I think of moving out of Lauren and Phil’s house, going to college, but still carrying around that self-hatred that would never let me get enough of a finger hold to climb out of the pit of despair that I was constantly in. And so I made all the same mistakes then that I had made in high school. I had meaningless relationships that only made me feel more miserable, always trying to claim something back, but never knowing exactly what. I drank when it got so bad I didn’t know what else to do, and finally, the straw – Seth. Roaring out of that driveway on a mission of death. I could admit that now. And Evie, God, Evie. Missing her every second of every day and hurting so damn bad because I knew she’d never forgive me. But maybe, just maybe I had been wrong. I was going to find out. I was finally strong enough to find out. Please, please don’t let it be too late.
We stop in front of my room door.
"You know I’m only a phone call away, right? If you need anything – anything at all, you pick up that phone and you call me."
I feel emotion well up in my chest. Goodbyes suck. And this man has changed my life in a profound way. "Yeah."
He smiles. "Okay."
I pause for a minute and then say, "Doc, I just… Shit, this is hard." I pause and run my hand through my hair as emotion overwhelms me. He waits me out. He’s always been good at that. "I wanted to say, you know, I never had a father. At least not one that taught me how to be a man. And I know you’re my doctor, but you’ve been more than that for me. The other doctors here patched me up but you… you saved my life."
He clears his throat and squeezes my shoulder again. "You did all the hard work, kid."
I nod, clearing my throat too.
"Go finish packing. And Jake?"
"Yeah?"
"Go get that girl of yours." He grins at me and walks away.
CHAPTER 25
I plan a trip to San Diego to meet with company lawyers about what Lauren has set in motion. Anger encompasses me when I think of what she’s trying to do. She has no interest in running the company. She never took an interest in it once in all the years I’ve known her – not until it was something that she could hold over me. Her motives are transparent. But unfortunately, her manipulative reasons won’t matter in court. I need to talk to my lawyers and find out if she’s come up with something that might hold any water. I doubt it, but I owe it to all my employees and board members to be fully briefed on this situation.
I haven’t seen Evie in two days and I’m craving her, so this trip pisses me off for more than one reason. She mentions to me that she’s cleaning the penthouse this week if it’s occupied, so first thing Tuesday morning, I get an idea and swing by the Hilton on my way to the airport to rent the penthouse until Wednesday afternoon. Wednesday night seems an unacceptable amount of time to wait to see her. I’ll have to take the red-eye back but that’s okay.
I meet with my lawyers on Tuesday, and we go over Phil’s will, including the timing of the change. The lawyers feel confident that Lauren doesn’t have a leg to stand on, but the fact remains that it will still be expensive to defend, and could drag out for quite a while. I clench my jaw, thinking of all the unnecessary time I’m going to have to spend in San Diego, away from Evie, working through this bullshit. I think of all the time I’m going to have to spend with Lauren in a courtroom and across a table from her and her lawyers. It’s exactly what she wants, and I feel like punching my hand through a wall at the thought of her manipulation. Can I just get on with my f**king life already?
I didn’t give the office the name of my hotel this time so at least I know Lauren has no way to pay me a surprise visit. I only check in to a room at all because I don’t feel like hanging around the airport until midnight when my flight leaves. I need to have some dinner and sleep for a couple hours if I’m going to be awake enough to surprise Evie. I smile with the thought.
Evie’s at work, but I text her and let her know that I’m done with my meetings and checked in to the hotel. I order room service and take a long, hot shower. There’s a knock on my door just as I’m pulling on some clothes. I freeze, my t-shirt halfway over my head. There’s no way... I walk over to the door and look through the peephole. It’s room service again. When I open the door, the teenage waiter starts rolling a cart in with a single, covered plate in the middle. "Ah, I didn’t order anything. You must have the wrong room."
"He looks at his ticket. "Jake Madsen, room eight forty-two?"
"Yeah. But I really didn’t order anything."
"Someone else called this in, sir."
I furrow my brow. "Okay. Ah, well, thanks." I grab a twenty out of my wallet and hand it to him.
"Thanks!" he says, looking at the bill and ducking out the door.
I lift the cover off the plate and there’s a pile of warm, chocolate chip cookies. Evie. A grin takes over my face. Just as I’m replacing the lid, my phone rings, and I see Evie’s name on the screen.
"Hey, baby," I answer.
"Hi." I can hear the smile in her voice. "What are you doing?"
"Missing you."
"Did you get my delivery?"
I grin. "Yeah. The sheets are all smeared with chocolate and crumbs. And I’m still left dissatisfied."
She laughs. "I’m sorry. I thought they’d be a satisfactory stand in for me."
"Uh uh. Not even close. Any chance a cart is going to roll in with you on it next?"