“Nothing raised my flags or gave me weird vibes when you were dating. He wasn’t my favorite because I saw him as a pretentious, entitled little rich boy. But not a piece of shit like Cora’s ex or anything.”
“Ok, he never gave me piece of shit vibes, either. And he never mistreated me. Well, not until the end, at least.”
“Um-I hope he never gave you piece of shit vibes when you were dating. What kinds of things are happening right now, Audra? The fact that you’re asking me raises some concerns.”
“Nothing big, just weird encounters, I guess. I think him seeing Donovan flirt with me and me going home with him made him jealous or something. He asked me to dinner recently, and I said no. Bet he’s not happy about that either,” I confessed.
“Keep an eye on it, ok? And, look, I’m going to be crazy right now, and I don’t want to freak you out, but document everything. Document every single thing that makes your Spidey senses tingle. It’s probably nothing, but just put notes in your phone or whatever, just so you have it. And don’t hide things. Tell someone, your brothers, me, Bennett, whoever, just make sure someone is knowledgeable about what’s going on, okay? The fact you’re calling me to ask makes me think you’re saying nothing big, but you’re feeling something big.”
That freaked me out because she was spot on. Jules had been a victim of domestic violence and was very vocal about protecting yourself. That’s not where this was heading, though. He’s just trying to ensure I stay single … right? “Thanks, Jules. Love you, lady.”
“Love you too. My line is always open.”
After getting a little freaked out by Jules’s words, my shift was just as challenging as I expected. I swore I saw Theo outside the hospital, standing between cars as I left, but when I turned back, he was gone. By the time I got into my car and locked it, my heart was pounding again. I drove by the spot I thought I saw him, and there was nothing. What the hell was going on? I felt like I was losing my mind.
* **
The next afternoon, I fielded a frantic phone call from Maeve. She sounded terrible as I picked up the phone. “Audra, I need help.”
“Help? Maeve, what’s going on? Where are you?” I was already up, waiting to hear where she was, to go to her.
“I think I have food poisoning or something. After lunch, everything came up, and I can’t go back to work. I just keep vomiting. Tonight, I’m supposed to be somewhere. I can’t go, but it’s a really big deal.” She sounded pretty worked up.
“Ok, what is it? How can I help?”
“It’s a charity event tonight. Donovan can’t go to these things alone; he’s a total weirdo about it. I’m there as a buffer, social engager, and I beat the women off with crudités, cranberry vodkas, and cocktail wieners.”
What? She wasn’t serious, right? “Um … what? Why me? That’s a crazy ask, Maeve.”
“Not at all. He doesn’t have people to ask, Audra. He is notoriously closed off. It’s obvious you two have a good time together. He donates money to causes like confetti, but this is his favorite, and he’s heavily invested in it. It’s a boxing gym, but they have a program for underserved students. This organization gives them life-changing supports that go far beyond boxing. I can’t get too into it right now, but you can look it up. It’s going to be a fun event, it’s a Vegas-themed one. Please, please, please. I’ll do anything to make this up to you. He has to show his face there tonight, and he will one hundred percent not go by himself. It’s just outside Havenswood.”
“Is he ok with this? Does he even know you’re asking me? What time am I supposed to be ready? What should I wear? God, you’re an asshole.”
“My stomach is the asshole. I need a plan before I break thenews to him. The man likes a plan. The car will pick you up at like 5:30.”
“Car? Like Donovan?”
“No, like a fancy ride. He’s got a guy who takes us because he never drives to these things. Wear that red dress you have—you know of which I speak. I would owe you forever. I mean, for at least a month. Pleeeeeeease.”
“I can’t believe I’m agreeing to this. Fine.”
“Thank you so, so much, Audra. You are saving my ass. There’s one more thing. In true Sir Donovan fashion, he loathes being late. Can you be ready to go at 5:30 when the car arrives? I know it’s not a ton of time and that I am asking a lot here.”
“Ugh. Yes, I’ll be ready. You owe me.”
“I love you times a billion. Thank you again!”
When I hung up, I argued with myself about what to wear. My red dress sent a message, but is that the message I wanted to be sending? Yes? No? I wanted to, but probably shouldn’t?
At the end of my internal battle, I went for it and put it on. After choosing my outfit, everything else fell into place quickly. At 5:21, I snapped a photo of myself at my front door to send to Maeve so she could see the time stamp. She sent back a series of texts and emojis about how good I looked as my chariot pulled up at 5:30 exactly.How does this man make the world bend to his will like this,I mused to myself as I locked up for the night and turned to the car.
Here we go.
24
DONOVAN
“You’re what?” I looked at the phone incredulously on my desk as Maeve’s voice filled my office over the speakerphone.
