Page 92 of Bad for Business

“Where are you going?” Dad asks, his tone bored and nonchalant, as if he hadn’t just said some of the cruelest things imaginable to me.

“I quit,” I answer, enunciating the two words.

Dad sits up straighter, the hand holding his phone dropping to his lap as he looks at me in shock. “What?”

I shrug. “I quit. I don’t want your stupid promotion and I don’t want to work at Vaughn PR at all. I’m done.”

Dad shakes his head. “You can’t just quit. What are you going to do?”

I laugh. “What I do next isn’t really any of your concern.”

“You can’t quit.”

All I can do is shake my head. My entire life, I’ve wanted to earn the title of having my name up on the wall with his. I feltlike I had to earn being a Vaughn, but that’s the furthest thing from the truth. I didn’t need to earn anything from him. “I’m quitting, Dad. I’m done. Good luck without me.”

I stare at him for a few moments before leaving. I don’t know the next time I’ll see him. I hope it isn’t for a long time. Now that I’ve freed myself of needing his respect, there’s nothing I really want from him at all.

“Camille, we can?—”

I don’t listen to him finish whatever he has to say. Whatever it is isn’t important. It won’t change my mind. I grab my bags and walk away.

I can’t help but smile as I hurry through the small airport.

I can’t believe I just did that.

I’ve never felt so free.

I’ve spent my entire life trying to make him proud, but now I realize the only person I need to make proud is myself.

And today, I did that.

I feel so proud of myself. It’s the best feeling in the world, and all I want to do is call Ryker and tell him everything that’s happened, but I hold off.

I want to tell him in person.

I want to see his face when I tell him that I quit. That I finally decided that I don’t need validation from my father at all.

I’d like to think that, no matter what, I would’ve finally walked away from the toxic relationship I had with my father, but I know the timing of this is because of Ryker.

He’s the first person after Mom passed who really believed in me. Who told me I deserved better. He defended me when he didn’t have to. He gave me the courage to stop accepting how my father treated me.

He’s been there for me. He’s shown up for me the way no one has before, and now all I want is to get back to him.

I’ll figure out what I’m going to do about a job later. I know I’m one of the best publicists around. Every single one of Vaughn PR’s competitors will jump at the opportunity to hire me. I have options and things I’ll figure out. But I can make those plans later. Right now, my only plan is to get to the man who has captured my heart.

The feelings I have for him are strong and scary. I’m someone who hates unknowns, and there are a lot of those when it comes to him.

But I have a lot ofknownswhen it comes to Ryker too. I know I’ve never felt this way about anyone. I know he cares for me. I know he’s been there for me. And I know he’ll stay.

Right now, that’s all I need to know.

FORTY-SEVEN

RYKER

Jude rattleson about something from my side, but I barely hear a word he’s saying. I’m too busy missing Camille. It’s only been a couple of hours since she left with her dad, and I already miss her more than I could’ve imagined.

Pembroke isn’t the same without her here. It’s a thought I never expected to have. At the start of the summer, I hated the thought of her coming to the Hamptons with me. Every time she insisted on tagging along to the club, I hated it. Now I barely want to be here without her.