Page 3 of Idol Lives
Naomi slowly nodded, a hint of concern in her narrowed eyes. “Of course. I’m happy to do whatever it takes to help, but–”
“Good.” Jason hoped his grin was enough to hide his desperation. “Then I’m making you the president of Brightstar.”
Naomi’s composure finally cracked. For once, she couldn’t disguise her shock. “President?”
Jason shrugged, falling back on his long-practiced charm as a shield against the overwhelming pressure. “Or, CEO. Whatever. I don’t know the right fucking title. But I want you to run things.”
Naomi shook her head, her composure slowly returning. “Jason, I can’t. I don’t have the experience–”
“And I do?” Jason countered, his voice tight. “At least you’ve got an MBA. All I’ve got is a fucking Best Actor award. That’s not gonna cut it here.”
Naomi’s lips tightened, her denial more determined now. “No, Jason. There has to be someone else. What about Seong Woo?”
“No way.” Jason leaned forward, laying his hands on thedesk’s cold marble. He poured every ounce of sincerity he could muster into his gaze. “Seong Woo may be experienced, but he’s already got his own business empire to inherit. And I need more than experience anyway. I need trust. There’s only a handful of people in this world I trust without question. And you’re the thumb.” He paused, watching her process his plea. “It’s gotta be you.”
“Jason–”
“I’ll pay you whatever you want. A million?”
“Jason–”
“Ten million.”
Naomi loudly scoffed, her composure fracturing again. “You can’t just offer me ten million a year like that. What if I take it?”
Jason resisted his triumphant smile, despite knowing that he’d won. “You should, because I’m being serious. It’s my fucking company, right? I can do what I want.”
Naomi’s voice softened, a touch of hope in her hesitation. “You’re really serious.”
“Of course, I’m fucking serious. Talk to Bernie,” Jason suggested, relief wiping away a tiny portion of his stress. “Tell him to draw up a contract, and I’ll sign it.”
Naomi’s piercing gaze lingered long enough that Jason nearly turned away. “I’ll have conditions,” she finally admitted. Jason nodded. “And I’ll want to do things my way.” Jason nodded again. “And–”
“Just assume I’m gonna say yes,” Jason cut in. “You’ve been there for me through the worst of my shit. I owe you.” He slid in a warm, easy chuckle. “And you’re the last person in the world who’d fuck me over, anyway.”
Naomi dramatically rolled her eyes. “For all you know, I’vebeen doing that for years already.” She stood to brush the wrinkles from her jacket. “I’ll call Bernie while you sign the rest of that.”
Naomi waited until Jason nodded before softly gliding from the room, leaving him alone with a half-signed stack of contracts and a new burst of regret for being so impulsive. But, no. Regret wasn’t his thing. It was just a byproduct of his complicated emotional state. He already knew he’d made the right call bringing Naomi into Brightstar. She was smart, capable, and tough as hell. Yeah, there were probably two dozen middle-aged white men with Ivy League degrees who would’ve looked better on paper as CEO. President. Whatever. And his father would’ve probably had another stroke at the prospect of a Black woman running his company. But Brightstar was Jason’s company now. Fuck whatever anyone else thought. Especially the late Gerald Park.
Jason had nearly finished signing everything by the time Tae Hyun returned. He waved for Tae Hyun to come in as he made his final signature, triumphantly smiling before he replaced the pen cap. “Perfect timing.”
“You’re done? Good.” Tae Hyun lovingly wrapped his arm around Jason’s shoulder. “How’d it go?”
Jason grabbed Tae Hyun’s hand and gently squeezed. “Alright, I guess. I’m the proud owner of a billion-dollar company now.”
Tae Hyun’s eyebrows floated upward. “Is that a lot?”
Jason almost laughed until he realized it was a serious question. Of course, that didn’t sound like much. A billion won probably wasn’t even a million dollars. “I don’t know the exact exchange rate, but it’s probably worth at least a trillion won.”
Tae Hyun’s jaw fell open. “For real? Shit.” He chuckled. “I’d say that’s a lot. You’re probably richer than Seong Woo now.”
“I’m probably richer than his whole family now.” Jason squeezed Tae Hyun’s hand again before standing. “But that’s business. And I promised you a tour, right?”
Tae Hyun nodded. “If you still want to. Or, we could head back to the reception.”
“Fuck that.” Jason grinned, genuinely feeling okay for the first time in days. “Those assholes can take care of themselves.”
02
