Chapter Seven
In her apartment, surrounded by books and the wall of windows that looked out on the skyline, Justine lay on the couch, her head on Thea’s lap. Thea gently tugged strands of her hair, just as she’d done when Justine was a child.
“I was so stupid, Mom. Making a deal with Daddy, agreeing to something like that. What was I thinking?”
Thea murmured some soothing sound Justine couldn’t make out.
Her heart raced when she wondered what would’ve happened to her if Sawyer hadn’t been there. But then he had been there, which was wonderful and terrible at the same time. “Not like he gave me a choice. I had to save the house.”
“Mmm.”
“I mean, let’s say I agreed to it and tried to make this show. I would have fallen on my face eventually, and seriously, do I need another humiliating failure in front of Daddy? Especially after this. He’d go nuclear if he found out I kissed Sawyer.” She sat up and hugged a pillow tight. “Life used to make sense to me, and I don’t get it anymore. I just don’t.”
“Baby?”
“And Sawyer, God. He’s so…” Justine sighed, wallowing in the sympathy like a cocoon. “I feel things when he’s with me. At first, I wanted to annoy him. But, then he made me feel again. I’ve been numb inside for so long.”
“I know.”
She’d loved her boyfriend. When the tape came out, she thought they’d weather it together. But her father stepped in, offering him enough money to finish college and make a fresh start across the country. After that, she’d been on her own. What man could withstand her father’s brand of persuasion? If it wasn’t money, it was threats. She found it best to not feel.
“He thinks sleeping with me would be like a dog too stupid to step out of the yard when he needs to relieve himself. He calls that ‘shitting where you eat.’ And he’s kind of right. I mean, can you imagine how Daddy would react if he found out?”
“Justine,” her mother spoke with more insistence, “are you finished?”
“I’m Rapunzel. Dad is the evil witch, and my tower is made of money and power.” Thea gave her a baleful look and Justine shrugged. “Fine, I’m done.”
“Go stand in front of that mirror. Take a look at yourself.”
“What?”
“Go on.” Justine stood, and her mom swatted her behind to get her moving. In the mirror hanging beside her door, she looked past her reflection at Thea. “Okay.”
“Look at yourself.”
Justine rolled her eyes and looked in the mirror. Face shiny and clean, hair up in a hastily pulled back, crooked ponytail. She wore a threadbare gray sweater she reserved for sick or depressed days. What? Was her skin too dry again? “I’m looking hard. What am I supposed to see?”
“A scared little girl.”
She twisted, jaw agape. “Mom!”
“Sweetpea, I love you. And I love that you tried to help me. You did the week, and your father promised he will pay the mortgage. I appreciate that you wanted to do that,” Thea said. “And it’s okay if this isn’t what you want. Let the company go, fight for it. It’s up to you. But you’ve got to stop feeling sorry for yourself.”
“How can you say that? I told you what happened to me.”
“Exactly, what happened to you. Aren’t you tired of letting things happen to you?”
“Well,” she stammered, “yes.”
Thea crossed the room, grabbed Justine by the shoulders, and turned her back to the mirror. “You’re not happy, your father sees that. It’s why, misguided as he may be, he’s trying to manipulate you into marrying Travis.”
Justine’s eyes snapped shut. “Travis. That son-of-a-bitch drugged me so he could… I can’t even look at him. The thought of it makes me want to vomit. And Daddy thinks that is the man I should promise to spend forever with. Or until it annihilates what life I have managed to carve out.”
“I’m not defending your father. But he’s right in a small way, not about Travis. You’re unhappy, and you need to do something about it. How long has it been since you didn’t take the easy path, make the safe choice? You’re smart, adaptable, and beautiful. Take the deal, don’t take it. It’s time you do something.”
Justine lifted her hand to pull the band from her hair and let it fall free around her. In the background, her mom picked up her purse and slipped on her Burberry jacket.
Thea stopped at the door, petite frame straight, and pointed a finger at her. “I’ll say one last thing, and then I’m leaving. No, two things. First, I believe in you, even if you don’t. Second, are you going to let that, what did you call him? That ‘disgusting son-of-a-bitch’ snatch your dreams away from you? It’s your father’s company…do you want him to get that, too?”
“I don’t know if I can stop it. And if I fail, it’s spending every day with Travis in the same building, cornering me in supply closets and offering me spiked drinks, until Daddy tells me how I let him down. Again.” Justine twisted the band in her hand, suffocating as she realized this apartment was another set of walls to keep life at bay.
