She woke up to the firelight dancing across the bed. The curtain on Jason's side of the empty bed was pulled back. "Jason?" She peeked out. The hallway door sat open. Grabbing her robe, she followed the lights down the hall and tiptoed downstairs. The kitchen light flowed into the foyer, as well as Jason's voice.
"But there was so much terror in her eyes. She has to deal with that shitface's trauma and now this. I think she's scared of me when I don't have the mask on. Not that I'll actually hurt her, but what the scars symbolize. I suspect she sees him when she sees the scars."
She frowned and walked across the foyer. The clock ticked just after midnight. He couldn't possibly be on the phone at this hour.
"Did ya talk to her?" Trudy's voice flowed patient and motherly from the kitchen.
Her feet halted. The times she'd stumbled upon Jason confiding in Trudy were far and few between, but mostly when something deeply distraught him. About herself.
"I tried. She would barely speak to me after it happened, but she was very clingy. I think she feels guilty to tell me that my face causes flashbacks." So much distress filled his voice. "I thought I was helping things by showing her my face, but all I did was give her more nightmares."
"No, you didn't."
He snorted. "No, I did. She had horrid nightmares last night. Today I gave her flashbacks. Who knows what it'll be tomorrow. I'm terrifying my own wife. Goddammit, I knew I shouldn't have done it!" So much anger and self-hatred filled his voice.
"Not doing it would've withered the marriage like a frost, don'tcha know. Give her time. She doesn't have eyes."
"Pardon?"
"She doesn't have eyes," Trudy repeated, her tone as light as if discussing what to make for dinner. "She started to fall in love before seeing a hint of your face. She married you not seeing the scars, don'tcha know. The sweet thing has so obviously fallen more in love with you since last night - "
"Ms. Van Hoodie...I think you've gone daft. Emma couldn't possibly - "
She stepped in and leaned against the doorframe, folding her arms over her chest. "Perhaps you should ask Emma."
Jason shot to his feet, getting up a bit faster than usual at her entrance.
Trudy's face lit up. "A fish in the sea, that's a good idea." Then Trudy exited, with a pat on her arm on the way past.
"Emma, I - "
"Agreed to talk when things bothered us." She walked over and sat at the island chair beside him. "You didn't make a mistake, and you aren't giving me the nightmares. There are two monsters in my head merging together, and it's going to take time to get rid of them." She laid a hand over his on the counter and held his concerned gaze. "I didn't want to tell you what frightened me because I didn't want this to happen."
He sat silent and staring at the counter after she relayed the flashback. "I'm trusting you to be brutally honest, Emma. I vow I won't be upset if you're honest." Then his eye rose to hers. "Do you see something to fear under the mask? I'm not talking of beatings or violence; something that your instinctual reaction is to pull away?" The words flowed subdued and impregnated with sadness. "I beg you to be honest with yourself and me so I can help you." He turned in his seat to face her and took her hands.
She searched his face, trying to recall the knee-jerk emotions of what it felt like seeing his face. When he swallowed hard and eased off the mask, her heart took off and her eyes floated downward to his lap.
"Tell me what you're feeling. Tell me why you won't look."
Tears welled. "I'm scared that I won't ever be able to see you under the mask - that I'll always see fear and pain and torture. That Gaston's monster is just going to get stronger and eventually I'll be scared to see you without the mask."
He drew a shaky breath. "Why did you touch when you were scared?" The words whispered across the invisible distance growing wider.
She burst into tears and buried her face in her hands. The shame bubbled bigger and bigger. "I'm not supposed to make you humiliated like this. I - "
"Emma, stop," he cooed. Warm hands rubbed her upper arms. "I'm not humiliated; I'm worried. You aren't doing anything wrong. Neither of us know how to navigate this, but we'll figure it out. We need to be patient with ourselves and each other. Pressuring yourself will make it worse, sweetheart."
Crawling into his lap, she laid her head on his chest and took deep breaths to calm down.
The man's arms slowly cocooned and he rubbed her back. "This. Tell me why when it upsets you that you come closer rather than run."
"Because it's safe."
He held tighter. "Why did you touch last night, Emma?" His voice came out no stronger than a whisper, as if afraid of breaking the spell.
"For reassurance that it was part of you and not him."
"Oh, my girl," he sighed. His cheek rested on top of her head. "Does it help you to touch?"
