: Chapter 17

I’m smiling as I show Stu Parker into Drake’s office. He’s a new client, and this is his first time visiting us.

I always make an effort with clients, but on their first visit, I show them the executive lounge and ply them with food and drink as part of the charm offensive. Not that the firm needs me to win or keep clients—the place is thriving—but I see it as part of my job. I am a representative of James and James, and as such, my behavior matters.

Clients like Mr. Parker make it especially easy. He’s a self-made millionaire in his sixties, a man who still wears jeans to work and has never forgotten his roots. He’s so easy to talk to, I’d quite like him to adopt me. In the hour he’s been in the building, he’s learned all about my mom, I oohed and aahed over several dozen pictures of his granddaughters, and we discovered that he used to live three streets away from my mom’s house in Brooklyn when he first started his plumbing business. He’s absolutely adorable, the complete opposite of a snot-bucket, and the smile on my face as I knock on my boss’s door is genuine.

It falters as soon as I hear his voice telling us to come in and almost disappears completely when I lead Mr. Parker through. Drake, as usual these days, completely ignores me apart from a curt nod. It’s been over a week since he told me I’d have to go work for someone else, and I don’t think we’ve exchanged more than a handful of words in all that time. He communicates more via email than by actually talking to me, and although I’m usually sitting right outside his office, I’ve barely seen him. I swear, he times his comings and goings to avoid having to interact with me. It sounds ridiculous, I know. He’s a billionaire master of the universe; he has far better things to do than keep tabs on me.

I tell myself I’m fine with our new reality, that all I care about is my job, but I’m a big fat liar and my pants are on fire. I do care, and I die a little inside every time he snubs me. He’s not rude, exactly. He’s simply perfectly professional and devastatingly distant.

“Mr. Parker, it was lovely to meet you,” I say, smiling up at him. “If you need anything, Mr. James will buzz through—make sure to say goodbye on your way out.”

“I sure will, Amelia—and maybe I’ll see you at Mario’s one day. Man, those exploding donut balls are something else.”

“I know, right?” I reply, ignoring the look of disgust on Drake’s face. He really needs to learn to live with the fact that Mario’s is the best.

“Thank you, Miss Ryder,” my boss says sternly, gesturing toward the door with his head. “Mr. Parker is here for legal advice, not a roundup of New York’s greatest food trucks. That will be all. Feel free to take your break.”

Right. Well. He certainly told me.

He doesn’t even meet my eyes when he dismisses me anymore, and I feel a little whoosh of pain as I obediently trot out of the room, my cheeks blazing with humiliation. When he first told me I’d be moving to work for someone else, I was hurt and upset. Now, after a week of getting the cold shoulder, I’m starting to look forward to it. Work shouldn’t be this hard, especially when home isn’t much better. My mom is still struggling despite her new medications, and I’ve ended up staying with her a few nights because I was so worried. None of which I’ve mentioned to Drake, of course, because he doesn’t have the right to know anything about me other than what goes on within these walls during working hours.

I decide that I’ll take him at face value and take my break. Before I head off, I quickly check my emails and see one from him marked “annual leave.” It looks like he sent it a few minutes ago, before I saw him. In it, he informs me that I have already accumulated several days’ worth of paid vacation time, and that I should consider booking it “at your earliest convenience.” Wow. He really doesn’t like having me around, does he?

Screw him. The man is an arrogant asshole. I just wish that he’d be consistent and always be an arrogant asshole. It’s the flashes of humor and humanity that devastate me, the way that we sometimes seem to connect. Other times, he seems to wish he never met me. Given the opportunity to go back in time, I’d tell him to get lost the moment he sat down next to me at the wedding.

Except I wouldn’t, I think as I grab myself a coffee in the break room. No matter how things have worked out long-term, I’d do it all again in a heartbeat. Even the memory of his mouth on my skin makes me squirm. The contrast between that and the way he behaves now is what’s breaking me.

I pick up a bagel and sit down at an empty table, lost in thought. Every day feels like an endurance test right now, and my feelings for Drake James don’t help. I want to hate him, I really do. Even better, I want to feel indifferent to him—that would be the best result. But the reality is that I can’t stop thinking about him, not even when I’m alone. He’s like a ghost, haunting my every waking moment and finding a way to get in on the action in my dreams too.

“Are you going to eat that bagel or stab it to death?”

I look up to see my friend Jacob standing next to my table with a wry smile on his face. He’s right—all I’ve done with my snack is slice it and dice it.

“Definitely stab it to death,” I reply as he sits down opposite me. “It’s an evil bagel and deserves to suffer.”

“Ouch! Is it a proxy bagel? A scapebagel, if you will? Does it look like your boss?”

“My boss? Why would you say that?” I snap back, immediately defensive.

“Easy tiger, it was just a joke. Are you okay?” He tilts his head and studies me closely. “You look a little upset.”

“I’m okay, Jacob, thanks. And I’m sorry for biting your head off. Just … life stuff, you know? Sometimes it’s all a bit exhausting.”

“Tell me about it,” he says, reaching out to pat my hand comfortingly. “You know what you need?”

“A fresh bagel?”

“That”—he laughs—“and a night out. Let me take you to dinner, Amelia. Or the movies or dancing. Or all three. Whatever you like.”

I look at his earnest face, his cute smile. He’s a nice guy, and nice-looking too. He’s kind and funny, and he’s interested in me.

What he’s not, though, is Drake James. And at the moment, I only have space in my head for one man—even if it is a man who infuriates me and has made clear that there will never be anything between us. Not even friendship.

“Maybe some other time, Jacob,” I reply gently. I’m not in the business of hurting anybody’s feelings if I can help it. “Things are a little hectic for me right now. I appreciate the thought, though.”

I stand up, preparing to leave, and he gives me a warm smile. “Well, although I’m brokenhearted and unsure if I’ll ever recover, you know where to find me if you change your mind.”

I laugh and tell him I’ll see him later, confident that his heart is made of far more resilient stuff. As I reach my desk on the upper floor, I bump into Mr. Parker exiting Drake’s office.

“Mr. Parker,” I say, frowning as he walks toward me. “Did something come up? Why are you leaving so soon?”

“Ah, honey, I just don’t think it’s going to work out with James and James. I think I’ll be looking elsewhere for representation.”

“Do you mind if I ask why? Did we not look after you?”

He gives me a reassuring smile and shakes his head. “You certainly did, Amelia. But to be honest with you, I just …” He sighs and shakes his head. “I didn’t like the way that man spoke to you. You can tell a lot about somebody’s character from the way they treat their staff, and he was downright rude to you.”

“Oh, Mr. Parker, please don’t think that. Everybody has their off days, and Drake James is an amazing lawyer. He’s completely dedicated to his clients. I guarantee you won’t find anybody with a better legal mind or a stronger work ethic. Sure, he can sometimes come across as a bit of a snot-bucket, but that’s not the real him, I promise you. He hides it well, but deep down, he’s dependable and decent. Give him a chance. You won’t regret it, I swear.”

He frowns at me for a long second, then bursts out laughing. “Well, I have no clue what a snot-bucket is, but I can take an educated guess. I’ll think on it, dear. I suppose he must have something going for him if a girl like you is fighting in his corner.”

I force a smile, both happy and sad at the same time. Hopefully, Mr. Parker gives Drake a chance and discovers the million things he has going for him. I only wish that I was one of them.