“Why did you ask me to come here? I was in the parking lot when you called,” Devon asked, stepping on the roof.
Matthew scratched his goatee. “Because this is where I come to think whenever life gets shitty.”
Devon removed his jacket and threw it on the ground. A cool fall breeze caressed his face, and he almost regretted taking it off. If only all decisions were that easy to change. “By the looks of it, you already have something in mind,” he said.
He couldn’t help but notice the half-smile Matthew gave him almost seemed…genuine. Shaking his head, he sat on a block of cement. Somehow, the view of the other buildings gave him the misleading sensation of serenity, if only for an instant.
“Elena said she’d only agree to become the CEO if my mother agreed to sell the shares to both of us. Half and half.” Matthew produced a stress ball from his pocket, and started throwing it from hand to hand. “Since I don’t have the money right now to pay for the shares, that means you can buy all of them.”
“And you expect me to believe you’re okay with that?” he asked, even though the words burning the tip of his tongue were, Why did she do that?
“Strangely enough, I am,” Matthew said, then sat next to him. “Man, I admit it, I didn’t do right by you.”
“Yeah?” Devon said casually, even though the recognition of his brother sent a warm sensation through him. “What is this about? Do you want me to lend you money for your shares? What’s the catch?”
Matthew gave him a long glance, as if agreeing to what he just heard, then shook his head and willed whatever thought away. “There is no catch. She can be the new CEO, but you’ll be the largest shareholder. She has the title, but you own the company. And we can all work together.”
“Wouldn’t that be something?” Devon mocked. “She lied to me. She probably lied to you too. And now—”
Matthew lifted his hand in protest. “Dude, shut up for a second. Elena isn’t this monster you’re painting her to be. She made mistakes, I guess, but all she wanted was to help. In a way, she did. She kept forcing me to see a different side of you. I didn’t want to see it. But she’s taught me that you’re not to blame for our father’s shithole behavior. I was a confused kid when you showed up. I acted like a jerk. And I’m sorry.”
Was Matthew implying that Elena brought them together? “I thought she had an affair with you at first.”
Patting his shoulder, Matthew chuckled. “I wouldn’t expect anything else from you. When did you realize she wasn’t?”
“I don’t know. I guess it was easier to just believe the worst. Because if she weren’t the worst, if she was this kind, funny, bad dancer kind of girl…who cooked like a dream and smiled like the sun—if she were all that and emotionally available, she would be real trouble for me.”
Matthew squeezed his shoulder. “That meant you would have to become the man she deserves.”
At first, he almost jerked away from the touch. Could he really erase years of estrangement? “Yes. And it’s not easy being that guy.” The guy who forgives. The guy who realizes when he makes mistakes. The guy who…couldn’t fathom the idea of another man laying a finger on his woman.
“Trust me. It’s not. I’m separated from my wife and it sucks.” He let out a sigh. “I heard. Sorry, man.”
“Thanks.” He produced a flask from his inside pocket, popped the top, and took a swig. “I had it coming I guess. I was a prick.”
“Not a stretch.”
He took another sip then handed it to Devon. “Guess not.” “Never took you for a flask kind of guy. Specially this early in the
morning. Should I worry?” Devon glanced at the flask, and smelled the bourbon, but didn’t drink any. To believe everything that was happening right now, he needed to remain sober.
Matthew waved it off. Standing up, he stretched as if he hadn’t had a decent night’s sleep in days. Devon never bought that karma bullshit, but his half-brother did look beaten down. Alone. And a lot like Devon had felt when he first showed up at his father’s house.
And somehow he didn’t want his half-brother to suffer. He wanted to help.
“Nah. I’m fine. Will be. How about you? Would you buy my—our— mother’s shares? So that the business still belongs to the family mostly while Elena runs the company?”
“Wow. I can’t believe you slept with him right under my pert little nose,” Holly said, her blue eyes widened.
