I clamped down on it though, cutting that thought off before it could fully form. Before I could even consider bringing Jade along with me as my plus one, I needed to sort things out with her. I wasn't sure what I could possibly say to help break through the barrier she'd built up around herself though. And I had no way of fixing whatever problem she was having if she wouldn't tell me about it.
There was no way I could wait the two weeks for her to tell me the source of her troubles. By then, it would be far too late. By then, I wouldn't be able to fix whatever it was before she was gone. No, I needed to get her to open up to me before then, somehow.
The sooner I figured everything out, the better it would be for everyone. And as I stared at my computer, I found my hands moving on their own. I brought up Jade's company profile and studied it, trying to learn more about the woman. I barely ever glanced at the profile anymore, not really reading through it since she was a new hire.
But as I looked it over, I realized just how damn lucky I'd been to find Jade. She had all the right education and training to do most anything in the company, had been a loyal employee here for many, many years. She had more than enough experience to be running her own company, but something told me that wasn't the reason she wanted to leave. I'd have understood if it had been, or if she was worried she wouldn't be able to move up the ladder here anymore.
That wasn't it though. I had no idea how I could be so sure about it, but I was.
I looked at her profile one more time, then shut the computer down and stood up.
Jade and I needed to solve this problem between the two of us, and I didn't want to wait until morning. I wanted to get it all over with, preferably without the entire office watching on. There was more than enough gossip going on around the place without the two of us adding to it.
7
Jade
Sitting on the couch with a steaming mug of tea in my hands, I tried to figure out how I'd fucked up my life so badly. I'd taken the job with Frost Industries basically right out of college, planning to work there for a while, learn the ropes, then move on to somewhere else. But I'd steadily worked my way up the corporate ladder until I was directly under the CEO, and working somewhere else just didn't seem to be very appealing.
And then, one stupid night, and I'd basically thrown everything I'd worked for out the window. Especially since it seemed like I'd never be able to get another comparable job again, judging by how angry Christian had been. He had more than enough influence in the industry to put out a no-hire order on me, and I doubted any companies anywhere around here would go against that.
They were competitors, but that didn't mean the CEOs didn't play golf together every other weekend. No doubt more than a few of them owed Christian a favor. And more still would probably jump at the chance to have him owe them a favor.
Which meant I'd most likely have to move somewhere else if I ever wanted any similar job ever again.
Glancing around my small apartment, I let out a sigh. This place had been my home for so long. The thought of leaving it behind didn't fill me with joy. It was almost unreal how one silly night could turn my world completely upside down. It was starting to look like that one night was going to cost me everything I'd built up over the years. My job, my friends, my home, and quite possibly my future.
But I wasn't going to give up. I'd busted my ass to get where I was. If I could do it once, I could do it again. Even if it meant literally starting from scratch, at the bottom of the totem pole, I would do it. For my baby, I would do anything.
I set the tea down and placed my hands on my stomach. It was far too early for me to feel anything there. Even when I looked in the mirror I didn't see the slightest bit of a difference. And yet, holding my stomach made me feel closer to the unborn child. I was starting to learn that if I focused on the child, it helped me calm down and clear my mind about things.
It gave me something to focus on, something to work for.
When someone knocked on my door, I nearly jumped out of my skin. It was a damn good thing I'd set my tea down already or I'd have probably spilled the steaming liquid all over my lap. I caught my breath, then stood and made my way toward the door. Already the person there was knocking again, and I fought back a huff of annoyance.
That was until I looked through the peephole and saw Christian Frost standing there. Then, the annoyance vanished, and anger welled up inside me again. It'd taken all of my self-control that morning not to yell back at him. I'd hated standing there, letting him take his anger out on me, but I hadn't had much of a choice.
It had been a major shock for him, to know he'd be losing me right in the middle of his project. And I didn't blame him for being upset, but I hadn't enjoyed letting him vent his anger on me like that. Still, I'd hoped he would calm down and rethink the threats he'd made, that he would understand I wasn't leaving just to hurt him. But I figured it was going to take a day
