Once the call was over and she crossed off two items from her to-do list, she put on her coat and walked out of her office. “I’m heading out to talk to Reagan. Wish me—”

“Ah, Jillian.” She stopped midsentence as Harrison walked through the door. “The CEO of Apex Aviation is in town and I told him you’d take him to lunch to go over the progress of the campaign. Meet him at noon at St. Elmo.”

“No.”

“Excuse me?”

“I already have a meeting to attend so I can’t make it. For once, do some work and take him yourself.”

His face reddened and he pointed at her, his finger only inches from her face. “Watch your tone.”

“No, Harrison, I won’t. You throw things at me time and time again, and usually at the last-minute. All because you don’t want to do them. I’ve had enough. If I lose your endorsement for the promotion, then so be it.”

“You might lose more than that. Do you want to lose your job?” he asked, giving her a smug smile.

“Harrison, you won’t fire me. That would mean you’d have to do all the work yourself and we both know that will never happen. Now, I need to leave or I’m going to be late. You can brief me on your meeting later.”

Jill didn’t wait for a reply. Instead, she walked around him and out of the office. She hurried to her car and drove off, panicking that she might be late. That wouldn’t be the way to start her apology. She ignored the fact that she could be out of a job by the time she returned to the office. Frankly, she didn’t care anymore. Seeing the regret her mother had about her father had stirred something inside her. She never wanted to live with that kind of regret for the rest of her life. And she knew that if she didn’t try again with Reagan, that would be exactly what would happen. She needed to fight for her “something more” and she couldn’t let anything, or anyone, stand in her way.

Chapter Twenty-Six

As soon as Reagan ended a call with a supplier, her phone rang again. She sighed loudly, thankful she was alone in her office. She’d been on call after call all morning long, and a headache bloomed above her right eye from the incessant ringing. Looking at the screen brought a smile to her face.

Swiping to accept the call, she said, “Thank god it’s you. I was ready to throw my phone across the room.”

“Bad day, huh?” Gwen asked with a chuckle.