“Here we are, angel. Turning Stone Advertising,” I announced.
“You probably shouldn’t call me that when we are here,” she whispered.
“It’s fine for now. Nobody’s here at the moment. I’ve instructed the staff to tie up loose ends at the old office this morning. Your team will join you after lunch. I figured that you might want the morning to yourself to get acclimated.”
We walked down the main hallway and I pointed to the various offices that employees would use. I led her into one of the large design rooms that could be used for both client meetings and strategy planning.
“Wow, Alex! I couldn’t ask for this space to be laid out any better,” she walked around the long oval conference table and over to the large windows on the far wall. “The lighting in here is simply fantastic.”
“It is, but my designer thought differently. She said that you might find the late afternoon sun to be somewhat of a hindrance. She had an automatic shade installed so that the light doesn’t interfere with the flat screens and white board. You’ll probably want to explore this room more extensively later. There’s quite a bit of equipment at your disposal.”
Her eyes were wide as she took in the rest of the room.
“I can see that,” she murmured as her eyes settled on the state of the art stereo, audio, and recording systems that she could utilize for radio advertisements.
“Follow me this way. There’s more for you to see,” I told her, anxious for her to see the space that was designed specifically for her.
We walked to the far end of the hallway, where the doublewide glass doors for Krystina’s main office faced us. Turning Stone Advertising had been etched into frosted glass in a large swirling black font, with her name imprinted right below it.
Turning Stone Advertising
Krystina Cole
Chief Executive Officer
“Fancy,” she commented. “Wait. That says Chief Executive Officer.”
“Yes. So it does.” I chuckled as I pushed through the glass doors. “Welcome to your new office, Miss Cole.”
CHAPTER 14
I was trying to process why in the world he would have me titled the CEO, when my breath caught in my throat. The office – my office – was more than I could have ever imagined. To say that it was stunning would be a gross understatement. I was speechless, unable to utter a single word, as I took in the magnificent space.
The room was wide, traveling the entire length of the building, with my own private restroom. Floor to ceiling windows flanked the north and south walls. Plush armchairs were arranged around a glass-topped table to form a seating area off to my right. A mini bar, which included an elaborate coffee machine, was to my left. The fact that he remembered my penchant for caffeine made me smile.
A polished wood desk sat centered on the west wall, made of an eclectic blend of reclaimed antique hardwoods that was simply stunning. However, despite the beauty of the craftsmanship, I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the artwork that was behind it.
It was a mural of a single white lily against a black and gray backdrop. It spanned the entire length of the room. The colors swirled together in a downward pattern, creating a waterfall effect with the lily as the focal piece. Above the lily, a quote was inscribed.
“There's something which impels us to show our inner souls. The more courageous we are, the more we succeed in explaining what we know.”
-Maya Angelou
The quote was one of my favorites.
“Do you like it?” Alexander asked. If I wasn’t mistaken, he sounded nervous.
“Like it? Alex, I…” I trailed off, unable to find the right word to describe what I was thinking. “Everything is perfect.”
“Because of all the framed quotes that you have in your bedroom, I thought it was safe to assume that you had a fondness for Maya Angelou. I picked a quote that I felt best suited you.”
I looked at him then, having realized that I hadn’t given him enough credit. His attention to detail and the way the office was crafted specifically to reflect my personality, showed how well he knew me. Suddenly overwhelmed with emotion, I blinked at the sting of tears that were beginning to form.
“I couldn’t have picked a better quote myself. Really, Alex. Everything is beyond compare,” I said sincerely.
“I just wanted you to be happy and comfortable here, angel. I know that you were apprehensive about taking the job.”
“Well, you’re doing a fantastic job of convincing me that this was the right decision,” I laughed.
“Good, because there is one more thing. I made a few modifications to the contract that I originally presented to you. I think that you’ll find the adjustments in your favor. I left it for you in the top drawer of your desk. Take your time and look it over,” he said. He kissed the top of my head and moved towards the door.
“Wait, you’re leaving? Don’t you want to go over it with me?”
“I have to get back for an appointment. If you need anything or have any questions about it, you can find me in my office.”
“Oh, okay. I’ll probably be up a little later,” I said distractedly, still trying to take in my surroundings.
After he was gone, I looked more closely at my office space, wanting to absorb every single detail of it. I smiled to myself and wanted to squeal with delight. Walking behind my new desk, I took a seat. As I pulled out the revised contract, Allyson’s words echoed in my mind.
You were right, Ally.
Things are definitely turning out better than I thought they would.
****
I sat at my desk and looked over the invoices for the upcoming fundraiser. I pinched the bridge of my nose and looked at the clock. I still had a lot to prepare for before tomorrow.
I don’t have time to be dealing with this.
Normally, I would have passed this sort of task on to Bryan to handle. However, Justine was adamant that we go through everything together.
I should be with Krystina right now.
