Jason didn’t even look at her, his gaze fixed on Brock’s receding car. “I guess that’s it for us, then,” he said. “You won’t even need to wait until next week for that flight out.”
It was what she wanted. What she’d planned from the start. Her eyes shot back to the family down the street, her gaze lingering on the dad buckling the baby into a car seat.
If she had everything she wanted, why did it hurt this much to watch that little family down the street drive off together?
Twelve
T he next morning Jason left Brock’s office after a damage-control meeting to prep strategy for the Prentice powwow later today. His brain was too numb to do more than operate on autopilot to salvage what he could at work. He’d lost Lauren and would be relegated to parceled-out visits with his kid.
Last night he and Lauren had been back to sleeping separately, with him in the recliner and her in the bed. She’d made it clear it would best if he was gone before she woke up. She would keep in touch about the baby, but she didn’t want any big emotional goodbyes.He turned away from Brock’s door. Brock had pretty much given him a speech to memorize, a pack of convoluted lies about how things had shaken down, but well-constructed lies Prentice might well buy into. His job was all that was left. A bigger office with a better window view was all he had to look forward to.
Brock’s secretary sat outside in a waiting area at a modern acrylic desk like the rest of the floor—and Flynn leaned against a sleek filing cabinet built into the wall.
The Maddox VP shoved away and clapped an arm around Jason’s shoulders. “Walk with me. Let’s grab some food, then head back up to my office.”
Like he had a choice. Jason suspected that Flynn was about to play his role of good cop after his brother’s bad cop. Except he got the feeling it wasn’t a game so much as their natural personalities.
Jason walked with Flynn as he jabbed the elevator button for the fifth floor. That floor contained all the other departments: public relations, art, financial. The offices were smaller than on the sixth, but still modern with stark-white walls and acrylic desks. Flynn smiled and waved as he walked past the rows of cubicles, calling each person by name, stopping to speak briefly with a couple of employees.
Finally they reached the large lunchroom with its modern kitchen. Brock Maddox kept the fridge well stocked, realizing that creative types enjoyed snacks while brainstorming in one of the soundproofed breakout rooms.
Flynn opened the fridge and pulled out a sack of Chinese food. “There’s enough to share. Do you want water or soda?”
“Water, thanks.”
Flynn’s approach was definitely more laid-back than that of his brother, who didn’t so much as offer a chair, much less a causal walk around followed by food. They took a service elevator back up to the sixth floor, making tracks to Flynn’s office. The space used to be Brock’s from back when their father was alive, but Flynn had made it his own, much homier than Brock’s current digs. Airy with live plants, a glass desk and several cream-colored sofas for impromptu meetings.
Just the sort of place Lauren would like.
God, did all roads lead back to her now? Would it always be that way for him? He needed to get over it fast, because she would be gone when he returned home tonight.
Maybe he would stay at the office and sleep on his sofa rather than torment himself with the scent of her lingering on his sheets. He would throw himself into work and salvage his career.
Flynn sat behind his desk and gestured for Jason to sit across from him. He passed a carton of sweet-and-sour chicken and a pair of chopsticks. “How are you holding up after the ass chewing from my brother?”
“He has a right to be pissed. It’s going to take some masterful manipulation and a dash of luck to pull off the meeting with Walter Prentice this afternoon.”
Flynn stirred the wooden sticks through his food. “Brock can come off pretty harsh sometimes, but it’s because he lives for this place. He worshippped our father. He’s determined to keep his legacy alive through the business. MC is his life. I don’t agree with his way, but I understand.” Flynn swung his feet up on the desk, unwrapping an egg roll. “I have what he calls a lackadaisical attitude toward the company.”
Jason twisted open a bottled water. His old man would have gotten along great with Brock. Brock would also be one hell of a tough guy to have as an older sibling, always walking around in his shadow. But even though things were strained between the brothers, Jason didn’t intend to risk siding with one or the other either way. Better to just let Flynn play out whatever it was he wanted to say.
