Wait… what?
DoesGarrettknow about our relationship?
Does Emma know?
Questions swirl through my mind, but it’s not until I circle back to Garrett’s words that my stomach swoops to my knees:the board knows.
That’s… not good.
Ethan’s jaw clenches. “How?”
“Some local magazine ran a story about it. The wife of one of the board members saw it and told her husband, but not before she shared the story all over his social media. Safe to say they all know by now.”
Ethan and I exchange a tense look.
How would some magazine know that Ethan and I are dating? And more importantly, why would they care?
The answer comes to me quickly enough. Ethan was Denver’s Most Eligible Bachelor—and now he’s not. The fact that he’s suddenly off the market must have made a decent fluff piece for their magazine.
“How bad is this?” Ethan finally asks.
“The board is pissed,” Garrett says plainly. “They’ve asked me to fly back for the board meeting.”
Ethan pushes a hand through this hair as he cusses under his breath. To my amazement though, his voice doesn’t betray his emotions at all. He sounds sure and steady when he says, “That seems like a bit of an overreaction. This isn’t the first time the CEO of the company has dated his assistant.”
“Exactly,” Garrett snaps. “That’s why they’re so worried. I stepped down as CEO after Emma and I started dating. Then I left the company that I worked very fucking hard to create toyou. I told the board that you were up for it. I assured them that the company was in good hands. And now, they’re worried that history is repeating itself. They think you might not be up tothe task because you’re too distracted by every piece of ass that walks into your office.”
“Don’t,” Ethan warns at the same time as Emma snaps, “Garrett!”
My skin flushes with both embarrassment and rage. The line goes silent for a few seconds.
“Sorry, Margot.” Garrett’s voice softens slightly. “That’s meant as an insult to my brother, not you.”
“It’s fine,” I mumble, though I don’t love hearing Garrett insult Ethan either.
“Listen, this wouldn’t be so bad if you had followed protocol and disclosed your relationship to HR.”
“Like you did?” Ethan counters sharply.
Garrett sighs. “That’s irrelevant. It’s not about me anymore, brother. It’s the board that you need to convince. The fact that they were scheduled to vote on a big promotion for your girlfriend at this meeting isn’t going to help your case. Emma and I are on our way to the airport now. We’ll be back in Denver tomorrow. We can talk more then.”
Ethan asks Garrett to send him the article while Emma asks me to stay on the line. I agree, taking the phone off from speaker and holding it up to my ear.
“You okay?” Emma asks.
“Yeah, just a little shocked.”
“Join the club,” she replies humorlessly.
So, it’s going to be that kind of conversation…
I glance at Ethan, who is perched on the edge of a chair with his elbows on his knees and his undivided attention on the screen of his phone as he scrolls through something. Presumably, the article that started this whole mess.
There’s a short path that leads to the river. I wander down it, looking for some privacy.
“Were you ever going to tell me about you and Ethan?” Emma asks.
“Of course I was. But the last time I tried, your reaction wasn’t exactly enthusiastic.”