She grinned. “I think I’ll need another time at it. We need to go for a long drive one of these days.”
Jackson’s frown disappeared, replaced by a hungry smile. “Sounds good to me.”
Chapter 23
Jackson
* * *
“Sales are up for the first time in months,” Jane announced, tossing a report onto Jackson’s desk. She grinned widely as she stood before him in his office. He picked up the stack of papers and flipped through it.
“It’s hardly anything,” he scoffed, setting it down. “It’s not something to brag about.”
“Come on, you’re smarter than that,” she assured him. “Think about the second derivative. Sales velocity. We stopped the downward slide and changed direction. It’s huge. It means that what we are doing is working.”
“You mean Emma?” Jackson asked. He couldn’t help the small smile that crossed his lips when he said her name.
“Yes, Emma,” Jane agreed. “I don’t know where you found her, but I want six of her. She’s perfect. Pretty, but not unbelievable. Smart, but not overwhelming. And sweet. The paparazzi caught a shot of her with her friend’s baby, and I could see the sales go up with every share it got.”
“She is one of a kind,” Jackson agreed.
“Yes.” Jane’s eyes narrowed. “You are not allowed to cheat on her for any reason. Do you understand me?”
Jackson’s anger flared in the pit of his stomach. “Watch yourself,” he warned.
Jane held up her hand. “Do you need your female history in pictures? The paparazzi have a list of every woman you’ve slept with this year. You even look at another woman, and that will be front page news. They’re waiting for you to slip up.”
Jackson frowned. “What do you mean?”
Jane sighed. “You’re known as a player. You like women,” Jane told him. “And you suddenly have this whirlwind romance with the coffee girl. There’s a lot of unpleasant rumors swirling around about why that is.”
“Such as?”
“You don’t want to know,” Jane assured him.
He raised his eyebrows and waited. “Yes, I do.”
Jane pinched her mouth together before speaking. “She’s blackmailing you. You’re on drugs, or perhaps this is all a big sham.”
“Because heaven forbid I actually fall in love.” He hated that his stomach clenched and he felt sick at hearing anyone could think poorly of Emma. She would never blackmail anyone.
“Everyone loves a good love story,” Jane told him. “But everyone loves to watch a train wreck even more. And, if you even glance at another woman before or immediately after your wedding, that will be a train wreck no one will want to look away from.”
“Everyone likes Emma, but they like drama more,” Jackson said, understanding perfectly. His jaw tightened and he wanted to hit something.
“Exactly,” Jane confirmed. “So, I’m telling you that if you want this to work, you cannot give them the drama. You must keep the happy love story going. Can you do that?”
Jane stood in front of his desk, putting her hands wide and staring into his face. She looked at him, judging every motion, every twitch, and every inch of him.
“Yes,” he promised. The word came smooth and clear. He was as sure that he could do this as he was that he could walk across his office without tripping. Stranger yet, he found himself wanting to do it. Emma was more than enough to keep him interested. There was no need to seek other women.
Jane watched him for another second. “Okay then.” She stood up, apparently pleased with what she saw. She believed him.
“What comes next?” Jackson asked her.
“I need some photos of the two of you. I would also like some with her and that baby again. You too.”
“Me? With the baby?” Jackson didn’t do babies. Sure, they were cute in pictures. But in real life, they peed. And cried. And he wasn’t quite sure how to hold them properly. Hell, they never even behaved for those cute pictures.