Flynn finished off the egg roll in two bites. “Things are tight all the way around, but the business is basically secure. There’s no cause for concern. Once we knock Koteas off his pedestal, we’ll have a lock on this sector of the country.”
“Okay, then.” That wasn’t the picture Brock had painted, but then, the Maddox brothers rarely got along smoothly.
“The tension between me and Brock is that obvious, huh?”
Jason shrugged noncommittally, swigging back his water.
“Brock and I need to work on not letting that show. Bad for business to put up anything other than a unified front.” Flynn swung his feet back to the floor, leaning forward on his elbows. “I imagine you’re wondering why I brought you in here.”
“I’m the man of the hour.” And not in a good way today.
Flynn’s face went serious, tension making him resemble his brother all the more. “Let’s put the Madd Comm crap aside for a second.” He plowed a hand through his hair as he seemed to struggle for words. “Hell, I’ll just come right out and say it. Don’t let your work come before your wife.”
Jason set his food aside carefully. That wasn’t at all what he’d expected to hear when he walked in here, and he didn’t know what to make of it.
“Lauren’s heading back to New York this afternoon.” He could already hear the empty echo of his house. He scratched under his tie, his chest going tight. “There are no other demands on my time.” Not until the baby came.
“It’s not too late for you, man. There’re no divorce papers signed. Listen to me, I’m speaking from experience here. I let my family and my work come between me and Renee, and I’ve regretted it more times than I can count.” More of that regret coated his voice even now. “Do you really want to end up like Brock? Breathing and eating the job so much he even lives here?”
Brock’s primary residence was none other than an apartment in the Powell Street office building. A luxury setup, sure, but Jason preferred his house.
His empty house that wasn’t even close to becoming a home until Lauren stepped inside with her ideas for filling it with furniture and plants. “It’s all a moot point. She and I went into this with our eyes wide open. We were working some damage control of our own, trying to find the best possible solution.”
“You’re not even talking like the Jason Reagert we see around here. I can’t see you giving up this easily.”
What the hell did Flynn know? Jason had worked his ass off this past week to show Lauren all the ways their lives blended, the great life they could provide for their baby.
A whole week?
Damn.
Realization slammed through him. He didn’t want to be that guy, the man who regretted not doing everything in his power to fight for the woman he loves. And hell, yes, he loved her. He wasn’t emotionally closed off like his old man. His father would never have cared whether Lauren was happy, and his dad certainly would never have gotten choked up over an ultrasound photo.
A week might not be much time when it came to winning something as big as a lifetime together, but it was enough for him to be sure his feelings for Lauren were real. Lauren was perfect for him in every way, as a friend, lover, wife, mother of his child. He wanted it all with her.
Flynn was right. Nothing, no one and certainly no job should come between him and his wife. He’d be damned before he would let his life be dictated by business the way his father’s was. He would follow Lauren all the way to New York, even if it meant starting up his own ad business there to be with her.
Once he finished his meeting with Prentice this afternoon, he would book the first flight out to reclaim his wife.
Lauren watched Jason’s house in the rearview mirror as the taxi pulled away from the curb. Her suitcase was packed, her flight back to New York booked, her brief marriage over. She’d even gotten her wish for a no-scenes exit since Jason had honored her request to leave for work before she awoke.Her life was such a mess she felt like a Picasso painting with her nose on crooked.
The city unfolded ahead of her, already crammed full of memories she’d made with Jason in only a week. Amazing memories. All those moments together merged in her mind in a bittersweet portfolio. She loved him, but didn’t know how to build a life with him if he didn’t love her back.
Her cell phone rang in her purse, jolting her. Could it be Jason? She fumbled fast to fish it out, read the screen.
Mom.
Lauren considered just pitching the cell back into her bag. They’d talked just yesterday about nursery murals, after all, and she really didn’t have the emotional energy to deal with her mother now. Except she was only delaying the inevitable.