At this, Holly snorts. “Can I second that?”

A tall, thin black man approaches us. He’s the associate from the conference room who made the “Oh no, he didn’t” comment when Holly walked in.

“Mr. Karas, Mr. Cramer wanted to run one more idea by you, given your uncle’s latest outburst. Could we have a few minutes of your time in the conference room across the hall?”

I look to Holly, and she says, “Crey, do your thing. I’ll be waiting. I’m feeling an epic song about revenge coming on, à la Carrie Underwood’s ‘Two Black Cadillacs’ or maybe ‘Good-bye, Earl.’”

Leaning down, I brush a kiss across her cheek. “I love you, woman. I’ll be right back.”

“Give ’em hell. And I love you too.”

I follow Cannon and the associate—I really need to get his name—to the conference room across the hall from the auditorium.

My lawyer, Cramer is waiting, and he looks less than amused. I suppose it’s lucky that he works for me and not the other way around.

“Save your breath, Cramer. You didn’t approve before, and you don’t approve now. I also know you’re not going to approve of what I’m going to do next.”

“And what’s that, Mr. Karas?” he asks, the skepticism in his tone thinly veiled.

One of the largest negative aspects of this suit is the element of fear that has slipped away from my persona. This will be remedied. I’m Creighton fucking Karas, and the world will not question my judgment again when this is over.

“My uncle may be brave enough to take me on in front of a crowd, but we’ll see how he feels about taking me on man-to-man.”

The lawyer’s silver eyebrows hit his equally silver hairline. “That’s highly inadvisable.”

“Consider it a family matter and none of your concern.” My words carry the unmistakable weight of authority.

He swallows. “Mr. Karas, we have your best interests in mind here. I’m sure you understand.”

“Of course, Mr. Cramer, but sometimes the only thing a bully understands is a bigger bully. It’s time the gloves come off. I’m done with his bullshit.”

“You’re not going to listen to a logical, reasoned argument, no matter what I say, are you?”

“There’s no reasoning with my uncle, so no. Save your breath.”

“Fine.” Cramer nods. “We’ll leave you to it. Please call us if we can be of further assistance.”

I turn and head for the door. “Cannon, walk out with me?”

He’s on my heels as we hit the threshold.

“You’re not staying for the rest of Investor Day?” he asks. “You have a closing keynote.”

I give him a sideways glance. “You think I don’t know that? I’ll try to be back in time. If I’m not, extend the dog-and-pony show. You’ve got promo videos and PowerPoints up the ass. Use something.”

“And if that doesn’t work?”

I stop, and my eyes cut to Holly. She’s curled up in a chair, scribbling in the journal resting on her knee. She’s so fucking beautiful, and I’d walk through a thousand shitstorms like the one swirling around us just to watch her like this.

Not looking at Cannon, I say, “Improvise. That’s why I pay you the big bucks.” I take a step toward Holly, but pause when he lays a hand on my arm.

“Crey.”

I glance back at him. “What?”

“Damon is fucking crazy. What he’s doing—his issue with you—that’s not based in logic. It never has been. Be careful. I don’t trust him, and I don’t think you should either.”

I inhale, long and slow. “I know. This has been a long time coming.”

“Good luck, man.”

Cannon peels off and heads back in the direction of the auditorium, and I cross the half dozen yards between Holly and me. She’s so involved in her writing that she doesn’t notice me until I crouch in front of her.

“I bet if I were naked, you’d notice me quicker.”

Her head jerks up, and her smile is quick and bright.

“Damn straight, I would. That dick of yours demands attention.”

“Later. Definitely.”

“Count on it. After all, I hear I got a hell of a wedding present, which means you’ve got a hell of a thank-you coming.”

“Maybe I should book the room at the Plaza?”

“Screw the Plaza. Let’s go back to Vegas. I didn’t get nearly enough time to enjoy that villa at Caesar’s.”

I smile, thankful she’s not losing her mind over the Homegrown acquisition. “Deal. We sort this out, and you and I are going to high roll it in Vegas.”

Holly leans forward and threads her fingers through my hair. “I’m going to head back to the penthouse to finish this song and pack. So, hurry up and sort it out.”

“I’ll consider those my marching orders.”

Her lips press against mine, and while I want to seize control, I’m aware of the people moving around us, their eyes on us. I pull away.

“I’ll call you as soon as I’m on my way.”

“You better.”

Another quick kiss and then I step away.

I don’t realize that the next time I see her, everything I think I know about myself will have changed irrevocably.

I go first to my aunt and uncle’s penthouse in the city, but I’m informed by the doorman, who has been a fixture in the building for as long as I can remember, that my uncle’s already been and gone back to Westchester. Thanking him for the information, I slide back into the backseat of the Bentley.

“Looks like we’re headed to the estate, Michael,” I tell my driver.

“Very good, sir. I’m assuming we’re in a hurry?”

“Aren’t we always?”

I catch his grin in the rearview mirror. “Of course.”

Midday traffic is thankfully lighter than normal, and I cruise through the e-mails piled up in my in-box before I read through the top stories reporting on my impassioned opening remarks at Investor Day.

CREIGHTON KARAS: EXECUTIVE IN LOVE. THIS TIME IT’S FOR REAL, LADIES.

This morning at Karas International’s annual Investor Day, Creighton Karas publicly announced that his acquisition of Homegrown Records was an impulsive move fueled by his feelings for his new bride. He claims that allegations of self-dealing and breach of fiduciary duty leveled in a shareholder derivative suit filed by the executive’s own uncle are baseless given the company’s portfolio of holdings. Further, Karas claims that a purchase of Homegrown by Karas International would have been detrimental to the health of the company and the best interest of its shareholders, given Homegrown’s precarious financial situation. Homegrown, which has been hemorrhaging money since . . .