“Is that what happened to you?” Jace asked. His voice was low and tender.
“Sort of. We were good. Perry and I came up with client after client. And they were satisfied for the most part.”
“Which part weren’t they happy with?”
“It wasn’t anything monumental. One of our clients didn’t like a strategy that we put in place. The product didn’t sell at the expected levels they wanted.”
“So they pulled up stakes?”
She nodded.
“And you got canned?”
“No, I’d already decided to leave. But Perry put the blame on me. He got the promotion that should have been mine.”
“So why does he want you to come back?”
“According to some of my friends who still work there, his idea factory has dried up.”
“You were the one with all the innovative ideas. And he took credit for them?”
“That sounds a little egotistical,” she said, frowning.
“But it’s true, right?”
“Mainly. Perry had some good ideas, but clients want great. They want buzz. They want...”
“Let me help you out here. Even for a guy who spent a lot of time in foreign countries and rarely worked inside an office, Perry or anyone for that matter is only as good as those supporting them and Perry’s running scared. He’s afraid the powers that be will discover that he really wasn’t the driving force behind the campaigns he worked on with you. And now that you’re not there his work is not as good.”
“That’s not totally true.”
“Kelly, I’ve seen the changes you’ve made here at the Kendall. You have a good eye for both detail and the big picture. You can imagine what a room will look like before it’s changed. Your ideas for marketing have changed the Kendall from a has-been to a place that people stand in line to get into. I’ll bet from what you told me about the racetrack, that you already know exactly what it will look like down to the last electrical socket and light switch. You’re amazing.”
Pleasure washed over her. She hadn’t been complimented for her efforts by him and she was proud that he’d seen her efforts as valuable.
“Well, I don’t have to worry about Perry anymore.”
She opened the door and got out of the truck. The air seemed just as tense as it was inside the cab. Kelly looked up at the gleaming white house. Jace joined her.
“I have the Kendall.” She turned to face him. “And the last electrical socket and light switch are in the Tidal Box, third level up, far wall, next to the private elevator.”
* * *
AS SOON AS Jace entered Doug’s office his receptionist sent him straight in. Doug stood and they shook hands.
“You’ve confirmed what you told me the other day?” Jace asked, getting right to the point.
“Yes. It’s a technicality, but a big one. Given the number of people who read these contracts before they were signed, someone should have brought this error to light.”
“Error?” Jace frowned.
“I’m sure it was, but it’s binding.”
“What is it?” Jace was getting antsy. He wanted to know the details of any chance he had to take possession of the Kendall. Although, of late, watching Kelly, seeing the amount of effort she put into the place was piquing his conscience. He didn’t want to hurt her.
“Usually a contract in this state gives the signers three months to rescind it, back out of it. In other words they can change their minds without any consequences. It’s called a Buyer’s Remorse Clause.”
Jace nodded. He was aware of this rule.
“In this contract—” Doug turned the paperwork around and handed it across the desk to Jace “—it says three years, not three months. To tell you the truth, I didn’t see it the first time, either. I’m so used to seeing three months that I read what I expected to see.”
Jace looked down at the papers. The words three years had been underlined in red.
“As Ms. Ashton has only owned the house for two years, you can challenge the contract—the sale.”
Jace looked up. Kelly’s face, framed with her brilliant red hair, flashed before his eyes. She’d worked so hard in the past two years. And she was only seeing the value of that now. An image of her running around, taking care of the details of the open house assaulted him as clearly as if he’d been hit.
“It would be a long road,” Doug said.
Jace focused on him. “How so?”
“You’d have to pay whatever the outstanding taxes were, which would be substantial at this point. After that you’d have to invoke your father’s will.”