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  “Oh, now, come on, Jason, that was taken out of context. She just misread my intentions,” Rich explained.

  “Right, easy to misinterpret when you have her pushed up against the railing and are forcing yourself on her. You forget – I was there. You are despicable.”

  “Well, now,“ Rich started, but Jason cut him off.

  “I’m not finished.” Jason spoke quietly, with deadly calm. “The thing is—and here’s the really crazy part—you did this knowing that I was having a relationship with her. Your PI had revealed that to you. You knew, and yet you still attempted to rape her. What the hell, Rich. What kind of monster are you?”

  He took another step forward. Rich took another step back.

  “And then, to top it all off, the reason you hired the PI in the first place, what was that again? You didn’t think I was doing all the flying that my log books revealed? Bullshit, Rich. You know it, and I know it. What was the real reason? Trying to wiggle out of our deal? Out of the money Bradford agreed to pay Callahan?”

  “Look Jason, I can tell you are upset. I maybe overstepped with Judy, but the PI – all that is just standard operating procedure for employees. I always vet my pilots.”

  “You fucked with too many people this time.” Jason said, sinking down into a chair.

  Suddenly, he just felt tired. He was tired, heartbroken, and talking to Rich was like talking to a brick wall. The man was crazy. Insidious and crazy.

  “I want out. We’ve finalized the deal with Bradford, so let’s just do what needs to be done to make sure that all happens, and let me resign. I’ll stay through the end of July to smooth out the scheduling, but I’m out.”

  “Over a woman, Jason? You cutting our time short over a woman? That seems like a bad decision,” Rich said.

  “No, I think it might be the best decision I’ve made in a while,” Jason walked out of Rich’s office.

  He went home. The maintenance could wait another day. He was exhausted.

  *

  Several days later Jason met Stephanie for lunch. He’d been surprised when she called, but since Judy wasn’t taking his calls or responding to his texts, he thought maybe he could find out how she was from Stephanie.

  “Hey Jason, it’s good to see you,” Stephanie said as they sat down at the café.

  “Hey Stephanie, I want to apologize for the position I put you in with Judy. I know she was one of your best employees, and our relationship screwed that up.” He sighed. “I guess I screwed a lot of things up.”

  “Oh Jason, don’t worry about it,” she said. “I’m glad that Judy found you. I know she’s in love with you, and no one deserves it more.”

  Her smile fell when she took in his expression. “Uh-oh, what happened?”

  “She broke up with me. She said she needed time to sort things out.” He scrubbed his face with his hands. “She’s not taking my calls.”

  “Jason, she loves you, I know she does. She has a lot going on with the divorce, and now the job thing, but I know she loves you. Give her a little time, and then go after her.”

  “That’s the plan. So anyway, I’m sure Judy isn’t the reason you wanted to meet me,” he said expectantly.

  “No, she isn’t. I have done something, and even though I did it on an anonymous basis, I’m afraid that the logical finger-pointing might land on you. I need to let you know what I did, but it must be in the strictest confidence. I have put myself at risk,” she said.

  “Go on,” Jason said, intrigued.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  THE REST OF THE week passed in a fog for Judy. She and Charisse went to the settlement conference where they gave the divorce one more chance to settle. Unlike the mediation where they were separated from Greg and his attorney, all of them—Judy, Greg and their lawyers—were together in a conference room with the judge. When Greg’s attorney started making his case for why Greg deserved spousal support or the $40,000 lump sum, Judy interjected:

  “I think we need to consider that I’m currently unemployed.”

  Greg’s attorney stopped, open-mouthed, and looked at Charisse accusingly, while Greg exclaimed, “You did that on purpose!”

  What an ass.

  “I’m going to need a few minutes with my client,” Charisse said, shaking her head at Greg’s attorney and ushering Judy out of the room.

  Once they are out in the hallway she rounded on Judy, “What the hell, Judy! Tell me what the fuck is going on. NOW.”