"Sometimes. Sometimes it'd be worse." Her eyes drifted closed from the beat of his heart and the warmth of his heat.
"We have an early morning. Let's get to bed, sweetheart." He reached for the mask on the counter.
"The only way to get used to you is to not always wear the mask, Jay." She slipped it from his hand.
He stood with her in his arms like she weighed no more than air and carried her upstairs.
When he laid her on the soft mattress, she didn't let go of around his neck. Her fingers grazed the unfamiliar texture of the scars and she searched his eye. "Do you promise it doesn't hurt?" Tears burned.
He leaned his hands on each side of her on the bed, with her reflection shining in his eye. "Aye, sweetheart. It doesn't hurt anymore." His voice purred low and soothing. Then he caught her hand. "Don't be afraid of what isn't." His hand drifted over hers on the burns, and his eye fluttered shut.
The contours seemed strange and foreign, not mapping like a typical face. Her gaze followed and she glanced at his closed eye again. His head tilted into her palm, as if finding pleasure in being touched. "Do you feel me?"
"In my mind," he whispered. "Your fingers are smooth and feather-soft. You're warm and gentler than any touch I've ever known."
Tears blurred and then created a hot trail from the corner of her eye. How he suffered but wove beauty from it. The way he cradled her touch melted her heart into a puddle. A need to feed his terrible hunger, that no human should suffer, flickered stronger and stronger. Raising her head, she brushed a kiss over the warped flesh and rested her head back down.
His eye shot open and he stared for a moment before swallowing hard.
"Come to bed, Jay." She held out her arms to hold him.
The man walked into the Foundation the next morning with his head held high. The pride of walking on his arm swelled with each person who greeted him with smiles and handshakes and goodluck wishes. When her heart threatened to burst with pride, he pulled her into the elevator to go up to the corporate suite.
"I thought this was kept underwraps, Jay. Why is everyone wishing you good luck?"
He smiled but remained facing the elevator door. "Because, Emma, I asked Ms. Williamson to start the gossip one hour before our two-hour early arrival. That way the board would not have enough time to catch much wind of it. I'm counting on surprise and the support of staff to play in my favor."
She smiled at the crafty man. "I take it that the gossip is spreading too that you were dismissed without it being legal?"
"But of course." He turned his head and the smile reached his eye. "Are you certain that you want to be on the board if I'm voted in?"
"I am, Jay." She grinned and held his arm tighter.
The elevator doors opened. Ms. Williamson stood there with a huge grin, ready as if he hadn't missed a day. "Good morning, Dr. Port. Mrs. Port." She handed him the leather binder he'd used before, a pen and an agenda. "I was informed to move the meeting up one hour because Mr. Jenkins got word of you coming. I misplaced everyone's phone numbers, so I've been trying to find them. I think I'll find them once you're settled, sir."
Jason cracked a smile. "Thank you. I assume Mr. Jenkins is...?"
"In your office." She didn't seem at all pleased. "High and mighty he's been. Pompous - "
"We'll be in the conference room," he interrupted. "Please find my wife an office to do her work. She'll need Wifi access too."
"Mr. Jenkins eliminated Wifi, sir. Costs and employees aren't as productive having Wifi for their phones, he said."
Jason's eyebrow rose. "I assume you reminded him that we're in an odd location that does not get cellular service. And that we found productivity to increase when employees had readily available communication methods in case their children fall ill at school or daycare?"
"Yes, sir." Ms. Williamson pursed her pink lips.
Jason's mouth pressed into a firm line. "Mr. Jenkins is not the director at this moment in time. Get IT on it."
Ms. Williamson smiled. "Yes, sir. And Mrs. Swanson's little boy is in the hospital with pneumonia. Has been for a week already. He's quite ill and Mr. Jenkins refused her take off to be with him."
His nostril flared as he heaved a deep-winded sigh. "Is there anything else that I should be aware of immediately?"
"No, sir. Mrs. Swanson's desk is in the back now."
"And...why?" The irritation dripped from his voice.
The woman bit her lip, clearly trying to keep her tongue. "She was demoted from VP of business development, sir."
He spun on his heel and charged down the hall like a bull.
She glanced at Ms. Williamson.
"It's good to have him back." She smiled. "May I get you coffee or anything, Mrs. Port?"
"Emma. No, thank you."
A woman came running down the hall with a purse and tears on her face.
"He'll be okay, Anna." Ms. Williamson shoved some tissues at the lady on the way past.
