Beneath the scars

Chapter 8

Kelvin’s pov

The traffic had been terrible, my phone hadn't stopped ringing since I left the house, and somewhere between answering three calls and mentally preparing for the board meeting, I realized I hadn't thought about the conversation with Asia once during the drive.

That wasn't unusual.

I picked up my briefcase, locked the car and walked toward the private elevator. The moment the doors opened on the executive floor, my assistant hurried over with a tablet in one hand and a folder tucked under her arm.

"Good morning, Mr. Fletcher."

"Morning."

"You have the board meeting in twenty minutes, the Henderson proposal review after lunch, and Mr. Wallace has called twice already."

I took the folder from her without slowing down.

"I'll call him after the meeting."

She nodded and followed behind me.

"Oh, and there's one more thing."

"What?"

"A law office called earlier this morning. They said they're organizing some corporate paperwork and a few documents will require your signature within the next few days."

I barely looked up from the file I was reading.

"Leave them with my secretary when they arrive."

"Yes, sir."

That was probably what Asia had mentioned over breakfast.

It wasn't worth thinking about right now.

I pushed open the door to my office and immediately noticed someone sitting on the sofa near the window.

Jane looked up from her phone and smiled.

"I knew you'd be early."

I dropped the file onto my desk.

"Well..you beat me here…”

"Barely."

She stood and straightened the sleeve of her blazer before walking over.

"I looked over the Henderson numbers again last night. There are a few changes I'd like us to discuss before the meeting."

I loosened my tie slightly.

"Why don’t we get coffee first."

"I already ordered yours."she responded with a smile on her face.

I looked at her.

"You know me too well."

She laughed.

"Well…Someone has to."

There was an easy rhythm between us that came from years of working together. We didn't need to explain every little thing. Most of the time, Jane already knew what I was thinking before I said it out loud.

She leaned against the edge of my desk.

"So..."

I looked up from the file again.

"So?"

"How's Asia?"

The question caught me by surprise.

"She's fine…I guess.”

"Really?"

I shrugged.

"I think so,she seemed alright this morning."

Jane studied my face for a second.

"And yesterday?"

I sighed.

"I forgot her father's memorial…but it wasn’t really a problem…besides you needed me.”

"And i bought her a gift."

She smiled faintly.

"Really…what did you get her?.”

I leaned back in my chair before responding.

“Just something she had talked about before.”

"And?"

"She wasn't angry…at least she didn’t look angry.”

Jane raised an eyebrow.

"Seriously? So she accepted the apology that easily?"

I nodded and just then i thought back to breakfast.

Asia hadn't raised her voice.

She hadn't argued.She hadn't even brought up anything besides some paperwork she wanted me to sign.

If anything...

She'd been calmer than I expected.

"I've known Asia for years," I said. "She cools off eventually."

Jane didn't answer immediately.Instead, she picked up one of the reports from my desk and flipped through it.

"I guess that's true."

"She gets emotional in the moment but she never stays angry."

No matter how many disagreements we'd had over the years, Asia always found her way back to me.

Always.

Jane closed the file.

"So the papers she mentioned this morning..."

I frowned slightly.

"Oh."

"She said Daniel Brooks was helping her organize some old company documents."

Jane nodded.

"What kind of documents?"

"I didn't ask…doesn’t matter.”

She looked at me over the edge of the file.

"You didn't ask?"

I shook my head.

"It's probably something about her father's company. Maybe restoring a department or updating ownership records.She simply asked if I'd sign them."

"And?"

"I told her to leave them in my study when they're ready."

Jane smiled.

"That's nice of you."

I shrugged.

"If it helps her get over this,I don't see the problem."

Before either of us could say another word, my assistant knocked lightly on the open office door.

"The board members have started arriving, Mr. Fletcher."

I stood and buttoned my jacket.

"Let's get this over with."

Jane fell into step beside me as we walked toward the conference room.

Neither of us had noticed the unopened email sitting quietly in my inbox.

Subject: Document Preparation – Brooks Legal Associates