.
She'd nearly forgotten that the holidays were upon them. She was so focused on not getting her promotion and the potential of losing the contract with Pop! Cosmetics that she decided she'd become quite a Scrooge.
Jason appeared in her door again. This time with his wool coat, scarf, and leather gloves. Wasn't he a picture?
"Are you ready?" he asked, his body illuminated from behind by a security light. The sharp lines of his face were accentuated, and his eyes even darker as he narrowed them on her.
"Yeah, I think I am," she said aloud to him as much as she said it to herself. Seeing him there, wanting to hate him, but also finding herself pulled toward attraction, she decided she was indeed ready—for a change.
* * *
Jason could feel her fuming as they walked silently in the bitter cold toward the deli she'd told him about. There was a storm brewing, one that was promising at least four inches of snow, and of course, bitter cold.
"Are you okay? I swear you’re growling," Chloe asked as she opened the door of the deli.
He was going to be honest with her. For some reason he felt as if she needed that from him. "Just was thinking about Deborah."
"No, put the bite in it. Deb. It makes it more sinister, especially since you’re growling."
Jason chuckled. He pondered Chloe Richardson as she moved to the counter and ordered a corned beef sandwich, half of it for now, and the other half wrapped to take with her.
What was her story? City girl from birth? Small town transplant? He couldn't actually figure it out, except that he knew, what he assumed was home, was hours away. Another city? Something more quaint?
She'd gathered her order and paid, though he'd meant to, but he was more caught up in watching her. She took extra condiments and only filled her fountain drink a quarter of the way with ice. She was frugal, wanting to get the most out of everything she could.
Jason placed his order and picked it up at the end of the counter, aware that Chloe had gone to sit down and begin her meal. Was she that put off by him? Perhaps she was just hungry.
Sitting across from her, Jason placed his napkin on his lap. "Corned beef, huh?"
"A favorite. My dad used to get them when he'd come to the city, and he'd bring half back for me."
Childhood memory, he'd take that little nugget. "Come to the city, so where is home if not in the city?"
Her eyes were cautiously on his as she took a bite of her sandwich before setting it on the paper and chewing. "Aubrey Heights."
He had to think quickly, but it came to him. "They have a whole Christmas motif."
"Yes," she said but her eyes still held the same caution. "You've been there?"
"Yeah, lots of times. My mother was fanatical about the candle shop they have there."
A smile formed on Chloe's lips, which also had mustard smeared on them. God if she wasn't the most adorable woman he'd ever seen.
"Abby Foster has owned that store since I was a little girl. In elementary school we would take field trips to her store and she'd let us dip our own candles. My mother has a collection of Chloe's finest."
Her skin pinked when she talked of home, and there was a shimmer in her eyes.
"I remember the chocolate store," he sat back in his chair and crossed his legs, suddenly not hungry but ecstatic that he could watch the change in her expression each time he brought up something new.
"The Adlers own that. I have to stay away from their store though. It's so good I make myself sick," she said on a laugh before she took another bite. "When were you there last?"
Jason thought about it. "The Christmas before my mom moved to Florida. So five years now?" He remembered because it was after that his father had died.
"Did you just visit for a day, or did you make a vacation of it?"
"My mother did like to stay at the little inn on the edge of town. But the past few times were only day trips."
Her shoulders had eased, and she played with the straw in her cup, which he found sweet as she was occupied with her thoughts. "It's covered in snow right now," she said looking off into the distance. “Carriage rides were just beginning. The roasted chestnut vendors will have carts out this week. The carolers will start singing every night. Oh, and the tree will be lit on the first." She sighed, and Jason wasn't sure she even knew she'd taken a trip in her head.
"I'd love to see it. Especially covered in snow."
"Magical," she contemplated. Then as if she realized she'd become all dreamy about what she'd given up back home, she straightened and took another bite of her sandwich. "Where are you from?"
"Here."
"Here? That's it?"
"What more is there? Raised in an apartment, and then a town house. No backyard swing sets for me. I always had a park nearby."
"As an adult, I love city-living. I can't even imagine it as a kid."
"It wasn't so bad," he proposed. But then again a yard would have been magical.
"So, tell me what you know about Deb."
Chapter 10
Was he squirming in his seat? Chloe put down her sandwich and watched as he tore the paper from his straw and jabbed it into his drink.
Deborah King was a bigger deal than just some ad exec who swooped in and threatened to take the deal away from Chloe. The very mention of her name had Jason's expression going from humored, asking her questions, to nearly fearful as if he were under interrogation.
He took the top piece of bread off his sandwich, pulled off the tomato, and discarded it. Chloe noticed his hands shook. She'd certainly gone into some kind of territory with him on this, though the whole point of letting him take her to dinner, which she realized she'd paid for, was so that they could talk about Deb.
