Not bothering to hide her scowl, she dug into her briefcase and pulled out the cell. Logan again. If she didn’t answer now, he’d just keep calling until she did. Flipping open the phone, she turned away from Sebastian. “I’m in the middle of a meeting—”
“I’m sorry, Jade, but it’s an emergency. I’m serious this time.”
He did sound serious. And different than during his call back in Atlanta. “I have to take this,” she said to Sebastian.
He nodded, and she didn’t miss the flash of concern in his eyes.
Quickly she went into the hallway. When she was safely out of earshot, she asked, “What’s wrong?”
“I need to get out of Little Rock ASAP.”
“Why?”
“I can’t say. Please, Jade, help me out. I promise this will be the last time. I can get a flight to Atlanta right now.”
“I’m not in Atlanta.” She paused, conflicted. If she told him where she was, that would open a door she’d already closed. But the urgency in his voice had her worried. “I’m in Arkansas,” she said, wincing.
“Really? How long have you been here?”
“Not long. Logan, what’s all this about?”
“I’ll tell you when I see you. Are you in Little Rock?”
“Clementine.”
“Never heard of it, but I’ll be there in the morning. Where are you staying?”
If she saw him, she could assess his condition. He didn’t sound under the influence, but that didn’t mean anything. “The Clementine Inn. But I’m not paying for your room,” she added. At least she could keep that boundary up.
“I don’t expect you to.” His voice lowered again. “Thanks, sis. I promise you won’t regret this.” He hung up.
Sis.Despite her worry and frustration with herself that she was so easily cajoled, the word stirred warmth inside her. That didn’t mean he wasn’t trying to get something out of her, however. She stared at her Razr. “I already do.”
* * *
Seb drummed his fingers on top of the Harrington Media folder. Jade’s skin was fair, almost porcelain, but when she saw her phonescreen, she went pale. And as she talked on the phone outside his office, he saw her pacing back and forth behind the frosted glass on his door. He doubted she even knew what she was doing. The conversation was clearly tense.
His fingers had stilled, and when he glanced down, he was surprised to see his hand clenched. He relaxed, then rubbed both palms down his thighs. Jade wasn’t his concern, so whatever was going on wasn’t his business. However, her company wanting to buyThe Timeswas.
He shook his head, his back teeth grinding. After all these years, Jade Smith had come back into his life, and she was intent on taking his business from him. Un. Believable. What made it worse was that after the last time Harrington left a message on his voicemail, Seb made a rare venture onto the internet, found the company, and discovered they were buying small newspapers left and right. They were destroying the community newspaper trade one acquisition at a time.
He found it hard to believe that Jade was okay with this. Then again, maybe she was just fine reducing Seb’s hard work and Buford’s legacy to a number on a spreadsheet and an afterthought in a bloated conglomerate. She was an accountant, or she used to be. Apparently she was in acquisitions and mergers now.
Even more concerning, annoying, and irritating was that, despite her wantingThe Times, despite knowing that she never felt as deeply for him as he did her, and despite the possibility that she belonged to someone else, he couldn’t stop looking at her. He really,reallyliked what he saw, especially when she turned around and left his office to take her phone call.
Jade came back in, her expression shuttered as if she’d just ordered takeout instead of having an intense conversation, and sat back down. “Sorry about that.” She kept her phone in her lap. “Did you look at the offer?”
There was no point in talking about the offer since he wasn’t going to sell. But he could get a few questions answered. “Why are you here?” he asked.
She frowned. “I told you, I’m a representative from—”
“But why you in particular? Are you still an accountant?”
“Yes.” She shifted in her chair. “I don’t see what that has to do with anything.”
“Companies don’t usually send accountants to discuss buyouts, do they?”
“No,” she said quietly, glancing at her lap.
