Page 15 of Wham, Bam, Marry Me, Ma’am
Chapter 8
Vaughn
"Alright, so I'm still looking for someone for the VP of Marketing position. Cora is giving us another month of part-time, but she said if the baby comes early, we are shit out of luck. Her words, not mine." Barrett chuckles. "Vaughn, I assume you would like to be in on the final interviews for that. West, how about you?"
"No, man. That's your call." West grins at Barrett who nods back.
"I'd like to hire by the end of the month. We could use the extra help on the new camping products. Procurement is giving me a hard time, but if we want to take advantage of the season, now is the time to push outdoor products."
"What does procurement say?" I ask, catching Barrett's complaint.
Barrett clenches his jaw and huffs out an annoyed sigh. "Same thing as usual. I got an email from Parker saying fulfillment is an issue and asking us to push the deadline to accommodate."
I nod, staring at my brother. "If Parker thinks it's an issue, then it is. We can't spend millions of dollars marketing a product that we can't fulfill. Push the deadline if procurement needs it."
"Not until we know there isn't another solution." Barrett glares at me stubbornly, but he knows I'm right.
"If there was another solution, they would have found it."
"Pssh, maybe." Barrett huffs like a petulant child.
"Go talk to Parker and see what the situation is."
"Last item on the agenda." Barrett ignores me, moving on. "Part of this meeting today is about the organizational culture."
I can barely concentrate on what Barrett is saying anymore. The green dress Rachel picked out hugs her curves and scrambles my brain. As gorgeous as she looks in it, it's all wrong. It should be balled up on my floor. Last night was incredible. I've never found it difficult to leave for work, but a naked Rachel laid out in my bed made me want to curl up next to her and spend the day exploring her body.
"Aww, I love that, West." Rachel holds her hands to her heart.
I glare at Weston as he sits there with a huge grin on his face, looking like an idiot preening under Rachel's praise.
I roll my eyes. "Rachel, please put together a—"
"Don't fire me," Rachel blurts out, ending on a sob as she throws her hands over her face.
"Wha–" I start, simultaneously baffled and gutted when she begins to cry.
"Vaughn." Barrett shakes his head, and his face screws up in angry frustration. "You can't fire Rachel without our approval. We agreed."
"You a-agreed?" Rachel looks at me, betrayal in her eyes, and then lets out another sob.
"I'm not—" I yell, but West cuts me off.
"You're an asshole!" West glares at me as he puts an arm around Rachel's shoulders. I see red.
"Get your fucking arm off my wife right now!" I bellow, and the entire room goes silent. Three pairs of eyes stare back at me in disbelief.
"Wife?" Rachel whispers after a shocked moment. West swivels his head to stare from me to Rachel, who looks at me like I've gone insane.
Well, at least she's stopped crying.
"Vaughn, what are you talking about?" Barrett finally asks, blinking rapidly. He looks between Rachel and me like one of us is an alien and he's not sure which one.
"You two need to leave," I manage to grit out, still furious that West has not removed his arm from Rachel's shoulders. Looking only at Rachel, I add, "We need to talk."
West puts both his filthy hands on Rachel's shoulders and turns her to face him. "If you need help, blink twice. I'll get you out of here no matter whathewants." He has the nerve to glare over at me, and I stand quickly, ready to physically kick him out of the room, but Rachel raises a shaking hand to stop me.
"I'm fine. Thank you, West." Her eyes don't leave mine. West eventually huffs out a final threat at me as he and Barrett exit the room.