After a few moments, she wondered if he'd forgotten she'd asked him a question, but finally he looked up at her.
"Deborah King," he began and then let out a long, slow breath. "She's the reason I left Stockton."
"Oh," Chloe sighed. "Did she swoop in and take your position?" She hadn't meant for the bite of the words to be so sharp, but they were.
He shook his head as if it hadn't meant anything, or he hadn't noticed the tone. "I worked with her for five years. She's great at what she does. She can land any account she goes after, and she delivers. The woman is a workhorse."
"And she didn't leave any business for you?" The bite was still there, and Chloe assumed it would be for a while. After all, deep inside she was still trying hard not to like Jason Mitchell.
"She shared. My client list was impressive."
"Why leave?"
Chloe could see the red settle in his cheeks. Anger? Embarrassment? "Sexual harassment in the work place isn't always dished out by men."
That had Chloe easing back in the booth. "Oh." What else could she say?
"Two years into our working
relationship, I thought she was a tough gal, but she seemed to like me just fine. We worked okay together and she was teaching me a lot. Then it became lunches out and we'd go meet clients together. She had a flat tire and I drove her home once, and she asked me in, but I didn't go in. Of course, somewhere she'd prefaced that with the fact her husband was out of town on business, but I didn’t pay much attention to that. The little things began to build into big things and I'll admit, I got a little confused. She's ten years my senior, and she was looking at me as if she were hungry for me."
Jason stopped, picked up his drink, and sipped before continuing.
"I caved a little. Just a little," he emphasized as he lifted his head and looked Chloe straight in the eye. "It was one night in the elevator when I was leaving late. The doors were closing and she ran toward it waving her hands. I held it open and she slid in. A few floors down and she pushed the button to stop the car."
He took another sip of his drink and cleared his throat. "I knew what was going to happen and I let it. She moved in and kissed me. A hot and heavy kiss that had me backing to the wall. Her hands were in my hair, under my shirt, and down…" He didn't continue with the details. "Anyway, something happened after we were done groping each other in the elevator. We got downstairs and someone was there who needed her to go back up with them. Account crisis and all. There were a few more of those incidents, and I knew people were catching on. Then at the Christmas party I met her husband, and it all hit me that this was a serious thing that was happening. This woman was slapping my ass in passing. Groping me in the break room, and texting me at all times of the night."
He pushed away his sandwich and shook his head. "I'm not a home wrecker. I'm not someone's play toy. I take relationships seriously, and I won't be with a woman who doesn't take them seriously too. So, I stopped playing her games."
"And then she went after you?"
He lifted his head, and clarity shimmered from his eyes. "You could say that. Suddenly my accounts started to disappear. Connections I had no longer wanted to talk to me. She'd make her moves and I'd deny her, and then I'd get written up over something foolish. I dealt with it for a long time before I met William and he offered me the job."
Her job, Chloe thought. But for some reason, this time when it crossed her mind it didn't anger her as it might have before. This time she just felt sorry for him.
"That's horrible. Did you turn her in?"
"To where? If I filed charges against her she'd come back at me with he was involved too or turn it around on me."
"She'd be the victim?"
"Yeah. So it was easier to start over."
Chloe wrapped up the half of the sandwich she'd been eating. Suddenly she wasn't so hungry anymore. She'd never even considered that sexual harassment could go both ways, which was horribly naive of her.
It also had put some of her emotions in check when it came to Jason. She'd been mad from the moment she'd learned that he was there for the position she'd wanted. But then she did like to watch him walk out of a room. Was she equally as horrible as Deb?
No, she wasn't in the same boat as someone who sexually harassed, but she was abusive. Dear God! The stitches on his head were because of her. She could feel the warmth of irritation begin under her suit coat.
"It just pisses me off that she's still chasing my clients—the firm's clients," he corrected. "You worked your ass off for that account, there is no way in hell I'm going to let Deborah King walk in and take it away from you."
She felt her mouth fall open. He would fight for her? Why? She'd been nothing but a bitch to him from the moment he'd walked into her office. "It's not up to us if Gloria signs with us or not. I've done all the foot work and they know what I have to offer."
Jason slowly nodded. "Let’s go back and I’ll look over the contract you gave to Gloria. Maybe we can come up with some extra incentives that you can offer. Let's be in the lobby of Pop! Cosmetics first thing in the morning and we can present them to her. She will want to work with us. You deserve this account."
Something happened in that moment that Chloe couldn't quite explain. This man that had wrecked her world four days ago, whom she'd assaulted with a stapler, still wanted what was best for her. If it wasn't inappropriate, especially considering the topic of conversation about Deb, she would jump across the table and kiss the man on the mouth. Instead she stared at him formulating her two word reply. "Thank you."
