Why did she feel the need to lie to Max? Was she trying to avoid the concern she knew he and Denise would shower on her if they knew she was in danger? She doubted they could protect her any better than Jake and Robert.
“Do they have any idea who shot him?” Max’s booming voice asked, full of concern.
“No.”
“That’s too bad. Listen, honey, I know this is a difficult time for you, and I want you to know there’s no rush. But you need to consider what you want to do with your father’s half of the company. Do you want to continue to keep it as residual income like you and Cameron were doing, or are you interested in selling out to me?”
“I’m not sure I can think about that right now. I’d like to keep it as is for the time being. I may have a lawyer contact you sometime in the future to discuss it. I don’t think I can deal with it.” Tears clogged her throat again.
“I understand. Take care of yourself and let me know if there’s anything Denise and I can do for you.”
“Thank you.” Emily hung up the phone and, once again, closed her eyes and took several deep breaths to calm her emotions.
“Why did you lie to him? It sounded like he was more than your brother’s boss.”
“He is... was. I don’t know why, but I’ve never really cared for the man. He rubs me the wrong way, and I always feel so tense after talking to him.” She rolled her shoulders.
“I’ll be right back.” Jake stood and walked out of the office. He returned less than a minute later, carrying her hairbrush.
A smile crept to her face. Jake was the sweetest man in the world.
“This love seat is not big enough for you to lie down, but if you want to move to the office chair, I’ll brush your hair to help you relax, and you can tell me why you don’t like him.”
This man was quickly claiming a large piece of her heart.
* * *
Jake shiftedthe laptop back to the desk and helped Emily to her feet. Once she’d settle in his chair, he took out the braid from her still damp hair.
Emily sighed and relaxed almost immediately as he brushed.
Jake inhaled the tantalizing strawberry scent. He would always and forever think of Emily any time he smelled strawberries.
“Your hair smells so good.” A blush heated his neck when he realized he’d spoken aloud. Thank goodness she couldn’t see his face.
“Like strawberries. I like the scent too.”
Jake doubted she liked it for the same reasons he did. Surely, the scent didn’t create the same powerful attraction in her as it did in him.
He cleared his throat. “So, tell me about Maxwell. What, besides his loud voice, rubs you the wrong way?”
“You noticed, huh? He’s always been that way. Too loud. Too flashy. Too... fake. I’ve never felt like he was sincere about anything. Except at my father’s funeral. He took my father’s death hard. He and my father had been friends since they were roommates in college. My mom told me once, Max cheated off my dad throughout the Chemistry class they shared. Maybe that’s why I don’t like him. I guess I grew up with this preconceived notion he wasn’t a nice guy. But he was always nice to me and Cameron. So nice, sometimes, that it seemed odd. He always called me sweetheart and honey, which bugged me, even though he never did anything inappropriate. It just felt weird.
“He’s kind of like an uncle, I guess. After my mom died, we often spent holidays with him and Denise and their son, Jeffery. He and my father started a computer software company after college. My dad did the programming, and Maxwell had the business degree, so he did the marketing, and he did a good job too. But, maybe because of the Chemistry thing, I always felt that without my dad’s skills, he never would have succeeded on his own.”
“He mentioned you selling your father’s half of the company. I assume you decided not to do anything with it after your dad died?”
“No. Cameron was a programmer for the company, and though he never said so, I think he was interested in someday stepping into my father’s position, which I would like to have seen. When we decided not to sell out to Max, he set it up so that we got a dividend check every six months. I opened a special account for it. I don’t even know if any money has been deposited yet. But now, with Cameron gone too...” her voice grew husky. “I’m not sure I want to deal with any of it. It’s a painful reminder of my father and brother. Do you think Ben would represent me? Maybe I can let him take care of negotiations.”
“I’m sure he would be happy to work with you.”
“I know it’s a successful company, but I honestly have no idea how much it’s worth.” Then with a sigh, she added, “I don’t care either. I just want my dad and Cameron back.” Her words ended on a sob.
Jake knelt to the side of the chair and pulled Emily into his arms. He continued to stroke her hair while she wept. Her tears were short-lived, and she soon pulled away, apologizing for crying on him again.
Jake cupped her face. “Hey, consider me your handkerchief. You need someone to share your grief with, Em. I’d like to be that person... If you’ll let me.”
Emily studied him for a long moment before nodding and giving him a weak smile. “Would you mind getting me a glass of water? All these tears are making my throat hurt.”
