Nicole regularly chastised Kasey for driving like a grandma, but if she could see how quickly she made her way back to Passions Publishing, she would be shocked. The eagerness to share her good news prompted her to use the valet service before she briskly walked to the elevator.
On her way to her office, she saw Jay in the glassed in conference room speaking with the same two men from the meeting earlier. After noticing the door was open, she decided to pop in and announce her acquisition.
“Do you need something?” Jay asked curtly, as she stood in the doorway.
“I had some good news and wanted—” Kasey was interrupted before she could finish the sentence.
“We’re in a meeting. I’ll come and find you when we finish, but you’ll need to leave.” His eyes dismissed her before his words, as he turned his attention back to the men, who were visibly embarrassed for Kasey.
After two slow blinks, she turned on her heels and headed towards the door, stunned by his bold display of power. Was this the type of boss Jay was to everyone? She didn’t like the way he spoke to her and couldn’t shake the thought that it was some sort of vendetta against her. As she settled into a leather loveseat in her new office, she wondered if coming to Passions Publishing was a good decision after all.
Chapter 13
Jay
“Well, that’s pretty much it, sir.” Jake said. He’d been timid and outwardly anxious since Jay kicked Kasey out of their meeting, but he didn’t care. In his eyes, she deserved to be talked to the way she was for barging into his meeting.
He asked himself, who did she think she was to barge in a meeting unannounced? The silly smile on her face only infuriated him further, as if his work was a joke that could easily be put on hold. With his ego brewing, he agreed to end the meeting with Jake and Todd before preparing himself to go home for the evening.
Just as he passed his office, seeing Mitchell already sitting in his normal chair for their end of the day recap, he noticed Kasey walking towards the elevator, her hair bouncing with each intentional step. Walking with purpose, he stopped her just as the elevator doors open.
“I need to talk to you,” he said, and from the rise and fall of her shoulders, he knew she wasn’t interested in hearing another word from him.
“Yes?” she said, turning to face him.
God, she was pretty, even when she was mad. But that would never be enough for Jay to allow her to overstep boundaries, which was something he was very serious about.
“You can’t just burst into a meeting unannounced, Kasey. I know this is your first day, but you need to understand that I’m the boss, and you work for me. We’re not equals, and I won’t stand for you embarrassing me in front of my employees, as if we’re friends or something. We’re not.” He was clear and concise, sure to annunciate every syllable perfectly.
“Mr. Canton, I’m exhausted, and ready to leave for the day. While you may have thought my interrupting a meeting you were having with the door open was my attempt to embarrass you, I guarantee it was not. Pardon my excitement, but I got a verbal commitment from Trisha Walters today, and she’s going to make far more than all the wanna-be writers you want me to consider.”
“Trisha Walters is coming to Passions?” Jay tried to push the excitement in his voice down, but if there was a reason he offered Kasey a position, Trisha was it. For her to sign the budding writer on her first day exceeded his expectations.
“That’s the plan,” she beamed as she leaned forward, calling the elevator once more. The doors opened immediately, and she stepped inside before turning to face Jay.
“Bring her in tomorrow so we can make it official,” Jay said, holding the elevator doors to prevent their closure.
“Will do,” was all Kasey said before raising her eyebrows in a silent request for him to leave.
Jay was fuming by the time he walked into his office, disturbing Mitchell who sat on the leather loveseat reading emails from his smartphone.
“She thinks she’s the boss, and she’s not, Mitch. This might never work,” Jay vented after closing the door to his office.
“What’s going on?” his friend asked, turning in his seat to see the frustration written all over Jay’s face.
“After the meeting this morning, I told her about an author I wanted her to review, and she all but blew me off to take a meeting with Trisha Walters. Then, she comes barging into a meeting afterwards, like she’s won the super bowl,” Jay shook his head, walking over to the corner bar in his office.
“She signed Trisha Walters?” Mitchell could barely contain himself, rising from his comfortable seat to join his friend at the bar.
“She thinks she did,” Jay said, refusing to acknowledge her victory until he saw the signatures.
“That’s amazing! You’ve read her work, and know how much our romance division needs a boost. That’s worth celebrating!” Mitchell exclaimed as he took the glass tumbler with whiskey from Jay’s extended hand.
“That doesn’t mean she can run around here like she built the company we’ve worked so hard for. She isn’t a superstar for bringing in one client. We pay her very well to do that,” Jay insisted.
“She’s obviously a hard worker, Jay. And we can both admit she’s good at what she does. We need her to take a few of our divisions to new heights, so don’t worry about giving her a little praise. It can’t hurt,” Mitchell shrugged.
