Even though I was still mad at him, I didn’t walk toward the backstage.
Instead, I changed direction and walked straight toward him.
We stopped inches apart, the space between us buzzing with everything unsaid.
“I think you just got me fired,” I said quietly.
“You’d have to be hired first for that to happen,” he replied. “I saved you from a future disappointment.”
“You still have my cloud password?”
“You never changed it,” he said. “You also didn’t have to read a single word I changed.”
“I know,” I said softly. “I wanted to.”
The corner of his mouth twitched — not a smile, something deeper.
“Well, um…” Tears blurred my vision all over again. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome,” he said. “Can you step into the hallway with me?”
“I have another interview across the street in like an hour. Can it wait?”
“No.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me away, and I could still feel the audience watching me as we left.
The hallway was ours alone, and under the bright lighting, Harrison’s beautiful face was even more tempting.
“I’ve been trying to reach you for weeks, Andrea,” he said, looking into my eyes. “I need you to take me back.”
“I wish I could… But with the layoffs?—”
“I’m sorry for ever entertaining the idea of those.” He wiped away one of my stray tears. “I should’ve shut Ken Lay down the moment he suggested it, and I’m sorry. So fucking sorry.”
“So, instead of forty-nine point five percent, what number did you settle for?”
“Zero,” he said, letting the word settle between us. “I’m not laying off a single soul, and we’re no longer going public.”
“Until—”
“Never.” His voice was firm. “Never, Andrea.”
“I was wrong—about everything, and I don’t want to go back to the days when you weren’t a part of my life, so…” He swallowed. “I really need you to come back… the sooner, the better. I’ll do whatever it takes.”
I stared at him, processing everything he said line by line.
“Give me one reason why I should trust you again,” I said. “Tell me why you won’t change your mind like you did before…”
“Because I can’t bear to lose you again.” He looked wounded. “I’ll prove it to you every day.”
“You promise you’re telling the truth?” was all I could say. “There aren’t any hidden terms where you’ll go back on this?”
“Not at all,” he said. “It’s final.”
“I would love to come back to you…” My voice cracked under the weight of holding back. “I’ve missed you…”
He pulled me into his arms and kissed me—hard and unapologetic. His hand slid into my hair, tilting my head back like he was reclaiming something he’d lost.
I melted before I could stop myself.
