Janelle shoved the watch into her pocket. If she truly wanted Gideon out of her life, if she wanted closure, she had to purge him. The plants could stay. She had to give him back his timepiece.
She opened the door and started to head out when she stopped in her tracks. She gasped when she saw her landlord standing on the other side. She had no idea the man woke up early enough to make a trip to her apartment.
“Mr. Norwood, good morning. I was just heading out to work.” Janelle kept up a pleasant demeanor to not set off his short fuse.
The man could be pleasant until you messed with his money.
“I want you out in thirty days.” He jutted his thumb over his shoulder to indicate that he wanted her out on the streets by St. Patrick’s Day.
“Why? I’m only one month behind on rent, and I promise I’ll catch that up when I pay for next month’s rent.” She closed her door and locked it.
“The police were here for you. I don’t like trouble.” The older man shook his head hard enough that the few springs of hair on top of his head waved back and forth.
She shook her head. “No, no. It was all a misunderstanding. Nothing happened. No tickets. No arrests. No charges. Buddy and Althea thought they heard something, but it was nothing.”
“I don’t care. I want you out in a month.” He shoved an eviction notice at her, careless if she caught it or not. Then he waddled downstairs.
“You’ve always wanted to get rid of me.” She didn’t bother looking at the paper. She’d seen the warnings. “You found your excuse.”
He hit the sidewalk and ducked out of her view. She heard a car starting and pulling out of the parking lot.
Janelle took the steps down slowly, hoping that at her pace she could somehow reverse time. By the time she stopped next to Buddy and Althea’s door, it opened like the elderly couple had waited for her to get to them.
She glanced over to their doorway. In their standard uniform of tattered robes and bedroom slippers, they stared at her like disappointed parents.
Parents. Hell, if her mother caught wind of this, she would tell Janelle that she’d told her so, and quickly follow that up with an invitation to not stay with her.
“You can stay with us if you need to.” Althea spoke first.
“Ah, so you know. News travels fast.” Janelle put the eviction notice in her purse.
She started to tell them that their hasty call to the police had pushed Norwood to kick her out. The way they looked at her now with so much remorse and regret in their eyes, she didn’t need to further twist the knife. They had called to protect her. At least someone had looked out for her.
“I think if Norwood finds me living with you all, he’ll kick you out. I couldn’t live with that.” Janelle smiled despite the rough news handed to her before she’d even had a cup of coffee.
“It’s so cold outside. Where will you go?” Buddy asked. His voice cracked as he spoke.
To prevent herself from crumbling, she headed to her car. “I have family.” Not any family she could rely on to help her. “And I have friends.” She hoped Penny would help her. “I’ll be fine.”
“So sorry about all of this, dear. We thought you were in trouble.”
Janelle offered a sweet smile. “Thanks for looking out for me. I appreciate it.”
Too bad their overprotective nature had forced her out of her home. She had to push that idea out of her thoughts and head to work.
She arrived to the flower shop and had to blink several times when she saw Penny already there. All air escaped her lungs when she saw her talking to Jules.
Janelle parked and jumped out of her vehicle. “Unless you’re here to buy flowers, you have no business here.”
Penny glared at Janelle before ducking into Flowers Galore. What the hell? Janelle didn’t understand that reaction.
“I’m having a harmless conversation with your associate. You may want to have one with her now.” He strolled away from the door. “But I won’t be far. If you need me, give me a call.”
“Don’t bet on it.” Janelle stormed inside her business. “What did he say to you?”
Penny barely looked at Janelle as she put her personal items away and cleaned up the store.
“Hey.” Janelle grabbed Penny’s arm. “What’s going on?”
Penny jerked her arm from Janelle’s grip. “I don’t know, friend. You tell me.”
“What is it?”
“I thought we were best friends.” Penny crossed her arms.
“We are. What did that asshole tell you?”
“He didn’t have to tell me anything. The world knows your business before I do. Why didn’t you tell me you’re seeing Gideon Wells?”
Janelle opened her mouth to refute the statement when Penny cut her off.
“Don’t you dare lie to me and tell me you two aren’t an item, because there are pictures of you to together, and he was at your place a couple of nights ago.”
“Wait. You’re the one who left me at his home.”
“Yes, I knew about that night. You never told me what you two did. You certainly kept quiet on the fact that the cops showed up to your place while he was there.”
“How do you know that?” Janelle put her hand to her chest, hoping to still her racing heart.
“It’s all over the Internet. Or have you been too busy with your new man to even notice what’s going on in the real world?” She continued to glare at Janelle until she moved around the counter. “I suppose you’re going to tell me you didn’t know that your man is going under the knife and that he might get traded, right?”