I was anxious to see how she would react to my new offer. The contract that I left for her was not an employment contract, but a transfer of ownership. I didn't want her financial stability to be looming over our relationship. Turning Stone would all be hers once she signed on the dotted line.
The phone on my desk buzzed.
“Mr. Stone, Ms. Andrews is here to see you,” Laura said through the speaker.
“Send her in please.”
Justine, as usual, entered my office like a whirlwind.
“Alex, I feel like my head is spinning. The fundraiser is less than a week away and I’m running out of time. I need to steal Laura from you for a couple of days.”
“That’s not happening, Justine. I have a major deal closing tomorrow with Canterwell, and I need her too much at the moment. You’re going to have to handle this yourself,” I told her firmly. I knew that Justine was perfectly capable, but she lacked the confidence at times.
“Fine. Be that way. But if something isn’t done right, don’t blame me,” she said petulantly.
“I hate it when you pout,” I said with a frown.
“I’m also worried about Charlie showing up. I don’t know why, but it’s always in the back of my mind.”
I took a deep breath and tried not to lose my patience over her obsession with her ex-husband showing up unannounced. In my eyes, she was acting paranoid.
“You need to relax. Don’t worry about Charlie. I handled him. Things will be fine. I just read over the invoices. You’ve done a fantastic job. This will be the most profitable fundraiser that The Stoneworks Foundation has put on yet.”
“The numbers work, but I wish I could have cut down on a few of the costs. I’m hoping that the silent auction makes up for it. That’s what I wanted to go over with you. I figured you might see an opportunity that I missed.”
“Well, there is –.”
The door to my office came crashing open. Krystina was red faced and holding the contract that
I left in her desk.
“Are you out of your mind?” she exclaimed. Laura was trailing in her wake.
“Mr. Stone. I’m so sorry. She just – she wouldn’t listen,” Laura sputtered. I had never seen my assistant so flustered. I smiled to myself.
Welcome to my world.
“It’s fine, Laura. I’ll handle it,” I assured her before looking to Krystina. “Krystina, have a seat.”
“I will not have a seat, Alex! You need to explain this!” she yelled, waving the fistful of papers around angrily.
“Krystina, sit down,” I said more firmly. I motioned to Justine. “I’d like you to meet my sister, Justine Andrews.”
“Your sister? Oh!” Krystina’s flushed face turned ten shades redder when she noticed Justine sitting there. She shook her head as she tried to collect herself. “Oh my gosh. I’m so sorry. You must think I’m crazy. I’m Krystina Cole. It’s nice to meet you.”
Krystina walked over to Justine and held out her hand. Justine was wide eyed as she accepted the handshake. She looked as if she had been stunned into silence. More than likely, she was shocked that I allowed a scene such as this to happen. Nobody ever came to my office unannounced, let alone screaming and yelling. Justine knew that better than anyone.
I looked at the two women. They were among the most exasperating individuals that I had ever encountered. I contemplated how I should handle them being in the same room together.
I leaned forward and propped my elbows on the desk.
“Krystina is taking over the Turning Stone division of Stone Enterprise. Today is her first day,” I informed Justine. “She has yet to learn the protocol.”
“Yes, about that,” Krystina began, but I didn’t let her finish.
“Justine and I were in a meeting. We were going over some of the numbers for the charity gala this Friday. Since you are going to be my date, perhaps you’d like to partake in our discussion.”
“Your date?” Justine choked out, having finally found her voice.
“Yes. I told Krystina about your Moulin Rouge vision. She thinks it’s a great idea.”
“I do?” questioned Krystina, obviously taken aback. I smiled innocently at her.
“You do. In fact, we’ll be going shopping on Wednesday for the appropriate attire. What do you suggest we wear, Justine?” I asked, turning back to the other incorrigible woman in my life.
“Oh, um…” she trailed off as her eyes shifted back and forth between Krystina and me. “The women will be in cabaret style dresses, the men in coat tails and top hats. There’s a great shop on West 25th Street. They have an excellent selection of vintage style clothing for the occasion.”
“It’s settled then. That’s where we will go,” I announced.
Daggers were shooting from Krystina’s eyes, and they were aimed straight at me. She was seething, but I could tell that she was trying to keep her temper in check in front of Justine. For some odd reason, I found the situation to be incredibly amusing.
“Sounds perfect,” Krystina said, her voice laden with sarcasm. “I’m going to go and let you two finish up. It’s nearing lunchtime, so I expect that the Turning Stone employees will be arriving shortly. I want to be there to greet them.”
She looked as though she wanted to stomp her foot. I had to put my tongue in my cheek to contain my grin as I watched her stalk from the room. Once she was gone, Justine rounded on me.
“What was that all about?” she demanded.
“It was nothing.”
“Alex, I know you too well. That wasn’t nothing. She wasn’t nothing.”
I sighed and leaned back in my chair. I rubbed my hands over my face, already exhausted from the conversation. My relationship with Krystina was my own personal business. Justine did not need to know the details of it.
“It’s complicated. I’d prefer to not get into it.”
