Bruno welcomed Harley with his arms stretched out, "There's Har-dee-har-har!" Harley let Jax's agent hug her. "How are you feeling, Harley?"
Jax was on the edge, waiting for Harley's response. Would he see the same angst he'd witnessed earlier?
"I'm a little tired. If you all don't mind, I'm going to rest," Harley said in a clear tone. She was back. The mature Harley. The Harley who didn't know how to play, who didn't smile, or laugh, the Harley who acted like an adult.
Cade had brought out the child in her. Without Cade, would Harley ever learn to be a carefree child again? Jax could try on his own. He was Harley's father, after all, but he had been unsuccessful before.
He followed Harley into her room. "Are you hungry? Do you want some lunch?"
Harley climbed onto the bed, shoved her feet under the thick blankets and turned away from him. "I'm fine. I'm going to nap."
Jax sighed, slouching his shoulders forward. He felt defeated. It was one thing to fight off Fiona, or to deal with the old Harley. But when he had seen the sunshine in his daughter's eyes, it was difficult for Jax to admit he might not see that again. He sat on the bed, stroking his daughter's hair while she curled over a pillow.
A lump formed in his throat. He couldn't say anything. He couldn't say the words out loud. But he promised Harley and himself that no matter what, they would get Cade back. Even if it meant Jax had to put his own feelings aside. He would do anything for his daughter, even sacrifice his own happiness with Cade.
For the little time that he'd known Cade, he'd come to respect and adore the beautiful woman. Night after night, he had found himself thinking of her, igniting feelings that he'd thought were long gone. But not once had he considered what Harley thought, or what she would think if he pursued Cade. And never had it occurred to him that Cade wouldn't take to his advances.
Jax had been in the limelight for far too long, blinded by the glory of it, the possibilities, the never having to hear the word 'no.' Now, he heard it loud and clear from Cade, and from Harley. And he felt he'd lost them both.
No matter what, he had to make things right again. For Harley's sake. For the daughter whom he'd always love. His own heart be damned.
Chapter Fifteen
Mac slipped off his glasses and placed them on top of a folder. He appeared neither impressed nor shocked as Cade stepped into his office.
She ignored the looks she received from two of her coworkers who'd been in a meeting with Mac. Cade knew she was in trouble, she was about to find out how much. Juliette hadn't said a word to her when Cade came in, except to relay the message from Mac to head straight to his office. Once the clock reached 8 a.m., she might be out of a job.
"Sit down," Mac ordered, pressing his fingers together over his desk.
Cade remained on her chosen spot. "If you're going to kick me out of here in a minute, I'd rather stand." Her hands were clasped behind her, and her chin tilted up to show her stubborn side, just in case Mac had missed it.
"Suit yourself." Mac huffed out a sigh. "You left in the middle of your assignment. Do you know how bad that looks for the company?"
Mac was never one to sugar coat.
"My contract states that if-" she began, but stopped when she saw Mac shake his head. He wouldn't care what the reason was. She had left a job. A job that she'd waited for. A job that she had worked hard to get. A job to care for a young girl whom she'd had an immediate connection with. Cade had battled with herself the night before, trying to figure out which had been more important: her own goals or the relationship she had with Harley.
"You weren't my choice for it in the first place. I knew you'd screw up."
Cade gasped. "Then why did you put me in charge of Harley?"
"Zee convinced me you were the right person for it. I told him you weren't ready, but he insisted. As you can tell, I'm not surprised that you've failed. You're lucky I found someone to replace you right away. Penny's back from her honeymoon and she's just finished another job."
Zee? Zee had wanted her to work the job? He had never even showed an ounce of belief in her. But in LA, he had warned her about the world in the limelight. It didn't make sense to Cade. Why would Zee do that? She wasn't even sure he actually liked her.
"When you first gave me this assignment, you told me that you chose me. Now you're saying it was Zee's idea and you were against it this whole time?" The older man did not change his expression. He appeared bored and uninterested until she said, "What kind of business are you running here, Mac?"