| |
The management meeting did not quite go the way Kallie expected. She laid out her relationship with Ryley as a conflict of interest, told them what she knew about the Jaxx Corporation and who was now under arrest for the drugs offence, and offered to step down as CEO of Impact.
The others voted unanimously against that option, citing the fact that it was her organization, her program, and they would continue to support her at the helm. But they did agree to hand back the donation from the Jaxx Corporation, which put them right back to square one in relation to how they were going to continue on without funding.
She got home that night so exhausted her bones ached, and after changing into her pajamas, she sank onto the lounge room couch with only a bowl of cereal for dinner. The news was on when she switched on the television, and in the process of putting a spoonful of cereal into her mouth she froze when Ryley’s face filled the screen. He looked as exhausted as she felt, with dark circles under his normally playful eyes and those furrows each side of his mouth looking deeper and more severe than before.
She fumbled for the remote and turned up the sound.
“...so with that said, I’ve decided to step down from the Jaxx Corporation, effective immediately. Obviously, this is an ongoing situation and I cannot comment further at this time.” He glanced to the side and the camera panned out to reveal that he was sitting at a press table beside a somber-looking man dressed in a police uniform. The uniformed man leaned forward and adjusted the microphone on the table until it was pointing in his direction.
“I would like to confirm that Mister Jaxx is not under investigation in this matter. He has been nothing but cooperative, and we have several persons of interest already in custody. At this time there will be no further comment. Thank you.”
Kallie muted the sound and sat, stunned. He was quitting his own company? Walking away from everything he’d built? Why? The police had just confirmed publicly that he was definitely in the clear. So why would he choose to step down anyway? It didn’t make any sense.
She looked at her phone on the coffee table, tempted to call him again, but he was probably far too busy to take a personal call right now. She couldn’t even begin to imagine the amount of behind-the-scenes paperwork that would be needed for someone like Ryley Jaxx to step away from his own corporation. What a nightmare. For everyone.
***
Days passed and Kallie heard nothing from Ry. Every time she turned on the news, or surfed the internet he was there, microphones and recorders thrust in his face as he got into or out of a car. He never spoke, only sported a tiny, enigmatic grin and an occasional flash of intense emotion in his eyes. The emotion was quickly hooded every time, but for someone watching as closely as Kallie, it was noticeable nonetheless. When days turned into weeks he took to wearing dark sunglasses as the media continued to accost him. Eventually, he appeared less regularly in everyone’s news feeds as other more timely stories began to take hold.
She missed him terribly, which was crazy as they had really only spent that one night together. But their attraction had been instant, albeit built on a foundation from the past, and she had already fallen for him even before that one night ended. In coming together with Ry as two mature adults, her eyes had been opened to the potential for real love and a relationship.
She called him twice in the ensuing weeks and got through to Tania, who promised to pass along her messages of support. Still she heard nothing back. Was he done with her? Should she keep trying? In her uncertainty about what action to take, Kallie did what she’d always done and buried herself in work. Impact’s future was on the line and she spent countless hours researching funding opportunities and filling out grant applications, one after the other. The lump sum provided by the Jaxx Corporation had been successfully returned, and they managed to secure a small stipend from a private group she’d previously not heard of. It was enough to keep them going for another three or four months. The pressure was on to find a solution in that tight timeframe, but it was better than the previous alternative: Fold next week.
When the anonymous donation came in she was unprepared for the flood of relief that rushed through her system. The amount would equate to at least a year’s worth of operating costs, and then some. Who would... Ah. It was only a guess, but her stomach fluttered in nervous anticipation as the management team took a vote. Accept the support. It was done.
The reprieve could not have been timelier. She hadn’t realized how much stress had taken its toll until the reason for the anxiety was removed. When she headed home from work and stripped off to have a shower, she saw that her rash was back with a vengeance. She stared at her reflection in the mirror as she toweled herself dry. The rash was bright red and patchy, similar to how it had looked that night she spent with Ryley.
He had been so caring. When he peeled off her dress to reveal her blotchy skin it hadn’t seemed to faze him at all. Nor had her far-from-model-like curves. Given his track record with a string of beautiful women over the years, his acceptance of her physical imperfections was something she truly hadn’t expected.
He was nothing like what she expected, actually, now that she really had the chance to consider it. When she stepped onto his yacht that day she’d been pre-prepared to meet a billionaire playboy, with nothing beyond that shallow perception. She had reacted accordingly, at first. But in reality he was so much more. Ryley was rich and sexy, yes, but he was also complex and deep. His software developments marked him as incredibly smart, and perhaps his only fault was that he’d been too trusting of the wrong people.
He was a man who turned her on physically like no one else she’d ever met. That had been the case at eighteen years of age, and it was still the same at thirty. He was a man whom she genuinely liked, once he allowed her in. Love at first sight? Not quite, but almost. She fingered the red blotches on her chest, looking at her reflection but seeing instead the man who had touched her there with tender fingertips, who had kissed her imperfections as if they were the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. Realization dawned, and startled eyes stared back at her from the mirror. I’m not just falling for Ryley Jaxx. I’m in love with him.
And yet she’d left him alone all this time to deal with what was probably the worst shit in his life. Not okay, Kallie. You need to fix this. Her hand dropped and she nodded, her resolve coalescing into determination.
I have to see him. I have to let him know he no longer has to do this alone.