Was she going to lie down and accept this? Did Travis get to win? Because that’s what it would be. He would win. The company, all of it. Her father’s legacy. Maybe she couldn’t stand in the same room with her father without getting into a screaming match, but she loved him. He was the rock that kept her from floating away. And she detested him for it. But she needed him, too.
Thea craned her neck to kiss Justine on the cheek. “Maybe almost losing the house could be a good thing for me. Force me out of my comfort zone. That’s when we grow. You will shrivel up and die, on the inside, if you insulate yourself here, and never, ever take a chance.”
When Thea was gone, Justine shut the door and turned the locks. Leaning her back against it, emotions tore through her until her chest nearly burst. Shame. Anger. Fear. Hope.
The words still stung. She and her mother were misfits together. Irresponsible misfits who took turns saving one another. She swiped at a tear before it could roll down her face, slid down the door, and sat on the floor. The thing was, after this week, this stupid week with the files and the sluttiness, she didn’t want to go back to going to parties she didn’t care about. No more selling clothes she didn’t even like on the Internet so she could eat.
She wanted to be the one who took that company into the future. Always, she’d wanted to be the one. Her father had given her a chance. This wasn’t on him. If he gave Travis the company, it was on her. Because she was, well, a “scared little girl.”
God she hated when her mother was right. And quite honestly, any day that Thea was the voice of reason was cause for concern. All the same, Justine wanted to prove herself. She was worthy of his legacy, of his approval…of his love. She wanted to take a step into the unknown, where she could fall on her face, sure, but it could be really amazing, too. And as long as she was being honest, she wanted to feel again.
****
Monday morning in Daniel’s office, Sawyer struggled to remain in his seat, to ooze impassivity, in the strangest meeting he’d ever attended. Across from him sat his boss, the father of the woman who had challenged him to feel nothing when she kissed him. But he wasn’t going to dwell on that. Had refused to dwell on it the hundred or so times it flooded his memory in the last twenty-four hours.
Beside him, Travis glowered with a black eye and a broken nose that Sawyer was to blame for. Sawyer regretted the kiss. Kisses. He regretted letting Travis convince him to bring Justine along. But he didn’t regret making Travis bleed if he thought compromising a woman’s ability to think for herself so he could screw her was fine.
And so, they sat. No one spoke. Every sixty seconds, the clock on the wall behind him clicked off another minute. Sawyer had counted four so far.
Another minute ticked off, and Travis cleared his throat. “Daniel. Um, I have no idea what Justine might have told you, since the two of them”—Travis shot a glare at Sawyer—“didn’t accompany me home, but, I can imagine that it doesn’t sound good. That being said—”
“Shut up, Travis,” Daniel said.
Sawyer cocked an eyebrow and looked between the two. This could be fun.
“Justine says you drugged her drink.” Distaste transformed Daniel’s face to stone.
“So that’s how she’s trying to make it sound. She downed drink after drink in minutes. When I advised her to slow down, she got angry and took off for the ladies’ room.”
Sawyer stared at Travis, jaw clenched. “It sounds that way because it is that way. How can you lie to someone’s face and sound so sincere? You’re like a sociopath.” If he hadn’t known Justine wouldn’t lie, he’d have believed Travis. The man was a gifted liar.
“I didn’t drug her. She had too much champagne. She was out of my sight for some time. Clearly, she got drunk. That was a mistake on her part, but I never drugged her.”
“You know that’s not what happened. I can’t believe you’re blaming her for this.” This guy could rationalize anything.
“And how do you know how much she drank?” Travis asked.
“Because she told me. And I believe her. She couldn’t have gotten that drunk in less than thirty minutes.”
Travis gave Daniel a pointed look, and Sawyer’s hand fisted in his lap. One more word. That’s all it would take, and he’d give him more than a black eye.
Daniel slashed a hand through the air. “Enough. What were you thinking, Travis, going with her?”
It took Travis a moment to answer. He shifted in his chair and tugged at his tie. “I wanted some time. I wanted to see if the plan was working.”
“It’s not a plan. I’m not plotting against my daughter. She and I had an agreement that never involved any of this.”
Feeling like he’d missed some crucial piece of information, Sawyer stood up to look at the two men. “What plan? Agreement? Do you understand he could’ve killed her?” He paced the length of the office. “And he didn’t even check on her. Just gave her whatever it was in her champagne and then went back to the hotel and fell asleep.” He thumbed at Travis.
