Page 69 of Power
“What’s happened?” I ask carefully.
Tears fill her eyes, forcing me forward to take her in my arms. She is shaking.
“I had a confrontation with Trish in the ladies' room,” she snuffles.
I stroke her back, inhaling the scent of her subtle perfume. “Do you want to tell me what went down?”
She shakes her head, her hands over her face now. “She was mean, and I’m not as thick-skinned as I try to be.”
“You don’t need to be. I know you’re sensitive, Bailey. That’s okay.”
She sobs and then sighs. “I’m sorry. I'm crying all over your expensive suit.” She draws back and smooths down my shirt. I adore her. I adore that she came to me to cry and not Archer. Not that I’m jealous of their relationship, but it shows that she feels she can show her weaknesses to me without worrying about how I will feel about it. Archer’s praise is wonderful, and she needs it. It gets her off and makes her feel good, but the darker side is that she will feel like she is disappointing him if she doesn’t live up to his praise. I totally get it. He can make you feel like a, err,King. But his disappointment can hit you in the guts and rip them out.
“Do you want me to fire her? Did she physically attack you?”
She shakes her head. “No, she used her words. But that’s worse sometimes.”
She peeks up at me, her eyes filling with a darkness that sends a bolt of lust straight to my cock. She wants to hurt Trish. And she just figured out how.
“What did she say?”
“She called me…that name. Twice. Out in public where anyone could hear. Isn’t that against the rules of the…you know?”
“Did she say anything about the…you know?”
She shakes her head, her face falling.
I want to give her what she wants, but without just cause, it’s more of a gray area. Perhaps if she had gone to Finn or even Archer, she would’ve been dancing on Trish’s grave right now. I would kill for her without question, butIneed more of a reason to remove her from the Society. I’m not the King nor the Enforcer. It’s not my job. And while we work outside of the rules of normal society, we have our own rules. My job is to watch for threats and to pass them on to Finn. So he will hear about this, and he can do what he does.
“Please don’t tell Archer and Finn I was upset,” she murmurs.
“I should. They’ll want to know you aren’t happy and that Trish needs watching.”
“No, please. Just leave it, okay? I don’t want to cause more trouble with her.”
I nod slowly, giving in to her demand, even though I will definitely mention it to Finn.
“I’d better get back to work.”
I grasp her shoulders lightly and kiss her forehead. “You can always come to me with anything.”
Her eyes search mine, and I wonder if she will come clean about the gun that was found under her bed.
She nods but doesn’t say anything.
I don’t push her. It’s a concern, but the last thing we need is her bolting because we accused her of something that we don’t even know for sure.
“There is something,” she says carefully. “I didn’t see my pills with my things this morning. Whoever got my stuff left them behind.”
I smile, wishing she’d come clean, but it doesn’t matter. She will trust us soon, I’m sure. “Bathroom cabinet.”
“Oh,” she murmurs. “Thanks.”
With a shaky smile, she pulls away, straightens her shoulders, and leaves my office. I wait for her to close the door behind her before I return to my desk and try to focus on the day ahead and not tonight, where Bailey will finally see what we pulled her into.
ChapterForty
Bailey
