2. Jade

CHAPTER 2

JADE

" N o way in hell are you bringing that woman in here. She'll tear the goddam company down."

Grayson's voice booms through the room, deeper than it was in college but still able to ignite the warm glow low in my stomach.

His deep brown eyes lock with mine, and I see nothing but hatred shining there.

I thought that after twelve years, he might have gotten over what happened between us, but apparently I was wrong.

Victoria scoffs. "Sit down, Grayson. Jade is more qualified than the rest of the people in this room combined. She's going to turn the business around."

Grayson rolls his eyes, crossing his arms like a petulant child as he stands there. "I'm not going to sit down while you bring her in to ruin the company faster."

If Victoria could flay Grayson where he stands, I'm sure she would. However, she just shakes her head and ignores him.

Her lips press into a thin line as she glances at me. "I'm sorry, Jade. I thought there would be a warmer reception to you being here."

Leo looks at me, eyebrows pulling together before recognition lights up his eyes. He runs his hand over his neatly groomed facial hair. "Jade Harper. You built quite an empire for yourself."

Victoria nods, beaming like she's the one who just received the compliment. "And this is why I told you that you need fresh blood in here."

I smile and round the table, holding out my hand to Leo. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I used to dream of working for a publication like yours. I even published a few pieces with you when I was in college."

It's a childish twist of the knife that's currently being rammed into Grayson's back, but he deserves it.

He was horrible to deal with back then, and if his little outburst has shown me anything, it's that that hasn't changed.

He's not the CEO of his daddy's company like he thought he would be by now, though.

A small sliver of satisfaction spreads through me as Grayson glowers.

Leo takes my hand and shakes it. "Welcome aboard. How is that fiction platform of yours going?"

"We have a hundred million active users and growing daily."

He nods, nostrils flaring. "Impressive. And you own a digital news site, too, don't you?"

"I do." I shrug, acting as if it's not a big deal that I've spent the last several years busting my butt to get to where I am.

After graduating and spending two years working as a journalist, I realized I wanted something more for myself. I got tired of people telling me that my stories were digging too deep or that I was focusing on the wrong things.

So, I left. I started Write Now , my fiction site, and Harper Times followed shortly after.

Leo nods and starts heading for the door. "I think you're going to be exactly the kind of person we need in this company. My people have gotten too rigid, and though I wasn't a hundred percent on board with Victoria's idea a few minutes ago, I'm impressed at what you've built."

"Thank you, sir. I have some thoughts on how to bring LRH Global into the digital age, but it will take a few more days to finish putting my ideas together."

"Well, let me show you to your office, and you can get to work right away."

I chance a quick look at Grayson from the corner of my eyes. His face is red, and his jaw clenched, a muscle twitching as he glares at me.

He hurries to round the table, beating Leo to the door. "You can't be serious about this. She doesn't know the first thing about this company or its values. I'm willing to bet that she climbed her way to the top on the back of other people's hard work."

With a sweet smile, I turn to him, tucking my hands into the pockets of my slacks. "Grayson, is it?"

His head is seconds from exploding at the feigned ignorance. "You know it is."

"I think I would remember meeting someone like you." I scuff the toe of my red heel against the floor. "This place is dated. It's got an amazing bone structure, but people like you are going to hold the business back."

Victoria sighs, joining me and Leo. "Change is the way of the future, Grayson. You might want to get on board."

Leo chuckles and holds the door open for me and Victoria. "He's always been resistant to change, but sooner or later he'll come around."

I follow Leo through the office, weaving around desks that look like they came straight from the nineties. The dark wood veneer is peeling at the corners and some people have resorted to duct tape to keep it on. The walls are a sad beige, and the lone plant in the corner by the water dispenser looks like it's got half an inch of dust on it.

The entire company needs a facelift, but my job is to work on the digital end of things. The aesthetic improvements can come later.

Grayson sighs as we stop in front of an office. The walls are made of glass, and the furniture inside is more modern than the rest of the furniture in the building, but not by much.

The desk is still dark, and the curtains hanging over the wide window are faded from sunlight. The chair looks like the fabric on it is pilling, and a dead plant lingers on top of a cabinet.

I step inside, glancing through the glass wall that separates my office from the one next door. "This is beautiful, thank you. Would you mind if I brought in a new desk and chair? I need a bit of a wider workspace to work on the planning."