“Think about it, Daniel. Why would I leave her alone after I spiked her drink? I searched everywhere for her at the party, then I went to check the hotel.” Travis twisted in his chair to glare at Sawyer. “I knocked on her door. She didn’t answer, so I left. Was I supposed to have the hotel staff help me break in?”
Sawyer rolled his eyes at the jab then directed his question back at Daniel. “What plan is he talking about? And why are you even entertaining the suggestion that she got drunk then made up a lie like that?”
“You can’t know what it’s been like, watching Justine make so many bad choices. She never follows through on anything. She can be very headstrong, nonetheless. She gets something in her head, and there are no other options. I don’t think she’s lying, per se. She believes it’s what happened.” Daniel leaned back in his chair with a weary sigh. “I want to know she’s safe.”
“That—” Sawyer stopped himself to lower his voice. “That wasn’t safe.”
Daniel’s face had softened discussing Justine, but when he turned to Travis, his eyes glinted like coal. “If I find out that you did drug my daughter, my only child, I will destroy you. Are we clear?”
Head hung, Travis mumbled, “Yes.”
“Have you heard from her? Is she okay?” Sawyer had wanted to call her, check on her. But he couldn’t risk exposing himself further. She’d rattled him. It wasn’t just her words, when she kissed him he knew. It wasn’t a simple sexual attraction. That was unacceptable. It was all unacceptable.
Travis’s head shot up. “Is she taking the job?”
“I don’t know anything yet,” Daniel said.
Sawyer ground his teeth together, wishing he could disconnect from this whole mess. But something didn’t fit. “If she doesn’t take the job, then doesn’t that mean she figured out it wasn’t for her? I thought that’s what you wanted, so why do I feel like I’m missing something?”
Apparently, Travis had skipped breakfast because he stood and strolled to the bar. “Maybe it’s because you’re not as clever as you think you are.”
“Can either of you explain to me the point of this game? Is she supposed to think it’s too hard and quit, or is she supposed to make this show?” Sawyer twisted to include them both in the question. “I need to know what I’m supposed to be doing here.”
Travis said, “Maybe you’re not the right man for this job.”
“What?”
“She’s beautiful. And someday, she’ll be very rich. Don’t forget that.” Travis stared into his drink.
“I’ve known her a week, you idiot. Don’t project your obsession onto me. She’s a pain in my ass most of the time.” She was also an incredible kisser, but he’d leave that unspoken.
“I don’t know your background. No one seems to. But clearly, you’re ambitious. You’ll do what it takes to move up in this company. She could be an asset to you.” Travis pinned Sawyer with his gaze. “And I know you want her.”
Daniel tossed down the pen he’d been toying with, his voice rising sharply. “Sawyer cleaned up your mess, Travis. You never should have been there. Don’t question his motives.”
Travis didn’t respond, but he gave Sawyer a look. They weren’t finished. Like Sawyer would ever let that drunken asshole push him around. Something else occurred to him. “If she takes this job, and she screws up the way you believe she might, what happens to the people we hired to work on this show?”
“Sometimes, in business, you sacrifice one thing to gain another. I’d pay any price to see my daughter happy, even failure. I’ll make sure they’re all well compensated.”
“And if she doesn’t fall on her face and quit?”
Daniel sighed. “You have no idea how much I hope she doesn’t.”
Sawyer sat back to listen to the ticking of the clock again. He wasn’t changing anything by arguing with Daniel. He’d have his promotion if she did fail.
Except there was more going on; this wasn’t about giving Justine a rough few days. People’s livelihoods were at stake here. And he had a feeling there was something bigger in this for Justine.
This was crossing a line. All he could do was hope Justine was smart enough not to play ball with these two.
****
It didn’t take Justine several attempts to go into her father’s building this time. She didn’t need to drink bad coffee to think it over. For the first time in as long as she could remember, she was committed to her decision. Good, bad, didn’t matter. She’d made the call.
Justine approached her father’s office, and Monique smiled up at her. “He’s with some people.”
“He’s expecting me.”
She opened her father’s door and looked at the three men sitting there. Her father settled back into his chair, satisfied apparently with her appearance. Sawyer stood up and looked at her with wide-eyes. But Travis avoided her, choosing to remain at the bar, his back to her.
She stepped into the office. “I need to speak with my father in private, please.” She wished her voice sounded more confident and bossy.
