From Fake to Forever (Newlywed Games 2)

I knew it! The after-hours project wasn’t real.

“Guess it worked,” Meredith responded mildly, but it took every ounce of Miss Texas in her blood to keep the shock off her face.

It had been a trap. The whole time. Normally Meredith prided herself on reading people, especially women, but this was something else. If she wasn’t so furious, she might be impressed.

Avery’s smile chilled the air. “I left Meredith alone that night on purpose, hoping to catch her. Imagine my surprise when I reviewed the security tapes and saw my brother in cahoots with the spy.”

“Called it,” Jason murmured. “So you felt compelled to figure out our association. Nice.”

“For all the good it did. Mom flipped and not the way I intended.” Avery made a big show of sipping her wine and then commented, “You certainly managed to come out of this the winner, didn’t you?”

Clutching his chest in a mock heart attack, Jason smirked. “Hurt much to admit that?”

“Not as much as what I’m about to admit.” With a Gallic shrug, Avery focused on Meredith again. “When you called me this morning to resign, I wasn’t surprised. I wouldn’t have welcomed you back. Until Allo stormed into my office and threatened to quit unless I hired you back. Apparently HR quite gleefully informed him it was my fault you left.”

“What?” The wineglass tilted in Meredith’s suddenly numb hand and only Jason’s quick reflexes kept it off the pristine white throw rug. “Allo hates me.”

“Allo hates everyone,” Jason and Avery both said at the same time.

“Be that as it may,” Avery continued with a wry twist of her lips, “he was quite adamant that you are the best assistant he’s ever had and will not cross the threshold of Hurst again until you agree to come back.”

Meredith was already shaking her head. “Not interested.”

She had job offers coming out of the woodwork: a yet-to-be-defined executive’s job from Jason and now this. And half a wedding-dress business that she could still buy into if New York dropped off the face of the map. Or she could take the money Jason was paying her to hold off on the divorce and live in Timbuktu as a basket weaver.

“I don’t think you understand,” Avery broke into the swirl of Meredith’s thoughts impatiently. “I cannot lose Allo. He is Hurst’s premier designer and without him, we’d fold in six months. I’d pay you two-fifty in a heartbeat if that’s what it took.”

Confused, Meredith stared at her. “Two-fifty what? Dollars?”

“Two hundred-and-fifty thousand. A year. I’d pay you a quarter of a million dollars annually to ensure my company doesn’t go under.”

Oh, my God. The sum made her vision black out for a moment.

The number of choices suddenly open to her pounded through her head. She had choices...and Avery’s offer didn’t require her to stay married to Jason. There was absolutely nothing holding her to him any longer. If she accepted, she didn’t need Jason’s money. New York was wide-open to her.

She had no reason to stay in this marriage other than the obvious one—she’d still be married to Jason.

“Allo’s a pain in the ass. He treated Meredith like dirt, and even if he apologized on his hands and knees, she’s too good to waste her talent on him,” Jason countered fiercely. “But I’ll shut up now because it’s her decision.”

Okay, that was the most romantic thing he’d ever said. The warmth of his hand against her waist bled through her, arrowing straight to her heart and swelling it tenderly.

Did he realize that she alone held the power to end this rivalry between Jason and Avery by simply declining Avery’s offer?

Avery would be publicly humiliated, Hurst would be in trouble and Jason could save the day with his merger plans. No one would ever consider making Avery CEO of the newly merged company, not when she had driven off the jewel in Hurst’s crown.

But if Meredith did that, she’d be feeding the mastermind, not nurturing the man she loved.

It was all too much.

Shooting to her feet, she set down her empty wineglass. “I appreciate the offer, but it’s been a long day. I’ll have to let you know.”

Avery stood, as well, obviously recognizing that she was being dismissed. “I won’t take no for an answer. I can make your life very difficult if you refuse. You know where to find me.”

It must be killing her that Meredith’s hand held all the aces. And that was the only reason she didn’t bust Avery in the mouth and spill blood all over that gorgeous suit. “I do know where to find you. Which means you might want to reconsider threatening me.”