"Thanks, Mary." Then she disappeared into the elevator.
"That's Mrs. Swanson," Ms. Williamson whispered.
Jason returned, his face slightly red. "Mark Mrs. Swanson down as emergency family leave for at least two weeks. Write up a letter of recommendation for her that I can sign today before I go. I want my CEO title on there to carry some weight. If her absence is disputed, make sure you have her resignation sitting on your desk and ready to pull out. Send the recommendation letter to her personal email address so she has it ready."
Her heart melted. He was lining everything up to help Mrs. Swanson on the chance Jenkins fired the woman - and making sure a resignation would come before the firing.
Then he grabbed her hand and led the way to the conference room, his temper clearly still boiling.
Several employees popped out of their offices and stopped with handshakes and smiles.
"Good to see you, sir."
"Congratulations on the wedding. Kick some ass today, sir."
"Dr. Port! We have a three o'clock meeting tomorrow that I'd like to get your insight on."
They all spoke as if Jason would walk through the door again tomorrow. Strain lined their faces like it hadn't the last time she'd seen them. The smiles, however, seemed heartfelt and genuine. These looked like people who had lost hope...until now. The crowd grew and grew and patted Jason on the back and shook his hand. He kept an arm around her and tucked her by his side through it all. The sweet man didn't brush off a single employee and asked each one a question about their personal lives, remembering details as if he hadn't been gone for five weeks. Jason looked so at home, so happy.
"What the hell is all the commotion?!" A man's voice roared over the noise.
The crowd silenced and parted. A man not much older than Jason, with brown hair and a mustache and suit, stood in the doorway of the CEO office. The anger left his face and he paled a bit when his eye landed on Jason. The nameplate next to the door had been replaced. Mr. Patrick Rufen. CEO.
Jason let go of her and walked toward the man. "I heard that the dismissal wasn't legal, based on our bylaws, and another poll would be held today."
Rufen's mustache twitched.
Ms. Williamson stepped forward beside Jason. "Remember I asked yesterday if you had contacted Dr. Port to advise him of today's meeting? You said you'd emailed him."
"Hm." Jason folded his hands behind his back. "The mishap of the technical era, I'm sure. Ms. Williamson was kind enough to call last night and ensure I received the message, given it would occur in less than twenty-four hours."
Rufen shot Mary a dark look.
"As luck would have it, my flight arrived two hours early." Jason remained composed and calm while Rufen's face reddened with each passing moment.
A few of the employees grinned.
"I need a few minutes in my office to prepare." Jason's tone demanded his office back, if his words didn't.
Her eyes widened. Oh dear. Kicking the man out in front of everyone was bold and perhaps not a wise move.
"You are not the director - " Rufen seethed.
"But I am. Actually, every change made in the past three weeks does not stand because I was absent from the decision making to cast my vote. You have no business being in my office. You have five minutes to kindly clear the desk."
"Why you little - "
"I would choose my words carefully when speaking to my boss. Four minutes."
Rufen spun on his heel. Ater a lot of rustling, he came out, purposefully bumping Jason's shoulder hard enough to make Jason take a step back.
That had been the wrong move. Jason likely would've let the man go, if it hadn't been for that last rude collision. He visibly drew a deep breath to remain calm. And reached for the nameplate.
"You forgot this." Jason slipped the plate off the wall and tossed it to Rufen. "And have your staff spread out Mrs. Swanson's work - she's on family leave for two weeks attending to her ill son."
Oh dear.
Rufen caught the sign and for a moment, looked ready to throw a punch.
Something else was going on. Jason wouldn't be this derogatory toward anyone, even out of revenge.
"Emma, sweetheart." He held his hand out, but he glowered at Rufen, as if daring him to do something that she couldn't quite put a finger on.
She slipped over to him and he followed her into the office.
He shut the door and walked over to the desk, swiping an arm across to dump all of Rufen's papers in a heap on the floor. She blinked. He opened the binder. Inside nested a copy of Rufen's paperwork getting the organization moving in the for-profit direction. "I was trying to gather evidence to get him fired before I left. Two women he oversees came to me with sexual harassment complaints, each individually and with separate occassions the day before the honeymoon. And I believe them. The complaints were being investigated while we were on the honeymoon. Then the shit became CEO and somehow made the paperwork disappear. The women, who were phenominal at their jobs, quit when he took my job. Come hell or high water, I'm getting him out today one way or the other. How are you with work? Can you come into the meeting?"