Travis took his time turning to face her. She noted the huge bruise around his eye and swollen nose and raised an eyebrow at Sawyer. Travis made his way to the door and paused in front of her. “Justine…”
She turned her head away, refusing to acknowledge him. It took everything in her not to cringe away from him. He sighed and left the room, door wide open.
Sawyer stopped in front of her, wearing a dark blue suit, his brow knit in apparent concern. For once, he didn’t look dangerous as his eyes searched hers. She lowered her voice so only he could hear. “You do that?”
He nodded. He wasn’t proud of it, in fact, he looked uncomfortable. “You okay?” he whispered.
“Mm-hmm.”
Sawyer brushed past her, and she stood there, back pressed against the door for a moment, watching her father.
Voice tentative, Daniel spoke. “It’s been a week.”
“Yes.”
“Have you made a decision?”
“Can we talk about Saturday, first?”
“Come sit down, baby.” He waved her closer.
She pushed away from the door and settled across from him. Before she said anything, she put the necklace he’d sent her on the desk. She’d never be able to wear it and forget what happened. “He put something in my drink.”
“You can’t prove that, Justine.”
“I need to prove it? Can’t you trust me?”
“I think…” He frowned at her. “I believe that you believe it.”
“Right. Because if you believed me, it would mean you were wrong and that can’t ever happen.”
“You may have made a mistake, or been confused. Maybe you took something that acted with the alcohol. Cold medicine, maybe. I—”
“Don’t. There’s no defense for what he did, and there’s no defense for what you’re doing, acting like I’m so damn high-strung I make up terrible things, so don’t pretty it up.”
He scrubbed his hands across his face. “You won’t make this easy, will you?”
“I can’t. We all have to live with our choices, Daddy.”
“Have you made your choice?”
“Yes. You pay off mom’s mortgage, today. And I accept your offer. If I quit, then you give it all to that vile pig. What happens if I finish this?”
“What do you want?”
“I want to keep going. I want more. I never wanted Tattle TV, this is what I want. This isn’t only about the stock. I don’t want to just inherit it when you’re gone. I want to work for you.”
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea.” Daniel frowned down at his desk. He wouldn’t meet her eyes.
“I don’t care. I’m agreeing to give up a good job offer and do this under the conditions you’ve constructed to try to earn my place here. And I get it. You want me to work for it. But you have to match that, Daddy, that’s how this works.”
“This isn’t a contest. It’s an agreement.”
“No, no, no. That’s the deal. You named your terms, now I’m naming mine, and if you can’t agree, then you’re the quitter.” She threw up her hands. “So, I guess that means I walk away and you give me your stock by default. Because I’m holding up my end of the deal.”
“If you start clucking like a chicken, I’ll make you sit in the corner.”
An involuntary smile broke across her face. She loved him so much. As much as she’d wanted to decide her own future, to be independent of him, she’d wanted his approval. She’d wanted to make him proud.
“You never wanted what I wanted for you,” he said. “I’d offer you a glass of juice, and you’d ask for water.”
“I know. But it’s about trusting me. You’ve got to meet me halfway, somewhere.”
“All right, Justine. Agreed.”
She stood up and held her hand out. He looked her over for a long minute, and then he took her hand and shook it. No one raised their voice, no doors were slammed. She’d done it.
She wanted to throw her hands up like a prize fighter. Instead, she said, “One more small detail. We’re going to need another office because I hate my desk. I mean, I really hate it. Like vampires hate the sun. And we need something bigger, for both of us.”
“I’ll take care of it.”
“Thank you, Daddy.”
He waved it away. “An office is nothing.”
“No, for all of it. The kick in the ass, the not hating me when your manipulation made me crazy. The opportunity. It means everything to me.”
“You’re my daughter. You’re all I have.”
Right. The consolation prize. But she’d make it work. She had to.
He walked around his desk and put a hand on her back, nudging her toward the door. Pausing, he said, “Stay out of trouble.”
“I don’t look for trouble. Trouble finds me. It stalks me.” Justine opened the door and turned to face him. “I’m going to give this everything I have, but let’s not expect a miracle, okay?” And that was her cue to go.
When the elevator doors slid closed behind her, she took several deep breaths. One down. She pushed the button to go down a floor and stepped out to study the office listing. She should’ve asked someone where Travis’s office was.
There, office fifteen-eleven. She strolled down the hall, looking around.
Justine ignored the ice queen who guarded Travis’s lair, her perfect, pouty lips forming a perfect ‘O’ when Justine strolled past. “You can’t go in there!”