  Judy told her about Rich’s advances/assault at the launch party, Jason punching him out, and Judy being removed from the Bradford account. She also confessed that she and Jason had been dating, and that was why she was fired.

  Charisse stopped her. “Wait. You were dating Jason? When did this begin?”

  “He was the pilot on the trip to Catalina Island, and we had a brief fling there. I didn’t contact him after returning to Seattle, though. I thought I should sort through the divorce first. We met again in May when I started working on a new account at work. It was his company.” Talking about Jason reduced her to tears very quickly.

  “Judy, honey.” Charisse put an arm around her. “It’s okay. This isn’t going to kill our case or anything like that. Don’t you worry, I got this.”

  “I’m not crying because I’m worried about the divorce,” she explained, sniffling, “I’m crying because I broke up with Jason.”

  Charisse gave her a considering look. “Honey, why on God’s green earth did you do that?”

  “I needed time. I just got fired, I’m getting divorced, I’m homeless when the condo closes. He’s getting ready to move to southern California and I’m not sure that’s in the cards for me.” She put her head in her hands.

  “Judy. It’s okay to want some time. But don’t take too much time. This man might be worth a move to Southern California based on what you’ve told me. Now go wash your face and let’s fuck up Greg’s day.” Charisse steered her to the ladies’ room.

  It was gratifying to fuck up Greg’s day. His attorney practically had a cat on the conference table when Charisse told Judy’s story. “I hope you don’t think this changes my client’s demand,” he said, through clenched teeth.

  “Well, that’s just fine,” Charisse said, delivering a blistering glare to Greg. “But the reality is that there is now a lot less to go around, isn’t there?” She then looked toward the judge with a questioning look.

  Greg couldn’t help himself. “Seriously Judy, you’ve sunk to new lows to try and get me to back down. This is crazy.”

  “Wow. Coming from the guy who left his wife for a dancer that he then impregnated before his marriage bed was cold, that’s…utterly meaningless.”

  She saw Greg for the man he was (and wasn’t) for the first time. He was a self-absorbed, narcissistic jerk. If Claire was so hot to grab him for herself, she deserved the pain he was about to rain down on her. Judy pitied her children, though. They did not deserve this.

  The judge cleared his throat. “Well, I think I’ve heard enough. I’d like to hear demands from both sides and start the negotiations in earnest.”

  After that pronouncement, the attorneys began the negotiations. At the end of it, Greg and Judy agreed to split the condo proceeds, savings and checking accounts 50/50, and Judy agree to give him 10% of her retirement as it was worth right now.

  They drew up the papers making the promises to honor their agreement to divorce, received the blessing of the judge, and Judy became a single woman again. Her first thought was to call Jason, until she remembered that she had rejected him, and that empty place in her heart returned.

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  A FEW DAYS LATER, Stephanie and Judy met for lunch.

  “So how are you, Judy? Is everything okay?”

  “Yeah, things are fine,” Judy said a bit absently. “Hey Steph, I know it was a shitty end to our professional relationship, the way everything went down with Jason. I just want to say I’m sorry, and I understand you did what you had to d
o. I’m glad we met today, and I hope we do this more.”

  “Of course, Judy! You were my best employee, but I’ve always considered us friends. Maybe now we can go for cocktails now and then.” Stephanie smiled. “Seriously, how are you really doing?”

  “Eh, I’m all right. I’m taking this time to figure out my next move. I don’t think it’s going to be advertising, though.” She looked out over the bay. It was a perfect July day in Seattle, the sun was warm and water was sparkling. But for the cold empty place in her heart, Judy felt good.

  “Well, that’s probably good news, right? What are you thinking?” Stephanie took a sip of her coffee.

  “I might go back to school and get my teaching certification. I’ve been thinking a lot about that in the last couple of years. Seems like now might be the time.” She turned her gaze to Stephanie.

  “Wow, that’s great. You’d be an excellent teacher,” Stephanie answered.

