“Rachel.” Robert approached her with his hands out, trying to project a good guy image.
She only saw the shark that he was now. “I hope you use some of the ideas I had for the Threshold project. Ann Lincoln is wonderful. She’d be a great person to head the project.”
“Did you get another job offer?” Robert asked, watching her through narrowed eyes. “Because we can meet their offer.”
“And if they offered a quarter million?” she asked.
“Done,” he said with an oily smile.
She nodded. Gosh, she owed Jamie the biggest apologyEVER. How could she not have seen Robert clearly before? “That’s okay. I pass.”
Robert’s face transformed, turning ugly. “You can’t just walk out of here—”
“Yes, I can,” she said, turning around and leaving. She brushed by the assistant, who was standing in the doorway, watching the scene with wide eyes.
Rachel walked to the elevator and got in, relieved that it was waiting for her. When the doors closed, she pressed the button for the ground floor.
And then she caught herself against the wall.She did it. She felt a moment of fear.She didn’t have a job. If Jamie decided to go his own way, she wasn’t going to have anything.
She lifted her chin. Regardless of everything, she’d be fine. She hadn’t had a job before, and she’d been fine. She’d land on her feet, no matter what.
But it wasn’t her feet she wanted to land on—she wanted to land in Jamie’s lap. Hopefully he’d listen to her. Hopefully he’d believe her when she said that she’d thought about everything he’d been saying to her and she had her answer now.
Hopefully it wasn’t too late.
Hopefully they’d agree on the word Lottie had given her:love.
Twenty-One
The only reason Jamie didn’t take the first flight back to Italy was because of Didier and Erik. He couldn’t abandon them, no matter how miserable he was.
It’d taken him most of the afternoon yesterday dealing with his teammates. He’d told them the rumors were untrue, but that he did plan on retiring. Once they knew he wasn’t betraying them with another team, they’d calmed down and asked him what he was going to do next. He said he’d let them know as soon as he figured that out.
Lying on his bed—the paparazzi were camped outside so leaving their townhouse had been out of the question—he’d given a lot of thought to Didier’s idea that he should start his own company. He’d loved the idea because he’d been able to see Rachel being his partner, right by his side. He felt like there’d been a place for Lottie too.
Now that looked unlikely.
His mobile beeped. He’d set it to “do not disturb” except for a handful of people he cared about, so he picked it up, thinking it was his parents checking up on him. They’d talked yesterday. He’d told them everything, including the fact that Rachel had leveraged their relationship for advancement at her company. They’d listened, but they didn’t offer any advice, which he was grateful for. More advice was the last thing he needed right at the moment. Didier and Erik had plenty to offer.
This text was from Coco.
Coco
You’re all over the media.
Jamie
What else is new?
Coco
At least this time you aren’t naked.
Jamie
Perspective, I suppose.
Coco