She blinked. "Um, I got a lot done on the plane. Olin said I can take my lunch early if needed. Let me just email the team quick from my work phone."
"Thank you, Emma."
How strange that three weeks ago he didn't even want her in the same state for this, and now he wanted her in the room. Things had changed so much in such a short time span - all because of his walls finally crumbling.
Many of the board members were already there, fifteen minutes early. Including Rufen, who had the audacity to sit at the head of the table in Jason's usual seat. Many of the members greeted Jason with smiles, congratulations on the wedding, and good luck wishes; a couple investors who had started this whole fiasco three weeks ago ignored him.
"Jason." An investor at the other end of the table waved him over and stood. "Please take my seat. You should be at the head, sir." A head seat and 'sir' from an investor had been spoken loud enough to make a point. Rufen sat at the other end of the table and seethed under the collar.
"Thank you." Jason nodded to the man. The investor patted him on the shoulder and took a different seat. Jason pulled up a chair on his left for her being the other investor ignored him and made no effort to make room.
Ms. Williamson walked in two minutes before the meeting, the last to arrive. The only seat left was her usual spot to the right of Rufen. Interestingly enough, none of the men stood when any of the ladies entered this time. Except Jason. Mary looked at the empty seat and then headed in the opposite direction toward Jason.
Jason smiled and got up to pull over another chair from along the wall. He squeezed Mary in on his right.
Rufen started the meeting just as Jason opened his mouth. "Thank you for coming, everyone. I apologize for wasting your time but we have to revote on dismissing Dr. Port. All in favor?"
She blinked. Surely this couldn't be it without hearing Jason's side. Jason looked surprised. The others at the table looked hesitant to stand up to Rufen. The hell with this. She sat at the edge of the chair. "I must say, ladies and gentlemen, I'm shocked that this is the low standard of the board."
Everyone blinked at her, including Jason.
Her face grew warm and uncertainty inched in. But this was for Jason. "Dr. Port is dismissed on public gossip for a physical condition. To my lay understanding, that's discrimination based on physical attributes, which is illegal. He has proven more than capable in doing the job, and it looks to me like moral and work ethic around here has slid in the three weeks Mr. Rufen has been named CEO. I'm also surprised that no one has objections to becoming for-profit under Mr. Rufen."
A murmur started around the room. Then one of the executives from the other end of the table spoke up. "Mrs. Port, I believe you were misinformed. There is no such move to become for-profit."
Jason pulled out the piece of paper and passed it down. "Documents have been and are being signed."
Rufen stammered. "This is a false draft to discredit me - "
"I can get the original out of my desk if anyone is interested." Mary stood.
An uproar ensued, but Jason got everyone under control again. "I talked with our lawyers last night and nothing is final."
Jason stated his case, eloquent, passionate, and calm. And with amazing humility and courage as he'd been forced into a position to discuss the scars. The very brief story he told of the fire, though, detailed an oven malfunction as a teenager. The fire took his parents with it, thereby so easily explaining him having no kin. It must be the story the government had created to keep his identity a secret.
"Are we going to vote?" Rufen cut in after fifteen minutes when Jason had started stating his vision for the future of the hospital.
"All in favor?" one of the offending investors spoke up.
The yays went around the table, equating to just under half. The nays went through, not quite half either. Two executives did not vote.
Hope plummeted. Even with those two votes, it wouldn't be three-quarters majority.
"Mr. Wiesel and Dr. Nickels, do you need more time?" Jason asked, his head still high even in the face of defeat.
The older of the two men stood. "In my three years with this organization, the morals of the people here have been nothing but impeccable. Three weeks ago, not only did the media shame Dr. Port, but we stabbed him in the back. Yet he returns when this Foundation is crumbling and morale has shriveled, ready to save it if we'll have him. We should be ashamed of ourselves and don't deserve him to return. But those children down there who rely on this being a nonprofit, do deserve him. These children come to us with injuries not unlike his, and yet we are hypocrites in turning him away but patting ourselves on the back for helping them." Then he turned to Jason and held eye contact. "Jason, I apologize for what we did. I vote for Dr. Port."
"Thank you, Sean. That means a lot." To anyone else, he remained cool and composed. But a mistiness clouded his eye for a moment.
The second man nodded. "I stand by my original vote. It's despicable that this is even an issue. I've seen what this place is without him. To those of you who will withdraw your funding if he stays, I withdraw if he leaves."
