Wrong for You (Before You #3)(47)

“How’s the fundraising business going?”

“Slow, but I think I’ve sourced some businesses to donate regularly, but I’d still like to find a way for the Foundation to purchase the building. I think it’s the key to its long-term survival.” Alec had talked to Jax a few times over the last two weeks about finding a way to raise the money, but neither of them had any concrete plans.

“I think I have a solution that will work.”

Alec pushed back his chair, resting his feet on top of the desk. “Do you want to share?”

Jax chuckled. “We have a party. We charge for access, kind of like a political fundraiser. Maybe five hundred or a thousand dollars a plate, but we’ll announce that all the proceeds will go to the Foundation.”

“Just a party. Why would people pay money for a party?”

“We’ll promise to play two or three of our yet to be released songs. Hold on for a second.” Jax muffled his phone, but Alec could still hear him talking to someone. “Sorry about that. Anyway, we’ll play some songs and auction off some band memorabilia. By the end of the night, I think the Foundation will have more than enough money to buy that building.”

“That’s f*cking brilliant. Why didn’t I think of that?”

“Because you don’t have a mom that dedicated half of your childhood to charitable causes she hardly cared about so she could avoid the fact that her marriage sucked,” Jax said bitterly. “I know more than I’d like to know about parties for charity.”

“That’s not so bad. My mom drank to avoid reality. That’s a lot worse.”

Neither Jax nor Alec said anything for prolonged moments.

“Yeah, sorry about that,” Jax said, breaking the silence.

“It doesn’t matter. It’s in the past now. I’ll see you this weekend.”

“Wait, I almost forgot. You probably need that woman from the Foundation to come give a short speech about the Foundation, why it’s important and what kind of work they do.”

“Violet?” Alec said, his stomach sinking. Violet absolutely needed to be there, but in order to get her cooperation, he’d have to come clean about his real identity sooner rather than later, which probably wouldn’t go very well. He and Violet were getting really close lately, or at least he believed so. But the fact that Violet didn’t know anything about his connection to Chasing Ruin served as a reminder that maybe they’d been getting a little too close given the reality of their situation.

And that was exactly why he never did the too close thing. He had too much shit to hide. Too close was for people who lived normal, happy lives with parents that cared about them…like Violet. Too close was for people who planned to make a life-long commitment…something he didn’t think was possible for him, or at least not before he’d met Violet, and that meant that he probably needed to let her go. She deserved someone better than him…someone who’d be honest with her and share his life with her unconditionally. Understanding that, however, wouldn’t make walking away from her any easier.

“Yeah, Violet.”

Alec sighed. “I’ll have to work on that.”

“You don’t think she’ll help?”

Of course Violet would help. She’d do anything for the Foundation and those kids. She’d never put herself before those kids, even if meant putting herself in an uncomfortable position. “No. She will, but it’s complicated.”

“Should I ask?” Jax said quietly.

“No,” he said, standing up from the desk chair, raking his hands repeatedly through his disheveled hair.

And Jax, understanding him implicitly, left it at that.





Chapter Nineteen




“So, I’ve made a decision,” Violet said after she took a sip of wine.

Violet looked at Alec over the rim of her wine glass. Belatedly, she realized she still didn’t have the desire to drink alcohol after her night of overindulgence last week. She set it back down on the table, twisting the stem nervously.

They were at a small Italian restaurant near the University. Violet had met her mom for coffee after work to tell her the news and Alec asked if she wanted to meet him for dinner instead of eating at home. So here they were at a crowded restaurant in a back booth.

“A decision about what?” Alec asked, pouring his beer from the bottle into a mug.

“I’m going to apply to law school this fall.”

“What about the Foundation?”

“Now that it’s adequately funded, I feel okay walking away for a couple of years to get my law degree. I’ll still help in the summers and during any breaks.”

Alec nodded, but she couldn’t see his eyes.

“Why are you wearing your sunglasses and that hat inside?”

Grinning, he shrugged. “I like them. Don’t you?”

“They’re okay, but they make you look like you’re hiding from someone.”

For the briefest moment, his smile faltered and then he slipped off his sunglasses, but not before he lowered the brim of his hat. “Better?”

“Yes.”

He lifted his mug of beer and tipped it toward her. “Well, I guess congratulations are in order.”

She laughed and lifted her wine glass to tap his mug. “I think that’s a little premature. I still have to take the LSAT and get in somewhere.”