: Part 9 – Chapter 41

My hands shake as I set a cup of coffee in front of Marcus Hughes at the conference table, the projection screen on the far end of the room lit up and waiting with Seth McKenzie’s presentation.

Today is New Year’s Eve, the day Beau and Seth are due to pitch their Midnight campaigns and showcase all the hard work—or in Seth’s case, hard-scheming—their teams have put in over the past few months.

Honestly, knowing what I know, it feels like I’m waiting on disaster, and my nerves are raw with anticipation.

For the last week, I’ve been hiding out at my dad’s empty house to give Avery some space. Beau tried to reach out to me several times through Midnight, but I just left the conversation because the mess I’ve created, the pain I’ve caused, feels too much to overcome. He then resorted to texts and calls, but I ignored those too. Not because I don’t want to talk to him—of course I do—but because I refuse to be the reason I cause a rift in the best family I’ve ever known.

I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that Christmas Day was quiet and lonely in my dad’s big, empty house. There was staff, of course, but I spent most of the day locked away in my childhood bedroom, bawling my eyes out.

Thankfully, I’ve cried so much that my tear ducts have gone on strike, and I’ve somehow managed to pull myself together enough to show up at work this morning. Though, I guess that strength stems from the changes I’ve already put into action.

At the start of the year, I’ve agreed to start working for my dad, one simple text to him the other day putting it all into motion.

Of course, I’d never leave Banks & McKenzie hanging, knowing what’s at stake with the Midnight account. So, I made the hard decision to email Mr. Banks my official resignation this morning, with a request for a meeting this afternoon after the Midnight pitch conference is over.

Then, this chapter of my life will officially be done, and I’ll start the new year as the newest employee at Perry Enterprises. Yay.

I take a spot against the back wall as Seth starts his presentation, and Beau takes a seat at the table, his hands steepled in front of him as he looks on.

He’s as handsome as ever, and a war rages inside me with the knowledge of what’s to come. Seth is a snipe and a snake, and his campaign is built off the back of Beau’s ideas. It doesn’t matter, though, since he’s going first.

He’s going to end up getting all the credit, and Beau… Well, I don’t know what Beau will do. All I can do is wait and see.

“Gentlemen, ladies, on behalf of Banks & McKenzie, we’d like to thank you for coming today,” Seth announces to the room. “We’re unbelievably excited to share our vision with you for what we think is going to be the next big app in the space. Buckle in, because we’re going dark.”

The lights dim and the screen flashes, and in the center of it all, the branding I know Beau envisioned from the start flashes on the screen. It’s a black background with gold lettering, and the word midnight is in capitalized, simple text. Underneath is the slogan. No curfew. No rules.

“Midnight is a lust-filled, uninhibited experience between consenting adults under the cover of darkness. It’s sexy and shameless, and there are no rules when it comes to being yourself. Kinks? You can explore them. Fantasies? They’re real now. Midnight is an immersive experience for meeting strangers and turning them into lovers, and it’s an experience for the masses,” Seth explains magnanimously.

“We know how important it is to you to reach the biggest audience the space has to offer, and this does that in spades. Being over eighteen is the only restriction, and the world is your oyster. You can chat anytime, anywhere, with just the device in your hand. The interface is simple, and all access is code-based, just as you suggested. One of the biggest problems in today’s advertising space is overcomplication. We’re giving complex connection, but we’re not doing it at the expense of ease. I think you’ll find that this, this vision, is exactly what the people are looking for.”

Seth hands out booklets with some of the finer details of the campaign and logistical implementations, and the lights come up on the room as everyone claps. Neil and Chris share a look, and the execs from Midnight whisper to one another as I clear their coffee and help set up for Beau’s presentation.

I avoid his eyes as I help his team prepare materials and reset the projection computer so he can load his own files, and then I check if I can get anyone anything before melding back into the wall at the rear of the room.

Avery steps inside just as he’s about to start, a fresh Starbucks in hand, and my heart kicks up a notch with the need to say something to her.

I don’t, though. Because I know giving them all the space to heal their family unit without me, the girl who messed it all up, is the best thing I can do.

Beau takes his position at the front of the room, his warm smile and captivating brown eyes just as mesmerizing as ever. He looks remarkably composed for someone who should have just watched his entire presentation get snatched right out from under his nose, and I hold my breath in anticipation as he starts talking.

“Ladies and gentlemen, again, thank you for your patience with us as we prepared these campaigns for you. I, like you, find Seth’s vision compelling and undeniably interesting—and, dare I say, it’s almost as though it’s something I might have come up with myself.”

His eyes glare daggers at Seth, but the rest of his expression is composed as he smiles at the clients. Seth looks away slightly, and out of the corner of my eye, I feel like Neil might actually notice. Still, it’s short-lived before he focuses back on his son, and I do the same.

This might be one of the last times I see him up close, so I drink in his beauty in great detail.

“When my team and I were initially brainstorming for this unique app, we went much the same direction as Seth’s team,” Beau announces, continuing to work the room with confidence that outright confuses me. “But upon some introspection, we found it lacking in personality and relatability. This is a social app. An app of connection and personal moments and real people looking for real things. Imagine this, if you would. What would you do if you were a woman with a crush on man?”

Everything inside me freezes, my heart stuttering through several pounding beats.

“A crush that you’ve had for years without the means to do something about it,” Beau continues, and I almost can’t hear him over the ringing in my ears. “Maybe you’re a little shy, and maybe putting yourself out there for the chance at a relationship feels impossible. Impossible, until…you hear about a new app called Midnight.”

He puts up an image on the screen of a dark background filled with stars and the moon and an unspoken hope I can’t quite describe.

“This app allows for anonymous messages with a securely generated code, and because of the mysterious nature, you actually get up the nerve to share that code with your crush.”

The screen flashes again, and the logo appears, a tagline under it I recognize all too well.

“Meet me at Midnight,” Beau says, a smile growing on his face. “Such a simple conversation starter, and a simple premise for opening the lines of communication. You can get to know each other, you can flirt, and if you’re really lucky, you can fall in love.”

Avery glances at me, her eyes wide, and I swallow, forcing myself to look forward at Beau as he finishes his speech.

“You can fall in love,” he repeats, his voice a raw whisper I feel all the way into my bones. “The ultimate human experience. The thing we’re all after at the end of the day. To love and be loved by someone and to have the confidence to make it happen. Midnight isn’t just a place for sexy hookups and depravity. It’s the missing link in millions of lives all over the world. You don’t have to be afraid. You don’t have to say it aloud. All you have to say is…Meet me at Midnight.”

He looks directly at me, his eyes imploring. “Meet me at Midnight. Meet me at Midnight tonight. Meet me at Midnight forever. Meet me at Midnight.”

It’s all…too much. His words, the way he’s looking at me, the love for him that very much still sits inside my soul. My heart is racing, and my tears ducts have decided to start working again as I stand here, in the corner of this conference room, with Beau’s eyes on me.

My legs start moving toward the door of their own accord, and before I know it, I’m hurrying out of the room—tears now streaming down my cheeks—down the hall, and straight out of the office.

I don’t look back as I ride the elevator all the way to the bottom floor and out of the building just like stupid Cinderella.

Beau Banks loves me, and I love him too. But this isn’t the kind of thing you fix with a glass slipper.

Truth be told, I don’t know if it’s the kind of thing you can fix at all.