Just like that, Thayer Steelworks was officially in the process of being sold. To the husband of the woman who’d caused them to be in this position to begin with.
Jane’s face drained of all color and she took a step forward, like she was going to say something that would be able to stop this if she just found the right words, but it was over.
I pushed back my chair and stood, the room spinning faintly around me. Rage burned hot and clean through my veins, but underneath it was something worse—an icy certainty that Mallory had played this perfectly.
I’d been too late. When I looked at Jane again, I stood up, about to cross the room, to explain, and to promise I’d fix it, because I would.
But in that moment, with the deal sealed and my wife staring at me like the ground had just vanished beneath her feet, all I could think was that the unraveling had officially begun, and I had no idea if my marriage would survive it.
CHAPTER 43
JANE
Ibarely made it down the hall before I heard my name. “Jane, wait.”
I didn’t because I couldn’t stop moving. My heels were clicking too fast on the polished tile, my chest too tight and my mind urging to me toward my office door like it was a life raft. I got it open and put one foot inside, but Alex was right behind me.
He slipped in after me, shut the door, and before I could say a word, he locked it. I couldn’t even meet his eyes as I strode to my desk, bracing my palms on the wood top and lowering my head. “Alex?—”
“It’s going to be fine,” he said, like it was a wish that might come true if he didn’t let me protest before he said it. “Jane, look at me. It’s going to be fine. I’m going to fix it.”
I laughed, but the sound came out all wrong. I closed my eyes, my breaths coming too fast as I stood over my desk and willed myself not to hurl. “You can’t fix this.”
“I can,” he said confidently. “What’s more is that I will.”
My head was shaking before he’d even finished the sentence, the hard wood under my palms the only thing keeping me fromcompletely spiraling or maybe even fainting right now. “My mother just voted to sell my company out from under me to?—”
“Mallory,” he said immediately.
At the sound of her name, I had a brief flash of that picture in the article, but that just made my blood run even colder. Alex didn’t wait for me to bring it up, though. He didn’t wait for me to ask just what the fuck he meant. He just went for it, telling the truth I so desperately needed to hear.
“She’s here to mess things up,” he said. “She’s been circling this for weeks. I told her to stay away from you. I warned her, but obviously, she didn’t listen.”
My mouth opened, then closed again. “The article…”
“I know.” He let out a soft sigh and I heard him take a step closer. “I’ve already had my lawyers draw up the paperwork to sue the editor. She cornered me when I was at the club with Nate and my dad. I suspect she wanted to talk to you about her husband buying Thayer, and when you didn’t contact her, she came to me instead. Neither of us gave her the attention she wanted, though.”
“So the picture?” I asked quietly. “It doesn’t look like youweren’tgiving her the attention she wanted, Alex.”
“I know. I realize it looks bad, but it was taken after I’d warned her to stay away from you and she’d told me that they’d come back for her husband to look into the company. She leaned in out of nowhere and told me good luck in that fake, I-wish-you-would-die way, then she left.”
“Do you think she knew the photographer was there?” I asked after taking a moment to think about it. “You said she leaned in out of nowhere, so…”
“I’ve thought about it and it’s possible.” He drew in a breath loud enough that I heard it. “I don’t see what she would gain from it, other than knowing it would get to you.”
Finally finding the strength to straighten up, I turned around and studied his face, looking for cracks or hesitation, but I found none. All I saw was anger, fear, and something raw underneath it all that made my chest ache.
“I should’ve told you sooner,” he said. “I just didn’t want to do that until I knew more. She mentioned that her husband was taking a look at Thayer, but I wanted to be sure that he was a real player before I added to your stress. That was a mistake, but I wasn’t keeping it from you for any other reason.”
“Yes,” I said quietly. “It was a mistake, Alex.”
He flinched but didn’t argue. “Don’t worry about the sale, okay? I’ll undo it.”
I frowned at him. “You can’t just undo a board vote.”
“No, but I can buy it.”
I blinked hard. “What?”