Janelle felt light-headed. “I haven’t seen or talked to him in a couple of days.”
“Rumors are going around about him that he slapped a quote-unquote mystery woman around, and that’s why he’s getting traded.”
“That’s all a lie.”
“Since you two are both being so tight-lipped, the media is free to make up stories. People like me tend to believe them since no one is saying anything.” She cocked her head. “So what do you say? You want to talk?”
Janelle put her hand over her pocket and rubbed Gideon’s watch. “Yes.” She ran out of the store and looked around the parking lot.
She found Jules sitting in a dark gray sedan rental parked at the far corner of the lot. She ran up to his car while he busied himself by snapping pictures of her during her trek.
Janelle knocked on the driver side window and waited for him to power it down before she spoke. “An interview. I want to do an interview with you.”
Jules didn’t act surprised. His smug smile spread even farther across his face. “How about today?”
She peered down at her outfit. “I want to change first.”
“Good.”
Yes, it would be good. She would make this all right for Gideon.
* * * *
Gideon drummed his thumbs over his thighs as he waited for his name to be called for the surgery. As he sat in the hospital waiting room, he didn’t care if the other patients stared at him and Gunnar. The nerves that riddled his body came from not hearing from Janelle or seeing her.
He glanced at his phone to see if he had missed any calls or messages.
“Dude, you have your phone set on the loudest ring and most obnoxious alarm if you get a text.” Gunnar put the magazine down on his thigh and huffed as he stared at Gideon. “Haven’t you heard the saying about a watched pot never boiling?”
Gideon shook his head. “I know she’s going to call.” He glanced at his brother. “She is so warm and giving. Even from the smallest things, she’s always thinking about me.”
The memory of their last night together where she’d climbed on top of him and given him the best sex of his life remained etched in his brain. He could never forget that woman. Yet it seemed like she could push him out of her mind and heart so easily.
“If she was thinking of you, she would have called. Better yet, she would be here.
” Gunnar’s tough-love advice didn’t appeal to Gideon.
The door to the waiting room opened. Gideon glanced at it but slumped down when an elderly couple strolled through it.
“Damn.” Gideon glanced at his bare wrist.
“Where’s your watch, man, the one Mom gave you when you made pro?”
Gideon didn’t want to answer. He’d left it at Janelle’s place after she’d asked him to leave. At first, he’d chalked up his absentminded mistake to the chaos of the evening. It had been a while since he’d been confronted by law enforcement. Not since his teenage years. Then he knew what he’d done hadn’t been an accident. He wanted her to contact him. He knew she would. Each day she hadn’t, he figured she must have kept the watch, sold it, or thrown it away.
If she kept it, Gideon hoped she wore it and remembered him like he would always remember her every time he smelled vanilla or oranges.
“Are you sure Eboni is okay at the house with Mom?” Gideon asked.
Had he known their mother would get released that day, he would have postponed his surgery. Too bad his mother hated that plan and had insisted he go through with it.
“Eboni will be fine. She said she’s used to caring for people, and she loves Mom as much as we do.” Gunnar put his hand on Gideon’s shoulder. “Don’t worry about Mom. Don’t worry about Eboni. Hell, don’t even worry about me.” He pointed to Gideon’s chest. “You worry about you this time.”
“I keep getting that advice.” Gideon kept his stare on the waiting-room door.
“Learn to take it and we’ll stop telling you to do it.” Gunnar chuckled as he pulled Gideon in for a hug. “Did you call Thane?”
Gideon nodded. “Woke him up this morning.”
“Good.” Gunnar went back to reading his magazine. “Mom just had major heart surgery and you’re having knee surgery, and he’s not even here. Bastard.”
Gideon glanced at the people around them. He nudged Gunnar’s leg when he noticed a few of them listening in on their conversation. Gunnar scanned the other people and went back to his magazine.
“You’ve had relationships with other women before. What makes this one so special?” Gunnar shrugged but kept his stare on the sports magazine he held.
“She talked in plants and flowers.” Gideon smiled when he remembered all the names she’d called him, both in anger and in lust.
“So she’s a nerd like you.” Gunnar laughed.
“She’s headstrong.”
“Stubborn. Like you. I’m starting to see a pattern here.” Gunnar smiled and broke his concentration from his reading material to glance at Gideon.
“She looked out for me.” Gideon’s heart pounded as he remembered the time she’d alerted him to a nosy photographer.
“Then where is she?” Gunnar tossed his magazine to the side.
