Page 66 of Dreams That Bind Us
"Ha!" Annette's tone held a bitter edge. "James, you fly on private jets all over the world. You can be here in less than twenty-four hours if you wanted to and you know it. It’s simply a matter of time and priorities."
He didn't have an answer for that because she was right. He could be there by tomorrow. But this business deal was down to the wire and he had to stay until it was done.
His mind drifted back to the scene in his kitchen and the way Anna had slumped against the island. He hadn't even tried to help her or soothe her.
He'd just walked away.
His gut twisted at the way he'd left things between them, the way he'd run like a chicken when he'd heard his mother's words come out of Anna's mouth.
"She said you ended it," Annette added quietly.
"No," he choked out. "No, that's not true."
Annette sighed. "Well, I'm fond of both of you, James, so I'm not picking sides here. But I'm not going to lie. I'm really disappointed in you. Even if it's not true, you hurt her deeply and I won't be a party to that."
"Annette, please. I need your help. Could you just drive over there and ask her to call me?"
"Absolutely not! You are not getting me involved. And besides, she lost her phone, remember? Why don't you email her like everyone else?"
"I don't have her email," he snarled. It wasn’t technically true. He had her business card with her email address, but that was sitting on his desk in Key West.
"Do not give me that tone, James Armstrong. I'm not one of your damn minions," Annette snipped. "You could have her email address within minutes if you really wanted."
James stared at a large painting on the wall, not even seeing it. Annette was right.
"James?" Annette asked after a prolonged silence. "Are you still there?"
"Yeah, I'm here." He felt deflated. He'd crushed the woman he loved and he'd done it because he'd been scared. Afraid of what else she might say.
"I fucked up, Annette. And I don't know what to do." He was being completely honest. He had been running from the fear, but he was done trying to escape it.
"Yes, you did." Annette's tone was definite. "But the good news is that you see it. And now you can get back here and fix it."
"Would you give me her email address, please? I won't tell her how I got it, I promise."
Annette released an annoyed sigh. "Fine." She rattled off the email. "I'd recommend you do some serious groveling at this point. Oh! I just remembered. Anna said something about taking a break after she was done with your order. And by the way,she's almost done with it. The girl has been working nonstop. I really don’t think she’s sleeping either. But anyway, she said she wanted to travel and get out of town for a while, something about Australia. It sounds like she intends to leave within the next few weeks."
"Shit! I knew I shouldn't have left but these damn deals were on the line and the buyers insisted on meeting me in person."
"Yeah well, those are just excuses, James. It’s not like any of these deals are make or break for you. We both know that most of your empire is on autopilot. Again, priorities. I don't think Anna will care about any of that. She seemed…I don't know. Robotic, maybe? She was definitely off. Oh, hold on a second, a guest needs my help."
James growled in frustration as he listened to Annette's muffled voice over the line. His situation with Anna was much worse than he’d thought, especially if she was planning for an extended leave.
He would track her down eventually, but by then there was no telling how much further she would have herself blocked away. He had to see her now before it was too late.
"Okay, sorry about that. James, I'd recommend you don't wait if you want my opinion. And other than the email, I don't think there's anything I can do to help you."
"No, you're right. I need to fix this now. Thanks for letting me know, Annette."
"God, I love it when a man actually listens to me," she snarked.
"Bye." James ended the call and pushed the button for Gwen, who sat at a desk down the hall.
"What do you need, boss?"
"Gwen, can you get the lawyers back in here right now? I need to be out of here and on a plane in the next few hours."
"Sure thing."