Leo nods and gestures to a pretty woman with slicked-back black hair who is following along behind us. "Tell Lara to order whatever you need. She's Grayson's assistant, but for the time that you're here, she'll be working with you as well."

"Thank you." I round the desk and open the curtains, letting in the sunlight. "I'm going to get to work ordering some furniture, and after that, I'll begin planning."

Leo turns to Victoria. "We should talk about this plan you have in more detail while Grayson shows Jade around."

Grayson's glare is icy, his dark eyes looking more like soulless pits.

He waits until Leo and Victoria are gone and Lara is settled at her desk outside the other office. "What do you think you're doing here?"

"The last time I checked, I was coming to save your father's company." I sit down behind the desk, pull out my phone and start to browse furniture websites. "Is there a problem with that?"

"Yes." Grayson crosses his arms, his gray button-up pulling taunt as his muscles flex.

Chewing attractive men up and spitting them out is my specialty.

At least, that's what Paloma says whenever we have a girls' night and I tell her about the last horrible date I went on.

I sigh and put my phone face down on the worn wood veneer. "I don't know what your problem with me is, but I have a job to do. If you could leave and shut the door behind you, that would be great."

A muscle in his jaw ticks. "You have got to be kidding me. You know exactly what you did to me. You're not going to waltz in here and try the same underhanded tricks. We're not in college anymore."

"Funny that you say that while standing in my office, acting like the spoiled brat you've always been." I cross one leg over the other, leaning back in the chair to get a good look at him. "From where I'm sitting, you're still trying to get the CEO position in Daddy's company instead of actually working for something in your life."

If looks could kill, I would be six feet under.

Grayson isn't intimidating, though. I've dealt with powerful men in boardrooms for years.

If he thinks that a glare and the insistence that I don't belong here is going to be enough to send me away, then he's got another thing coming.

He points to the office on the other side of the glass wall. "I have to work next to you, so whatever you think it is you're going to be doing, you better be quiet about it. Some of us actually care about this company and have work to do."

"I don't know what delusion you're under, but I care about saving the company. Otherwise, I wouldn't be here."

"All you care about is looking better than everyone around you, and that's all you've ever cared about," he says, bitterness clear in his tone as he looks down his nose at me.

So that's what this is about.

He shakes his head, hand dropping to his side. "You're actually going to have to work here instead of getting other people to do your dirty work."

I get up, striding across the carpeted floor and stopping in front of him. My chest nearly brushes against his, and I don't miss the way his gaze drops down to the low neckline.

He's still the same man he always was.

"Listen here, Grayson. If you think that this little hissy fit is a good look for you, I would think again. We both know that they're going to be looking for a new CEO with the rebrand of LRH Global. The board isn't going to pick the man who throws tantrums."

"And that's why you're really here, isn't it? You think this is just another easy way to the top."

Smirking, I smooth a hand down the buttons on his shirt. "Unlike you, Grayson, I've worked hard for everything I have. I built two successful companies from the ground up. But remind me, what are you doing with your life?"

His face glows a bright shade of red.

This might be the most infuriated I've ever seen him. Even after everything that happened back in college, he didn't look this angry with me.

What I did back then might have been underhanded, but I'm not the same person I was all those years ago.

I learned a lot about life the following summer over the course of the internship. More than I ever had even during the difficult years growing up.

It changed me fundamentally as a person, but if Grayson wants to think that I'm the same woman I was back then, he's more than welcome to it.

He says nothing as he glares at me, his eyebrows pulling together. His body is practically vibrating as he looms over me. "I'm going to do everything I can to keep you from running this company into the ground."

"Really? It looks like I'm standing in the rubble of a company that used to be great, with a spoiled brat trying to get in my way." I give him a polite smile. "Now, if you will excuse me, I have work to do."

"This conversation isn't over," he says. "You're going to kill this company, and we both know it."

I press my fingers to my temples, rubbing the ache that's starting to form there. "Look, I just want to do my job and move on with my life. I'm not here to try and take the CEO position from you, no matter what you think."

He shakes his head. "Still a liar, I see."

I head back to my desk, not wanting to keep arguing with him. There's no point when to him, I'm always going to be the woman who jeopardizes his ability to impress his father.

That's fine. The sooner I can get this company fixed and return to my normal life, the better.

I pick up my phone, glancing at him one last time. "Hate me if you want. Just stay out of my way while I save your company."

As he turns and storms out of my office, an ache starts in my stomach.

This is starting to feel like a massive mistake.