Redemption Crash Series Book Three

PR Nightmare

Mason

“What a train wreck this is.” Trisha glides in, her steps light and airy contrasting hard against the brutal background. She dressed as she always is, skimpy, skintight, still refined, but her intentions are clear. She wants to be noticed, not just because of her clothes or the assets they support, but the way she holds herself, the way her voice drops. The damn way she shoves herself at me every chance she gets.

I’m not the only one that’s noticed Crash has too. There’s no doubt she’s a part of the reason I’m on the receiving end of her death glare. I get it too. I hate when men take note of my woman. No one has really dared to flirt with her while I’m around, but I notice the second glances she receives and, instead of the pride I should feel, I feel possessive and territorial. I want to glare and spit in their direction, let them know she’s mine, forever.

She’s my woman, the only woman I want. But not the only woman that wants me. Trisha is bolder than most. She’ll likely be more of a problem than Lauren if I don’t do something about her fast before she throws me into a bigger mess than she’s digging at now.

Thing is, she’s really good at what she does, she’s the best in the region. I don’t hire just anyone to be on my team. No, I hire only the best of the best and she’s been with me for quite some time. Long before I met Aria, but she, in my eyes, hadn’t been much of a problem until I had a woman to protect from her unwanted advances.

Now, I’m stuck in a pretty rough situation. I’ve never before needed a PR agent as much as I do now when my soon-to-be wife and the agent I have do not get along. If anything, they clash. To further my issues, my head still spins and spins around the singular idea; my wife-to-be needs to enter witness protection.

Even then, would I really want Trisha to remain on my team? To have Aria somewhere far away dealing with a turbulent number of emotions, knowing, wondering, assuming? Before Aria, there were only ever some here and there flings. Some f**k buddies or one-night stands when I was craving that release, but for the most part I stayed happy as a bachelor focused on my career and aspirations.

My mind was set, and my path forward was so clear and precise, that I could walk down it with my eyes closed and never encounter a problem until I crashed right into Aria Crawford. She changed everything in a single moment. She made everything halt to a standstill now that same woman has my heart an aching mess while my stomach has lodged itself in my throat.

Trisha looks through the room, her eyes sliding past Aria before settling on me, her green eyes narrowed, her red-painted mouth twisted down in annoyance. She slides the bag on her shoulder further up her arm, her black low cut V-neck channel dress rides up with the movement it's so tight.

“That’s why I called you here. You saw the news and the press?” I see Aria flinch beside me. Moving closer to her side, I reach around her back, pulling her stiff body into my side. I sigh a tiny bit of tension leaving me as I finally feel like I made it back home with my girl beside me, safe even if she's angry as can be.

“Of course, Honey.” Aria stiffens more, her fingers digging into my side. Wrapping her tighter, I pull her further into me, turning her to my front, hugging her.

“I’ve already received several calls from HR. They have people contacting them about contract terminations every five minutes. I’ve got Dixie’s PR and Social teams all over this but they won’t be enough. Our stocks are falling daily, and our board members are wary and have already begun meeting with each other. They want a hostile takeover with my father's shares going up next week. We might be screwed. Right now we have to figure out how to spin this in our favor.”

“I thought you were a shoo-in to get his shares?”

“We were until everything blew up in our faces. Dad f****d us over no matter how hard we try to prove we're different, the Maverick name is tainted," Jaxson says, kicking something on the ground.

“That affects your shares," Aria asks, looking up to me with wide, turbulent eyes.

“There's a clause in our contracts because of the way my father was terminated due to legal misgivings, his shares are no longer eligible to be passed down to his written successors. They’ll go up to a board vote. If the vote was held today we’d lose them.”

“And then they’d be able to take over?”

“That’s the thing. We had two board members implicated alongside my father, their shares are also up for grabs. Then there are the shares the official CEO receives as a part of their contract. The CEO position is also up for the official votes as acting CEO and official COO I have a little more say so but not enough.” Shaking my head I look up to the ceiling, happy to have Aria here with me, wondering how I'm going to do this without her, but knowing I must.

“So you’re saying you could not only be outvoted for the shares you need to get the majority of the company, but you’re also probably going to be outvoted for CEO, which will lose you more shares of your own family company,” she asks in disbelief, her eyes wide her shoulders back as she stretches to look up at me.

“Yes.” My gut twists with unease. The truth is horrible to admit to this room full of people. In a week's time, I may lose the company my Grandfather put his life in.

“Dammit, Mase.” Aria shakes her head, gripping me tighter as she bites her thick lush lips.

“Well, then we need to get to fixing this. I have some suggestions, but the first and foremost is one neither of you will like," Trisha breaks in.

“What is it,” Aria sighs.

“Well for optic's sake you need to know that Aria isn't the best partner to have by your side at the moment. I recommend calling off the wedding and the relationship. It’ll prove you’re willing to focus solely on the company and the upcoming trial. We also need-”

“No stop. Explain how I’m in the way of him doing his job?” Aria pulls away from me against my hold, her back ramrod straight as she faces off with Trisha. Dammit, this is what I didn't want to happen. I don't need Aria walking around with more guilt than she's already carrying. She didn't do anything wrong by protecting herself. Even if that means she had to take someone's life she saved her own.

“It’s not that you’re in the way it’s the way you look. Look at the interview the other day given the opportunity to hype up your man you refused to answer the question," Trisha tsks looking Aria up and down in her condensation clear.

“What? When," Aria scoffs.

“This all doesn’t matter I won’t be breaking anything off. Not unless you agree-” I walk between them grabbing Aria by the shoulders and trying to gather her attention until she cuts me off.

“Don’t even start.” She sends me up another death glare. “Back to you," she walks around me getting a better view of Trisha. "I did everything I was told to do in that interview including the insistence that Mason is his own person, a wholly separate identity. Where is it you think I went wrong?” Crash has her hip c****d out her voice even and controlled but brimming with unspilled anger.

“You were directly asked for your opinion on his character and you refused to answer. That was a clear shot that you missed. You should have defended him, insisted he was the best man for the job. Give your timely and ultimate support but you failed.”

“She threw a dozen questions at me at once I gave the best answer I could come up with at the time.”

“Because you're sloppy and untrained." She dismisses Aria looking back at me. "We need you surrounded by people with a certain image right now. She isn’t it.”

“Aria is non-negotiable Trisha you need to come up with a different strategy. Now everyone get out I need to talk with my fiancée.”