Page 44 of Love, Hate, Love

The long pause said it all. This time it wasn’t due to a lack of what to say. This was straight-up fear about what he’d already said.

“Dammit, Monroe! You told Kade, didn’t you?”

“He was going to find out anyway.”

I leaned back, squeezing my eyes shut, refusing to sit in Kade’s office and bawl. Monroe was right. Kade would’ve found out anyway. Everyone would once it went up on the auction block.

“Leah?”

I took a deep breath, forcing myself to hold it together for a few more minutes. “It’s okay. Just keep me posted.” I hung up, trying to come to terms with the fact that I was losing my home.

It was only a place. It wasn’t something I couldn’t build back from. I’d built up a life before, and I’d build it again. I could do this, even if it didn’t feel like it was possible right now.

* * *

Kade

The second Leahwalked into the office, I pulled out my phone.

John answered on the second ring. “Yeah,” he said.

“There’s a new development with the princess situation,” I said. “Her loan got called in early and I need to know who’s behind it.”

“Oh no, that’s horrible.” He groaned like he was some little old grandmother hearing bad news. “How’s she holding up?”

This new version of John was really throwing me off my game. “Just find out the situation, okay?”

I was having a hard enough time holding the reins on my own emotions. There was no bandwidth left to help the reformed knee breaker with the sudden conscience from melting down.

“Trust me, I’ll find out who screwed her,” he said, sounding a little more normal.

“Good. Let me know as soon as you do.”

“You’re going to fix this, though, right?” he asked.

“Huh?”

“You’re sitting on some funds. You can’t let her get screwed like this when you can fix it for her.”

There were so many issues with this situation. First, how did he know what was in my bank account, and second and more importantly, why the hell did he care so much?

“John, I’m starting to become concerned with your level of empathy toward this particular person and case. I expect a certain amount of detachment from you.”

“I know. I’m working on it with my life coach. There’s just something about her that makes me want to take care of her.”

“You haven’t ever met her, have you?” I was beginning to worry about what he’d do, or had done. They’d both been in New York, after all.

“No, but I feel as if I know her. Like she could’ve been my daughter. Strange, right?”

“Very. You need to work on that.”

At least he’d saiddaughter. That was a plus. I hung up on him before he started getting more emotional. It was like my entire life was flipping upside down, and all the people I knew with it.

I called my accountant next. “I might need you to free up some assets. I’ll send you information on a loan I might need to buy out.”

“I swear you juggle more shit than the clowns at the circus. What are we doing now? How messy is this one? I just finished moving the other funds around to fix your other issue, which wasn’t cheap.”

Being “friends” with a judge never was.

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