“Well, she didn’t know where to go. I’m just trying to help out,” Mitchell said, before greeting Brenda, the head of accounting, as she entered the elevator car as they exited.
“I can give you a tour.”
Jay’s words shocked him as he watched both Mitchell and Kasey turn to him in disbelief. Was it such an unfathomable idea that he would showcase the business he built from the ground up to the woman he had spent the last week convincing to join the team?
“Really?” Kasey asked. It was the first smile he’d seen on her face directed towards him, and in her business suit, it drew a reaction not appropriate for the setting.
Everything seemed to fit her perfectly, and Jay found it hard to accept how sexy she looked in business attire. Kasey was a professional powerhouse on her own, but he felt there could be so much more if she only listened to him, understanding and embracing his expertise in the business. She was just getting started on a career path he’d spent nearly two decades perfecting.
“Yeah, really?” Mitchell chimed in, his right eyebrow raised with suspicion.
“Come on,” Jay decided to ignore them both before walking to his office.
A smirk slid across his face when he heard her stilettos following behind him after a brief pause. Jay wondered if it would be inappropriate to start the tour of his company in his office. It was where he usually went first, and Kasey would need to know he was the boss—and what better way than to showcase the corner office with a spectacular view of the city?
“This is my office,” Jay turned to speak to Kasey, instantly catching the emotion that covered her face at his announcement. “I have to drop my briefcase off, then we can see the office,” he added quickly, hoping to put her at ease.
“This is very nice,” Kasey looked around the office, running her fingertips across the rich wood of his desk. She was impressed, even if she wouldn’t say it aloud, and he liked the feeling.
“Your office won’t be this nice just yet, but I guarantee it’s better than your closet at the old firm,” he teased, before leading her out of the office.
“Mr. Canton, I’m sorry I was away when you arrived, they needed a little assistance in the conference room,” Jay’s assistant greeted them.
“No problem. I’m giving Kasey a tour of the offices. Kasey, this is Jessica, she’s my assistant.”
The two women shook hands while exchanging genuine smiles before Jessica returned her attention to Jay.
“Would you like a coffee?” she asked.
“Yes, a cappuccino with an extra shot of espresso,” he answered, before looking over to Kasey and adding, “Do you want something?”
“Me? Oh, no,” she fumbled through the response, apparently caught off guard. Jay liked that feeling as well, and thought to himself how fun it would be to shock her with requests. She probably thought he would be a rigid boss with little to no communication with his employees, but she would soon learn otherwise.
“Are you sure? Jessica used to be a barista, she makes the best drinks,” he boasted of the secretary as she blushed beneath his quick and proud glance.
“Well, in that case, how about a macchiato?” Kasey reluctantly ordered.
“No problem.” Jessica seemed pleased she could do something for this woman receiving special treatment from her boss.
“Is the conference room ready?” Jay asked, before Jessica could rush to the breakroom to prepare their beverages.
“Yes, sir. Everything is prepared for the Monday meeting and the staff will all be waiting for you in fifteen minutes.” She spoke confidently. It was a weekly task, and after several years of working for him, Jessica was sure she could prepare a meeting in her sleep.
“Sounds good. I’ll see you then,” he nodded to dismiss her before turning to focus his attention on Kasey.
“She seems nice,” Kasey followed Jessica with her eyes, shifting her arms to adjust the weight of her shoulder bag.
“I can take that,” Jay offered, immediately fearing he was being inappropriate when she declined.
“Let’s go see your office,” he said, changed the subject before heading down a wide hallway lined with large windows.
Passions Publishing was about Minnesota as much as Jay, so when he’d helped design the building, he made sure to highlight the views from the city in every way possible. Seeing the city below kept him both grounded and motivated at the same time, usually pushing him to achieve goals and exceed benchmarks. Now, looking out the windows, he could only wonder if Kasey was remembering her first time viewing the city from Passions Publishing house.
Was she recalling the way he had held her tight against him while burying himself inside her?
They entered her office, which was much bigger than the one Jay busted into a few days ago. The gray carpet was accentuated by a simple pattern on the pale blue window treatments. As she looked from one corner to the next, Jay hoped she was happy with the office he’d personally arranged for her to have.
“You can ask Jessica if you need any help with decorating,” he finally said, after watching her in silence for a full minute.
“It’s perfect,” her voice was so low he wasn’t sure if he was meant to hear it.
“They’re ready for you, Mr. Canton, and here is your cappuccino.” Jessica smiled as she first gave Kasey her macchiato.
“I’ll see you in the meeting, Kasey.”
“Thank you for being so helpful.” She looked at him with sincerity streaked through her big brown eyes.
The employees shuffled into the conference room, chattering on about their weekends, packed schedules, and necessary planning. It was the time of the week when everyone made and confirmed plans for the week—speaking with colleagues from different departments they may not otherwise see.
