Page 116 of About that Fling
“Don’t get too smug about it, ex-husband of mine. There’s actually another ex who gets the credit here.”
Jenna winced. “Shawn? God, I need to apologize to him.”
“You do, and you will, because you’re a good person,” Mia said. “But I wasn’t talking about Shawn. I’m talking about Ellen.”
“Ellen?” Jenna blinked. “Mark’s ex-wife?”
Mia nodded and pressed a hand into her lower back, wincing a little as she rearranged herself on the hard plastic chair. “She brought Katie to the hospital in the middle of the night to see her father. The shooting was an accident. The cops said so, and Mark agreed. Ellen dropped her purse on the floor and forgot the gun was in there and the whole thing was just one of those stupid moments you watch happening in slow motion and wish like hell you could hit rewind and do it all differently.” Mia shrugged. “I guess I can relate.”
Jenna nodded, feeling the tears prick the backs of her eyes again. “Me, too.”
“Anyway, Ellen and I got to talking,” Mia said. “About regrets and apologies and hate and love and everything in between. We might have swapped recipes for banana bread—the details are hazy. But my point is that we connected. For the first time in three years, we saw each other as human beings instead of ‘that bitch.’”
“Wow,” Jenna said, reeling too hard to come up with anything beyond a single syllable.
Beside her Adam was shaking his head. “So you thanked her for shooting your husband, and she thanked you for stealing him, and then you hugged and made up?”
Mia choked out a laugh. “Hardly. But we don’t hate each other anymore. That’s progress. I’ve gotta say—it’s the most free I’ve felt in a long time.”
“Forgiveness will do that,” Adam murmured.
Mia smiled. “And once more, the exes agree on something.”
Behind her desk, Kendall shuffled some papers. “I hate to rain on this lovely parade, but I believe there’s still an issue on the table.”
Jenna turned to face her and gave a grim nod. “Right. Uh—even if the fraternization rule changes, I assume there will be a penalty for my failure to follow an existing rule?”
Kendall opened her mouth to reply, but before she could say anything, Mia interrupted.
“The lawyer in the room can correct me if I’m wrong here, but if a company fails to enforce a rule with one employee and then punishes another employee for a similar violation, wouldn’t that second employee have a valid case for legal recourse?”
Adam blinked. “You’re referring to Brett and Susan again?”
“Exactly.”
“Legally, yes.” Adam looked thoughtful. “That second employee would have a case.”
“See?” Mia beamed at Kendall. “Looks like I got something from my years of marriage to a workaholic attorney.”
Kendall pressed her lips together. “Perhaps it would be best if we all stop talking about penalties and litigiousness and focus on moving forward in a positive fashion.”
“My thoughts exactly.” Mia smiled and turned back to Adam and Jenna. “So the policy I’m suggesting is commonly known as a ‘Love Contract.’ If a couple employed in the same workplace initiates a consensual relationship, they’ll be provided with documentation on the company’s sexual harassment policy. They’ll also be briefed on regulations concerning public displays of affection and retaliation in the event of a terminated relationship. After all the paper shuffling, they’ll get a contract to sign indicating they’re aware of the rules and promise to abide by them.”
Adam leaned forward, adjusting his tie. “I assume they’ll have the right to consult with an attorney before signing?”
“Of course,” Kendall said. She pushed her glasses up her nose and lifted her chin. “The company I worked for prior to Belmont had an informed consent policy similar to this one. Obviously, this sort of policy requires some very specific language about job performance expectations and the impact of a relationship on the work environment, but I’ve seen similar systems work quite nicely in a corporate setting.”
“Okay then,” Mia said, turning back to Adam. “You’re a lawyer, and you obviously have a vested interest in creating a positive work environment at Belmont. Do you want to be involved in crafting the new policy?”
He nodded, turning to look at Jenna. She felt a flash of heat arc through her as his eyes held hers.
“I do,” he murmured.
“And Jenna,” Mia said shifting again in her chair. “Would you be comfortable with this sort of clause in the company’s policy? Hypothetically speaking, if Adam were to remain attached to Belmont, do you think you’d be willing to sign a document like this?”
Jenna slid her eyes from Adam’s to her best friend’s and back again to his. She nodded. “I do.”
“Well all-righty then,” Mia said, whacking the paperwork on the desk with finality. “By the power vested in me by—well, myself—I now pronounce us a policy revision committee. You may not kiss the co-worker. Not now, anyway.”
