The office line rang again. Maybe she should have asked Ella to turn off the ringer before she left.
A door opened and then closed.
Henry grinned. “That must be him.”
Hadley grabbed an empty folder from her desk drawer. When she looked up, a man stood in the doorway. Not just any man…
“Blaise?” She whispered his name, unsure if it was a plea or a question. “What are you doing here?”
Henry stood. “My work is done.”
Hadley stared at Henry, who was walking around the desk toward her. “I don’t understand.”
“I’m just trying to help right a few wrongs. Hear him out. That’s all I ask.” Henry kissed her cheek. “I’ll be in touch soon.”
* * *
What are you doing here?
Blaise didn’t answer Hadley’s question. He couldn’t because all he wanted to do was stare at her. She looked like he felt—awful. And that hurt because he was the one who’d caused them both so much pain.
He stepped into her office to let Henry exit.
Henry patted Blaise’s shoulder. “Good luck.”
Blaise would need more than luck. He needed a miracle.
Did he expect her to give him a second chance?
No.
Unlike his friends, who were sitting in the lobby to lend moral support after coming up with this multipronged plan, Blaise wasn’t an optimist with matters of the heart. He had no experience. But his careless, thoughtless words had affected her business.
Whether or not she wanted anything to do with him personally, he would help save her company. An interview he’d given had gone live fifteen minutes ago. That was his first step to making sure Matched by Lowell survived. Because it wasn’t only her livelihood at stake. Her sister, niece, and nephew depended on Hadley, too.
Eyes wide, she remained seated.
Slowly, he approached her desk. The tension in his shoulders made him want to slump, but he forced himself to stand straight. His gaze met hers. “I’m sorry, Hadley. I never meant to hurt you or your business. I’m doing what I can to make it right.”
A beat passed and then another.
Hadley rested her clasped hands on the top of the desk. “There’s nothing you can do to help me.”
Her body language translated the words into what she really meant—I don't want or need your help.
Blaise understood, but he had to try. He would do whatever it took to make this right for her. “I didn’t mean what I said on the video.”
“You said what you believed in that moment.” Her tone was cool and professional, but the quiver of her lower lip told him she was far from okay. “Nothing can change that. The clients who left Matched by Lowell aren’t coming back. They’ve canceled their contracts and been refunded their retainers.”
That was worse than he thought. “I did an interview.”
She didn’t blink or show any emotion. “What does that have to do with me?”
“I answered questions about what I said on the video,” he explained, wishing he could take credit for the next part. Offering an exclusive interview had been Brett’s killing-two-birds idea. ”I spoke with the reporter who I had a run-in with several weeks ago.”
Her eyes widened. “The one you had a fight with?”
This wasn’t the time to get caught up in semantics. “Yes. He wasn’t the one who filmed us.”