“Get over it.” Justine slammed the door behind her and looked around. Paintings of the orient splattered the black lacquered walls. A distasteful figure on his credenza was an obvious ode to the Kama Sutra. “Hmm.” She approached him, looking him straight in the eyes. “That’s a nasty bruise. Did you get yourself hurt?”
The vein in his temple throbbed. “Why are you here?”
“Because we need to talk. Or, I need to talk and you need to listen.” She propped her hip on his desk, looking down at him. Her stomach turned, but she wouldn’t cower, couldn’t let him get the upper hand. “I know what you did. And I won’t forget or convince myself it’s not a big deal or even feel bad because I don’t have feelings for you. I know.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, darling.”
“Go ahead, it’s fine.” She smiled and shook her head. “Try to imply that there’s something wrong with me. But I don’t understand, if you knew someone would never let you touch them without drugging them first, how you could even want to be with that person.”
Travis stood and leaned close, hands flat on the desk next to her. “That’s not true, though, that you would never let me touch you, is it?”
She leaned back as far as she could from her perch on the desk and looked him straight in the eye. “No, that is true.”
The man had no respect for personal space. None. Well, he had no respect for her. And that had always been the problem with Travis.
His breath tickled her cheek. “You used to let me touch you whenever I wanted.”
“I was young and easily manipulated. You were too old for me. I am not that girl any more. I am a woman and…that’s not ever going to happen again.” She pushed herself off the desk. He was trying to rattle her. He didn’t want to discuss what he’d done, so he was putting her on the defensive. No more. She took a step closer and looked up into his face. “You make me sick.”
“I watched your video.”
Justine’s eyes widened. He’d caught her off guard. She couldn’t speak, couldn’t order her mouth to open or her feet to move.
“And it occurred to me, when we were together, I was too restrained with you. I held back. I didn’t want to frighten you.” He tilted his head to the side and closed his eyes, like he was remembering. “I thought you were too good and too innocent for me to let myself go. Now I know you didn’t enjoy it, not the way you did on the video.”
Justine turned around, ordering her feet to go, please, to put some distance between them. Hands together, she pressed them to her lips. Mostly, she didn’t want to throw up right there.
But he wasn’t finished. “So, I don’t know what you’re talking about when you say you believe I drugged you. Bu, if I were going to do something like that, it would be so I could show you that it doesn’t have to be like it was before. It can be better.”
She tried to push away the trembling. It took her a minute, to get herself together, and then she turned around. “I loved him. It would never be like that because I don’t love you.”
“He sold a video of the two of you having sex, but I can’t compare to that? What misguided standards you have.”
“He didn’t sell that video.”
“Who did?”
“I don’t know. But it wasn’t him.” She flapped a hand at him, trying to maintain her composure until she was out of his sight. “Enough. I said what I needed to say, I know.”
Satisfied that she’d stood her ground at least, she paused inside the doorway. “Stop watching that video. It’s seriously creepy. And pathetic.”
Justine shut the door behind her, and the clattering of glass shattered on the other side. His assistant stared, eyes wide.
“That sounded expensive.” If only her father could see that side of him.
The doors to the elevator slid shut, and she covered her face with a hand. Of course she realized people watched her video. There was a good chance the person behind her in line at the drugstore had seen her naked. She understood; she didn’t like it, but she accepted that as part of being her. But she’d always assumed people in her life, people who mattered in some way, wouldn’t watch. They’d recognize it as a violation of her privacy and turn away. But the interaction with Travis proved her wrong, which meant she could throw away the major assumption that dictated how she dealt with people who mattered. On the other hand, Travis didn’t matter at all.
When she strolled into her office, Sawyer slammed his feet on the floor. He’d been leaning back, hands behind his head, but he flew out of his chair when she shut the door. “What are you doing here?”
Justine flipped her ebony hair back over her shoulders, walked with determination to her little desk, and sat down. She looked at him over her huge, silver purse. “Have you ever watched the video? The one with me and nakedness, that one?”
“What? What are you talking about?”
“You’ve heard about the video, so don’t deny it. Everyone knows about it. Me and my boyfriend, my boyfriend at the time. Someone taped us. My mom refuses to call it the ‘sex tape.’ She calls it ‘the film.’” Justine stopped for a breath. “Have you seen it?”
“No.”
“Never? Not even before you met me?”
Sawyer paused a moment, and she was scared for a second he would admit to peeping her video. “I worked here when the video came out. And I work for your father. That would be creepy.”
