Page 58 of Fake Dark Vows
“You still there?” Sam’s voice buzzes at me from my cell phone.
“Yeah.”
My head is pounding—the Tylenol isn’t even touching the sides of this baby. I hit the penthouse suite button on the elevator panel, and my stomach lurches.
“Ron Valentine wasn’t alone, Brandon.”
“I gotta go.” I end the call as the elevator glides to a smooth stop on the top level of the tower.
Julia has already vacated her office—one less thing to deal with right now.
I avert my eyes from her neat room with the computer monitor squarely facing the seat pushed under the desk, the abstract wall art, the potted palm in the corner. I’ll need to replace her, but that’s a problem for another day.
Removing my jacket and hanging it in the closet built into my office, I slump into my leather seat and pop another couple of Tylenol. Complete bed rest, the doctors said, symptoms can last up to two weeks. Try telling that to someone who doesn’t have a corporation to run.
My phone dances on the desktop. Another message. This time from an unknown number.
This is Rose. I’ll do it.
CHAPTER 20
Rose
“She fucking fired him, Jess.”
I’ve been jogging through Central Park, trying to clear my head, and it isn’t working. There are too many people. It’s been a while since I last jogged, and my head is already pounding, and I can feel a blister stinging the back of my right heel. So, I’ve done the next best thing, slowed to a steady stroll and called Jess.
“She fired your dad? Ruby Weiss? Are you sure it wasn’t down to him, Rose?”
I suck in a deep breath and try to fill my lungs, but the more I think about it, the angrier I’m getting. My dad’s face when he came home in the middle of the day broke my heart. He looked so … defeated. Broken.
“She offered him a payout and put him on paid leave indefinitely, told him to pack up his stuff and leave the building. Immediately.” Tears start streaming down my face, and I sniff loudly, choking on a sob.
“Okay, you’re either out jogging, or there’s something you’re not telling me.”
“There is … something…”
“Right, Rose, where are you?”
“C-Central Park.”
“Find a bench, sit down, blow your nose, and spill the beans.”
Jess’s voice is so calm, so level-headed, that I follow her instructions like a kid listening to a teacher.
“Better?”
“A bit.”
I’ve been shaking ever since Brandon left my house earlier, and Dad told me he’d been fired. I got Brandon’s number from Julia and messaged him while my brain cells were misty-red and scrambled, and now stark realization is creeping in…
“I’ve done something stupid,” I whisper into the phone.
“You want to talk about it?”
I nod even though Jess can’t see me. “I’ve agreed to marry Brandon Weiss.”
“Whoa.”