Total pages in book: 125
Estimated words: 122074 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 610(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122074 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 610(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
Nope. Not now, not experiencing that pain, though it was fleeting.
The universe was telling me to cut my losses. I’d deal with the fallout later.
Walking to the hallway, I glanced where Ashton’s guards were, but a door opened suddenly across from me, and I darted in. It was a locker room. There was a girl inside, coming out of a dressing room. She frowned at me. “You new tonight?”
“Yeah. I—” I smiled. “I got lost. Sorry.”
“Oh.” She laughed, motioning over her shoulder. “Exit door is out this way. You’re not taking the train by yourself, are you?”
“Uh.”
She shook her head. “I’m Amy. I work on the second floor.”
“I’m Molly. I . . . I’m not even sure where I work. I kept getting turned around tonight.”
She laughed. “You’ll get the hang of it, but do you want a ride? My boyfriend is picking me up. We usually head to a diner with some of the other staff to unwind. You could come if you wanted?”
“Uh—” Talk about another gift from the universe. “That’d be great. Thank you.”
She took me out another door, and we turned left, down a short hallway, and out another door. We were in a back parking lot alleyway. A vehicle was idling, a guy behind the wheel, who waved at seeing us.
“That’s my boyfriend. Nick.” She motioned to the back seat. “My boxes are on the other side, so climb in here.” She opened the door. A wave of warmth blasted us, along with some rap music. “Hey, honey.”
“Hey!” He glanced back, giving me a chin lift. “New friend?”
“This is Molly. She’s riding with us to Nancy’s.”
“Solid. Nice to meet you,” he said as I got in.
Amy got in on her side. “It was Molly’s first night tonight.”
“Oooh! How was it?”
“It was . . .” My smile was forced. “Interesting.”
Amy smiled as we left. “It’ll get better. I promise.”
No. No, it wouldn’t.
I just did a very stupid thing.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
MOLLY
My phone started blowing up a block away.
Ashton calling.
I hit decline but texted:
I’m sorry. I overreacted. I’m with some of your staff, and I’ll tell you where we stop.
My phone buzzed.
Ashton: Where are you?
Ashton: The security monitors are showing me that you WALKED OUT ON YOUR OWN? Where are you going?
Ashton: Have them turn back.
Ashton calling.
I declined.
Amy frowned back at me. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, I . . .”
Ashton: Answer the goddamn phone or I will fire that worker you left with. I’m assuming she has no idea what she did, helping you.
Ashton: ANSWER YOUR PHONE
Ashton calling.
I declined.
Ashton: She’s fired. Want to keep pushing me?
Ashton: I won’t stop with her. I will find out who that driver is. I’ll find where he works, and I’ll get him fired too. Keep pushing me. I have no qualms about blowing up lives for your safety. Pialto and Sophie are next. Give me enough motivation. I could get them evicted by the end of the night.
Me: Stop! I’ll ask them to bring me back.
“God!” I hit dial, and as soon as he answered: “Don’t do that to them.”
“Where are you?” Now he was all calm. Now he was. Now, after he’d already issued all those threats.
“We’re—” I leaned forward. “Do you think we could turn back? I—”
Amy’s head twisted back to me, her frown deepening a little bit more. “Back?”
“I think I left my keys back there.”
She frowned at me, glancing to her boyfriend, who hit his turn signal. He was watching the traffic.
“I’m not hearing them saying yes fast enough,” Ashton growled from his end.
“Ashton.” I was mortified. At myself. At my behavior. At the situation.
“Ashton?” Amy squeaked, starting to pale. Her eyes widened. “As in Ashton Walden?”
“Who’s Ashton Walden?” her boyfriend asked, but quickly jerked the car over because there was an opening. “Score. It’ll be a bit before we can get back, but—”
I looked up, seeing the diner’s sign. “No. Hold on. I see the sign a few blocks up. We’re going to a diner named Nancy’s. I’ll be there.”
“Be outside.”
I ended the call, shoving the phone back into my purse.
Amy was watching me. “Was that my boss, as in my boss over my boss over my boss? The guy who owns Katya?”
“Yes.”
She paled. “How do you know him? What was that about? Did you really forget your keys?”
“It was . . . nothing.”
She didn’t look reassured. “That was nothing—I mean—it’ll be fine. When we get to Nancy’s, he’ll pick me up.”
“Uh . . .” Nick spoke up, staring in the rearview mirror. “Guys? You seeing this too?”
Two sets of headlights were speeding behind us, and one SUV jerked around us, slamming on its brakes and swerving to block us in. The other did the same behind us. Nick hit the brakes. Amy screamed, reaching forward to stop from hitting the dashboard, but her seat belt held her in place.
Me, a part of me had started to dissociate because by now, how many life-and-death situations had I been in? But I was still thinking. I had to by now, so because of that, I twisted backward, seeing if I recognized the driver in the second car.