21. Full-Time Cat Nanny

Chapter 21

Full-Time Cat Nanny

Noah

Spending two hours in a car with my brother wasn’t my idea of fun, so when he said we were taking a helicopter to San Diego, I couldn’t say no.

Was I incredibly terrified of helicopters? Maybe.

As soon as we touched down, all my muscles loosened, and I relaxed back into the comfortable seat as we pulled to a stop. Planes were absolutely fine, even smaller private ones, but there was just something about being in a car-sized vessel with blades controlling it that scared the shit out of me.

Gabriel unbuckled himself and smirked at me. “I knew you’d enjoy the ride. How are your knuckles? They look a little white.”

“You fucker.” I punched him in the arm to show him just how good my knuckles were .

The pilot laughed and turned off the engine. “At least he didn’t puke this time.”

“Oh, wow. Even you, Marty?” I unbuckled my seat belt and grabbed my messenger bag from under the seat. “I think I’ll just take an Uber back.”

The co-pilot shook his head and got out of the helicopter, opening the back door for us. An SUV had just pulled up to take us to William Dalton’s office.

It would only take fifteen minutes to get to the office, and I was bracing myself for a tense conversation, both on the ride and once we got there. Gabriel hadn’t said much to me before we took off from LA, but I could practically see him holding his words.

I stared out the window as we pulled out of the private airport, my mind racing with thoughts. If I’d been the sole owner of Badden Apparel, things would be so much easier.

“What’s your plan here, Noah?” Gabriel’s stern voice was no surprise, and I turned my head to look at him.

“Right now, it’s to tell him that my personal life has nothing to do with the company.”

“He’s made it about the company and sees your actions as a reflection of it. He might not be able to separate the two since it involves his daughter, but you need to be able to. “

“That’s easier said than done.” I ran a hand through my hair in frustration. “The way he talks to Jade, the way he looks down on her for her choices—it pisses me off. She’s an incredible woman, and she deserves so much better than that.”

Gabriel nodded slowly, his expression neutral. “You can’t let your emotions cloud your judgment here. Our livelihood and the livelihoods of thousands of employees are on the line.”

“He’s just one customer, and what exactly is he going to say about us? That I’m dating his daughter? Anything else would be defamation. I reread the contract yesterday; there is nothing in there about dating his daughter.” My eyes still stung from having to read the hundreds of pages.

“It’s more of the fact that you lied and deceived him, not you dating her. If it were my daughter, and I found out a business associate had lied about his relationship, I’d probably react the same.”

I smoothed my tie as we got closer and closer to our destination. “It wasn’t entirely a lie. I was dating her a lot longer than she’s been dating me.”

Gabriel threw his head back and laughed. “That sounds completely unhinged. Please don’t tell him that.”

“Regardless of how long we’ve been dating, the bigger issue is how he and his wife treat her. I’m not just going to sit back and let them treat her like she’s worthless. That’s not the kind of message we want attached to our company, is it?”

Gabriel placed a hand on my shoulder. “We need this contract with the Seawolves. If William pulls it, it could set us back years. All I’m asking is that you keep your emotions in check and focus on the business side of things.”

My jaw tightened. “I won’t just roll over and accept his bullshit. Jade deserves so much more than that. She’s brilliant, she’s driven, and she’s built an incredible company from the ground up. She shouldn’t have to put up with her own father’s condescension. ”

Gabriel sighed heavily. “Believe me, I know. But there’s a time and place to deal with that, and it’s not today.”

I nodded reluctantly. “I’ll try, but I’m not making any promises.”

We stopped outside the Dalton Building, which housed Dalton’s offices, and made our way inside. After checking in at security, we took a private elevator to the top floor.

“We need our own building,” Gabriel muttered as we stepped off the elevator into a reception area.

“It would be a good investment.” I’d had the thought a time or two, especially with the growth we’d undergone in the past few years.

The receptionist led us to a small conference room where William was already seated at the head of the table. His brow furrowed as he looked up at us. “Gabriel, Noah.” William gestured to the chairs across from him. “Please, have a seat.”

I took a deep breath, mentally steeling myself for what was sure to be an unpleasant conversation. There were large windows overlooking the bay, so if this meeting went badly, at least there was something beautiful to look at.

Gabriel and I took our seats as William tapped a pen against the pad of paper in front of him. He was staring right at me with his green eyes that matched his daughter’s.

“I’ll cut right to the chase. I’m very concerned about your involvement with my daughter. Something seemed off at the gala, and I see my intuition was correct.” He dropped his pen onto the pad of paper and leaned forward. “When did this start?”

I sat up a little straighter in my chair, determined not to let his line of questioning get to me. At the gala, he’d alluded to me purposely seeking out Jade because she was his daughter. “Honestly, sir, it’s been complicated, but we are together, and we love each other.”

William’s frown deepened. “I’m having a difficult time understanding the chain of events here. You told me and my wife you were dating, she moved in with you, and then I overhear her saying you’ve only been together for a week.”