“Before we begin, I’d like to introduce the newest addition to the Passions family. After reading the latest work from one of her clients, Mitchell and I both thought she had a lot to add to our team, and offered our new agent a home here with us. Please welcome Kasey Wright to the building, and please make her feel at home.”
The staff clapped for a short moment, with many waving or murmuring how they knew Kasey. She was happy to receive such a warm welcome, but Jay could sense she was a bit uncomfortable in the spotlight.
For the rest of the meeting, he barely looked at her, focusing instead on new authors who had caught his eye, and discussing suggestions for maximizing market share for different genres. The leaders gave feedback, expressed concerns of their employees, and outlined the new release dates they’d secured since the last meeting.
“This all sounds great. Let’s keep pushing in this same direction. You know the drill, guys. Reach out to Anne with any questions or concerns. Until next week,” Jay announced before clapping his hands together once, ending the meeting.
“Kasey, can you stay behind please? I need to speak with you about a writer,” Jay distractedly stopped Kasey from packing up as two guys attempted to pitch him an idea about a new division specializing in ghostwriting.
By the time the three men finished their conversation, the conference room was empty. Jay turned towards Kasey, seeing what looked to be impatience written on her face.
“Yes?” she asked, all but confirming his suspicion.
“Sorry about that delay, I just wanted to speak with you about an author I want you to vet,” Jay said, the words feeling weird against his tongue. Why was he apologizing for anything? She was his employee and he needed her time.
Her silence confused him, as she looked on, waiting for him to continue instead of jumping at the opportunity to assure him he had no reason to be sorry, as any reasonable employee would do.
“Her name is Justine Reynolds,” Jay could barely get her name out before Kasey waved her hand dismissively.
“Justine isn’t worth vetting. I’ve followed her career for five years, and never seen any potential for growth.”
Jay was completely baffled, struggling to maintain his com
posure. Who was she to tell him who was worth vetting, especially once he had recommended the writer? His lips curled upwards on one side, his frustration morphing into amusement.
“How about you set up a meeting with her and then we can discuss how worth vetting she is?” It wasn’t a question, and looking squarely into Kasey’s eyes, he was certain she could understand the order.
Jay sat back, wondering how he could have misread a situation so badly. Were his thoughts so clouded by his attraction to her that he had missed the indicators that she would be a difficult employee? All he’d requested was for her to do her job, and now they stood in a tense standoff, which he couldn’t understand.
“I have an author I’ve been working with, and she’ll actually be worth my time,” Kasey finally said, standing to gather the notebook in front of her.
“Is that so?” Jay remained seated, watching her performance.
“It is. And I’m sure Passions will push her into moving her contract over,” she said, before casually strolling out of the conference room.
With his eyebrows raised in disbelief, Jay watched her leave, wondering what her problem was. She couldn’t normally behave like this. Or could she?
Chapter 12
Kasey
It was after 3 pm when Kasey finally made her way out of the office. The new position at Passions Publishing had already provided more amenities than she expected. Her previous employer had one receptionist who answered everyone’s calls, but at Passions, she had her own secretary—a young redheaded girl named Stephanie, who was more than happy to do any and everything she could to help. The flicker of disappointment she flashed when Kasey turned down her offer for lunch was quickly replaced when she learned of a scheduled meeting.
Trisha Walters was Kasey’s most valuable client, and what made her more special was the fact that she had yet to truly understand her worth. It was never lost on Kasey that the opportunity with Passions Publishing was only possible because of the romance novel that had landed in Jay’s hands. Trish had written that book, and was more than halfway finished with her new project, one Kasey wanted to bring to Passions.
On her way to the lunch meeting with Trisha, Stephanie stopped Kasey at the entry to her new office.
“I checked with Jessica, and you can use this for your office décor,” she smiled deviously, while extending her hand. The petite fingers, with fire red manicured nails, wrapped around a black credit card.
“What is that?” Kasey asked, without accepting the offering.
“Your corporate card. You said you were going to a lunch meeting, so I wanted to make sure your expense account was set up.” Stephanie seemed confused by the apprehension displayed by her new boss. It was the norm for executives at Passions to write off their expenses.
“I don’t need a credit card,” Kasey said, although it was more of a personal thought than a declaration.
“It’s actually more paperwork to recover the costs later, so these help me out with making sure you get everything that you’re owed.”
For a long moment, Kasey stood contemplating the gesture. Was it something Jay was doing as a special favor to her? She had been struggling to understand his position since she bumped into him this morning. From his impromptu tour, she thought he wanted to be friends, or at least friendly. Then, after the meeting he kept her behind, despite having any valuable information that required a sidebar meeting.
