Page 38 of A Christmas Negotiation

Sam walked over and sat on the couch, but Mindy went straight to Isabel.

“Oh my God. Are you okay?” she asked.

Isabel had to take a moment to reflect. Was she okay? “I am. I mean, I’ve wanted to have a baby for a long time now. Ever since...” There were far too many details of her life she had kept from Sam. Perhaps it had been Isabel’s way of protecting him. With both of their parents gone and Isabel being two years older, she certainly felt responsible for him.

“Ever since what?” Sam asked, seeming desperate. “Just tell me what’s going on, Isabel. I feel like I am completely in the dark, which is not a good feeling when it comes to my own sister.”

Apparently that day was for nothing but revelations and admissions. So she finally told Sam about the heartache of losing her first pregnancy, and how she so desperately wanted this child.

“What are you going to do?” he asked when she’d told him everything.

“Right now, all I can do is my best for me and the baby. I have absolutely no idea what’s going to happen with any of it. The deal or Jeremy.”

FOURTEEN

Jeremy left his meeting with Mr. Summers feeling as though he’d been hit by a truck. The man’s ability to hold on to a grudge and to allow every perceived slight to fester...well, it was unparalleled.

Nothing had been resolved, but Mr. Summers promised him a phone call in an hour with an answer. Either he would accept the terms from the Eden’s team or it would be all-out war. Which left Jeremy with one more thing to deal with—his dad. No matter what happened with the case, he was done.

He headed straight to the office and didn’t even stop to drop off his things. “I need to speak to my father,” he said to his dad’s admin, striding right past her desk and opening the door. “I heard that your plan to smear Ms. Blackwell didn’t work. I guess I should be thankful you failed.”

Jeremy’s dad was on a call. “I’m gong to have to call you back,” he said into the receiver before hanging up. “I can still make it happen. I just need to dig up more dirt on her.”

“Just don’t. Just stop all of this. You’re as bad as Mr. Summers. There is no winning when you play the game like this. It’s just a race to the bottom and I’m tired of it.”

“You’re complaining about your boss and your biggest client. Apparently you don’t know who signs your paychecks.”

“Don’t posture with me, Dad. You know that the other lawyers and I are the ones who keep the lights on. You’re just the head of the dragon, spitting fire and still trying to prove yourself because you know that no matter how hard you try, you will never be as good as your own dad.”

“That’s not true. The success of this firm begins and ends with me. It’s my legacy.”

That word didn’t sit right with Jeremy. “I’m your son. Am I not your real legacy? The firm could go under tomorrow and I would still be here, trying to find a way to make you happy. Trying to find a way to get through to you.”

Just then, the door to his father’s office opened and in walked the last person he expected to see—his mother. “Jeremy. I thought it was strange that you weren’t at your desk.”

“Mom. What are you doing here?”

“Trying to get your father to go Christmas shopping with me.”

“I’m in the middle of something,” his dad said. “I can’t drop everything and go shopping.”

“Why not?” Jeremy asked. “Everything is under control here. The other lawyers and I have everything in hand.”

“The Summers case isn’t resolved.”

“No, it isn’t. But it will be. And I’ll see it through.”

“Then what?” his dad asked. “You’ll get another client I have to bother you about?”

“You never had to bother me about this one. If you trusted me to do my job, it would get done. Grandpa trusted you. I don’t know why you can’t place that same faith in me.” Jeremy stuffed his hands into his pants pockets, frustrated.

His mother turned to him. “Your grandfather never trusted him. Your dad was proving himself until the day his father died. He never had a chance to win his confidence.”

Jeremy was frozen for a moment, letting that bit of information tumble around in his head. “What? Seriously?”

His dad drew in a deep breath, staring off into space as if he couldn’t possibly handle the admission. “He never made things easy on me. That’s for sure.”

Jeremy’s mom stepped closer to him. “As the person who had to listen to your father complain every night when he came home from work, I can tell you that it was far worse than that.”