Page 108 of Together We Burn
Alex averted his gaze for a second.
“There was something I wanted to discuss with you before I went into the office today.”
I shifted uncomfortably at this whole interaction. Formal, business-like Alex was never a side I’d seen before.
“Okay,” I said. “What’s going on, Alex?”
He dug around in the inside pocket of his jacket, pulling out something small and metallic-looking and playing with it between his fingers.
“Do you remember when I asked if you wanted a normal life?”
My heart skipped a beat. This was why he was here, in a suit, because I went against his fucking brother, and now, instead of taking care of my messes like always, he’d turned me into the cops.
“You implied there was no way out for you.” He paused, placing the device on top of the table and sliding it across with one finger.
“What’s this?” I asked, afraid to touch the USB stick as if it would shock me when I picked it up.
“Everything that ties Will to your assignments. Every dossier, every target. Everything, Stevie.”
“But how?”
“He might be the boss, but my last name is still Jones. His employees are just as much mine as they were his.”
With shaking hands, I grabbed for the memory stick; like at any second, Alex would change his mind and take it back.
“Will’s not going to just let me walk away. He has friends in high places, Alex.” I waved the stick back and forth. “This won’t mean shit if I give it to someone on his payroll.”
Alex leaned forward and took my hand in his.
“Will’s no longer CEO of Jones Enterprises. We felt it was in the best interest of his mental health that he stepped down and sought the help he needed.”
“We?”
“Mac, Missy, and I.”
Missy, his wife. His soon-to-be baby momma.
“You staged a coup?”
He chuckled. “Our father’s business was never meant to be run by one brother. It was meant to continue with the three of us at the head table. Why do you think Will’s office is so big?”
“Over-compensating for his tiny dick?”
Alex laughed, his professional façade slipping.
“Fuck, I better get a smaller office, then.” He scrubbed a hand down his face. “Can’t have people thinking I’ve got a micro cock if I’m stuck sitting up there all day.”
I baulked.
“That’s why I’m here, Stevie,” he said. “I took care of everything following the warehouse, not Will. And I wanted to personally tell you that there will be no fallout over what happened that night.”
Looking sheepish, he then pulled out an envelope with my name in bold capital letters. Placing it in the middle of the table, he said, “And I wanted to give you this.”
I tore into it, pulled the headed paper out, and started reading.
Dear Stefany Matthews,
I want to take this opportunity to congratulate you on your retirement from Jones Enterprises. You are not only a valuable asset to the company, but a valued member of our family.
