“It’s against our rules.”
“Not if you love her. Will you sit down, please, before you wear a hole in my carpet?” He forced a deep breath into his lungs before he took his seat across the table from his ex-wife. “We made the rules. We can change them when they’re no longer serving us.”
Derek planted his elbows on the table, resting his head in his hands with a groan that felt torn from his chest. “I don’t know how to do this, Chels. I offered Jo a job on the tour and she said no.”
“That wasn't the offer she wanted.”
“So I shouldn’t have offered her a job? She’s good at managing the band’s social media. Jackson specifically requested that she continue on in that role. They need her. And she needs a new job. That hole in the wall she’s bartending in isn’t paying her enough.”
“She needs a job. Midnight Storm needs a social media manager. What about whatyouneed?”
“I need her,” he whispered, closing his eyes against the searing pain behind his sternum.
“Did you tell her that?” When he didn’t answer, Chelsea rounded the table and took a seat next to him, resting her hand on his back. “You’ve always been so good at taking care of everyone but yourself. Sometimes you’re so busy fixing the problem you forget about the way people feel.”
“She said she didn’t want to be the boss' dirty secret.”
“Please tell me you did not suggest that you keep seeingeach other in secret while she is your employee.” Derek winced, which was admission enough for Chelsea to suck in a startled breath and smack him upside the head.
“Hey!” He ducked away from her.
“Derek Owens, so help me God.” Chelsea took a steadying breath before leveling him with a look that could turn a man to stone. “You’re so concerned about protecting Annie from your relationship? Then protect her from thinking it’s okay to be some man’s secret. You are setting the example for what that little girl is going to think she deserves from her romantic partners. You are not stealthy enough to hide your relationship, but the more you try—despite the fact that our daughter has made it abundantly clear she knows exactly what’s going on between you two—the more you are teaching her that it’s okay for the person you love to keep you a secret. Is that what you want for Annie?”
“That’s not—I didn’t—” His mouth fell open as the weight of his ex-wife's warning settled over him. “Fuck.”
“I’m not saying you need to maul each other in front of our kid, but you aren’t helping anyone by trying to pretend she isn’t important to you. Look at my relationship. Annie knows Miles is important to me, but she doesn’t know we’re dating.”
“She knows.”
“What?”
“She knows, sugar. She told Jo you have secret sleepovers after she goes to bed.”
Chelsea fell back in her chair. “Well, damn. That kid is too smart for her own good.”
He chuckled. “She’s pretty great.”
“So are you.” She nudged his shoulder with a soft smile. “And, according to our kid, so is Jo.”
He nodded. “I don’t know what to do here. How do I give the band the social media manager they need and be with her without making her feel like I’m trying to buy her?”
“I don’t know. But you’re a smart guy and a good man. I’m sure you’ll figure something out.”
Chapter 19
“Sorry I’m late!” Tessa appeared at the top of the spiral staircase that led to Nuthatch Vineyard and Winery’s second floor tasting room and dropped a tray of cupcakes into the center of the table. “But I brought treats.”
Kyla leaned forward, examining the frosting. “The new guy’s learning fast,” she said, selecting a cupcake with a bright pink buttercream swirl and cherry on top. “His piping is getting better.”
“Still not as good as yours,” Tessa said, “but he’s getting there. What did I miss?”
“Nothing. We were just getting started,” Sabrina said, reaching for a cupcake covered in tiny yellow frosting flowers.
“Chocolate?” Hannah asked, leaning over the tray of treats. “I think we need a nice bottle of red to go with these.”
“Grab a bottle of Meritage,” Tessa called after her as Hannah disappeared into the storage area off the side of the tastingroom. “It’s dad’s newest blend. Malbec, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc.”
“As long as it’s alcohol, I’m in,” Jo said, waving off the offer of a cupcake topped with strawberry slices.