“They will if you meet them and tell them what you told me,” he said. “You might be able to convince them to give you a chance.”
“Why bother? They’ve probably made up their minds the way you did.”
“Heather, if the board believes you’re guilty they won’t hesitate to hand you over to the police,” he told her. “On my way over here I managed to get the cops on this case to back off from you. But that won’t last long.”
Her blood froze. “What? Why didn’t you tell me I had to worry about the police?”
“I assumed you knew that.” He frowned. “Besides, you didn’t seem interested in hearing me out.”
“You weren’t interested in hearing me out either,” she said. “Not when it mattered. Not when I needed you the most.”
The tears threatened to fall. She whirled around, keeping her back to him. If she was going to cry, she wasn’t going to let him actually see her tears.
If the police got involved, she might lose her son. No court could accept her keeping custody of Finn is she ended up in jail for this. Her ex-husband would be able to take Finn away from her, and no matter how much she tried to shield her son from his neglect the truth was, Gary was an absent father. Even when they had been married he had failed to step up. She’d never actually admitted that to herself and it frightened her. If Finn ended up with Gary, his childhood would be shattered.
Simon’s strong hands gripped her shoulders and she felt his warm breath caress the sensitive skin on the back of her neck. More than anything, she wanted to lean against his body and take comfort in his arms. But if she did that, she would lose everything. She had been so blinded by her feelings for him that she had failed to protect herself. And now her son was in danger because of it.
“I can’t make you see how sorry I am,” he said. “Just don’t make any sudden decisions in anger. At least come back to Dover and talk to the board.”
She bit her lip, weighing her options in her mind. Not only did she stand to lose her job and her income, but she could also end up going to jail for something she didn’t do. Heather hated to admit it, but Simon was right. Her best chance was to talk to the board and convince them of her innocence. That might keep her out of jail.
But the thought of fighting to stay as Simon’s assistant made her heart heavy. She needed money to protect Finn, but how was she going to bear seeing Simon every day after this?
Heather sucked in a breath and stepped out of his grasp. “I’ll talk to the board tomorrow. Don’t bother trying to help me, Simon, because I don’t need you anymore. I plan on clearing my name without your help.”
Chapter 2
Rounding up all of Dover’s board members was never easy, even when they wanted to meet. But as Simon watched them gather in the large conference room the next morning, he got the distinct feeling that none of them wanted to be there. Heather looked like she wanted to be there the least of all. All the color had drained from her face and she was absently tapping her foot.
He sensed her anxiety, but he knew she’d only rebuff him if he tried to comfort her. His impulsive response after he found out his home system had been hacked had destroyed everything. What he wouldn’t do to go back and undo the things he had said to her in the heat of his anger.
The board members exchange annoyed looks, clearly agitated at having to deal with an issue they thought the police had already handled. It was obvious they had expected the police to have hauled Heather off to jail, but Simon had managed to keep the cops away. For now.
Simon cleared his throat loudly, which the board members all took as a signal to take their seats.
Heather glanced over at him, apprehension flashing in her hazel eyes.
The longer he let the silence go on, the more anxious she was likely to be. It was best to get this over with. She might not want his help but, if he could help her without her knowing, he’d do it. That was the least he could do after his mistakes.
“Shall we get this meeting started? I didn’t have time to print up an agenda, but there are some things we need to go over. Ms. Heather Hall has a right to heard.” He glanced around the room sternly, waiting for someone to speak up and say no. He almost dared them.