"Let's take this back to the office. Are you good to keep working for a bit?" He looked at his watch. "It's nearly seven-thirty."
"I'm fine. Long hours don't bother me."
"Do you need to go home and change or anything? Not that you don't look nice in your suit, I just thought…"
"I have gym clothes in my office. You're right. It would be nice to be comfortable."
Jason laughed. "I have gym clothes in my office too. We'll take our dinner back and get to work."
Chapter 11
They'd gone back to the office and in different directions without another word. Chloe knew Jason's mind was spinning out new ideas. She'd seen that look a million times in the mirror.
Perhaps they were more alike than she'd like to admit.
As she wiggled her toes, which were covered in her favorite workout socks, she wondered how important Pop! Cosmetics really was to the company. If they lost it, would it really matter? They had plenty of business. Yes, this would be one of the biggest accounts ever landed for the firm, but did it make or break anything?
By Friday, she could have three more smaller accounts brought in and under contract. Why had it been so important to have this one? It hadn't done her any favors. In fact, she'd spent so much time courting Gloria Vandenberg, she'd lost her promotion.
Jason turned into her office, a pair of sweatpants, NYU T-shirt, and bare feet. There was a zing of remorse for looking at him the way she had. It seemed so intimate to see him barefooted, as if they were having a sleepover in her office.
She shook the thought from her head. There wouldn't be a moment where she looked at him and didn't think about Deborah King looking at him the same way. He was a professional. He'd gone into the office to work on a Sunday, and she'd thrown a stapler at his head. He'd stayed late to help her land the biggest client of her career, and she was sizing him up.
"Gloria Vandenberg is one loaded young lady," he said as he flipped through papers he carried in with him. "Do you know what she's worth?"
"Of course," Chloe said with a nod. "She's very talented too. She has an eye for color and fashion."
"Yeah, she does. She's a social media genius too. I mean, it doesn't hurt to have some of the influential friends she has either."
"They've done a lot for her," she agreed. "What are you getting at?"
He walked to her desk and sat down in the chair that faced her. "Why does she even want to use a company to promote her? I mean, seriously. In the day and age of social media, and the influencer market she's got, does she need us?"
Chloe was sure her mouth had fallen open. Was he serious?
"If she's a savvy business woman, just as she is, she knows there is more than social media. She needs us for the greater picture. Social media doesn't do TV commercials, radio spots, magazine ads, billboards, and…"
"I get it." He flipped through the printed pages he'd brought in. "What angle are you going with on this?"
"The angle I'm going with, is that we need to get these new options you talked about to her as soon as possible, and then decide on the angle."
"Right, but Deborah is going to come in with guns blazing. She knows as much as we do about the amount of money this girl has. We need to offer some big options for her."
"You want me to re-pitch to her?"
Jason leaned in, his arms rested on her desk. "Yes. I want you to re-pitch to her. Let's hit her in the heart. She had a sister die of cancer at the age of six."
"How do you know that?"
"How do you not?" he asked as he leaned back in
his seat. "That's the kind of stuff you dig for."
"And you want me to walk in and say, Hey, I know your sister died as a child and you should sign with me?"
The smile that turned up the corners of his mouth lit in his eyes. "She can do some good for the world with this company she's started. What if we have her consider a line that will benefit childhood cancer? Special colors. Special packaging. An ad campaign where she can open up about her sister."
And this was why the man had taken her job. He was brilliant.
"A personal angle on a bigger picture."
His eyes creased as his smile grew wider. "Exactly. Why have something this big without helping the world, right?"
"Right," she agreed, her voice airy. "Here is the contract that I gave her."
Chloe slid the papers across the desk to him and watched as he began to read each page. By the second page he had reached for her pen and began to make notes.
Two cups of coffee, a walk to the bathroom, and a trip to the vending machine later, Jason set the well-noted contract back on her desk.
"These are my suggestions to amending the contract. I think you'll find that she will jump at these new opportunities."
Chloe flipped through the pages. Nearly every clause, every exception, every promise was noted. She wanted to throw the papers back at him, but she found that every note he'd added was genius.
"I'll get this written up," Chloe said, lifting her eyes to his.
Jason smiled. "Are you sure you're up for it?" He looked at his watch, which she noticed was a Rolex. "It's ten o'clock."
"And we're going to be sitting in her office when she walks in," Chloe promised. "Let me get to work on this. If you want to go home…"
"We're in this together. I'm here until we're done."
The smile he kept steady on her twisted in her stomach. Was Deborah King drawn in by him like this? Were her actions as vicious as he'd made them out to be? Why did she want to jump across that desk and kiss him, just as she'd wanted to in the restaurant? It was ridiculous.
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