What if he fought for custody anyway?
“Oh, this is turning into such a big mess,” Casey whispered and flipped her turn signal on at the entrance to the airfield.
The field was, as were all things King,big. She drove straight up to the tower where Jackson’s office was located and parked. When she got out of the car, the first thing she noticed was the noise. Jet engines rumbling, men shouting, and a loudspeaker calling for maintenance.
Getting Mia up and out of her car seat, Casey walked quickly to the building and slipped inside. Worrying about tiny eardrums around so much noise put speed into her steps. The tower building itself was carpeted and sleek, with chrome-and-black furniture and an elevator tucked into the back wall. A security guard took her name, ushered her into the elevator car and just before the doors closed, gave Mia a wink.
When the doors swished open again, an older woman was standing there beaming at them. Her short brown hair was stylishly cut, her beige slacks and white shirt looked crisp and professional and her brown eyes veritably twinkled.
“You must be Cassiopeia,” she said, already reaching for the baby. Mia leaned out happily, eager to explore a new face.
“Casey, please.”
“Of course,” the woman said. “I’m Anna. Jackson’s assistant and you, you little beauty, must be Mia King.”
“Mia Davis,” Casey said quickly, just to keep things straight.
Anna shot her a look, then smiled. “My mistake. Well, the boss is right on through there,” she waved a hand at a closed door. “Why don’t you go on in and I’ll take care of Mia.”
Her daughter looked completely at home on Anna’s hip and the older woman clearly was enjoying herself, but still, Casey hesitated. “Are you sure?”
“Oh, yes. Don’t worry. I’ve had four of my own and I didn’t break one of them.” Anna paused thoughtfully. “I did consider breaking the youngest, but changed my mind at the last minute.”
Casey smiled, mother to mother and felt better immediately. “Okay then, I’ll just tell Jackson I’m leaving and—”
“Take your time….” Anna had already turned away and was busily pointing out all of the airplanes to a cooing Mia.
Casey knocked lightly, opened the office door and stepped inside. Jackson was on the phone and she almost backed out, but he held up a finger and motioned for her to come in.
“That’s right. We’ll need the fuel delivered by tomorrow morning at the latest. We’ve got several flights booked for the weekend. Right.” He nodded, made a note on the ledger in front of him and nodded again. “Good. See you then.”
He hung up, then stood up, coming around the edge of the desk toward her. Shooting a glance at the closed door, he asked, “Mia with Anna?”
“Yes. She swooped in and snatched the baby the moment we showed up.”
“Well, don’t worry. She’s in good hands.”
Casey nodded and walked around the office. She’d wondered what this place would look like. And now, she saw it suited Jackson completely. A bank of windows to open up the world for him, wide desk, comfortable furniture and on the walls, paintings of King Jets. She turned to look at him. “You don’t mind watching Mia while I keep my appointment?”
“No, but who’s the appointment with?”
She blinked at him. “I’m sure you don’t know him.”
“Him?”
Did his tone just change? She shook her head. “Yes, him. Mac Spencer. We’re meeting at Drake’s for coffee. He wants me to design a new brochure for his travel agency.”
“I know him,” Jackson said, folding his arms across his chest and leaning back to sit on the edge of his desk. “His agency’s in Birkfield.”
“That’s right.”
“So how’d he find out about you? You live in Darby.”
“Not anymore,” Casey reminded him, still strolling the room, inspecting the stack of flight magazines on the narrow coffee table. “Mia and I took a walk through Birkfield a couple of days ago. I passed out business cards to the shop owners. Seemed like a good idea,” she said. “And clearly, it was. It’s already paid off.”
And it made her feel good. She might be living in Jackson’s little palace, but she made her own way in the world. Always had. Once this time with him was over, she’d be back on her own, providing for Mia. The more clients she had, the better their lives would be.
“That explains it,” Jackson muttered, springing up off the edge of his desk as if he had a fire under his behind.
“Explains what?”
“Mac Spencer probably took one look at you and decided to have you for dessert,” Jackson said tightly.
“Excuse me?” She stared at him and was astonished to see that his jaw was clenched and his brows were drawn low over dark eyes that were flashing with heat.
“He’s notorious in town.” Jackson stalked across the room, took hold of her arm and Casey did her best to resist the pull of the heat she’d come to expect from his touch. “He’s got so many notches on his bedpost it’s a wonder it’s still standing.”
“Notches?”
“God, Casey,” he muttered, looking down into her eyes.
“You can’t be seriously considering going to meet this guy one on one.”
“Of course I am,” she said, tugging her arm free of his tight grasp. “This isbusiness, Jackson.My business. I was doing this before you came charging into my life and I’ll be doing it long after you’re gone. I’m the sole support of me and my daughter.”
“Not anymore you’re not.”
“Do you seriously think I’m just going to stand back and do nothing for the six months Mia and I are with you?”
“Why not? Call it an extended vacation.”
“If I did that,” she explained patiently, “I’d lose my clients and I can’t afford that. People depend on me to come through for them. I take my job every bit as seriously as you take yours.”
He looked like he was chewing on that one for a second. “Fine.I’ll hire you.”
“To do what?”
“Brochures,” he said. “Magazine ads. You say you’re good, prove it. Work for me.”
A little zip of excitement skittered through her, as she considered the possibilities of working on an account like King Jets. She’d be way out of her depth, she knew, but she was good at layout, design, color and flash. She could do a great job for him and—she looked up into his eyes, and read the victory shining in those dark depths. Instantly, Casey quashed her little vicarious thrills. He didn’t mean this. Any of it. He didn’t know anything about her talents or her work. He was simply doing his best to make decisions for her. Again.