Who's the Boss Now (Managing the Bosses 3)

Alex sat quiet for a long moment. He sighed and spoke quietly, "I didn't know that, Jamie. I'm sorry. I was in the wrong."

The car stopped and she opened the door, moving away from him. "Yeah. You were. Have a great evening, Mr. Reid. Your PA will see you in the office tomorrow."

"Don't do this," he called after her, but she slammed the door regardless. All she wanted was to comfort him, to offer her a piece of her heart and all of her shoulder to lean against. Some good it did...

They were not meant to be together. That much was clear.

Chapter 9

She was still angry the next morning when she got up, but she tried to ignore it. They were meant to be together. They would just have to work things through; there was no other option. She wasn't interested in working for anyone else, and she certainly didn't want anyone else in her bed or in her life.

Her father sent her a text to see if she would be able to join him for breakfast. She agreed, though the thought of any more drama was a bit overwhelming.

She drove to the small diner he loved best as bitterness over the business trip with Alex tore at her. They were supposed to have spent quality time together the weekend before and again in Philadelphia, but they hadn't. Something always had to come up and, as of late, it was him and his shitty attitude.

Getting out of her car, she slammed the door a little too hard, which got her a look from a young couple standing beside a nearby car.

"Sorry. Door sticks." She shrugged sheepishly and moved into the rich smells of maple syrup and coffee.

Her father stood and waved; the smile on his face was a delight after the shitty night.

"Hey, pumpkin." He moved toward her and pulled her into a warm hug. "Why are your eyes puffy?"

"Can you tell? I tried hard to get them to go back down, but I guess a long night will always show up in one way or another." She sat down and turned the coffee mug over in front of her. A waitress stopped by almost immediately. Jamie ordered chocolate chips pancakes with pecans and extra butter and her father got the same.

"Something’s wrong. Talk to me." Her father reached across the table and touched the side of her arm. "Guy troubles?"

"Always guy troubles." She fixed her coffee and let out a long sigh. "Let's not talk about me. Let's talk about you."

"Okay. Well, I wanted to see you to let you know that I'm filing for divorce. I'll be getting a place in the city, and it has two bedrooms, so if you need a place to stay there is always room for you with me." He smiled warmly.

Jamie glanced up and really studied him, finding his complexion clearer and healthier than she had seen it in years. His time with her mother had been good for a long time, but the last five or six years, he'd starting looking worse and worse.

"I'm glad. I’m sorry things aren’t working between you and mom, but to be honest, you look really good, Dad."

"I feel good." He lifted his arms in the air and stretched. "I'm sick of being beaten down and kicked around. I'm going to spend the rest of my days with someone who really cherishes me, or alone. I'm happy going at life by myself."

"Me too, actually." She admitted.

"You're too young to be cynical," he laughed, and moved back as the food was delivered. "Wow, that was fast."

"This place is always good about getting the food out quickly. It's one of the reasons I love it so much." Jamie dragged her finger through the syrup on her pancakes and licked at it. "This homemade syrup is the other."

The laughed and talked through her father's next steps as they ate breakfast together. By the time they were done, she felt better; more centered and grounded. She was a good woman, and the issue didn't rest with her worth, but with Alex's understanding of how to really treat a woman, and accept a good one in his life.

She was ready to have a sit-down meeting with him to really lay things out on the table. He'd spoken several times of taking their relationship to the next level. She was more than ready to make it happen.

Jamie was surprised to see Paul gone for the day, and a note that Mark had left her a message. He seemed in good spirits, and calling him back would be rude, even if Alex wouldn't approve. There was nothing but a comfortable budding friendship starting between them. If things worked out with her and Alex, Mark would be her future brother-in-law. An already established relationship with him was smart.

She got up to close her door before calling him back. Alex was out, so there was no concern about him walking in on her, but Mark wouldn't be calling about anything that wasn't confidential or personal in nature.

"This is Mark."

"Hey. It's Jamie Connors."

"Hey, Jamie. You guys made it back safe and sound then?"

"We sure did. I just walked in from having breakfast with my dad. Crazy times."