Rufen sat back with a smug look at Jason's champion. "We can find other means of funding." Then his gaze turned to Jason...and the man smiled in his victory.
The tears burned and the desire to throw her arms around him and shield from the humiliation throbbed. The beautiful man sat with his head held high, although his throat convulsed in a hard swallow. Not once but twice he'd lost this empire of hope he'd built for children through his sweat and tears. And he fell from the throne with such grace. "Thank you, everyone, for your time." He moved to stand to leave.
Rufen visibly gloated. "Apologies for wasting everyone's time, ladies and gentlemen - "
A woman stood. "I recast my vote in favor of Jason."
She stared. Jason froze.
Rufen snorted. "The voting is done - "
"No, it's not," Mary jumped in with a smile. "We have not moved to adjourn."
If Rufen had been close enough, he likely would've leapt across the table at Mary.
Another investor changed his vote. She held a hand to her mouth as the tears welled. Oh god. One more vote. He needed one more.
Mary frantically dialed on a cell phone.
Rufen glared at everyone around the table.
"Come on," Mary whispered and waited for the call to be answered. "Anna's still VP. She gets to cast a vote. She has to."
Jason gave a single shake of his head. "She's on emergency leave. That excuses her and excuses the board in voting without her."
Oh god. His own kindness had come back and shot him in the back. The one vote he needed, that would've been guaranteed, wouldn't count.
Mary lowered the phone, the hopelessness reflected in her eyes.
One of the executive men near Rufen raised his hand. All eyes turned to him. "Yes."
Silence.
"I recast my vote." The man's eyes turned to Rufen. "I'm sick of working for a snake," he spat.
Everyone sat in stunned silence. And then eyes shifted to Mary.
Mary wiped the tears from her eyes and counted on her notepad. "Three nays. Eleven yays. Dr. Port remains the CEO."
Claps of excitement and cheers filled the room. She took his hand under the table, and he held fast as he pressed his lips together and swallowed hard. Almost everyone came over and clapped him on the back with congratulations.
"It was Ms. Williamson who actually found the bylaw," Jason said with a smile.
Everyone pushed closer and patted Mary's shoulder, inadvertently squeezing her out into the background.
She smiled, so happy for him. Someone must've texted the employees because they trickled into the office within seconds too. Jason beamed. He positively beamed. She slipped out to go work in his office and give him time to celebrate with his staff.
When she sat down at his desk and pulled out her laptop, Rufen walked in. An angry glint formed in his eye. A creepy shiver ran down her spine, and she forced her voice to remain steady. "Jason is coming in a moment." Please God, let the lie deter him.
"I need my papers." He looked down at the mess on the floor and closed the door. And locked it.
The blood drained from her face. Oh god. The noise from the conference room would drown out any cries for help. Oh god, no. The panic surged.
Rufen darted forward.
She stumbled back into the corner out of instinct to get some space. "Back off and open the door."
But he just stood less than a meter away and smiled, as if relishing the fear. In the power.
A loud crunch. The doorjam splintered and the door banged against the wall. Jason lowered his foot. "You fucking moron," he hissed, his eye dilated black with rage. He leaped over the desk and grabbed the back of Rufen's collar before the man could react. "Think you'll touch my wife," he snarled. He dragged the man out, and Rufen sprawled on the hall floor.
"Get out! You're fired!" Jason's roar tore through the entire office as the fury unleashed. All sounds in the office silenced.
Rufen got to his feet and brushed himself off, as calm as could be when staff peeked out of their offices. "A temper? Jesus, I was just getting my papers from your office."
"You locked the door and cornered my wife! I have two other women who filed sexual harrassment complaints against you right before I was kicked out! Get out!" The veins throbbed in Jason's neck with rage. He trembled, likely the employees as an audience the only thing keeping him from punching the man.
Everyone stared at Rufen in shock. And then at Jason, whose chest heaved. The tension between the men skyrocketed with each second.
She set a hand on Jason's back. "I'm alright," she said for his ears alone. "He's not stupid enough to actually have done anything. It was a scare tactic." She wrapped her arms around herself, the adrenaline rush gone. Shivers started as an aftereffect of the fear.
But his coiled muscles didn't relax. "Get him out," he growled through clenched teeth. He looked at the security guard that Mary must've called up.