  “How’s Mark doing on the Bradford account? Everything snap back into place after the launch party?” Judy asked casually.

  She hadn’t spoken to Jason since she broke up with him a week ago, and she wondered at least 10 times an hour how he was doing and what he was doing.

  “Oh yeah, Mark handled everything in stride. Rich is back to loving us and we are keeping a close eye on him, as is his board of directors. Someone leaked the assault to them, and there’s a rumor that he’ll be forced out by the end of the year.”

  “Really? That’s interesting.” Judy raised her eyebrows. “So, who leaked Rich’s transgressions to his board?”

  Stephanie smiled. “Oh, just someone who knew. And who’d witnessed Rich flirting with you inappropriately prior to the launch party.”

  “You didn’t!” Judy laughed.

  It was extremely risky for Stephanie to do something like that, but she probably relished every second of reporting him. It was worth the risk of being blackballed in the entire industry.

  Stephanie’s smile fell. “It had to be done. Rich cannot keep doing these things and getting away with it. Anyway, I was very discreet. I think no one suspects it was me.”

  “Wow,” Judy said. “Thank you for doing that. That was a pretty amazing thing to do.”

  Stephanie shrugged. “No big deal. Anyway, I think Rich thinks that Jason did it. Which is just fine. As a matter of fact, other than you, Jason is the only other person who knows that I was the leak, so he’s playing along.”

  Judy’s heart raced with just the mention of Jason’s name.

  “Oh, is he still working for Bradford?” She tried to sound indifferent.

  “He is, for now. He turned in his resignation and will be done at the end of the month.” Stephanie grabbed Judy’s hand. “He told me what happened between you two. And just for the record, he’s heartbroken. I can tell you are, too. You should call him.”

  “I think I’d just hold him back.” Judy fought back tears. “He has a great opportunity in California, and I am not ready to leave Seattle. It’s better this way.”

  Neither Stephanie nor Judy believed that.

  *

  The night before the closing on the condo, Dani came over to help Judy pack. The furniture and well-equipped kitchen were all in storage, and Judy was getting ready to spend the night with Dani. Her plane left for Illinois in the morning.

  “When are you going to call Jason?” Dani asked as Judy organized the last of her possessions in the condo.

  “I’m not. I made it pretty clear.”

  Judy wanted to call him with every fiber of her being. She wanted him to go to Illinois with her, meet her family, and all of them fall in love with each other. She wanted to touch him, kiss him, feel his hard body next to hers in the night and in the morning. But she said she needed time, and it was true. At this point, she was only holding him back anyway.

  “I know you love him and want to be with him. Why are you pretending otherwise?” Dani knew best, as always.

  “I am not ready to go to California and leave my life here. He is. He’s put a lot into separating from Bradford Aviation. This has been in the works for him for a while. My whole life is new right now. I have no place to live and I have no idea how I’m going to find one. I have no job. I need to figure some things out instead of dragging Jason down into my idiotic mess.” She was sad.

  “You are a terrible liar. And worse, you are going to lose the man you are supposed to be with because you are making the wrong decision. How do you know that he even wants to move to California right now? I’m sure it sounds like a good option to him, but you can’t be sure that’s what he really wants to do. Don’t forget, he’s in love with you, too.”

  Dani made a good point. But it felt wrong to saddle Jason with her issues and her reluctance to leave Seattle. The last thing Judy wanted was to hold Jason back from something that could be perfect for him. She felt like she’d caused him enough trouble.

  “Also, I don’t think you should leave town without at least telling him you are going.” Dani forced the issue. “You are basically making his mind up for him, and that’s not fair.”

  Somewhere in all this, Dani had become Jason’s biggest fan, Judy mused. But maybe Dani was right. Maybe she wasn’t being fair.

  She decided to text Jason. It was the most efficient way to talk to him with the least interaction.

  “I’m leaving in the morning for Illinois,” she wrote. “I just wanted to let you know, I’ll be out of town for a while. I need to figure some things out.”

