“JOSIE. WAIT!” Theo hurried toward the elevator bay. “You don’t understand.”
Josie’s arm blocked the elevator door from closing. “What more could I need to know?”
Theo stopped on the other side of the elevator doors. “There’s more at play here than just a wedding. It’s business, but I can’t discuss the details quite yet.”
“It’s always business, isn’t it?” Tears pooled in her eyes. Her cheeks were damp.
He caused her pain. Made her cry. Hated himself for that.
“Is that why you turned your sister’s wedding into a billboard for Coast to Coast Living?” Anger pooled in her voice, stilling her tears from falling. “Because business is more important than your sister’s dream wedding.”
“I was giving her a dream wedding,” he argued.
“But not her dream wedding.” Josie’s fingers curled into a fist. Frustration hardened her words. “Did you really believe the little girl Adriana once was dreamed about product launches and business deals at her wedding? That little girl dreamed of unicorns, princes and forever love.”
Dreams. Forever love. Those wouldn’t sustain a legacy. Those wouldn’t give someone worth. Or value. “We all have to grow up sometime.”
“Still, a wedding should be the one time to dream again. To celebrate that forever kind of love.” Josie’s free hand tugged on her gown. “A wedding is not just a reason to display Coast to Coast Living’s new housewares.”
“The flatware and dinner sets were inspired by Adriana and Ryan,” Theo countered.
“Do they know that?” She never waited for his answer. “Of course not. The gesture might’ve been special if the focus was on the couple and not your corporation. Not the bottom line.”
Why couldn’t she understand? “There’s more at stake.”
“So you’ve said.”
“Why is that wrong? This business was built for our family.” By Theo. To prove to everyone that he hadn’t turned his back on his family. To prove his worth. “As long as the business stays strong, the family stays strong.”
“I would have thought it was the other way around.” She rubbed her forehead as if searching for more of Mimi’s fortune-cookie wisdom. “A strong family makes everything stronger. Everything better.”
“I won’t apologize.”
“Can you at least tell me why you never stood up for me?”
“You never stood up for yourself,” Theo countered. “You give your work away for free because you don’t believe it’s good enough. You leave your custom clothes stashed inside your closet because you don’t believe in your talent or skill. You’re walking away now for the same reasons.”
“No one stepped on you on their way up the ladder.” Josie flicked her hand and her disappointment at him. “You took the ladder out from under them and left. They had to climb the rest of the way on their own.”
Theo crossed his arms over his chest and widened his stance, prepared to let her lash out. He’d hurt her.
“You don’t risk your heart, either.” She straightened, stiffened her arm and her voice. “You reject first so you never really have to open your heart.”
He could take the accusations. But he wasn’t discussing hearts or himself. “This was never about hearts.”
“No, it’s always been about business and the perfect look of success.” Josie leaned out of the elevator. Her voice lifted above a harsh stage whisper. “But do you want to know something? I didn’t fall in love with you because you were good for my profit line.”
A weight like a twenty-pound steel ball smashed into his chest. He blanched and resisted. “You don’t love me.”
“I don’t want to love you,” she snapped. But her chin quivered, and those tear pools swayed, almost overflowing. “You made me feel safe. Safe enough to let myself love. Really love again. For the first time since Mimi.”
The fury in her voice rattled his own. How dare she love him? He’d never wanted her love. He didn’t even know how to love. That steel ball crashed through him again. Now he lashed out. “That was your mistake.”
“But it’s your loss.” Josie removed her hand from the elevator door. The doors started to close. Her last shot was a direct hit. “One you’re going to regret.”