Ben glared at him, refusing to give any credence to his suggestion.
Tim was smiling. “She ran out on you. You couldn’t keep a good hold on her. She runs like the coward she is. That’s all she’ll ever be. Hell, maybe the two of you were meant to be together. You’re nothing but a coward that scrapes up my sloppy seconds.”
Meredith slapped her hand against the table. “If this is nothing more than a pissing contest, we’re done here. I suggest you tell your client his threats and insults will not be allowed to continue. I’m prepared to countersue.”
The older attorney held up his hand. “You’re right, this meeting is done. This suit will go forward and because of the unwillingness of your client to handle this is a civilized manner, you can expect the amount to double. Your client will be on the hook for attorney’s fees. The longer this drags out, the more he will pay.”
Meredith leaned forward, a huge smile on her face. “Ditto.”
She stood up, looked down at Ben who quickly followed her lead and the two of them walked out of the conference room without saying a word. He was dying to look back to see the expression on the faces of the men who thought they could intimidate him and his bulldog attorney. They had no idea who they were messing with. They thought being from LA made them tougher, smarter and more ruthless. Meredith was ten times the lawyer they would ever be—all three combined.
Ben couldn’t resist and turned to look back, smiling when he saw the three men in a heated conversation. Ben one, Tim zero.
Chapter Fifteen
Katherine
KATHERINE FELT LIKE a stalker and in many ways, she supposed she was. She kept telling herself it was what she needed to do. It was her civic duty to try and warn the woman away from her husband and it had nothing to do with jealousy. It was about keeping a woman safe and possibly preventing a serious injury or death. Tim had escalated over the years, his beating becoming far worse every time. She knew it was only a matter of time before he killed her, which was why she had fled.
Alexandra probably had no idea what her life would be like if she stuck with Tim. The bruises she saw in that picture were evidence the violence had already begun. Katherine watched the grocery store from the parking lot, trying to figure out exactly what she would say when she came face to face with the woman.
After two days, she should have had something, but she was still coming up with nothing convincing. The best thing was the truth. She’d start with the truth. If Alexandra demanded she leave and never contact her again, Katherine would follow her wishes. Warning her was something she had to do in order to fully move on. She couldn’t live with the guilt if something were to happen to Alexandra that she could have prevented with a few words of advice.
“Here goes nothing,” she muttered, strolling across the parking lot and walking through the automatic sliding doors.
Her disguise wasn’t going to fool anyone who had known her before she had run off. The jeans and plaid button-up shirt she was wearing, paired with the sneakers and ball cap were a stark contrast to the way she used to dress when she was married to Tim and going out for groceries. Back then, it had been all high heels, designer dresses and perfectly applied makeup with a stylish hairdo. Those days were gone.
It didn’t take Katherine long to spot the young blonde who had delicate features and healthy tanned skin. It looked like she spent a lot of time at the beach. Katherine smiled, thinking about how young and carefree she had been at that age as well. The young woman had probably been in the prime of her life when she met the rich, older man who could spoil her rotten and treat her like royalty. It was easy to see how any young, naïve woman could be so easily fooled.
She got into the checkout line, grabbing a pack of gum and plopping it on the conveyor belt, wanting a reason to approach her.
“Is this everything?” Alexandra asked.
Katherine nodding, reading the nametag to verify it was who she thought. “It is. Do you have a second to talk? I know you don’t know me, but I’d like to talk to you.”
Alexandra looked extremely nervous. “I have a break in fifteen minutes. I can meet you outside at the bench.”
Katherine was surprised the woman agreed to meet her without asking what it was about. She was going to warn her about being so trusting. The girl was on a collision course with disaster if she didn’t start practicing some prudence.
“I’ll be waiting,” Katherine replied, paying for the gum with cash before walking out towards the bench.
She hoped it wasn’t a trap. Maybe she wasn’t giving Alexandra enough credit. Maybe she thought Katherine was a crazy loon and was inside at that very moment calling the police on her. Wouldn’t that be ironic she thought to herself.
It was ten minutes later when Alexandra came outside. She paused, looked at Katherine sitting on the bench and cautiously approached.
“Hi,” Katherine said, hoping to put the other woman at ease.
“Hi.”
“My name is Katherine Marshall. I’m Tim’s wife,” she stated firmly, not bothering to use the term ex or estranged. Not yet.
“I know.”
Katherine’s eyes widened. “You know?”
Alexandra shrugged. “I’ve seen your pictures around the mansion. How did you know who I was and how to find me?”
Katherine was a little embarrassed to admit to her stalking. “Facebook.”