  Jason responded immediately, “Can I see you?”

  “I can’t. I’m sorry,” she sent back.

  His final message came instantly: “I love you.”

  Judy sighed, and packed the last of her things.

  Chapter Forty

  JASON STARED AT HIS text messages. It was the first he had heard from her in almost two weeks. He still felt as intensely hurt as he had the day she told him she wanted to take a break. Whatever the hell that meant. She was being ridiculous, and he was just waiting for the right time and place to prove it to her. If anything, his resolve to win her back had deepened.

  He knew she was closing on the condo tomorrow. She must be off to Illinois right after the papers were signed. He blew out a sigh and shook his head to clear it.

  His last day at Bradford Aviation was in a few days. The paperwork between Bradford and Callahan had finally been worked out. The day after his last day he planned to fly home to see his family and deliver the cashier’s checks to his sisters and his mom. He couldn’t wait to see their faces. The one bright spot in his life was that he had worked out an excellent deal with Bradford, and his family would be taken care of. Then it would be time for him to figure out his next move.

  The last days at Bradford passed quickly, all things considered. On his final day, the staff and Rich threw him a surprise party at the hangar.

  “Jason, we sure are going to miss you around here,” said Trina. “You were the yin to Rich’s yang.”

  He knew what she meant. Rich was an ass, and Jason wasn’t.

  “I’ll miss working here,” he said, not entirely meaning it. “But it’s time for me to find my own way. This was my dad’s dream, not mine.”

  “Yeah, I get that,” Trina said. “Hopefully we will have competent, respectful leadership soon,” she said guardedly.

  “What?” Jason tried not give away that he knew Rich was on the way out.

  “Well, you didn’t hear it from me, but the Board met last night. I think Rich has been voted out. I know something happened at the launch party, but I never quite figured out what. Do you know?” Trina looked at him questioningly.

  “Huh. No, you know more than I do.”

  He was relieved that no one seemed to know about Judy. She was embarrassed enough about the whole thing. Fucking Rich. Good riddance to that asshat.

  “So, what is next for you?” Trina asked, changing the subject.

  “Well, tomorrow morning I’m off to Spokane to see the family. After
that, who knows? The sky’s the limit, right?” He smiled, meaning what he said. He had the beginnings of a plan to get Judy back forming in his mind. For the first time in two weeks, he felt optimistic.

  *

  Jason landed in Spokane and took in the gorgeous day. It was hot, headed up near 90 degrees, but it had been a beautiful flight. As he taxied to the hangar in the small airport, he saw his sister, Linda, waving to him. The whole family knew he was coming home for a visit and that he had news, so they had insisted on picking him up at the airport.

  Linda was the middle child, closest in age to Jason. She was a veterinarian and had gotten married last year to her partner in practice, Mike. Because she was in her early 30s and hadn’t been married, she would align herself with Jason when everyone in the family started in on why wasn’t he married, etc. But since she’s been married, and she was as up in his business as everyone else about finding a woman and settling down.

  The thing was, he had found that woman. He wanted to settle down. He just needed to make her believe it was the right thing for her, too.

  “Linda, hey sis!” Jason wrapped his sister in a hug.

  “Big brother, it’s good to see you. Come on, tell me your secrets before we get to the house,” she said good-naturedly as they got into the car.

  “Well, I have some good news,” he said.

  “I heard, I was hoping your good news would have come home with you so we could meet her.” Linda’s eyes sparkled with mischief.

  “Uh, well, that’s not the news. Well, not yet.” He stammered. “I’ve hit a bit of a snag there,” he tried to explain.

  “Oh Jason, did you screw it up? Please say you didn’t screw it up. God, for having two sisters you are not the greatest with women.”

  “No, I didn’t screw it up. Jesus, Linda. It wasn’t my fault. It’s, uh, complicated.” He ran his hands through his hair.

  “I knew it. Jason, what the hell.” Linda was exasperated.

  Jason sighed.