Chapter 2

CHAPTERTWO

London’s handshook as she poured herself a generous cup of coffee the following morning. She mumbled a curse when some of the hot liquid scalded her fingers. Yet another thing to blame on freaking Trey Van Horn.

It was bad enough the asshole had caused her to endure a sleepless night. And on the eve of one of the biggest meetings in her career, too. Instead of tossing and turning while over-analyzing the Gunther Cheese account, she’d been pounding her pillow in frustration as the memories of her greatest heartbreak played in a nauseating loop behind her closed eyes.

Yesterday wasn’t the first time she’d seen Trey since he’d left her holding her heart in her hand ten summers before. One couldn’t live in the city of Milwaukee and not see the Growler quarterback’s likeness plastered on the side of a bus or a billboard. Or flickering on the television screen during his post-game press conferences.

They’d even been to the same event on multiple occasions. Not that Trey would have noticed her. He’d been too busy strolling across the red carpet of the Milwaukee Art Museum, a different fabulous woman adorning his arm every time, oblivious to London standing in the background busily directing the media.

Standing inches from him was different, though. Those amber leonine eyes of his instantly homed in on her, making her breath still and her panties damp—just as they had the first time their gazes locked across a dock. And, dammit, he still smelled ahh-mazing.

She hadn’t meant to inhale the rarified air surrounding him, knowing the perils of such a mistake too well. But her body didn’t bother listening to her brain’s distress signals. As a result, that familiar intoxicating scent haunted her for much of last night.

Up close, she could see the changes in him the filtered photos and camera lenses missed. The hardness of his square jaw, the tightness bracketing his mouth. Gone was the boyish wonder of a young man eager to find his path in life. It was replaced by a level of arrogance only a guy with unlimited wealth, skill, and good looks could command.

The jackass.

All these years, London had waited for—hoped for—an explanation. An apology of some sort. But it was obvious that none would be forthcoming. She should have known. She’d just been a blip on the surface of his enchanted life. Nothing special to him. Not like he’d been to her. And he didn’t care that he’d hurt her. Heck, the jerk couldn’t even remember her mother’s name, for crying out loud.

“Kim! It’s a common name with only three letters in it,” she mumbled. “How hard is that to remember, you . . .” She slammed her mug down on the conference room table in frustration.

“Relax, kiddo. You’ve got this.” Bennie Westbrook, founder of the Westbrook PR firm, strolled into the room juggling a mug of coffee and his daily cheese blintz from one of their long-time clients, Swanson’s Bakery. “Butterflies are normal before a big presentation. We both know you’ve got the details to this campaign outlined to perfection, though. It’s what they call a slam dunk. Seth Gunther is about to become a national name and a very rich man.” He groaned slightly as he lowered his sixty-eight-year-old portly frame into the chair at the head of the table. “Which means he’ll be a real pain in the patookis at poker night.”

London smiled in spite of herself. Somehow, Bennie always made things, if not better, more tolerable. The big softie was more than just her boss and mentor. He was like the father she never knew she needed.

Thirty-five years ago, he’d left a job at a major ad agency in Chicago to help promote the little guys in his hometown of Milwaukee. He’d never looked back. Seth Gunther may become wealthy when he took his cheese brand national, but Bennie would be the one smiling the widest, basking in his friend’s good fortune.

“Does that mean you won’t be letting him win anymore?” She took the chair beside him and sipped her coffee.

Bennie laughed. “You betcha. It’s about time that old fart paid me back.”

“I’m going to miss this,” she said softly, careful not to be overheard by the other members of the agency who were milling about outside the conference room. “Are you sure this is what you want?”

Her boss’s brown eyes softened. He reached over to pat her hand. “You’ve delayed your dream long enough, young lady. It’s time for you to step into the big time.” His gaze focused on something beyond the glass door. “Besides, this place isn’t the same without Robyn.”

Bennie’s wife of thirty-three years, a talented graphic artist, passed away eighteen months before, leaving an empty office within the agency and an even bigger hole in Bennie’s heart. Unable to have children, the agency, its staff, and their clients became the couple’s extended family. It was that feeling of community that had London never considering working anywhere else after a summer internship at Westbrook her sophomore year in college.

Public relations and advertising were never on her radar. Neither was the University of Wisconsin. She was all set to go to film school at UCLA. Until her mother’s midlife crisis sent London on a different path.

All her life, it had been just the two of them. Kim and London sharing a small apartment above Kim’s parents’ garage on Lake Geneva. London’s father was never in the picture, and it had not mattered one bit. Kim was a flight attendant with a major airline out of Chicago. Grandma and Gramps filled in while London’s mom traveled. All in all, it was a very simple, yet comfortable life growing up in a small town where she was loved. London had no complaints.

Until the summer she graduated from high school.

No longer needed to watch after London while their daughter was away, Kim’s parents relocated to the Arizona desert. London was soon to follow them out west, headed to Los Angeles that September. At thirty-nine, Kim was suddenly staring at an empty nest.

