As Elaine stood in the doorway, she looked at Noah and then over to the couch where Rose sat. No one talked. Neither Noah nor Rose dared to say a word as they waited for Elaine to say whatever it was that had her so worked up.
“I hope you’re happy with yourself, young lady. You have forced an intelligent young man into leaving law right at the prime of his life. What the hell is he going to do with himself now? You disappoint me,” Elaine spewed and then turned and went to her office.
The door slamming from Elaine’s office echoed through the whole floor as Rose and Noah tried to figure out what the hell had just happened.
Chapter 29
“Well, that was unfortunate,” Noah said calmly as he headed out the door. “I’ll go figure out what’s going on. But it might be more difficult to get you on the case now.”
Again, Rose was grateful for having Noah around. There was no way she would have ever gone to Elaine and asked her why she was angry. Rose didn’t like confrontation, and Elaine seemed to thrive on it.
“Yeah, you think.” Rose laughed nervously.
She took off down the hallway to find Bronx and see what exactly happened between him and Elaine that had her angry with Rose. Her four-inch heels were slowing her down, so Rose grabbed them and jetted down the stairway in an effort to catch up to Bronx. She suspected he would be on his way to either his desk or his car, and after a quick glance at their cubicles, she rushed out to the parking garage.
“What the hell did you say to Elaine to piss her off?” Rose yelled across the empty garage.
“Ugh, sorry. Did she come talk to you?”
“Yeah, she seems to think you’re quitting, and it’s all my fault.”
“Yeah, well it sort of is.”
Rose stood still as she took in what Bronx was telling her. How was it her fault? She hadn’t forced him to quit. What happened to him taking a sabbatical like he had told Noah? There was no way this could be Rose’s fault; she hadn’t even known about his plans until a few hours earlier.
It didn’t feel good at all the way Bronx was turning things around on her. Certainly, he had to take some responsibility for his own thoughts. She wasn’t powerful enough to make him change his entire life, and certainly not without knowing she had that sort of power. Bronx had to be joking, or teasing, or something, because under no circumstances was any of what was going on Rose’s fault.
Sure they had been in a relationship, and Bronx had wanted more than Rose could give him. But Rose hadn’t led him on, she hadn’t told him they would have a future together. In fact, Rose had done everything possible to make sure Bronx understood where she was at emotionally.
“What the hell. This is not my fault.”
“Actually, it is.”
“No, no it isn’t,” Rose said defiantly as they stood in front of Bronx’s black Mustang convertible.
She wasn’t about to take the blame for whatever reason Bronx had for wanting to leave his job. This was a career that he had gone to college for and planned out over the last few years. No woman could have the power to make a man like Bronx do anything against his will. Rose had some crazy skills when it came to men, but she knew she would have remembered if she had tried to talk Bronx out of leaving; or worse yet, if she had tried to talk him into actually leaving.
“It was my decision, and I take full responsibility for it. But if I wouldn’t have met you and felt the passion I did with you, I would have gone on with life being happy and never knowing what I was missing. So technically, you are responsible for this mess.”
“So because I didn’t want to date you? That’s a stupid reason to quit your job.”
“No, because I never really loved it here. I tried, I really did. And I even asked for a temporary leave to get my head straight, but Elaine wouldn’t have it. She said I was either working there, or I quit. So I told her I quit.”
“And you told her it was my fault?”
“No, I would never.”
“Then why the hell is she pissed at me?”
“Because she has her own opinions, and I can’t control those. I’m not angry with you. I hope you know that. I understand if you don’t have the same feelings toward me as I do toward you. I don’t regret a single moment we had together, and I wish you all the best.”
“But …”
“No ‘buts’, I really do wish you all the best. I hope you find someone who makes you weak in the knees. A man who loves you so deeply that you can’t breathe when he touches you. I only wish happiness for you, Rose. And I hope you’ll be in a good spot and ready to accept him whenever he appears.”
The insight that Bronx had into what Rose wanted in her man was impressive. He had listened to her in the months they had been together. She suddenly felt extremely guilty for her part in the relationship. Not guilty because they had been together, but because she knew she wasn’t interested in a relationship and that Bronx was. Rose knew it from the first time they slept together, and she continued with her own plan for things. It was selfish, and she was sorry.
“You’re a good man Bronx; you know I wish all of those things for you too.”
“I know.”
“I bet there’s a girl out there who is going to love you ten times harder than you could even imagine right now.”
It was the truth. Rose knew that Bronx would someday find the woman of his dreams. When he found her, she would be just as into him as he was into her. There would be no worrying about the things she and Bronx had dealt with. When Bronx found the right woman, he would know it instantly; Rose was sure of it.
“I hope so. But for now, I’m going back to living my life. This lawyer thing was never really meant to be. I’m going to start a YouTube channel about my travels and use the money I’ve saved up to enjoy the next couple of years.”
“Wow, how much money did you save up?” Rose laughed.
They had been at the same job and probably earning about the same amount of money, and Rose hadn’t managed to save anything up at all over the last year. She paid her bills off and had no credit card debt, but she certainly didn’t have a nest egg that she could live off of for a few years.