I glanced at Gabriel, who gave me a subtle nod, silently telling me to handle this. “Jade and I really did meet because she’s my neighbor, although we didn’t start out on the best of terms, seeing as her cat decided to get muddy footprints all over my car and in my house.”

He cleared his throat and looked like he was ready to end this informal meeting and get right on the phone with his lawyers.

“I pretended to be her boyfriend at the gala because after her speech someone at the bar decided to say inappropriate things and put his hands on her.” Just the thought of that poor excuse for a man made me clench my fists in my lap.

William’s eyes widened slightly, and he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “I was not aware of that.”

“It wasn’t the first time it’s happened to her, and I’m sure it won’t be the last.” I took a calming breath because I could already feel my blood pressure rising. “Some men seem to think that because Jade owns a company that sells adult products, she’s fair game. They see her as nothing more than a sex object, someone they can proposition and degrade without consequence.”

William opened his mouth to speak, but I held up a hand. “ And then there’s the way you and your wife treat her. The constant belittling, the disapproval, the lack of support for her accomplishments. She’s built an incredibly successful business, all while facing the kind of sexism and misogyny no one should have to deal with. Not to mention, she started it when she was nineteen, with no financial backing besides her hard work.”

He was silent, and I didn’t know if that was a good thing or a bad thing, so I continued. “When you and your wife came over and immediately started in on her, and her mother commented about finding a man right after what had happened, she continued our charade. It tears her up inside that you and Mrs. Dalton treat her like a pariah when all she wants is to love you and be loved by you.”

It was so quiet in the room that I could hear the air conditioner whirring as it blew cold air into the room. I’d probably said too much, but it felt like I hadn’t said enough.

“It takes some real balls to come here and say those things to me.” Oh, God. This was it. He was going to press some secret button that opened a window and toss me out of it.

“We’re Badden Apparel, we have enough balls for everyone.” Joking wasn’t going to help matters, but I found that I didn’t care. “I might need some because if Jade knew I told you all of this, she would cut them off.”

“I don’t doubt she would.” Was I seeing things, or did his lips quirk like he was fighting a smile?

Gabriel cleared his throat. “If Noah being in a relationship with your daughter is going to be an issue, we will ensure he is not involved in any decisions where the Seawolves are concerned. ”

“Sir, I plan on being part of Jade’s life for a long time. I’m fully prepared to resign from Badden Apparel and become a full-time cat nanny if necessary.” I was serious about resigning if that’s what it took to protect my family’s company.

Gabriel’s head snapped in my direction. “You will do no such thing.” He looked back at William. “Noah’s love life has nothing to do with our business.”

William steepled his hands and tapped them against his chin. “You’d give up your career?”

“Yes. I know it seems fast, but I can’t control the way I feel. She was as unexpected for me as I was for her.” I cleared my throat at the emotion that had lodged itself there.

“And what about my daughter’s career?”

“What do you mean? She has her career and I have mine. She’d planned on expanding until everyone assumed Ravishing Whispers produced the toy that caught on fire—it didn’t, by the way.”

“And when you’re married and have children? What then?”

I glanced between him and my brother. “We haven’t discussed either yet.”

“Who will make the home and take care of the children? You wouldn’t very well let a nanny care for my grandchildren, would you?”

“Nothing wrong with a nanny,” Gabriel grumbled.

“That’s entirely up to us, but if Jade didn’t want a nanny, I would stay at home.” I shrugged because who knew what the future would bring? I didn’t even know if Jade wanted kids. “Sir, what is the point of these questions? ”

I wanted to pop off and say I didn’t need his approval but bit my tongue. This was a step in the right direction, and I would take what I could get. I didn’t need her parents’ approval, and neither did she, but they were still her parents.

“Curiosity.” He stood and walked to the windows to stare out, his hands in his pockets. “I don’t want to see my daughter hurt by a man again.”

I was absolutely floored by that. “But he was at the game and hurt her all over again.”

Gabriel elbowed me and gave me a look of warning.

William made an annoyed sound in his throat. “I was not happy he was in attendance. My wife…” He sighed. “She thought it would be a reminder to Jade.”

“A reminder of what?” I was a little nervous to hear what was about to come out of his mouth.

“Of what her business has cost her.”

I snorted because these people were stuck in the past when women wore chastity belts. “If anything, it saved her from a lifetime of being cheated on and treated like garbage.”

Gabriel cleared his throat. “Is everything now good between Badden Apparel and the Seawolves?”

“It is. For now.” William turned around and pinned me with a stare that didn’t need any words attached to it. If I hurt his daughter, I was going to be in for a world of hurt.

In his own special way, he did seem to love his daughter. He wouldn’t have reacted like he did if he didn’t.

“One more thing.”

“Noah.” Gabriel’s voice was laced with warning, but when had I ever let that stop me?

“Tyler better not be at any other events or functions where she is in attendance, or I will kick his ass.” I wasn’t a violent man, but for Jade, I would be.

“Very well.” William reached out his hand to me, and I stared at it in disbelief for a moment before standing and shaking it. “Take care of her.”

“I intend to.”