Page 127 of At the Heart of It
“It’s not your fault, Kate.” He took a few steps closer, and the warmth in those amber-green eyes was almost more than Kate could bear. “I saw what you were up against in there. And I saw what you tried to do anyway.”
“For all the good it did.” She shook her head and looked back at the rental car. Crap, she was going to have to turn that in. And check out of her hotel. And book a flight back, which she knew the network wouldn’t pay for. Maybe she’d get lucky and be spared the fines and the legal fight, since Viv had revealed her own secret. Maybe Kate could find another job, or go back to producing the documentaries she loved. She’d always wanted to produce a cooking show, or maybe?—
“Kate, I’m sorry, too.”
She blinked. “For what?”
He shook his head, remorse heavy in his expression. “For losing my temper. For not listening to you. For failing to give you the benefit of the doubt.”
She nodded, grateful they’d cleared the slate. At least they’d have that. “I enjoyed working with you, Jonah,” she said. “Everything else, too. Not just the work, but the friendship. And the rest. That was real, no matter what you believe.”
“I know it was.” He was standing close, so close she felt the heat from his body. God, she’d give anything to touch him one more time.
“Good luck with the show,” she said. “For what it’s worth, I think you’re doing meaningful work.”
He shook his head. “It’ll be more meaningful with you running it.”
Kate gave a brittle little laugh. “No chance of that happening. Chase made sure of that.”
“Wanna bet?”
Kate stopped laughing as Jonah nodded back toward the house. “Right now, Viv’s in there laying it all out for him. She’ll start by pointing out that they have no legal recourse against you since she’s the one who spilled her own secret. That’s why she did it, you know.”
She frowned, not sure she was following. “For me?”
He nodded. “We went over it together this morning. Right after we finished the divorce paperwork. For real this time.”
Kate frowned. “But Viv should be furious with me.”
“She should?” Jonah shook his head. “No one tells Viv how she should feel. And no one manipulates her feelings either. That’s what she’s angry about. At Chase, not you. He’s the one who tried to screw her over.”
Kate shook her head, struggling to process it all. “Okay, but even if he doesn’t impose the fine, Chase will never keep me on the show.”
“Sure he will,” Jonah said. “Once he learns both Viv and I plan to walk if he doesn’t agree.” He smiled and reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind Kate’s ear. “Turns out the one thing my ex-wife and I agree on is that this show isn’t worth a damn if you’re not in charge.”
She stared at him. “You’re not serious.”
“I am, actually.”
“Wow.” She knew she should come up with something more intelligent than that, but her head was spinning too fast to generate more than one syllable.
“Kate, it’s your passion that makes this show work,” he said. “Viv knows that, and I know that. Deep down, Chase knows that.”
She ached to believe it. Wanted desperately for it to be true. “I don’t think so.”
“Chase isn’t stupid,” Jonah said. “He knows it can’t work without the three of us together. The network will never find another world-renowned self-help guru with a surly ex-husband and the award-winning producer he’s in love with.”
“But he can’t—wait, what?” Kate blinked, pretty sure she’d heard him wrong. That she’d mixed up the pronouns or something.
Jonah moved closer and lifted a hand to cup her elbow. “I love you, Kate,” he said. “I’m sorry I was too wrapped up in my own bullshit to say it before. I love you and I miss you and I can’t imagine my life without you.”
“Holy shit.”
He laughed and held out his arms. “Please say you’ll forgive me.”
“I forgive you.” She hesitated, wondering if this was all a dream. If it was some sort of TV stunt or a cruel prank.
“Hug me, Kate. I’m getting old here.”
