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She cleared her throat. “Did I do something wrong here? I thought spending some time here was essential for my career development?”
“No, you didn’t do anything wrong. I just think that maybe this was a mistake, and your progression may be better enhanced in the New York office.”
Panic rushed through her, she couldn’t stand the thought of being near Patrick, yet she didn’t want to upset Mr. James and screw up her career path.
“Elizabeth, think about it this morning, and we’ll talk more about it this afternoon,” Mr. James interjected, as if realizing her quandary.
The men rose from their chairs and headed down the hall to the conference room.
Elizabeth felt like she was operating in a whirlwind. She couldn’t concentrate on her work. All she could think about was how much she didn’t want to go back to New York, how she hated Patrick, and how she wasn’t ready to leave Chicago, Joe and the kids in particular. Her mind reeled, searching for any legitimate reasons to provide Mr. James with in regard to why she should stay in Chicago.
Why was he so adamant that she return to New York so quickly? It didn’t make any sense to her.
Before she realized it, the clock had struck noon, and she looked up to find Joe standing in front of her desk, smiling down at her. She couldn’t have been more thrilled to see him, and was flattered he took time out of his busy day to visit her at work. The bright colored, cheery looking bouquet of flowers fisted in his hand added to her delight. He handed them to her.
“Thank you, they’re beautiful.”
She caught herself studying him from head to toe. He looked handsome standing there in his long, black overcoat, navy suit, crisply pressed, white shirt and sharp, red striped tie; he really did clean up nicely. His suit was the same color as the one Patrick wore today. Fear cracked through her like a whip. What was she going to do if Patrick or Mr. James came into her office while Joe was present?
Joe cleared his throat, capturing her attention again. With one quick flash of his chocolate eyes and soft smile, her problems seemed to disappear.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“I actually had to go to the office today to help Sam pitch a new client, so since I was downtown, I thought I’d stop and see you, and take you to lunch.”
Her heart danced, and she accepted his invitation. Getting out of the office for a while might do her some good.
She rose from her chair and walked over to the closet to retrieve her coat. Always a gentleman, Joe held it for her as she slid into it. He kissed her on the cheek and took her hand in his as he led her out of her office.
They were just about to the end of the hallway leading to the reception area when Mr. James and his nephew rounded the corner, heading in their direction. The sight of Patrick made her stomach toss, and shot her nervous system all askew.
Surely Mr. James would be looking for some sort of introduction from her. And how was she going to introduce Patrick to Joe?
Horrible visions of Joe’s reaction to Patrick passed through her mind. She looked for an escape route in the hall. Mr. James stopped in her path, and made eye contact with her. Then he shifted his gaze down to her hand which was locked in Joe’s. He lifted his gaze back up to meet hers. His face held confusion and disapproval, which struck her oddly.
“Elizabeth, who’s your friend?” Mr. James asked in a disapproving tone as he gave her boyfriend the once over.
She was sure Joe would easily pick up on the man’s apparent dissatisfaction. Her heart raced, and judging from the amount of heat in her face, she was sure it was as red as a tomato. She opened her mouth to respond, but no words came out. All eyes were on her.
Finally, Joe extended his hand to shake Mr. James’ and introduced himself.
“Palmer James, and this is my nephew, Patrick.”
The second Patrick’s name came out of Mr. James’ mouth she felt Joe’s temperature rise through his hand. His soft, brown eyes turned hard as stone and black as night. His jaw clenched. She silently wished for a miracle, hoping he wouldn’t say or do anything rash. She just wanted out of the situation altogether.
He slid his arm around her shoulder and pulled her tight to him. Excruciating silence continued as his dagger-shooting gaze stayed on Patrick.
“You’ll have to excuse us, we have somewhere to be,” Joe said as he whisked her down the hall, out of the office building, and into his truck without speaking a word. It wasn’t difficult for her to see that he was upset, perhaps even more than she was.
He started the truck and pulled into traffic, not speaking a word the entire time he drove. She guessed his knotted jaw wouldn’t allow for speech. He pulled into the parking lot of a Mom-and-Pop Italian restaurant and cut the engine. His eyes clamped shut and he inhaled deeply before turning his head toward her. Anger and rage swarmed in his eyes.
“What is he doing here? And please tell me that is not who you entertained in your home last night.”
Elizabeth blinked rapidly to clear her vision. She worked to conjure up an appropriate response. “It was a surprise visit. And yes, they were at my home last night. They came right from the airport, but left as soon as they realized I was sick.”
“I need you to help me understand this. After what he did to you, how can you let him near you? How can you not say anything to the authorities? How can you let him get away with this? And how could you not tell me he was here?” Joe asked. His tone swam with both anger and hurt.
Her heart sank at the thought of how she hurt him. She didn’t mean to. And she knew his anger came from sincere concern for her safety. Tears slid down her cheeks.
