Big Pickle: A Secret Boss Romantic Comedy - JJ Knight Page 0,71
I’m supposed to be.
Sunshine flows through the windows onto the long conference table. I met most everyone at the dinner last night. Sherman, the father, and Anthony, the youngest brother, stand as we enter. Audra gives me a little wave. There are several men I don’t recognize, and I assume they include the accountant and the lawyer, since all the managers were at dinner last night.
I sit down next to Audra. She leans in. “What happened to Max’s face?”
“Jason.”
Audra’s eyes widen. “You’ll have to tell me later.”
I’m not sure I want to, and I’m glad for the distraction of the meeting. The brothers settle into seats near the front of the table. The distance from them is a relief.
The hard part of this week has begun.
Sherman remains standing. “I trust everyone is having a lovely stay in New York,” he says. “I wanted to call this first meeting so we could discuss some of the things that have happened in the franchise, and to also look at the direction where we’re headed as we go into this new decade.”
He introduces a man named Dell Brant, who has the female managers sighing as they admire him in his fitted gray suit. He definitely commands a room.
But I spot him frequently glancing toward the back corner. I follow his gaze to a curly-haired woman bouncing an energetic toddler on her lap. The two of them share a smile, and my jealousy is pricked. I remember those stolen glances with Jason.
Dell gives a rousing speech about corporate culture, taking risks, and pushing the envelope. Everyone sits a little taller and leans in a little closer to catch his every word. I see why Sherman wanted him to give us a pep talk.
Jason sits back in his chair with his arms crossed, carefully keeping his eyes away from my end of the table.
When Dell finishes, the meeting goes on with reports from the accountant and spirited conversations about pickle and bread recipes.
I’m asked to talk about what happened with our former manager, and how we uncovered her actions and what we have done since to protect the business. I’m careful not to accuse Jason of being an absent owner that allowed it to happen.
I swear I sound shaky, but when I’m done, Audra squeezes my wrist and says, “You did great.”
When the attention is no longer on me, I steal a glance at Jace. He’s focused on the notepad in front of him, drawing circles in a lazy pattern all over the sheet. I’m not sure he listened to a word I said.
The meeting breaks for lunch, and Audra leads me over to the other managers. “I thought you all might like to talk shop without the bosses around,” she says. “I arranged for a catered lunch in one of the suites for you guys to kick back until your private meetings with your owners.”
I grab her arm. “Do I have to meet privately with Jace?”
She shakes her head. “He turned your meeting down.”
I don’t know if I’m relieved or disappointed.
The managers head to their rooms to drop off their notes before reconvening. I walk down the hall and spot the woman with the toddler sitting on a bench outside. Dell chats with Sherman a little farther down the hall.
“Who is this?” I ask.
“Grace,” the woman says. “She’s eighteen months going on twenty. She wants her independence.”
As if to prove the point, Grace lunges from the woman’s lap, almost launching away. “See?”
I press my hand to the toddler’s back to help right her. “I have a younger sister. I remember when she was like this.”
The woman wraps her arm around the little girl to extend a hand. “I’m Arianna. Dell’s wife.”
I shake it. “I wondered. He kept looking at you.”
Arianna’s face pinks up. “I like watching him speak. We do most things together.”
My throat wants to close up. “That’s nice.”
She tilts her head. “I saw you looking at Jace. You’re his manager, right?”
I nod. I don’t know what to say beyond that. We’ve just met, and only Max knows about me and Jace, and that only since this morning.
“I couldn’t help but notice he was watching you, too, when you weren’t looking.”
He was?
“Forgive me if I’m overstepping, but I sense something more than an owner-manager relationship.”
My belly flips. Are we that obvious? “There might have been a bit more.”
She glances down at Grace. “You know, when Dell and I met, we had this real love-hate thing going on. It took a hard split for