“It’s much cheaper than you might think to travel. If you’re not staying at fancy hotels and eating out at restaurants all the time. I like to live like the locals, and I’ve found I can survive just fine on a few thousand dollars a year.”
“Like ten thousand? Twenty? Tell me,” Rose asked.
She was intrigued by Bronx’s plan. It had always been something deep down that she wanted to do, and she had never gone after it. Even after Derek’s death, when she had all the time in the world, she hadn’t wanted to seem crazy by taking off on world travels right after her husband had died.
Rose had always liked the wanderlust lifestyle, ever since she was a little girl. It had always seemed so exotic to be able to travel. Not even long trips, like what Bronx wanted to do; Rose had dreamed about traveling to just about anywhere she could go.
“I’ve got forty thousand saved up. It should last me plenty long enough to find myself.”
“Well, Bronx, I’m going to miss you. Cubicle life just won’t be the same without you.”
Bronx pulled Rose close to him in an effort to give her one last kiss, but then let go of her waist and hugged her. Rose probably would have given him his last kiss if he had requested it, but she was happy with a hug too.
Their relationship had been exactly what Rose needed when she first started working at the firm. She didn’t regret any of it. Meeting Bronx had been meant to be, and Rose could only hope that someday she would feel like she knew for sure the man she should be with. She held out hope that there would be some sort of light bulb moment. Something that would tell her exactly what she needed to do. Rose didn’t know if Noah was the right guy or not, she just wanted some sort of sign. Like the one she was getting at that moment with Bronx.
Bronx deciding to leave was a sign in itself. Rose wasn’t sad at all, and that was a huge
eye opener to her. She was happy for Bronx and wished him all the best, but she didn’t feel sad that he was leaving. Rose knew she had not been in love with Bronx.
“You changed my life, Rose. I want so much more now than I ever have wanted before. I can only thank you for that.”
“And maybe tell your aunt to be nice to me?” Rose joked.
“Yeah, I’ll talk with her in a few days when she cools off. Don’t worry, she likes you. She’ll come around.”
“I’m not sure she likes me. I think that might be a figment of your imagination.” Rose laughed, and she hugged Bronx again. “Seriously, though, you take care of yourself. I’ll be following your Instagram and living vicariously through you. So make this travel stuff lots of fun.”
“Take care of yourself, Rose. You’re on the right path lately, and I have a feeling everything is about to come together for you.”
It was nice to know that Bronx had noticed all the good Rose had tried to do in her life. She was genuinely trying to pull herself together again, and it felt like she was moving slower than a snail most of the time. Rose couldn’t imagine other widows taking as long as she was to move forward with their lives.
“I’m glad one of us thinks that.”
As Bronx got into his car, Rose had a feeling of dread building up inside of her. Bronx was a great catch, a man that her girlfriends would have been jealous of for sure; yet he wasn’t the right one for Rose. She couldn’t help worrying that she was never going to find the perfect match for her, or never going to be brave enough to go after him if she did.
The only good thing about watching Bronx leave was that Rose knew he was going after something that really made him happy. She could only hope that someday she would be driving off chasing after something that would make her that happy. But at the moment, she had an old Honda Accord and no big dreams in sight.
Instead of dreaming about life, Rose was trying to get hers back together. She finally had a feeling of being in control of what was going on around her, and she felt empowered by the new level of control. Even Elaine being angry with her wasn’t enough to dampen Rose’s mood. Sooner or later, Elaine would have to figure out that Bronx was a big boy, and he was old enough to make his own decisions and his own mistakes.
Certainly, being in a relationship with Bronx might have been a mistake; at least in Elaine’s eyes. But they had both made the decision, and it wasn’t only Rose’s fault. It wasn’t really Elaine’s position to worry about what Bronx and Rose did with their personal time.
As she made her way back into the building, Rose contemplated pausing to put her heels back on but then decided she didn’t feel like it. She went straight to her cubical to prepare herself for the rest of the day, but to her surprise, Susan was standing over her desk.
“Can I help you?” Rose asked.
“Oh, yes, I was just leaving you a note. Elaine says we are working together on an upcoming case, and I’d like to get started right away on the research.”
Rose probably looked utterly dumbfounded as she stood there in her bare feet and stared at Susan. How could Elaine have agreed to put her on the case? She had been so angry with Rose. The only possible reasoning was that Noah had pulled some sort of miracle. She didn’t know how he had done it, but she was certainly going to take advantage of the moment.
“Um, sure, I’d be happy to split it with you, and we can touch base tomorrow with what we have found out.”
“Actually, I’m leaving it here for you to go through. I am the lead on this, and you can just fill me in on all the details tomorrow,” Susan said with a snide tone to her voice.
Her initial response was to drop her shoes and free her hands up so she could take care of Susan. Who did she think she was? Trying to assume that Rose was going to do all the work and she could just sit back? Rose wasn’t okay with that at all. But as she took in a deep breath, she tried to get her wits together. She certainly couldn’t start their working relationship off with a beat down in the middle of the office.