Justine eyed me suspiciously for a moment, before her eyes went as wide as saucers.
“Oh my god! Are you dating her? Like, really dating her?”
“What if I am?”
“For starters, you never date. Secondly, she’s an employee. Since when do you mix business with pleasure?”
“That’s not your concern,” I told her firmly, not bothering to mention that Krystina’s employment status would change the minute the new contract was signed. Technically, she will no longer be working for me, but for herself.
Justine crossed her legs and looked pointedly at me, but my determination to maintain my privacy was unyielding as I stared her down. She looked away and began picking at a chip in her finger nail polish.
“She doesn’t look like your type,” she mused.
“I didn’t realize that my type had a look,” I replied dryly, but she just ignored my comment.
“I don’t think bringing her to the gala is a good idea, Alex. Suzanne will be there.”
“Christ, not this again!” I threw my hands in the air, having finally gotten to the root of what Justine’s thought process was. I was incensed that she would even bring Suzanne into question.
“Come on, Alex! Don’t be insensitive. You know that she’ll be crushed to see you with someone else.”
I shook my head and took a deep breath.
“I can’t help that, and you know that as well as I do. I’ve always just considered Suzanne a friend and nothing more. The minute I realized that she had other ideas, I stopped asking her to accompany me to various functions. I know that you are loyal to her, but I could never give her what she was looking for.”
“Yeah, so you’ve said,” she commented with a smirk. “I believe you told her something about not being the dating kind.”
“That’s correct,” I said cautiously.
“Suzanne knows a lot about our past, Alex.”
I was about to tell her that I told Krystina nearly everything already, and that it was no thanks to Justine’s big mouth that Krystina was alerted to the past in the first place. However, I stopped short when I saw the worried expression on her face. Justine told Suzanne everything. I knew that.
How much does Suzanne know exactly?
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying that you’re playing with fire, Alex. Don’t say that I didn’t warn you.”
CHAPTER 15
The sun is hot. My house will be even hotter.
I don’t want to go inside.
He gets angry when he’s hot.
I look at my bike that is lying in the ugly dead grass.
I should pick it up so I don’t get yelled at. Mom says that Grandma bought me that bike and I should take better care of it.
I’m too sweaty. I’ll put it away later.
I go into the apartment building and pinch my nose. The hallway always smells like a toilet. I need to get to my door where it doesn’t smell so much inside.
I hear yelling. Is that him?
No. It’s the crazy lady down the hall.
My backpack is so heavy.
I can’t wait to put it down.
Not on the floor, though. He’ll get mad if he trips.
I look at the numbers on the doors that I pass. Ten. Eleven. Twelve. Three. The one is missing. I think it is supposed to say thirteen.
Almost there.
I reach the door that has the number fifteen and place my hand on the nob.
I bolted upright, the sound of the alarm clock ringing shrill in my ears. I reached over to the nightstand to silence it. I shook my head and tried to will away the images of the night. And the smells.
What the fuck?
At the very least, I was thankful that the alarm woke me before the dream went any further.
The last thing that I need to do is to start the day off analyzing that shit.
My brain felt foggy. I needed Krystina. I sat up in bed and tried to remember what day it was.
Wednesday.
I scowled when I remembered that I hadn’t spoken to Krystina since Monday. I was partly to blame for that, as the Cante
rwell deal took more finesse than I anticipated. What should have been a simple sign and go, wound up being dinner and drinks with George Canterwell about another potential property sale.
And the greedy bastard still wouldn’t budge on the price.
I rubbed my hands over the stubble on my face as I thought about the past two days. Despite my busy schedule, I still called and texted Krystina multiple times, only to receive a short response or be ignored all together. I tried to stop by her floor, but found her conveniently busy in closed-door meetings with the employees from Turning Stone.
I knew when I was being put off, and I suspected that it was because she was still upset over my proposal. It was safe to assume that she’d be stubborn about accepting, but I hadn’t expected her to be outright angry.
Transferring ownership of Turning Stone to her was meant to put her more at ease. I didn’t want her employment status to be looming over us and potentially get in the way of our relationship. I understood the meaning of financial instability. I never wanted her to worry about having that stress. Giving her Turning Stone was merely a drop in the bucket, despite Stephen and Bryan’s arguments. It was a portion of my business that I had little time for anyways. My focus had always been, and always would be, real estate.
Enough is enough. She can’t continue on like this.
Feeling frustrated, I threw the blankets off and climbed out of bed.
I need a work out and a shower.
After completing a solid thirty minutes of cardio, I took a quick shower and dressed for the day. As I knotted my tie, I eyed up the line of clothes that were purchased for Krystina. They took up an entire row of the walk-in closet, bright and colorful, and such a contrast to the utilitarian colored suits that I wore. The closet was hers as much as it was mine.
She belongs here. Regularly.
I toyed with the idea of convincing her to move in with me as I retrieved my cell from the dresser and I made my way to the kitchen.
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