Needless to say, she freaked out. Nothing as dramatic as Thelma and Louise, fortunately. Instead, she fell in love with a passenger she’d met on an eighteen-hour flight from Fiji.

Jay Van Horn was the playboy son of multi-millionaire Lars Van Horn and a competitive yachtsman. He had the golden looks and hefty bank account to sweep Kim off her feet. And he did. After a whirlwind weekend of romance in Beverly Hills, the two tied the knot in Vegas.

It was a very un-Kim-like thing to do. Although, London couldn’t blame her mom. Not when she’d fallen under the spell of a very similar charming smile that summer.

Like father, like son.

It wasn’t long until both Kim and Jay recognized their mistake. The two newlyweds laughed it off and parted as friends. Six months later, Kim found her happy-ever-after with an insurance agent and life returned to normal. Except for the part about London going to college in Madison, Wisconsin, instead of L.A.

Her mom and grandparents tried to convince her to transfer. To follow her dream. But she wouldn’t budge. Her excuse was that she wanted to remain close in case her mother succumbed to another wild whim. Her family didn’t understand. Probably because she’d never told them anything about her and Trey.

He was lighting up the football field at Stanford. Sure, California was a big state. Just not big enough for London to be so near the man who had shattered her heart. She didn’t have the guts to risk it. Karma was definitely a bitch, however, because Trey was drafted in the first round by the Milwaukee Growlers, putting them in the same town once again.

“It’s not like I’ll be far away,” Bennie said, interrupting London’s runaway thoughts. “You’re only going to Chicago.”

Thank goodness.Suddenly Milwaukee wasn’t big enough for her and the football superstar.

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” she reminded him. “Even if everyone at Gunther’s buys into my campaign, I’ll still be auditioning for Nolan and Hemphill while I manage the account.”

For twenty-seven years, Bennie and the team at Westbrook had served Gunther Cheeses in lieu of their own in-house advertising. But taking a brand national required a larger skill set. Hence the partnership with the Chicago ad agency.

Nolan and Hemphill.One of the largest advertising firms in the world. London still had to pinch herself. She’d finally transition from organizing galas and grand openings to producing national commercials for television and social media. It was a dream come true.

Ifshe pulled it off.

“They could not like my work.” Just uttering the words had her stomach in knots.

Bennie’s booming laugh echoed off the glass walls of the conference room. “Not a chance. You are a genius with your social media videos.” He gestured to his blintz. “Gretchen said your shots of their baked goods have customers running through the door with their mouths watering. And your idea to have Orlando post a joke of the day over at the tire shop has people driving from Kenosha to get new tires. Brilliant!” His eyes grew wide. “They had one guy comment all the way from Ireland. He said if he could get his car to the U.S., Orlando was the only guy he was buying his new treads from. Can you imagine? That is all you, kiddo. And that’s why Nolan and Hemphill agreed to partner with us.”

Except it wasn’t really a partnership. Or an “us.” At the end of the year, the Chicago agency would absorb the clients and staff from Westbrook. And Bennie would ride off into retirement. She and Bennie had deliberately kept the news from staff and clients. Until it was a done deal, there was no sense getting everyone invested.

Brenda, the agency’s receptionist, waltzed into the room carrying a dozen red roses in a vase. “Someone has an admirer,” she sing-songed before setting the flowers down in front of London.

“Who is it this week?” Bennie joked.

The only person ever to send her flowers—at home or at work—was her mom. But never a bouquet as gorgeous as this one. The knot in London’s stomach grew tighter. Surely it wasn’t⁠—

“Well? Don’t keep us all hanging,” Brenda demanded.

London reached for the card. Her breath hung in her throat when she read the words.

You are a goddess of public relations! Your social media posts really paid off. New contract is being inked today. I owe you big time. Dinner is on me. Let me know when you have a free night.

Alek Bergeron

Dammit.She hated that her heart couldn’t decide if it was relieved or disappointed that they weren’t the long-awaited apology from Trey.

She forced her lips up into a grin. “It seems the Mayhem have come to terms with their goalie, thanks to us.”

Bennie applauded. “Thanks to you, you mean.”

“Way to go.” Brenda sighed. “I’d miss those gorgeous eyes if they went to another city. On behalf of all the women in Milwaukee, thank you, London.”

“Well done, kiddo.” Bennie got to his feet. “The team from Nolan and Hemphill just texted. They are five minutes out from the meeting. Now let’s go knock this next one out of the park.”

London stood as well, taking a moment to steady her breathing. She needed to focus her mind on what was ahead of her. There was a lot riding on today’s presentation. There was no time to dwell on Trey Van Horn. She’d managed to avoid him for the past ten years. Once she had the Gunther account moving along, she could delegate her duties involving the gala to another staff member. If she was lucky, she’d never have to come face-to-face with the Growlers’ quarterback ever again.