Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 106150 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 531(@200wpm)___ 425(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106150 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 531(@200wpm)___ 425(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
I expected Kenji to frown in disapproval, to tell me all the reasons that would never work, but instead, his eyes widened, and a slow, delighted smile broke out on his face. “Thank fuck,” he breathed. “Look, I know you like Austin, and I’ll admit the man’s devoted to his job, but… he’s not you. When I started working for you, Sterling Chase was all about supporting advancements that weren’t necessarily commercial. Projects that were complex and had a global impact, like the one Clarissa’s been working on in Sierra Leone for the past year. Over time, they’ve become more… instant gratification, I guess? Like that HungerGamer device that integrates your gaming console with an air fryer. It’s cute, and it sells, but it’s not a thing you point to and say, ‘We made people’s lives better.’ Or the CaffApp…”
I snorted. “Yeah, I’ve heard people’s thoughts on the freaking CaffApp. But if you were feeling this way, why didn’t you say anything? God knows it’s not like you to hold back.”
“What was I supposed to say? ‘Hey, Bash, so you know how you consciously stepped down from having a public role in the company? Well, I really feel like you need to put your own emotional well-being aside because Sterling Chase shouldn’t be making kitchen appliances.’ How could I possibly do that? You deserve to have more in your life than this company, Sebastian. I hoped stepping back would help you get it.”
I felt a surge of overwhelming fondness for Kenji. “I’m starting to see that I overcorrected,” I admitted. “I stepped back too far and forgot my purpose. I was trying to fill the void with travel…”
“But that didn’t work. And you came to this realization thanks to Rowe Prince?”
“Rowe was definitely a catalyst.”
Kenji looked thoughtful. “Hmph. He might not be so bad after all.”
“You’d like him.” I found myself smiling. “He’s… hard not to like.”
“Sure.” Kenji’s voice had warmed a fraction, but he was clearly reserving judgment. “Remember that’s what you said about fucking Landry.”
It took an effort not to smile when Kenji sounded so put out. “Landry’s behaved this week, hasn’t he?”
Kenji grimaced. “If by behaved you mean propping his feet on the corner of my desk, chewing gummy bears so loudly my noise-canceling headphones are useless, and trying to inject himself into my personal phone calls until I’m ready to scream.”
I ran a hand over my mouth to hide my smile. “Better than having to negotiate bail, right?”
“Debatable. At least that Landry is a known quantity.” He shook himself slightly, like he was trying to clear all thought of my friend from his mind. “Anyway, Austin Purcell is coming by in an hour for that meeting you put off Monday. You wanna give him the news?”
I considered for a moment, then shook my head. “I might mention it, but I’m not presenting it like a done deal. First, I need to talk to Clarissa when she gets back. And since I’m technically just a member of the board, I think an official announcement needs to come from all of us. But there is one project I’d like to look at in the meantime.”
Kenji frowned, then rolled his eyes as understanding dawned. “Lemme guess… Rowe’s project?”
“Yes. I’m not saying I’m going to sign him to Sterling sight unseen,” I argued quickly. “I’m not going to give his project special treatment simply because I’m attracted to the man. But the other night…” I shook my head, frustrated with myself. “The other night, I turned down his project sight unseen simply because I was attracted to the man, and that’s just as bad. I essentially said, ‘I want to know everything about you, Rowe, except the thing you’re most passionate about,’ because I got stuck in my head about things. And that’s unfair. Worse, I didn’t even realize how unfair I was being until the man left. So, no.” I looked at Kenji seriously. “I’m not signing him to Sterling right now. But if I can help Rowe somehow, then I’m going to consider it. Not because I think he expects it but because I like him, and it feels good to help good people. Okay?”
“Yeah.” Kenji smiled slowly. “I think I’m going to enjoy this new and improved Bash.”
I rolled my eyes. “Step one, let’s pull whatever information Rowe submitted. He requested a meeting within the last couple of months, so we shouldn’t have to go back too far. Let’s also pull any notes that Austin or anyone on his team might have made about why we rejected it.”
“Easy enough,” Kenji agreed. “We document everything.”
But after searching the submissions log for an hour, both of us were frustrated to find that there was no record of any submission by Rowe at all, even as far as six months back.