Jay Canton wasn’t the type of man to get hung up on a brief sexual encounter, so she knew that wasn’t the explanation, but she knew there was a chip on her shoulder. If she could land Trisha, she was confident Jay would stop babysitting her and let her do the job he so eagerly chased her for.
“Every agent uses these for meetings,” Stephanie grew tired of Kasey’s inexperience quickly, choosing to slide the credit card into the side panel of her shoulder bag instead. After passing on her own plans while Kasey would be away with Trisha, Stephanie walked back to her desk.
On the way to the restaurant, Kasey couldn’t help but acknowledge how much had changed in such a short span of time. Her old office hadn’t been fit to host a meeting, and every lunch she taken her clients to had been on her own dime. Now, she had the office of her dreams, plus a corporate credit card to pay for every expense associated with the job.
The idea of bringing her clients into Passions Publishing brought a smile to her face as she pulled into the parking garage. First, she needed to secure their trust and move her major clients to her new home. Afterwards, she would tour them around the new digs, sure to impress them as she had been.
“Trisha! How are you?” She yelped as she walked in to see her favorite author waiting for her at the bar to Reggianos,’ an Italian restaurant downtown.
“Hi Kasey,” she squealed, rushing to her feet to throw her arms around Kasey’s neck. It was anything but formal, but her personal relationships were what set Kasey apart from her competition in the agency world.
“Have you been waiting long?” Kasey asked, glancing down at her rose gold watch.
“Oh no, I got here early. I needed a drink,” she giggled, before drinking the last of the amber colored liquid floating around her glass.
After a few minutes of small talk, a waiter came over to seat the two women, and Kasey wasted no time cutting to the chase so they could discuss business.
“I sent you an email about my move to Passions Publishing,” Kasey began, before being interrupted by Trisha.
“You did, though you know I loved Ron and the whole crew,” Trish said, referring to Kasey’s old employer.
“As did I. We had some great years together, and I’m committed to continuing to help them as friends. My decision wasn’t personal, but I do want you to join me in the venture,” Kasey said.
“Passions is such a big firm, though. My first book was self-published, I don’t want to get too far from where I started.”
“I get that, and you assume a big firm can do nothing but big sales, and you’re wrong. I’ve got so many resources at my disposal, taking your career to the next level is all but guaranteed.”
“I’m not worried about my books not selling, as much as the possibility of getting swallowed up by the big machine, never to be heard from again,” Trisha sighed, as she thought of how a big contract could drastically change her approach to writing as well as her delivery.
“Don’t be silly, Trisha, you’re my top seller and the first person I’ve talked to since switching homes. I want you to be my premiere client, and I’m sure you know what that entails,” Kasey said, since she was willing to bring in the big guns early if necessary.
“Premiere client?” Trisha repeated the words, trying on their title for size before quickly realizing how well it fit.
“That’s right! You’ll have my secretary on call at any time of the day, and together we can map out your releases and marketing campaigns, using the LA and New York offices when necessary.” Kasey had thought through just how much her clients could benefit since Jay had made the offer for her to come to work with him.
Sure, there were some things about the change she didn’t enjoy, but the benefits were undeniable. Trisha could see this as well, and although she obviously wanted to excel, watering down her writing to appeal to the masses was not a compromise she was willing to make. An agent was only as strong as their connection with their writers, so it was important to Kasey that Trisha knew how bright her future could be, understanding the new levels that Passions could take her to.
“You are going to top lists for a really long time, Trisha. I know you think this is the pinnacle, but I guarantee that it’s not. You’re just beginning and I want to take you to the top, living out your wildest dreams. I took this position because it’s necessary for a writer of your caliber to have the best resources and round the clock assistance. It’s a sacrifice for me to leave a firm I love so dearly, but it’s one I’m willing to make to give you what you need. You deserve it, and I believe in you, Trisha.”
&nb
sp; It was a well delivered speech, and Kasey meant every word she said. From the glassiness in Trisha’s eyes, she knew her words were well received, but that didn’t stop the nerves in her belly as she awaited her response.
“I’ve never heard anyone talk about my work as passionately as you do, Kasey. You’re the first person to even believe I can write, and that means the world to me. I won’t lie; when I heard about the switch, it felt very sudden, and reading it through email was too formal. Sitting in front of you now, I’m sure you’re still the girl that convinced me I could do this, and there’s no one else I’d rather have leading my career.”
It was the best reaction she could imagine. Kasey had successfully brought over her most important client. Her initial desire to run back to Jay like a dog with a bone rubbed her the wrong way, but she brushed it off as she ordered champagne on the corporate card to celebrate. Before hugging Trish goodbye, the two set up a time for her to come in and meet Jay so they could sign the paperwork and make the deal official.
My One and Only: A Bad Boy Secret Baby Second Chance Romance Page 31
