"Can you french braid my—Ali, are you okay?" Ris asks as she walks into my room, wrapped in a towel.
I hear her muffled sounds and can see that she has entered my room, but I have disappeared into a world where I am scared, all alone, and feel as if I had a hand in what took place last night. I must have done or said something that made it happen, it's my fault. I triggered something in Brady, and he acted on it. To him, he thought it was okay. But there is no justification for his actions, he acted on his carnal and animal instincts, which should be relatively controllable when we call ourselves human beings.
"Ali?" Ris says, now sitting on my bed and shaking me.
I break free from the horrid bubble I am in, consumed by what-ifs and maybes regarding last night’s events.
"Yeah?" I finally reply.
"What is going on? I've been trying to talk to you for like the last five minutes, and you were just staring off and completely frozen. Are you okay?" she says, sounding very concerned.
"Um... ya, I'm fine, just tired is. That's all," I say and sit up on the bed.
"Did something happen last night between you and Brady?" she asks sternly.
I cannot look at her without crying. I want to tell her, but I don't know where to start. I get up from my bed and walk over to my closet.
"Luke is coming today to stay here for the weekend," I say.
I try to change the subject, but my voice doesn't sound very convincing at all. I can hear Ris get up from my bed and walk toward me. She places her hand on my shoulder.
"Ali, did Brady do something to you?" she demands.
Knowing her, she's not going to let up. She wants answers; thus, she has ignored the news about Luke completely. She tuned out everything I said because she knows that something is wrong. We've known each other for so long, she can see right through me. I drop my head and let out a huge sigh; I begin to cry. Ris grabs my hand and holds me tightly. I turn into her and sob like a blubbering idiot on her chest for a solid ten minutes.
"Do you want to talk about it?" she asks sincerely.
I shake my head and continue to cry.
"You can talk to me about it when you're ready?" she says softly.
I squeeze her tightly.
"Thank you. Please, keep this between us." I reply, sniffling.
"I got you, girl. Always," Ris whispers and hugs me tighter, resting her chin on top of my head.
She could tell that something majorly wrong took place last night. Maybe, she suspects what happened, or perhaps Brady has done something like this before. However, Ris is no dummy and can tell when something is not kosher. If Brady was known for such atrocity, she would have warned me. But, since I had mentioned it was a business dinner, maybe she thought I would have been safe. Either way, it's not her fault, and I am glad she is with me right now.
Chapter Fifty-Five
Ris and I pull into the parking lot at Facade. She did not want me to drive due to how upset I was this morning, plus we usually carpool to work anyway. I was silent the whole commute to work. Ris knows something happened between Brady and me last night, just not exactly what. She knows I am not ready to talk about it, so she refrained from saying anything in the car.
Ris holds my hand tight across the parking lot and into the building. She doesn’t let go of me until we reach my office. Thankfully, Brady is not occupying his right now. She hugs me and says she is only across the room if I need her. I thank her and enter my office.
I sit down at my desk and begin going through the paperwork I set in the middle of it yesterday, but I can't seem to get focused at all. I'm trembling at the thought of seeing Brady for the first time since last night. I startle when I hear a deep voice, Brady's voice. Suddenly, a shiver runs down my spine.
"Good Morning, Ali," Brady says, sounding quite chipper.
I look up from my desk, scared for my life, but trying desperately not to show it.
"Good Morning, Brady," I reply, calmer than I thought I would sound.
He enters my office and hands me two folders then smiles his devious smile.
"You left these in my car," he smirks.
It's the Christiansen folders I had brought with me to our dinner last night that we never went over. I had completely forgotten about them until now. I take the folders from my desk and hold them up to my chest to cover myself.
"You look nice today," he says with a smug look on his face.
Brady's eyes scroll up and down my body, undressing me with his piercing stare. I feel gross and uncomfortable watching the way he is looking at me.
"Thanks," I say, not amused at all by his disgusting gesture or words over my attire.
He winks at me then leaves my office. I take a deep breath in and exhale out. That wasn't as awful as I thought it would be. I think I can handle the rest of the day until Luke gets here to protect me. My assistants and interns enter my office with their notes and messages, showing eagerness for their morning tasks. I quickly collect myself from Brady's brief encounter to focus on my job before the morning team meeting. I delegate duties out for the Christiansen account and a
