Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 131459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 131459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
Tom had not been expecting an offer of help, but he wasn’t going to turn it down. “Great.”
“You know, Core Point is interested in Trail Blazer,” Jamie noted.
“Yes. I know. I spoke with Hale and Judge yesterday morning. I didn’t share. If it’s not true, I want the circle who knows about it to be tight. Neither of them would say anything, but both of them would want to do something. That said, I made the case for them to hold off on any final decisions, and definitely not sign anything until I feel I can have a deeper discussion with them about it.”
“They were okay to hold off without knowing why?”
“Judge wasn’t thrilled about it, but Hale knows me. He knows I wouldn’t ask without a reason. He talked Judge around.”
There was a hesitation before, “And if it is true?”
“If it’s true, regarding Winston, I did a little research, and it depends on how the authorities would categorize the crimes. It might be too late to go after anything but his reputation. However, even though I don’t know how I’ll do it, I’ll find a way to bury Core Point.”
“I can help with that.”
Jamie was not only a wealthy man, he was a powerful one. He could do vastly more damage than Tom.
That wasn’t the reason Tom had gone to him.
But it was a bonus.
“Good to know.”
Jamie let that sit before he requested, “Since I have you, can we talk about something else?”
That something else was likely Chloe and Judge’s wedding, which was getting entirely out of hand, as it would since it was Chloe’s. She was all about impact and drama, and apparently walls covered entirely by fresh flowers, thus it was fortunate both her parents, and Judge’s dad, were all loaded.
This meant his tone held humor when he said, “Sure.”
“It’s also sensitive,” Jamie warned.
That was confusing.
Jamie adored Chloe, and as such, indulged the drama at every turn.
In fact, he was more inclined to do that than Tom and Imogen were, he was so happy she was the one for his boy.
Then again, she proved she had the grit to stick when it was important, and she’d done that within days of meeting Jamie.
In circumstances that extreme, bonds formed quickly.
“Okay. Shoot,” Tom invited.
“It’s about Paloma.”
Tom’s head ticked with surprise. “Paloma?”
“Since you started things with her…” There was a long pause, “Shit, Tom. I’ve been struggling with this, not that it shouldn’t be shared, it should, just how to share it. Now, too much time has passed, I’m worried I let it go too long and things between you two have gotten serious.”
They hadn’t.
“Jamie—” Tom started to reassure his friend of that.
“She’s not worthy of you, Tom.”
Stunned at that statement, Tom quietened.
“She hit on me when Rosalind was in treatment.”
“Jesus Christ,” Tom bit out.
Rosalind was Jamie’s wife. She died of cancer. Jamie had been devoted to her, before her illness, during it, and still now, years after her being gone.
“It wasn’t only inappropriate, it was repellent,” Jamie continued. “You’re not in the New York circle. It’s known what she’s like here, to the point she’s shunned. When she did what she did with me, I wasn’t surprised, but how it happened, it wasn’t subtle, it was aggressive. And insulting. That she would think, when my wife was dying…”
He trailed off.
“Jamie—” Tom tried again.
Jamie cut him off.
“She’s a leach. Fame and money. Maybe fame more than money. She had a career having her picture taken, perhaps it became an addiction. That adulation she received because she’s attractive. I don’t know her financial situation, but I do know she has no interest in men who are not extremely well off. She targeted Ned after me.”
Tom sat straighter. “Ned Sharp?”
“Yes. Ned Sharp. Alex’s dad.”
Alex was engaged to Rix, Judge’s best friend. She and he both worked for Trail Blazer.
This incestuousness was rubbing Tom the wrong way.
And what Paloma did was just vile.
“They had a thing,” Jamie went on, sharing something Tom didn’t know, that being indicative of how surface their relationship was. He hadn’t asked her history; she hadn’t given it to him. “But Ned’s impenetrable. No woman gets too far in with him. It lasted about a nanosecond.”
“We’re not serious, Jamie,” Tom assured him.
“Well, good,” Jamie murmured, but the relief wasn’t hidden.
“She asked to move in,” Tom continued. “We weren’t that, so I was surprised she did. Now, maybe I’m understanding. I’ve been trying to nail her down to end it. I’m getting the sense she suspects that’s going to be my response, so she’s been avoiding me.”
“It seems fucked up to say I’m happy to hear it’s over, but I am.”
“On the other hand, I hate to hear she did that to you while things were as they were with Rosalind,” Tom returned.
“She wasn’t the first to give it a go, though she was the only when Rosalind got sick.”