Page 23 of Bling

She trembled as they stepped into his office, where he led her to the couch that sat along one wall.

“I was just leaving to get some food. I missed breakfast. Everything was fine when I got here this morning at seven-thirty. So, it had to have happened in the last six hours.”

Garrett nodded. “What about your sleeping problems? Why do you look so exhausted?”

She shook her head, not wanting him to know about her second job. “Just stressed about stuff at home. Nothing you need to worry about.”

He dragged a hand through his hair. “OK. Let me get you some food. I want you to stretch out and close your eyes until the police arrive.”

She didn’t argue, just drew her legs up onto the couch and laid down. When he woke her twenty minutes later, a turkey sandwich and a bottle of water were waiting for her, and a police officer had stepped into the room. She sat on the sofa eating her lunch while the officer asked her questions.

“Do you have any idea who this could be, ma’am?”

Isabelle shook her head. “None. I go to work, take care of my nieces, that’s it. I don’t really go anywhere else.”

The officer nodded and wrote something down.

“How long have you worked here?”

She rattled off the numbers, leaving out that she’d been laid off for a weekend.

“Could any of your coworkers or former coworkers be upset with you? Maybe an ex or a family member?”

Isabelle shrugged. “Definitely not family. Two of my supervisors recently got fired. I guess maybe one of them could see it as my fault.”

The officer raised an eyebrow. “Why is that?”

“Isabelle helped me catch one of them in a lie and reported the other for sexual harassment,” Garrett said from his perch on the corner of his desk.

The officer whistled. “That seems like pretty powerful motive to me. I’ll need their names so we can follow up. You’ll need to fill out a police report form, and your car will be towed so our techs can take a closer look. We’ll get you a receipt and your insurance will probably spring for a rental.”

Isabelle closed her eyes. Her insurance was the cheapest liability she could find. There was no way they were going to pay for a rental. She would just have to rely on public transportation or her dad’s truck for now.

“I’ll loan you a car, or a driver,” Garrett said.

Isabelle shook her head as she took the police report form from the officer and filled it out. “I’ll be fine,” she mumbled.

He scowled as he waited for her to finish. When she handed it to the officer, he pushed himself off his desk. “Is that all for now?” Garrett asked.

“Yes, Mr. Oliver. I think we have what we need. We’ll let you know if we find anything in your security footage, though it looks like Miss Alvarado parked outside the camera’s field of vision.”

Garrett gave a terse nod and waited for the officer to leave. When she was gone, he turned to Isabelle and said, “My driver will take you home. I’ll see you in the morning unless you feel like you need a day off.”

Isabelle shook her head. “I’m fine. I promise. I’ll just get back to work.”

Garrett stalked to her and tilted her chin so he could look her in the eye. “You have dark circles under your eyes, and you fell asleep on my couch in seconds. Go. Home. Get a nap before your nieces get home from school. Everything else can wait until morning.”

Isabelle sighed. She hated that he was right, but she was running on fumes. Working two jobs this way was proving to be difficult. Thankfully, she was off all weekend and could catch up on sleep then.

Isabelle stood, still uncertain about leaving, as Garrett sat behind his desk.

“Isabelle, wait. Before you go…” He paused and waited for her to look at him. “We were supposed to go to a fundraiser together on Monday. Is that something you would still like to do?”

She swallowed, unsure of how to answer. Was she ready to spend time with him outside of the office? Perhaps she would see flirtatious Garrett. He’d been so gruff and professional since her weekend outburst. Had it really already been almost a week?

“Talk to me, Isabelle. I’m not going to pressure you, but I would like to know what’s going through your mind right now.”

Her voice trembled as she spoke. “I want to say yes. I’m still conflicted but you’re trying so hard to make things right, and today, when I was too terrified to move, you were there. Just having you there made me feel so much safer.”

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