Jay couldn’t stop wondering how much the part of the story that he’d not shared with his friend changed his perspective. Would Mitchell still feel the same if he knew everything that went down between the two at their company party?
“Come on, Jay, bumping heads with her sometimes is to be expected. You’re both creative with strong personalities, so it’s probably inevitable. Don’t beat yourself up about it, but try to give her a break on her first week,” Mitchell added when Jay didn’t respond. “Moving to a larger corporate environment is a pretty big change for her.”
Jay wondered if his friend was right, but didn’t want to think reasonably, so instead he remained silent as the two sipped their whiskey, recounting the day’s events as was their custom.
As usual, Mitchell was right. Passions Publishing did need Kasey to advance in some key areas, but Jay wasn’t willing to yield his power for the greater good of the business. While he hoped it never came to that, Jay knew in his heart, there was no way he would bend over backwards to make Kasey feel comfortable. He was the boss, and she needed to respect that.
“Come on, let’s call it a night,” Mitchell said, disrupting Jay’s thoughts.
“Is it the weekend yet?” Jay joked, as the two left his office, ending what felt like the longest start to a week.
Walking through the offices, they both made a mental note of the employees working later than others, knowing they were the most dedicated. After a few short conversations, they made their way to the elevator with Jay’s thoughts on Kasey, wondering just how much trouble she was going to be.
Chapter 14
Kasey
She was so excited for the meeting, Kasey barely slept. Choosing to spend the early morning dolling herself up, she came into work more polished than usual. Her hair was pulled back, styled in a chignon bun that complimented the high neckline of her ivory chiffon blouse. The contrast in colors with her high waist black skirt made her appear even curvier than usual.
“Mr. Canton is ready for you,” Stephanie announced.
Kasey had arrived at work to find a memo from Jay requesting the details of her meeting with Trisha, and then a follow-up with a set location.
Trying to appear much cooler than she felt, Kasey smiled awkwardly while accepting all the paperwork Stephanie had prepared for the meeting.
“You’ll do fine,” her assistant assured her, before walking by her side to the conference room.
“Can you find me a good restaurant for lunch? Something fancy enough for a celebration, but not so fancy I can’t get in without a reservation,” Kasey requested, befo
re taking one last deep breath and entering the conference room.
Outside of the inter office memos, she’d had no communication with Jay, so she didn’t know what to expect when they were face to face.
“Good morning,” he greeted her, standing as he set his iPhone on the glass table.
Jay had decided on which room to use for the meeting, but to her surprise, Kasey liked his selection. It was much smaller than the conference room where they’d had the group meeting the previous day. The other major difference was the lack of glass walls, providing more privacy for them to close the deal.
“Morning,” Kasey smiled, setting the paperwork on the table.
Before she could gauge his attitude, Jessica appeared at the door to the conference room announcing Trisha’s arrival. She walked in wearing jeans and a t-shirt, which made Kasey proud. She always loved Trisha’s free spirit. Regardless of how much money or success she earned, there was no changing the simple writer Kasey had discovered writing on a less than popular blog.
“Kasey, this place is so big! And nice!” Trisha squealed, hugging Kasey just as she had only a day before at the restaurant.
“Yes, it’s a lot to get used to,” Kasey began.
“We sure hope you do,” Jay chimed in.
“Trisha, this is my boss, Jay Canton. He is the most successful man in this industry, and he believes in you as much as I do,” Kasey interrupted Jay, wanting to make the introduction.
Despite their rocky start, she was certain that her writers needed to feel supported during a move this big, and she wanted to present a strong front for their sake.
“She’s telling the truth, and we wanted to show you just how much we see in your future if you’d give us a few minutes of your time,” Jay added, walking around the roundtable to shake Trisha’s hand before offering her a seat.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Mr. Canton,” Trisha shook his hand with admiration in her eyes.
Kasey knew Trisha was well versed in the publishing industry, so while this might be the first time she had met Jay, it was not her first time hearing of this man who needed no introduction.
Flipping through the paperwork prepared by her assistant, Kasey pulled a mock-up cover from the pile, sliding it over to Trisha. It was touching to see the look in her eyes as she realized how sleek and professional her books could look. With the latest in technology available at their fingertips, Passions Publishing in-house creative staff had drafted up several mock book covers, as well as promotional items and media kits.
At her previous employer, Kasey couldn’t offer anything comparable to the products it took less than a morning’s work for her new team to compile. And from the look on Trisha’s face, it was all worth it, and great for convincing her to switch teams.
“Trisha, we want to make you an international success. Our international department translates books in over 45-languages, which you can imagine will significantly increase the available market around the world. Kasey has been very compelling in sharing your dedication to your craft, and we just want to help you get your books into as many hands as possible.” Jay spoke confidently, without the intimidation factor he seemed to carry when he spoke to Kasey.
