Page 50 of Ruthless Financier
And I had no defenses to stop her from stomping on my heart when our calendar ran out.
Chapter 15
Indigo
This couldn’t be the end of us. I showered, changed, put a mask on my face, washed it off, and drank lemon water.
The moon rose higher in the sky outside the bedroom window and Jacob was still gone.
End our marriage? The bedsheets still smelled like him. I wanted to wrap myself in them and bring him back home.
I missed being with Jacob and my heart was empty without him at my side.
Love was dangerous, but I thought it was good to be with him. Our contract meant my heart was safe. To distract myself, I tried to read the business reports on the shelter and some PR stuff Jasmine had set up for me.
My mind couldn’t focus on the numbers long enough for anything to make sense. Then my phone rang. I glanced at it and flipped it open like it was a lifeline to real life. It was my cousin.
“Mary, what’s going on?” I asked.
She was practically singing as she said quickly, “Arthur went to prison!”
Her ex, the father of her son. The man that I’d happily run over with my car and not feel sorry for. No man should ever hit a woman, especially a big jerk like that. My heart rate increased as I asked, “For how long?”
“I don’t know. But for now, at least, I can push my baby in a carriage and not fear he might show up and hurt me.”
My heart dropped. My own mother had been terrified of life. She’d been paralyzed at malls, in grocery stores—and her demons had long been out of her life by then. Mary had a hard road ahead of her. I needed to be strong to help her and everyone in my family.
I glanced out the window at the dark beach but saw no signs of Jacob as I said, “He wouldn’t.”
“Well, I can breathe now.”
I turned away from the window. Staring into the darkness wouldn’t accomplish anything. Jacob needed a walk to sort things out, and my soul shouldn’t be so twisted that it seriously made my stomach ache, even if he’d hinted that he didn’t want me anymore. The thought made me sick, but I sniffed the air like I was paying attention and held up my head. “Good. So why are you calling so late?”
“Honestly, I thought I’d get your voicemail. Weren’t you going to some party tonight?”
“We were. We left early.” Fair. I’d still have been at that party if not for the shock. I sat at a small desk in the bedroom where I’d left my laptop and asked, “What else is going on?”
“I want the job at the shelter you mentioned before. Is that okay?”
Helping others had been what brought my mom out of her shell. That was why I threw myself into solving all problems—so I didn’t lose my own mind. I nodded and opened my email to write to my manager on Mary’s behalf. I said, “That’s good. Thank you for helping.”
“I want to give back. Like your mother. She was a smart woman. She married your father, the man my own brother looks up to.”
At one point in my childhood, all the Steel cousins had lived under our roof. My dad always made room for family in his house and at his table.
My phone beeped. I was getting another call. I glanced at it and saw it was Jasmine. There must be something about our business that needed my attention. This was my usual life and it was nice to be back to it. I took care of everything and made money for the rest of the Steels.
Georgie was the one to go to for emotional comfort anyhow, so I said, “Well, I should go.”
I quickly finished the email to the shelter so Mary could start whenever she wanted as I answered the next call. “Jasmine, what’s going on?”
“Is it true you own the Tulsa Sooners? I just got a call from management.”
My mind raced. Huh? Jacob had said the news about Sun and Moon Trust would come out the night of the party. I sat back in my chair and said, “No. Jacob does. We do PR for them. He got them because he took over the trust that owns them.”
“That makes more sense,” Jasmine snapped. “I’ll straighten out the emails, but Ajax will be beside himself to start handling sports teams now. Thanks.”
I couldn’t guarantee we’d actually have the PR job. Jacob would do what he wanted with the team, so nothing was forever. Ajax would get over it if the contracts didn’t work out.