As soon as Rufen had been removed, everyone stared at Jason. One of the women looked at her. "Are you okay, Emma?"
She nodded. The pounding of her heart didn't slow, either from fright for herself yet or the fear of Jason getting arrested for beating up an employee.
"He was a dog. The jerk tried to look under my dress last week," another woman spat.
"He grabbed me when I picked up my pen," another woman sneered.
"Hell, the asshole grabbed me," one of the men snorted. "Didn't he look surprised when a man stepped out of the storage closet."
The men laughed. "Glad you're dating again so soon after your divorce," another man teased.
"That's enough." Jason's voice sliced through the banter. "There is no tolerance for any level of sexual harrassment, and that includes men razzing each other." He looked at Mary standing at the other end of the hall. "Send out an all staff meeting to be held in fifteen minutes." His tone held no patience. Then he shut the door.
He turned and crushed her in his arms. "Are you sure you're alright? I turned around and you were gone. And then I noticed he was gone too."
"I'm fine." But the shaking increased and a cold sweat broke out.
"No, you're not. You're in mental shock." He shrugged off his suit jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders and then carried her to the chair. He knelt at her feet and pulled out a handkerchief to dab at her brow. "It's alright, sweetheart." Then he hit the intercom. "Ms. Williamson, bring a glass of ice water. Quick."
Almost instantly, Mary burst in with the water. The young woman rushed over and pressed it into her hands. "It's alright. He's gone. I told security to keep an eye out for him for a few weeks."
Jason helped hold the glass steady as she drank, the cold a blessed shock that eased some of the tremors.
"I'm okay." She set down the glass on the desk. The embarrassment burned hot not over only falling apart for nothing but Mary witnessing it too.
"It's okay that you got scared." Mary set a hand over hers in comfort. "Dr. Port won't let anyone hurt you."
"That's right, Em. I'd break his face and spend ten years in jail if it kept you safe." He squeezed her other hand. "But you're strong, Emma. You don't need me or anyone else to protect you. Your fight would've come out, sweetheart. But I'm happy to be the knight who comes riding in to the rescue."
That won a soft smile.
"There's my girl." He stroked her cheek, with all the love shining out of his eye.
A glance of embarrassment toward Mary at the sentiment displayed before someone else, and she caught a starry-eyed look as Mary gazed at Jason. She blinked and Mary's look was gone.
"You could've unlocked the door, Dr. Port." Mary looked at not only the damaged doorframe but dented door.
He snorted. "I didn't exactly pause to think to pull out a key." Then he felt her clammy hands.
"Sir, the meeting is starting. I can sit here with her..."
"Are you feeling well enough to come, sweetheart?" When she nodded, he helped her up. "Thank you, Ms. Williamson. We'll be there in a moment." Then he turned to her. "Bring your computer in and work where I can see you. Just to appease my nerves." More like to appease her nerves, but it was a wecomed invitation.
She sat in a chair at the back of the room, leaning her elbows on the laptop and not getting far on her own work as he addressed the staff. He explained the outburst situation in the hall. He reminded everyone of the sexual harrassment rules. He listened to complaints of changes implemented in the past three weeks and addressed what could immediately be rectified and what would take time. He spoke with authority, passion, and confidence. Nothing fazed him. No matter seemed too trivial for his attention. She sighed and nibbled her bottom lip. Hot damn, he was sexy.
"Me too, honey. I envy Mary getting to work with him all day," a woman sitting next to her leaned over and whispered, her eyes riveted on Jason. "I think Mary has a bit of a crush on him. I mean, who wouldn't? He's so sweet too. You don't find men like him nowadays."
She blinked at the woman and held out a hand. "I'm sorry, I don't think we've met."
"Francis. I work downstairs as the emergency department manager. You must be new." The pretty woman, perhaps a few years older than herself, shook her hand.
"Sort of. I'm Emma Port." She smiled.
"Port? As in wedding bells? Ohhhh." Her face paled and eyes bugged. "Um, I'm so sorry. That was inappropriate. I just meant he's a decent guy - " The poor thing stumbled over herself.
She smiled. "I envy Mary too." Then she looked across the room at Mary sitting in the front taking notes. Mary did seem to be eagerly at his beck and call.
Jason looked across the room and smiled at her as he spoke. Butterflies awoke in her belly and she returned the smile, elated to see him so happy. Mary wouldn't turn his head, but that didn't mean she had to like him having such an attentive secretary either.