She dropped her face in her hands, relieved. “See? It is creepy and pathetic. I knew it.”
“Why are you asking me this?”
“I just saw Travis. He told me he watched the video. I feel like…” She took a breath and held it. “I feel like someone dumped a bucket of slimy garbage on me.”
“I understand that feeling,” Sawyer said. “But why are you here?”
“He broke something. Threw it, I think. I can only hope it was that hideous statue of shapeless lumps having uncomfortable sex.”
Sawyer looked her over, his eyes going hard. “He threw something at you?”
“He threw it at the door after I left.” She tilted her head and offered him a playful smile. “Why, are you going to black his other eye?”
Uncomfortable, Sawyer plopped back into his seat and twirled a pencil on his desk. “So, you’re staying?”
She lifted her chin. “I am.”
“Damn it.” He crossed the room and leaned both hands down on her desk. “How could you stay after what happened?”
She licked her lips and looked down at her hands before speaking again. “I don’t know how to explain it in a way you’d understand.”
“We have to talk about this. I don’t know what you’ve got going with your father, but this show? Not going to happen.”
“I don’t want it to affect the show. You have to give me a chance because this has to happen.”
“‘Mold you.’”
“Yes.” She smiled up at him, and then he turned away from her, his face closing up.
“I don’t want you here. You know what this weekend was? Messy. I don’t like messy at work.”
“I’m really sorry that my screwed up life is making a mess in your office.”
“You should be. Nobody handed me this. I’ve worked years for it. Lots of people worked hard to get where they are now. This isn’t a game for most of us.”
“It’s a big deal for me, too. You don’t know what I’ve got on the line to get this ‘handed’ to me.”
“No, I don’t. You want to tell me?” When she didn’t answer, he lifted his gaze to somewhere above her head. “We’re not friends. I don’t care about your video or your crazy ass ex-boyfriend, except that I have to work with him, and my boss believes every word out of his lying mouth. I don’t care about anything except my job, and if you’re going to stay here, you need to keep that in mind.”
Justine forced her expression into neutrality. She’d had a long day, with her father then Travis and now Sawyer with his big fat I don’t care. But she could do this. Without a gigantic bitch freak out, she could do this. “Fine.”
Veronica stuck her head in the door. “Hey, Sawyer, do you want me to set up those interviews, for the other co-host?”
Sawyer nodded, focusing on his desk, and shifted a piece of paper until it was at a perfect ninety-degree angle.
“No,” Justine spoke up, and Sawyer jerked his gaze to her. “No. You picked Leo before I got here, but I’m part of this now. You’re not choosing anyone, not even to interview, until I can give some input.”
Veronica looked between them with a crooked grin. “So, no?”
“You don’t pick people out of a hat. I’ve been working on this for six months. I’ve got three-inch-thick files on the six people I’ve narrowed it down to.” Sawyer’s voice had gone deceptively calm, belying the clenched jaw.
“Then those are the files you should’ve given me to read.”
“So, you’re taking over?”
“No, I’m stepping in. From here on, nothing happens on this show without the two of us approving it.” She looked at Veronica, “Got it?”
“I’ll come back later.” Veronica shut the door behind her leaving Justine to face down Sawyer, her new official not-friend.
He sat down and silence blanketed the room. After a few minutes, he lifted his head and spoke. “This show’s dead.”
“It’s not dead unless I quit. You can work with me, or you can sit in the corner perfecting your pissed-off face. But I’m doing this.”
“Do you want to explain to me why your dad wants you working here if he expects it to be a total failure?”
“No.” She shook her head slowly. “It’s not like we’re friends.”
“I keep asking, but nobody will give me a straight answer. What happens if you quit?”
“I’d tell you, but it’s ‘messy.’”
“Of course it is.” Sawyer walked out of the office. He left his jacket, his briefcase, and her sitting there. Justine put her head down on the desk, the “TL” etched right next to her eye, and counted to a hundred.
She should’ve realized sooner she couldn’t rely on him. He was too much like her father; successful, driven with no real attachments, as far as she could tell. Serial marriage, like Daniel engaged in, wasn’t all that different from refusing to make connections at all. Excessive opposites of the same notion.
Her feelings didn’t matter to her father and Sawyer had made sure she knew they didn’t matter to him, either. She would do this with or without him.
In fact, without might be easier for them both. She needed Veronica to help her with a few details and she could get some much needed distance from Sawyer.