It was a new side to him, and she liked it. Without taking any credit from her, he’d offered himself as a selling point for joining Passions Publishing. She loved the way he spoke about her confidence in Trisha, although he’d cleaned up her boasting about how much money she could earn him.
“Wow. When Kasey told me about the possibilities available here, I never really expected to sit down with you, Jay. Even when she said it yesterday, I didn’t expect you to know anything about little ole’ me. So, without further ado, let’s get these papers signed!”
As if he was listening from the small crack in the door, a man in an impeccable suit entered the conference room as soon as she retrieved the contracts from her pile of paperwork.
“This is Luther, our in-house council. He’s going to notarize the contracts as we go,” Jay explained as both Kasey and Trisha looked on in awe.
None of their previous contracts had involved a notary, and Kasey scrunched her nose trying to remember if she’d ever heard anyone mention the term ‘in-house council’ at her old firm. It was all new to them, but the glamor felt right. When the contracts were finished, Jessica entered the conference room holding a tray of champagne flutes filled with bubbly liquid, and they celebrated together. It was much better champagne than Kasey had ordered at their previous lunch, so she made sure to have an extra glass.
“You did great,” Jay said to Kasey after Trisha left, and she bit her bottom lip to stop the smile from spreading across her face. It was strange how much value his compliments held.
“You too,” she rushed a response before he rushed out, following Jessica to handle another problem that seemed to be a high priority.
It was just afternoon when Kasey left for lunch. After such a successful morning, she wanted to treat herself. Stephanie had done a great job scheduling her at a sushi bar, and it was just when her salmon rolls were delivered that the woman sat in the seat across from her at the small intimate table, startling her.
“You probably don’t know me,” she began, and Kasey decided to let her play the game out.
With her chopsticks, Kasey gently carried a piece of the sushi to her mouth in silence. If her strategy was shock, the woman must know each passing seconds made her less valuable.
“My name is Renee Rockwell, and I’m the sole founder of the largest publishing house in the Midwest,” she said, staring across the table intensely.
Kasey knew exactly who she was, in addition to her bitter rivalry with Jay. It was well known in the industry that the two had bad blood.
“Thank you for joining me, but I’m actually trying to celebrate in peace,” Kasey admitted, unsure of what the woman wanted.
“I know you’re with Passions now, so I’m certain you’ve been able to guess how things with you and Jay can easily go left. Let’s face it, he’s an ego manic,” Renee began, but her second sentence prompted Kasey to giggle a little.
“I know you’ve seen it. He’s intimidated by strong women like us, and it will only grow stronger as you continue to bring in names like Trisha Walters.”
Kasey was stunned. How could Renee know about that deal when it had only been news for a few hours? She must have been as cunning as her reputation suggested, because it seemed she had someone working within the publishing house feeding her info—like where she’d be having lunch and who she’d hosted at her new office.
“If you come and work for me, you won’t have to worry about any of that, Kasey. All I want is for you to flourish under my wing. We’ll be a dynamic duo with the clients, and I won’t watch over you to make sure you get things done the way Jay does.”
“Listen, Renee. I appreciate you coming so far from the north side of town where your office sits,” Kasey was bold, showing how she knew of Renee’s tricks and would not be an easy target, if a target already.
“That’s just his game of pretend—he likes looking like an angel in the beginning, but believe me his true colors will reveal themselves soon enough,” she stood, taking a cue.
“Nice to meet you,” Kasey nodded as Renee stood.
“But keep this. You’ll be needing it,” Renee slid a business card across the white tablecloth before leaving as quickly and quietly as she appeared.
Once she was sure she was gone, Kasey picked up the card and slid it in her purse. Jay had been wonderful in their meeting earlier, but a backup plan was never a bad idea.
Chapter 15
Jay
It had been over an hour since Jay had sent a memo asking Kasey to come down to his office, but she had yet to respond. He wondered if she could be out of the office, or if she was simply ignoring him. It was difficult to think he could have possibly misread her so badly, because he was known for being able to read women well.
Kasey’s confidence in the boardroom
was even sexier than her outfit, which caused Jay to shift his pants under the table before they began the meeting. There was something about her that made it difficult for Jay to be his normal commanding self in the office, and it made him uneasy.
Eventually Mitchell came by for their evening recap, but Jay’s mind was elsewhere, constantly jumping at every alert from his buzzing phone, hoping for a message from Kasey.
“I told you she would be worth every penny,” Mitchell slapped his best friend on the shoulder, congratulating him on Kasey’s win as if it were his own.
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