But everything falls apart.
Jay looked out the window, studying the downtown area, and the buds on the leaves. The hand on her thigh startled her and so did the look on his face when he hit the brakes at the red light.
“I want you to come to me.”
To his bed, she thought he meant, and sharp words of denialwere already forming on her tongue that he could be so callous when she was so fragile. “You—”
“When you have nightmares,” he clarified. “Come to my room and wake me. I sleep with my door unlocked—” She winced at that. “Any problem you have, Jay, I can make it better.”
Fiddling with the clasp of her purse, she said, “But what if you can’t?”
“I make it worse.” He tweaked her nose. “And then you forget about it.”
He smiled at her and she found herself helplessly returning it, despite telling herself that she wouldn’t fall prey to his charm.
You arrogant, frustrating, beautiful man. How dare you make me fall in love you.
She was doomed. He had trapped her, swinging the cage door shut the moment her guard was down, just like she’d been afraid he would. And when her heart inevitably broke like the clasp of her sad, worn-out purse, she really would be ruined. There would be no walking away from this.
She craved him like she had craved nothing else.
“I’ll come to you,” she said, and the light changed, so all he said was, “Good.”
But he put his hand back on her leg, and as his thumb traced the border between silk and skin, she could feel her resolve crumbling faster and faster, like cheap concrete breaking under pressure.
She had thought work would be a distraction but there was a tension in the office that she could feel immediately. People seemed agitated, and there were more whispers than usual. That perpetual knot of anxiety in her chest expanded painfully,tightening. Nobody was looking at her, so possibly it wasn’t about her, and as she returned the usual litany of smiles and greetings in the kitchen, she didn’t detect anything different in the way people were speaking to her, either.
Granola bar in hand, Jay sat down in front of her computer and let out a controlled breath, aware of Annica beside her. Nothing new from that department, either.
She watched her emails scroll in as she took her phone out of her purse to sign in through the 2Factor system. Then she sat up, as one of the subject lines caught her eye.
The open VP position had been formally announced at last.
That’s what this was. She nearly cried in relief. It had nothing to do with her at all, people were just excited about the role that she had known about for days, thanks to Nicholas. He had been so casual in his delivery that she was surprised to find that it was such a big deal.
All day, she heard speculations about who would get it, versus who deserved it. Some people were blatantly careless about their opinions and how loudly they spoke them. Jay noticed that, despite the many names put forth as possible candidates, hers was one that never came up at all.
And why would it?that voice in her head whispered.You’re nobody. You’re your stepbrother’s little whore. If they talk about you at all, that’s what they’re going to talk about.
Another email popped up on her screen. Arthur and Nicholas would be interviewing any candidates who expressed an interest in the VP role within the coming weeks. If someone wanted to apply, they would need to talk to their manager before emailing either of them to move forward.
Do I need to email you to apply?she asked Arthur.
His response was immediate.
No, Jay. :-)
She glanced up at Nicholas, who was staring intently at his computer screen. Obviously busy, or he’d be off in a meeting somewhere or bothering her. Maybe he was bothering Annica. Her seatmate had been typing away at her keyboard all morning. At one point, she’d even stepped away from her desk to take a phone call, which was a surprise.
Jay decided to get herself a coffee. The caffeine wouldn’t help her anxiety but it was balmy outside and the walk across the palm-lined street might clear her head. Better than sitting idle at her desk and pining after Nicholas like a foolish schoolgirl.
The relentless sun almost made it too hot for sweater weather but the back of her blouse was revealing enough that Jay didn’t want to take it off, fearing catcalls. She had forgotten how warm it got down here. Temperatures really didn’t fluctuate that much, this close to the water. In high school, she and her friends had spent most Friday nights having bonfires on the beach, toasting marshmallows and drinking alcohol that someone’s older sister or brother had procured.
As the sun melted on the horizon, they’d loudly declare their summer plans and sometimes even their adult ones. Most of them wanted to leave when they graduated, at least for a little while, because even a gilded paradise like Hollybrook could still be a cage. They talked about the houses they planned to own, the future spouses they’d marry: all of it had boiled down to a restless desire for more, to create their own little empire, to be just like their parents.
Jay straightened her blouse, making sure it was still tucked into the waistband of her skirt. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirrored wall of a building—cute little secretary—and flinched.
Stop that.