Inside, Rose thought of all the horrible things she wanted to say to Susan. Rose imagine her fist flying through the air and punching Susan right in the face. But Rose held back her instincts and slowly pulled herself together so she could respond as appropriately as she could.
“Sure, I’ll do my best,” Rose said with a huge fake smile.
“Well, that’s going to have to do, I guess,” Susan said as she turned and walked away.
The moment was so tense that everyone around Rose’s cubicle had stopped working and were listening to the two women. They had been expecting a massive fight, or at least some verbally abusive words between the ladies, but Rose had held her tongue. She wasn’t sure how long she would be able to keep herself in check if Susan insisted on acting the way she had been. But Rose was going to do her best.
After spending eight more hours at work, Rose finally decided to grab the last few files and head home. She could finish her reading in the comfort of her own bed and then slip off to sleep as soon as she was done. One of the ways she had started trying to take better care of herself was not staying at work all night long. Rose needed sleep, and it would be essential that she get a few hours at least.
The day had been long and not even close to normal for Rose. She had spent the last few months laboring between her desk and a courtroom without even the slightest bit of excitement and then suddenly, all in one day, she had her life totally turned upside down.
Now she was working on a big case, something she had longed for since the one with the first lady at the beginning of her time at the firm. It was exciting to have a case that actually mattered and would probably even make headlines. Theodore Stern certainly had a lot of layers to him, and as Rose read through the discovery information, she was pretty clear that he wasn’t a good guy. At least, for many years he hadn’t been, and perhaps the lawsuit against him was justified. Although there had never been any legal charges against Theodore or Abigail regarding the death of in question, there was a lot of circumstantial information that said they very well might lose a civil suit.
Well, if Rose had anything to say about it, they wouldn’t lose a single cent, except the fees they would pay to her and Susan. Rose was more determined than ever to show Elaine and everyone else that she was a force to reckon with, and she would be a valuable asset to the company for many more years. She certainly wasn’t going to let a little yelling and screaming from Elaine deter her from going after what she wanted.
Chapter 30
The room was foggy as Rose walked in. It was the courtroom she had been in before, the one where she and Noah had been held hostage. But there was something different about it, something strange. The colors in the room all seemed muted like they were out of focus or on a television screen. Something didn’t seem right to Rose.
Then she realized what was going on, she was dreaming.
It was another one of her dreams, and Rose was positive about it. But she wanted to keep going. She wanted to see what would come of her dream and why she was in that courtroom. Certainly, she had experienced many nightmares about that day, but in this dream, she didn’t feel afraid at all. In fact, she was oddly aroused and couldn’t figure out why.
She looked around the room and felt herself moan as suddenly Noah was behind her. Rose was bent over the table as he thrust into her, and she couldn’t help moaning loudly. There was no one else in the room, and she was enjoying her little dream.
Slowly, Noah thrust into her and held onto her hips. Her business skirt was pressed up above her thighs, and she felt the cold table below her as it touched her naked breasts. There hadn’t been a part of the dream leading up to that moment, and Rose wasn’t exactly sure why she was dreaming so vividly about Noah again, but she liked it. Imagining his hands on her body and his thrusts inside of her was a safe way of dealing with her desires.
Suddenly, she heard laughing in her dream, and she looked up to see Elaine standing over her and pointing while she cackled.
The moment was shocking enough that it woke Rose from her slumber, and she sat straight up in bed.
After reading until well past midnight, Rose had fallen asleep with discovery files all around her. She quickly checked the clock and saw that it was only five o’clock in the morning. As much as she wanted to just go back to sleep, Rose wanted to get herself together and get back to the office before Susan showed up.
Even though Susan was intent on belittling Rose and trying to put her in her place, Rose was going to be prepared. She planned to get to work early enough to type up a summary of their new case and present it to Susan as soon as she arrived. It was much easier to win over an enemy with kindness than it was to change the enemies’ behavior all together. If Rose had to put on a fake sorority girl smile while she worked with Susan, that was perfectly fine. But Rose wasn’t about to give up the case just because Susan was a jerk to work with.
As she arrived at work, Rose finished up her notes and still had time to make the coffee in the break room and watch a little of the morning news. It was always depressing to see what the news stories were, though. It was like putting a magnifying glass on a family that was in the midst of turmoil and asking everyone in the world to gawk at them. She didn’t like the news or the media much at all.
When she flipped the television off, Rose noticed Susan walking down the hall with a man and a woman. Anger started to stir as Rose realized Susan was trying to meet with their client before she thought Rose was arriving. Susan didn’t even know the case at all. She hadn’t spent the entire previous day reading, and she hadn’t even had a chance for Rose to give her the summary notes. Rose wasn’t exactly sure what was going on, but she knew that she wasn’t going to just stand by and let Susan take the clients all for herself.
Quickly, Rose grabbed her summary sheets and her coffee and made her way to the conference room. Susan looked pretty damned surprised as Rose walked in, but Rose did a great job of controlling her face and not showing expression. There was absolutely no way that Rose was going to let Susan just walk all over her like that. Rose was much more prepared, and she was going to take the lead on the case, even if Susan got to keep the official title.
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