Chapter 41
JEREMIAH
“Good morning,” I said as Stephanie walked up to my car, handing her a takeout coffee I stopped for before going to her apartment. It wasn’t homemade with special stuff I thought she might like, but it was a blend she mentioned loving once.
She looked pale and barely met my eyes as she gave me a tight smile. “Hey. Good weekend?”
“I preferred the first half to the second,” I said, hoping for a real smile or a blush or just about any of her usual reactions. But I got nothing. She buckled up and kept a huge black leather purse hugged to her chest.
Sliding into my seat, I turned to look at her before even starting the engine. Something was going on with her, and I needed to know what it was. If this was how she looked because she regretted Friday night, I would never forgive myself.
She tried covering it up with make-up, but now that I was so close to her I could see light blue bags under her eyes. It didn’t look like she’d gotten a wink of sleep. Her eyes were devoid of any of the amusement or joy that usually radiated out of them from within.
They were flat, her movements lethargic. I reached for her hand, but she yanked it away. Her eyes darted nervously to the sidewalk. What the fuck was going on?
“What’s wrong, Steph?” I asked cautiously, wondering if I would be able to arrange for her to be transferred to Neil if she didn’t want to work for me anymore. She deserved a great job at the company, not a boss she couldn’t stand seeing after what happened between us. Fuck. I thought we were good, I thought—
“It’s uh, you might want to wait until later when you have some time at the office,” she said, her voice as flat as her eyes.
“No. I’d like to know now. There’s enough time.” The red lights on my center console told me there was less than an hour before my meeting with my father. But something was off with Stephanie, and I needed to know what it was. “Are you okay?”
Tears glistened in her eyes, but they didn’t fall. She took in a shaky breath and opened her purse. “I found something in my mailbox last night.”
Drawing out a large white envelope, I noticed her hand shaking when she wordlessly handed it over. The word WHORE on the front jumped out at me immediately. I knew, I just knew it was from Jannie.
Stephanie watched as I pulled the envelope open and shook out the pictures inside. I stilled when I realized what I was looking at, then my blood started heating. The longer I looked, the more pissed off I got.
Red spots blurred my vision by the time I was done flipping through the photos. I dragged in a breath and held it, willing myself to calm down. I couldn’t believe Jannie had gone this far.
I felt like I would be able to rip her limb from limb with my bare hands. If she was a man, I might’ve tried.
But stalker or not, I wouldn’t go after a woman. Never. I waited for the rage to subside, choosing to focus on a logical way forward instead. “I’m going to go to the police with this. I’ll give them the photographs and report Jannie for stalking both of us.”
I could handle myself with her threats and outrageous behavior, but I was concerned for Stephanie. Reaching for her hand again, I was beyond relieved when she let me take it this time. “I’m so sorry about this, Steph. I feel guilty as hell about it. You shouldn’t have to deal with this insanity, and it kills me to know it’s my fault that you do.”
She gave me a small smile, some of the familiar humor lighting up her eyes. “Yeah, well it was worth it.”
“Worth it?” I asked. “Really?”
Her cheeks turned bright red, but she nodded and then looked out of the window quickly. “Really.”
Well, what do you know? “Anytime.”
She stifled a giggle and pulled her hand free from mine, her eyes firmly fixed on anything but mine. Steph’s fear and anxiety seemed to subside as we drove. Her posture and jaw relaxed, and her eyes softened.
I wanted to jump for joy. I would stand by her for whatever, but if I could have it my way, she would always be radiantly happy. She deserved to be.
The ride to the office was quieter than usual, but it was a comfortable silence. The envelope lay between us, both of us ignoring its existence. I told Steph about my Sunday afternoon with my friends, leaving out the parts where I told them about what happened with her and their opinions about my father.
She laughed at our jokes and was almost back to herself by the time we got to the office. Unfortunately, our storms for the morning weren’t behind us yet.
The air was tense on our floor when we got off the elevator. As soon as we got close to the office, I knew why. My father was yelling at someone, whether it was at an employee or someone on the phone I was yet to find out.
Steph and I exchanged a glance, and I flashed her a reassuring smile, hoping she could see the resoluteness in my eyes. I wouldn’t let him bash her or put her down anymore. Those days were over. For good.
She stayed by my side until we got to our offices, whispering in my ear before she headed to her desk. “Good luck, I’ll pray for safe passage for your soul.”
I chuckled softly despite her very apt description that I was about to pass into hell. Just as I was about to walk through my door, my father yelled out from inside. “This concerns both of you.”