The story threw a whole new light on Jake’s distaste for assistants who were trying to snare him. I grimaced in sympathy.  “What a horrible woman. He must have felt so betrayed.”

“Yeah. He felt so guilty about the failed deals that he worked even harder to make up for the lost revenue. He worked longer and longer hours, determined to prove to everyone that he could be trusted with the company.”

That would explain why Jake was so merciless when it came to the interests of the company. He felt like he had to atone for his previous lapse in judgment. My heart ached for him.

Troy’s lips flattened in anger. “After the episode with Sophia, he became more cynical and distrustful about the people around him. Family is the one exception. You seem to be softening him up, though.”

I shook my head at his misguided impression. “No, I don’t think so. Please, Troy. Promise me you won’t mention my comment to Jake. At best, it’ll make things awkward between us. And I like working for Jake, so…” I trailed off uncertainly.

Troy stared at me for what felt like a long time before he smiled slyly. “I promise I won’t tell.”

I had the uneasy feeling he was mentally rubbing his hands together in glee.

We talked about inconsequential things and I relaxed. I was glad I came out to lunch after all.

When we returned to the office, Troy insisted on walking me back to my desk. As if he were listening for our return, Jake appeared in his doorway, his face thunderous. I was surprised a visit with his girlfriend hadn’t cheered him up.

When Troy witnessed Jake’s dark mood, his good humor seemed to grow. His eyes glinted with amusement as he turned to me. “Thanks for your lovely companionship, darling. We must do this again soon.”

I watched Jake’s face twist in fury and a knot formed at the pit of my stomach.

Troy shocked me with a peck on my cheek before he spun on his heel jauntily and walked out of the room, humming an upbeat tune under his breath.

“Did you have a nice lunch?” There was a distinct growl in Jake’s voice. He looked like a volcano ready to erupt with the slightest provocation.

“Um… yes?” As soon as my squeaky voice came out, I chided myself. He had no right to tell me to not go out with Troy. I raised my chin and said defiantly, “Your brother is very charming. Speaking of charming, where’s your girlfriend?”

It came out sarcastic and scornful. I mentally slapped a hand over my mouth.

His eyes narrowed at my tone, but then inexplicably his lips curved in amusement. “She gave me exactly what I needed.” With that suggestive remark hanging between us, he walked back into his office.

I collapsed into my chair. The stress I had before my lunch with Troy had now returned tenfold.

Something squeezed in my chest and I brought my hand up to massage the achy spot. I made a note to buy some antacids on my break. It looked like heartburn was becoming a regular part of my life with this job.

Chapter 6

I stretched my neck and shoulders and returned to the two memos I had to draft for Jake.

My mind kept getting distracted by the angry scene that played out with Marcus this morning. He’d begged me to let him stay home again. When I tried to probe on why he didn’t want to go to school, he had clammed up and left the house, his eyes full of dread. I called the school counselor, but he said Marcus had not come to see him about any issues.

At moments like these, I felt so damn unfit to be his guardian.

Forcing my mind to the task at hand, I trudged through the first memo. My cell phone rang just as I opened the second file.

Shit! It could only have something to do with Marcus. It was a sad statement on my life, but I didn’t have a lot of friends who would call me.

Fumbling in my purse, I found my phone and answered.

“Is this Cora Branton?” The female voice sounded official and my stomach sank.

“Um…yes, this is she.”

“Ms. Branton, this is Laura Woodsen, the principal at Westmore High School. I’m calling in regards to your brother, Marcus Branton.”

“Is he okay? Is he hurt?” I gripped my phone hard.

“Ms. Branton, your brother is fine, but there’s been an incident at the school and I need you to come in immediately.”

“What kind of incident? Can I talk to Marcus?” I got to my feet in alarm, my heart thumping with fear.

“There’s been a physical altercation between your brother and another student and he’s with the nurse right now.”

“Oh God! I thought you said he was fine. Shouldn’t you take him to the hospital?” I braced my hand on the desk and took short breaths. The whole situation was unbelievable. My brother was a nerd. He had never hit anybody in his life. Did someone beat him up? Was he being bullied?

“Ms. Branton, please calm down. Your brother was not seriously injured, I assure you. But I do need to discuss the situation with you in person. When will you be able to get to the school?” The principal’s voice was stern.

I looked at my watch. “I’ll catch a cab. I should be there within half an hour.”

“I’ll see you then, Ms. Branton.”

“Okay.” But she had already hung up.

I started to walk to Jake’s office and realized my whole body was shaking. Taking a few breaths to steady myself, I knocked on his door. My eyes closed in defeat. First I pissed him off by having lunch with his brother yesterday and now I had to leave early. I was asking to be fired.

“Come in.”

I stuck my head through the door. “Um…Jake, I’m sorry, but I have to leave for the day for a family emergency.”

His eyes scanned my face and he strode to the door. “Jesus. You’re as white as a ghost.” He sandwiched my cold hands between his and rubbed. Tugging me gently into the room, he closed the door. “What’s wrong, Cora?”

“It’s Marcus…he got into a fight or something. I don’t know exactly and the principal won’t tell me details. She wants me to go to the school. I’m not sure if he’s okay. Oh God! She said he was, but…” My brain couldn’t seem to focus. I looked at him helplessly.

“Shh…why don’t you sit down for a minute?”

He started to lead me toward the sofa, but I dug in my heels and shook my head violently. “No, I have to go… I need to get a cab. I’m sorry about missing work. I’ll come in early tomorrow.”

His face twisted in anger and he barked, “Forget about work.” He took a deep breath to rein in his temper. “Give me a second. I’ll drive you.”

My eyes rounded in horror. “No! It’s fine. I can catch a cab.” I didn’t know why Jake would offer to take time out of his busy day to help me with my personal problems. I started to back away.

He brought me to a halt by gripping my upper arms and bringing his face close. His tone did not brook any dissent. “I will take you. Just stand here for a sec.”

Without waiting to see if I obeyed, he strode over to his desk and picked up the phone.

I shuffled toward the door, but one look from him stopped me in my tracks.

“Troy, Cora has a family emergency. I’m going to be out of the office for the rest of the day.” A pause. “That’s not funny, you ass. I’ll have Alana forward you the agenda for the meeting in an hour.”

I couldn’t hear what Troy said, but Jake nodded a few times. Then Troy must have pissed him off because his cheeks darkened and he spit out, “Fuck off,” before hanging up.

“Let’s go!” He put his hand at the small of my back and started to guide me out of the office.

“Jake, please. There’s no need.” I tried to dig in my heels, but he was relentless. “Really, I can grab a cab right outside!”

My protests fell on deaf ears as he hustled me toward the elevator.

“Alana, email Troy the agenda for the meeting today and hold all my calls. I’ll be out for the day.” Jake didn’t even slow down his stride as he rapidly laid out his instructions.

The look on Alana’s face was priceless. Eyes glued on Jake’s hand at my back, she looked both shocked and disgusted, like she sucked on a particularly sour lemon.