Otto tapped her on the shoulder. "I have someone who wants to congratulate you himself."
"Who?"
He winked. "Your husband. He's dealing with a slight catering problem but said he wanted to see you."
She could hardly wait.
Chapter 27
After dealing with a shortage of sushi, Jax went in search of Ruby.
However, as he entered the annexe, Harrod Meyer, CEO of the Global Mining Corp, waylaid him.
The guy he'd been trying to schedule a meeting with for months. The guy who'd been instrumental in stalling his efforts at every turn.
"Good job." Harrod held out his hand and Jax knew he'd continue to play nice despite the urge to tell the CEO where he could stick his long overdue handshake.
Jax had been fruitlessly trying to get a meeting with Harrod ever since he'd arrived in Melbourne—before, if he counted the number of failed videoconferences he'd tried to set up.
Harrod and his cronies had blocked him at every turn, had ignored him at theSeabornlaunch and the races, and had barely managed a civil congratulations at his wedding reception.
So having the big guy seek him out vindicated he must be doing something right.
"Thanks, but Ruby did all the hard work.”
Harrod smiled, his fondness for Ruby evident in the warmth lighting his eyes. That glimpse of real emotion went some wayto soothing Jax's resentment. He didn't care what this guy thought of him but the judgemental old buffoon having genuine admiration for Ruby mattered.
"She sure did. Though from what I'm hearing, you had a major hand in helping her?"
"I did what any husband would do. Support her."
Harrod nodded, his expression pensive. "Must say, you've surprised a lot of us."
Why, because he was nothing like his dad? Because he was successful and powerful in his own right? Because the guilt-by-association brush they'd tarred him with had been washed clean by virtue of his marriage to one of their own?
Maroney Mine needed what Harrod had to offer, but Jax couldn't respect his narrow-minded wavering over Jax's social standing now that he'd done well by marrying a Seabornrather than Harrod taking his credentials at face value.
He didn't want to ask what Harrod meant by saying Jax surprised him, wasn't interested in anything this guy had to say unless it involved a meeting with Maroney Mine, but alienating Harrod wouldn't help anyone, least of all his entrepreneurial wife.
"How so?"
Harrod hesitated, tugging at his cuffs, before squaring his shoulders as if coming to a decision. "Many of us here have watched Ruby grow up. Our kids went to school together. We look out for each other."
Didn’t Jax know it. Their close-knit, high society clique wouldn't let anyone in, let alone the son of a criminal.
"Throw in the fact your father screwed over many of our friends, and we had our doubts about you. Serious doubts." Harrod frowned and Jax braced for a moral lesson.
"However, the way you've rallied around our Ruby… well, let's just say we're willing to re-evaluate our opinions."
Bully for you.Jax gritted his teeth, hating how he had to take this condescension from a pompous jackass for the sake of his business.
“Why don't we schedule a meeting for you to present your plans to the mining corporation? Say Monday?"
Jax mentally fist-pumped the air. About time. A legit chance to wow the corporation with his soundproof strategies for taking his mine all the way to the top.
Maroney Mine, going global.
"Sounds good. Who do I contact to co-ordinate?"
