My CEO 296

296 Choices (Winona)

Jayden's pacing again. It's become his thing this past week, pacing the floor when his mind is in overdrive. He's in the living room now, his eyes darting to the view outside, but I know he's not really seeing any of it. "Maybe come sit down?" I ask, trying to break the silence.

He stops, glances at me, and shakes his head. "I can't sit. I've got too much shit spinning around in my head."

I let out a slow breath, watching him pace again. "This is about Nexus Global again, isn't it?"

Jayden stops in his tracks, running a hand through his hair. "Yeah. It's about Nexus Global. It's about Gus. It's about the fact that my so-called father, the man I barely know, has handed me control of one of the biggest companies in the world." I get off the couch and walk toward him, keeping my voice calm. "Jayden, whatever Gus was involved in isn't a part for Nexus Global, is it? Nexus Global is a legitimate business. It's not tainted by what he was doing behind the scenes?"

"It isn't," he says, but there's a tension in his voice that doesn't match the words. "But it's not just about the business. It's about everything else. It's about who Gus was, the life he lived. Now he is in jail because of the life he lived." 1 fold my arms, leaning against the wall, watching him struggle. "Then just sell it, you know how I feel about it anyway.

"But that's the thing," he says, throwing his hands up in frustration. "It's not just about me. It's about families. It's about so many others. What kind of person am I if I just walk away from this?"

"A good father," I say simply. "Because it's not about the money or the power. It's about being there for your family. And you've already proven you can do that. Why complicate things?"

"Because maybe I want to be able to do it, for myself? Maybe I need more to make me happy."

"You were the one who walked away from Brennan Industries and said it was the best decision of your life. You wanted to stay at home with the kids for a while. I don't get why you're second-guessing this all now."

Jayden looks at me, his eyes dark with frustration. "That's because you've never had this kind of pressure on you."

I blink, taken aback. "Really? You think I don't know pressure? Jayden, I raised Abby, ran a successful business and dealt with all the fallout from Judy's crap-"

telling me!" His words cut through the air like

avoiding. The fact that I left him at

alone," I say,

I get it. I do. But, Winona, this is what I

+25 BONUS

296 Choices

You left

to act fast.

You could have married me, told me what was happening, and we could've made that

words. "Well, hindsight is a wonderful thing. I was trying to protect

"By running away?"

away!" I snap, my frustration boiling over. "I went to

throws his hands up again, pacing the room like a caged animal. "It's always something. It's like we're never on

the same page," I argue, stepping closer.

that means. Well, not like me, I guess. Being rich is evil." I fold my arms across my chest. "Yeah, I do. I want them to know what hard work is. I want them to grow up with

what's wrong with how I grew

"I'm not saying it's wrong. Just want

getting everything

money. Why not use it? Why do they need to grow up pretending we're something we're

the frustration rise again. "Because money isn't everything. I don't want our kids to think

maybe. "You think that's how I grew up? Buying my

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