Elena would have laughed at the look of surprise on her colleague’s face if weren’t she so freaking worried. Thankfully, the three of them closed the door of the break room and put an out-of-order sign outside. Who cared if the wall was see-through? She needed to talk.
Janie rolled her eyes. “Really, Holly? Out of all the things she just said, this is what you’re concerned about?”
Elena wished she had a much stiffer drink inside her cat mug, but coffee had to suffice. She glanced down at the steamy black liquid, and brought it to her lips with a sigh of despair. Never in a million years had she imagined she’d be offered the CEO position of Wilder & Co.
“She came to work here because of Matthew, and she has just been offered the CEO title,” Janie said.
Hearing it from someone else sent a rush of adrenaline through her. Or was it the caffeine? She sat down the mug. Whatever it was, her hands were shaky.
Holly narrowed her eyes at her. “You must be a good lay.”
She would have laughed, but kept her face straight. “I didn’t sleep with Imani.”
Holly’s lips spread in a devilish grin. “Oh, that’s right. Sorry. Still thinking about why Devon chose you,” she said in a whiny voice, like somehow that was a pill hard to swallow. “No offense.”
She shrugged. “None taken.”
Janie crossed her legs, swiveling on her chair. “What are you going to do?”
“I’m not going to accept the position unless Devon agrees to buy his mother’s shares in the company,” Elena said. So what if things turned out much differently than what they all first intended? Everyone had a secret agenda going in on the CEO race. “Imani made it clear that neither of them will have the title, and my plan is to keep them in the company by having them buy the shares. The real power is owning more shares. Devon deserves that.”
“Even if he doesn’t deserve you,” Janie said.
Elena tapped her head against the wall. Once. Twice. Maybe if she drilled a hole she’d be able to remove all the sensory memories her mind and body darted at her. Every second. Every minute. Every hour. She couldn’t stop wanting him and praying he’d come around.
She loved him. And he’d ended their relationships because he didn’t trust her enough to do the right thing. “You’re right,” Elena said. She did deserve better, but still she hoped he’d live up to her expectations. If not, then she’d survive. Alone, but stronger for it. That Devon had played a big role in helping her move forward only made her heart clench. She didn’t want to lose him, but she had to stand her ground, or she’d lose herself again.
She leaned against the table. Her head touched the cold glass. Hot tears teased her eyelids, but she blinked them back. She’d cry tonight. Alone.
“So if he doesn’t accept the shares, you’re saying no to the CEO title?” Holly asked.
“Yes. I know I’m capable and qualified for it, but I’m not stabbing him in the back. Accepting while he got the majority of shares would mean all of us working together. And them not having to worry about hiring someone completely new.” And me being close to him. Somewhat. “When we started all this, I wanted to break my sexual dry spell. But I don’t want a man who doesn’t respect me and trust me. Been there and done that before.”
“I sure as hell know I wouldn’t let that chance slip through my fingers,” Holly snapped at her.
Will I? Elena squared her shoulders. Was she really going to let a CEO title come between her and Devon? “I want what I deserve. Honestly, Holly, Devon is better than that and I know it. That’s the guy I want—and he deserves everything but I do, too. We deserve each other. Although he probably feels betrayed and hates me right now,” she said, and as she heard herself, her heart tightened. His mother had left him. His ex-girlfriend sold him to the press. Did he put her in the same category?
“Who says hating is bad? Make-up sex is gold,” Holly said.
Janie snorted. “Then sorry-I-stole-your-dream-job sex will take her to Unicornland.”
“I’ve been worried about getting him the shares and I didn’t really stop to think about how he’s feeling.” Curling her fists, she pushed back the chair and stood up. For how much longer was she going to keep denying herself the happiness they both deserved? He had been the one who helped her stand up to her brothers, and come out about her failed marriage, and Timothy’s abuse. Why keep the truth from him? Her stomach knotted. Because you can lose him. “I need to talk to him, and get him back.”
“What are you going to do?” Janie asked.
A thrill of excitement went through her. She was going to kick ass and he would watch it. “I’m gonna start with balloons.”