Page 70 of The Hang Up
“Thank you.”
“I know you’ll do great.”
“I hope so.”
“You’re smart and courageous and the best guy I know, and if anyone can save those people’s jobs, it’s you.”
“Thank you,” he said, his throat tight.
“It’s not too late to fix this, you know. This thing with Miriam.”
He nodded but said nothing, remembering the wounded look on Miriam’s face when he’d left her there at urgent care. The hollowness in her voice when he’d called to make sure she was okay and they’d spoken like two strangers who’d never known each other outside the boardroom.
It is too late,he thought as his sister’s words echoed in his ears.It’s much, much too late.
* * *
Miriam glanced at her watch.The readout said ten forty-five, which meant Jason would be stepping into the Urban Trax board meeting in just a few minutes. D-day, as far as the layoffs were concerned. The executive team planned to make a decision today, and from what she’d been hearing from the Urban Trax marketing director, things weren’t looking good.
She wondered if Jason was nervous, and whether he’d planned a speech or just intended to wing it. Thinking of him made her feel like she’d swallowed a big lump of Play-Doh, so she settled for pouring herself a cup of jet-black coffee in a mug printed with a unicorn humping a dolphin.
A hand on her shoulder made her look up. Holly stood there studying her, concern etched across her pretty features. “You doing okay?”
Miriam nodded and took a sip of coffee. “Yeah.”
“The Urban Trax meeting starts in just a few minutes,” Holly said.“I guess their whole executive team will be there.”
“Yeah,” Miriam said again, and wondered why someone who made her living as a branding expert couldn’t come up with a better word. Some marketing consultant she was.
Like that’s the only thing you failed at.
“I’m sure the meeting will go fine,” Holly said. “Our contract with Urban Trax is solid, even if the parameters of our work might change. Their overall spend may not be as high, but we have plenty of other clients. We’ll be fine.”
“Right,” Miriam said, though she hadn’t been thinking about the contract. She’d been thinking about Jason’s self- blame, the way he shouldered the burden of everyone else’s happiness and health.
Damn him anyway.
“He’s a good guy.” Holly leaned against the counter beside her. “Jason, I mean. Overprotective bullshit aside, I’ve gotta hand it to him. He sure made a difference in you.”
Miriam frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“He got you to stop being such a fraidy-cat.”
“A fraidy-cat?” Miriam rolled her eyes. “What are you, a third-grade teacher?”
Holly smiled.“I am incubating your godchild. Maybe it’s bringing out my inner mommy.”
Miriam sighed. “I’m not a fraidy-cat.” Great. Nowshesounded like a third-grader.
“You’re right, you aren’t anymore. Not after Jason got his hands on you. He got you playing outside and experiencing the world and throwing yourself headfirst into love again. That’s pretty damn brave.”
“Yeah, and look how well that turned out.”
Still, Holly did have a point. Miriam had spent the last year holed up in her grief, cursing the mountains and rivers and adrenaline highs that had taken her father away. But being with Jason had made her realize something. All that stupid daredevilry and adventure her father had chased like his life depended on it—well, maybe his lifehaddepended on it. Maybe that’s what made him feel excited and connected and happy to be alive.
Miriam had certainly felt it these last few weeks. Being outside, breathing fresh air, and feeling the flex of her own muscles, she’d felt closer to her dad than she had since he’d died.
Even if she didn’t have Jason, she still had that.
