Page 65 of Together We Burn
“Then I’d ask what you’ve been smoking; ’cause with my rap sheet, I’d be a dumbass not to think Will wouldn’t hold that over my head.”
Alex pulled me into a hug, and to his surprise, I hugged him back. Breaking the embrace, he looked down, taking my braid and tugging on it lightly, a smile creeping onto his face. It was small, like he had something up his sleeve, but I didn’t push. There was no point. There was only one way out for people like me.
In a body bag.
Chapter twenty-five
Jake
Icouldn’tconcentrateasI reread the same email I’d been staring at since I got into the office, too preoccupied with thoughts of Stefany and her talk with Alex. I'd be worried if I didn’t go home and find at least one thing broken or a speck of blood somewhere. Stefany was the kind of girl to think with her fists, not her head.
Glancing at my watch, I scowled, noticing I’d only been at work for over an hour. Closing down my email app, I pulled up reports needing to be signed off, but couldn’t stop myself as I picked up my phone instead and opened the text thread I had with Stefany.
Jake:Is Alex behaving, or do I need to kick his ass again?
Stefany’s reply was almost instant, making me smile.
Stefany:Not arrived yet.
Stefany:Found your gun, though. Who would have guessed Mr. Weston, CEO, would be packing such a beautiful weapon?
Jake:Baby, you flatter me. Me and my “weapon” can’t wait until I get home.
Just as I clickedSend, a light knock sounded on my door, then Emilia waltzed into my office unannounced in a tight black pantsuit and low-cut blouse.
“Jacob darling,” she purred, walking into the room like it was hers, twirling when she reached the middle. “Such a cute little office you’ve got here, high in your tower.”
“What do you want?” I growled, glancing at my phone to check it was on silent, then put it on my desk face down. If Stefany decided to reply, I didn’t need this bitch seeing it.
“Now, now, Jacob.” She pouted, hitching her oversized bag up her arm and putting her hand on her popped-out hip. “Is that any way to treat your date?”
“Date?”
Why the fuck was she being so cryptic? Never speaking in straight sentences.
“Yes,” she said excitedly, standing in front of my desk, then rummaging around in her bag. Producing an envelope with a flourish, she held it out between her manicured fingers.
Glaring at her, I took it and ripped it open to pull out an embossed letter addressed to me.
Mr. Jacob Weston,
You are hereby cordially invited to attend the revealing of Matthews Enterprises, a new era in female entrepreneurship…
“What is this?” I asked, finishing reading the invitation that stated whatever bullshit event she was throwing was a masquerade theme and was being held on Halloween.
Fucking pretentious, if you asked me. Rich people dressed like they were in thePhantom of the Operato celebrate some over-entitled woman.
“It’s my coming-out party, a celebratory social gathering, if you will.” She smiled, clasping her hands together.
I dropped the card onto my desk and leaned back against my chair. Not only did this woman make my dick want to cower in fear, she irritated the life out of me just by opening her goddamn mouth.
“But that’s not the best bit,” she continued, walking around my desk and pushing back my seat, stepping between my legs to prop herself on the edge of the wooden tabletop. “I’ve invited William Jones as a guest, with Stefany as his plus one.” She paused, looking for a reaction, but I remained impassive, bored even.
Her eyes ticked with something similar to annoyance, like she was testing me by mentioning my girl. I wouldn’t crack for her, though. I would keep up the charade if it meant helping Stefany bring Emilia down.
She smiled and said, “It’s time I finally show that smug bastard just who he is playing with.”
She ran her heeled foot up my leg, and I suppressed a shiver. A deep-rooted hatred for the man I had to be when I was around her, seeped through my veins like a poison as I slipped back into the loyal soldier she thought me to be.
