“You don’t have a choice. I’ve already asked my lawyers to look into selling my shares. If you refuse the deal, I’m selling them to someone else. Anyone, really, as long as I’m not a part of it anymore.”
Kevin tries to argue a few times, his mouth opening and closing without a word. But he knows I’m right. This is what we need to do to make sure Kelex stays afloat. A large part of the public might condone what Nammota did and praise me for it, but the investors and stockholders, those rich men I specifically stole from, don’t.
“Are you sure about this?” Andrea asks, leaning forward to rest her hand over mine on the table.
“All I’ve been doing lately is sit around and think about it. I’ve considered every aspect of the situation, made my calculations, weighed the pros and cons… This is the right thing to do, I’m sure of it.”
“But is it the thing youwantto do?” she insists.
“What I want doesn’t matter right now. Kelex is hemorrhaging money, and we need to stop the hemorrhage before it’s too late. If I get out—”
“Whenyou get out,” she corrects me.
Again, her unwavering hope sends a painful sting through my heart. I straighten up, remove my hand from under hers, and rest both on my lap.
“If the time comes, I can buy the shares back from Kevin. Until then, it’s better this way.”
“If I accept, you’ll buy everything back the moment you’re out. With interest,” he adds with a crooked smile.
“If I feel like I can do so without affecting the company’s image, I will, yes.”
Kevin sighs, scratches the underside of his jaw as he thinks, and eventually shakes his head with annoyance. “You know you’re a pain in the ass, right?”
I let out a humorless laugh, aware that I’m usually the one telling him that. “Trust me, I’d rather not be in this situation. But I can’t watch the company we’ve worked so hard to build collapse into nothingness.”
“Yes, I get it. That’s why I’m agreeing to this. But I’ll have you buy those stocks back and return as co-CEO as soon as you’re out.”
“Don’t hold your breath.”
The table is silent for a moment as we digest this new information and its implications. Andrea is the first one to speak again, saying, “Does this mean you’re not my boss anymore?”
I hadn’t even thought of it from that angle. But no, I’m not her boss anymore. Or I won’t be for much longer. We’ve gotten good at not letting work interfere with our romantic life, but this still feels like a page turning. A big, lengthy page of our story.
“Oh, stop it with the sad glances,” Kev intervenes with an eye roll. “It’s only temporary. He’ll be bossing you around again as soon as he’s out.”
Andrea lets out a small laugh. “As if Lex could ever stop bossing people around.”
I let out a huff, refusing to let them band together against me. “How’s my goddaughter-to-be?” I ask, cleverly changing the course of the conversation.
Whatever time we have left passes in a blink. Kev tells me about little Maddison, Andrea gives me a report on how her app is doing, and the guards announce that the time is up. We’re all surprised to see it’s already over.
Once we’re standing, she’s quick to come around the table to give me another long hug, her eyes wet with tears. “I love you,” she utters, looking up.
This time, I can’t resist the need to pass my thumb over her freckled cheek, wiping away the single tear that spilled over.
“Come on, Coleman. How many times do I need to tell you?” The guard has returned, ruining the moment.
Andrea lets go, and it feels like a limb is being torn from me. This time, Kevin offers only a wave paired with a nod and a smile. “We’ll see you next weekend, old friend.”
“Take care of her for me, He-Man.”
He wraps his arm around Andrea’s shoulders and promises, “Of course. Shelly and I are on it.”
“I can take care of myself,” Andrea protests in a small voice.
“Of course you can, you stubborn dork.”
The guard grabs my arm, apparently out of patience. “Alright, Coleman, let’s go.”
