Chapter 74 Equals

Anna turned the corner and bumped into John. She’d agreed to come to the office to talk but she hadn’t expected him to come out of nowhere. It had been two days since the airport and she wasn’t any closer to deciding what to do. She’d had nightmares about it the last two nights and couldn’t focus on anything. John had called and asked her to meet him at work and she’d agreed because she needed to move forward somehow.
“Anna it’s so good to see you.” His hand reached out for hers but she pulled back. John flinched, never realizing how much a simple gesture could hurt. He wanted to hold her, to make her believe in him and his love with nothing more than the strength of his love but he knew she wasn’t ready for that.
“Is it?” She asked looking anywhere but at him.
“Anna if you will just listen I know we can make it through this. Look at all the crazy we have dealt with so far.”
Anna nodded knowing that he was right, but she just couldn’t shut up that nasty little voice inside her own head that was driving her crazy. The one that asked constantly why this was so hard, happy endings were always easy, weren’t they?
“You’re right, we have gone through some crazy things these last few months. Things I never could have imagined and I can imagine a lot.”
“Will you come to my office so we can talk? Will you listen?
“I will. I want this to work but…” She broke off when his fingers landed on her lips.
“I just want you to listen, that’s all I’m asking for.”
Anna nodded and followed him into his office. She sat down on the couch and put her bag on the floor. John nodded and began to pace, not trusting himself to sit so close to her. He was practically jumping out of his skin with the need to hold her but he knew she would only push him away. He wasn’t sure if he could take that kind of rejection.
“First I want you to know that I would never sleep with Isabel. Clearly, my mother, sister, and Isabel arranged it together.”
“I do know that John, but seeing you there with her just broke me. Especially after how jealous you were over my new assistant.”
“I acted like an a&s didn’t I?
Anna smiled for the first time since coming into the room “Yes you did.”
John stopped pacing and gently sat beside her looking into her eyes. “I just couldn’t stand the thought of anyone else being with you or asking to be with you. I have loved you so long that I can’t imagine being anywhere without you.”
“Oh, John.” She said softly as he took her hand.
“Anna don’t you see, every time I act like a jerk it’s because I am so afraid of losing you, our house has been so empty without you.”
“ Has it? No mothers or sisters lurking around?”
“Nope, I sent them all packing. If you can believe it, she, May, and Isabel were waiting when I got home from the airport.”
“Really and what did they want, as if I don’t know.”
“They wanted me to forget about you and marry someone else.”
“Hmm, I’m surprised even your mother would have the nerve after how mad you were at the airport.”
John squeezed her hand and tugged wanting her closer. “I threw her out Anna, I threw them all out. I made it clear that they were to never come near us again.”
“I’m sorry for you, that you have a family but they are so hideous.”
“I Know, now I just need to convince you that I’m not a jealous jerk.”
“You are a jealous jerk.”
John cleared his throat and played with her engagement ring looking sheepish “I can be, but it’s only because I love you so much.”
Anna watched the blush creep up his strong jawline and knew that the admission cost him some of his hard-earned pride. She wanted so much to pull him close but couldn’t.
“I know John, but you can’t accuse me of things every time someone hits on me. I lived with outrageous jealousy for too long and I can’t do it again.”
“You won’t have to, I promise.” He said softly looking up into her eyes. He cupped her face and pulled her closer. “I don’t ever want to give you a reason to doubt that we belong together.”
“It has seemed like everything has been against us lately, almost like the universe is trying to tell us something.”
“Do you really believe that?”
“I don’t want to, but my point in the airport was valid, there will always be someone who wonders what you see in me. Someone who thinks you can do better because of where I came from. There will always be someone with an opinion.”
“They don’t matter, the only thing that matters is us.”
“I want that to be true, but how can that be when I’ll always be the woman who married rich? How can I trust that eventually, you wouldn’t grow to resent me and want someone or something else? “I’m too old to change now and you have to take me as I am.”
“And what’s wrong with who you are?” John asked as he pulled her against his chest and tipped her face up. “I love who you are.”
Anna sighed and felt herself relax into his arms. She wanted to believe him. Wanted to think that this was an easy fix for a big problem. She wanted to believe that their luck was changing and that she had used her second chance the way it was intended but a cold fear crept down her spine as she looked into John's eyes. Something still felt off.
“I want to give you something,” John said softly as he reached for his briefcase on the floor. He shuffled around in the papers with one hand while keeping the other firmly wrapped around Anna as if he were afraid to let her go. He pulled out a legal envelope and handed it to her.
“What is this?” She asked in confusion as she studied the innocent-looking envelope.
“open it.”
Anna slid her nail along the flap and pulled it open shaking the contents out. The smooth papers fell into her hand and she grabbed them. Her eyes blurred as she looked at the page not quite believing what she was reading.
“John, what is this?” She asked on a gasp.
“What does it look like?”
“It looks like you gave me half of your company! Why would you do this?” She asked looking into his eyes, “Now everyone will think that’s all I was after, John this just proves everyone right.”
She felt panic as she tried to move away from him, but John held her tight. “No, they won’t, because anyone who knows you, knows how amazingly talented you are and I want to share everything with you. I don’t really care what anyone else thinks. If I’m doing anything in this life I want you to be my partner. It was a sound business decision.”
Anna felt the tears leaking from her eyes as the words on the paper blurred. ‘Sound business decision huh?” She asked in a small voice.
“Of course, I know a good employee when I see one and I do whatever it takes to get her to stay.”
“Really? Whatever it takes?”
“Yes,” he whispered as he tilted her head up to face him. “Please will you stay with me?”
Anna smiled and wrapped her arms around him as she softly whispered “Yes “as he kissed her.
***
Isabel drove slowly into the lot of the building and looked up at the window of John’s office. She smiled as she put the car in park and disconnected her call. She grabbed the bag from the backseat and got out slowly. She walked toward the building a cold smile plastered on her lips. “Oh yes,” John was going to regret rejecting her and Anna was going to pay for her interference, starting now.