“Are you saying when you and your girl had problems that she remained by your side?”
Gunnar nodded. “Yeah, as a matter of fact, she did. Even when I wouldn’t talk to her, she came and saw me every day, bugging the hell out of me until I realized how much I love—” He stopped midsentence and stared at Gideon. “You love Janelle, don’t you?”
Gideon stared at the wall ahead of him and said nothing.
Gunnar couldn’t keep quiet. “If you really dig this woman, tell her before it’s too late.”
“Mr. Wells,” a nurse called from a doorway.
“Here.” Gideon handed Gunnar his phone.
“I’ll be waiting out here for you.” His brother patted him on the back before he walked through the doorway.
“How are you feeling this morning?” the nurse asked as she led him down a wide hallway.
“Nervous.” Gideon’s nerves had nothing to do with the procedure.
What if Janelle didn’t care about him at all?
“Don’t worry. The doctor is the best and the surgery won’t take too long. Before you know it, you’ll be running up and down the football field again.”
Gideon nodded, but his head and heart remained on Janelle.
Chapter 22
At the end of the workday, Janelle stared at the clock on the wall across from the sales counter. Her insides felt like they all vibrated at different intervals.
“You want me to lock up?” Penny touched Janelle’s shoulder.
The connection shocked Janelle so much that she gasped and jumped.
“Whoa. What is your deal?” Penny took a step back.
“Sorry. I’ve got a lot on my mind.” Janelle put her hand to her head before turning to her friend. “I need your help.”
Penny crossed her arms over her chest and cocked her head. “Really? That’s a first. You didn’t need me before when—”
Janelle grabbed her friend’s shoulders and stared into her eyes. “Penny, please.”
Penny’s expression became somber. “Oh, okay. Let me lock up and we can go to my place and talk.”
Janelle shook her head. “We can’t leave. Not yet.”
“Why not?”
Janelle released a long sigh. “I’m talking to that photographer who’s been following me around for weeks.”
Penny’s eyes went wide. “Are you serious?”
“I want to clear Gideon’s name. He doesn’t deserve all the bad press he’s been getting. It isn’t fair.” Janelle went to the front door of her store and locked it. Then she turned off the Open sign.
“It may not be fair, but it’s the life of a celebrity. Tabloids make stuff up all the time.” Penny shrugged. “I don’t know if you should have agreed to talk to that guy. You know he can twist your words around. If you say that all you and Gideon did was play cards and he beat you at poker, that jerk will probably lop off the tail end of your statement to say that Gideon beat you.”
Janelle paced the floor. “I hadn’t thought of that.”
“Did you sign a contract or anything?”
Janelle remained quiet.
Penny rolled her head back. “Christ, you did. Do you have it?”
Janelle darted to the office and pulled it from her purse. “Here it is.” She handed it to Penny.
Penny started reading it until it looked like her eyes would pop out of her head again. “A million? This guy agreed to pay you a cool million for spilling the dirt on Gideon? Way to go.” She held up her hand to give Janelle a high five.
The whole thing now felt like a betrayal. She shouldn’t have made the deal. She should have gone to the hospital to be with him during his surgery. She had promised him she would be there.
“That was the other reason why I did it.” Janelle took a deep breath before facing her friend. “I’m having money problems.”
Penny blinked. “What are you talking about? My checks are always good.”
Janelle nodded. “Yes, because I do without paying myself sometimes to pay you. It’s the real reason Thelma quit. She saw a disconnection notice from the power company and she paid it for me. She didn’t want to be a burden on me. Having Gideon in town has been a blessing in a lot of ways to me. I’ve managed to keep my business afloat. I’ve paid some of my bills. But I’m in trouble, and I don’t know what else to do. I’m getting evicted from my apartment.”
“What? Why?” Penny moved in closer to Janelle.
Janelle needed that personal connection right now. “It’s a long story, but part of it has to do with me being behind on my rent.”
“Girl, why didn’t you tell me all this before? You can move in with me.” Penny put her hand on Janelle’s shoulder.
Janelle cocked her head. “You live in an apartment smaller than mine that’s located above your parents’ garage. How is that going to work?”
“We could make it work. I’m your friend.” She held up the papers. “Reading this, it looks like you’re going to have to do this interview. Has he already given you the money?”
Janelle nodded. “Wired it right to my account. I can’t believe I have all that mo
ney. I don’t even want to spend it.”
“Don’t. Let me finish reading this contract. I think I have a plan. Is that guy coming here?”
“In an hour. I have another outfit to change into.”
“Where are you doing the interview? Out here or in your office?”
Janelle shrugged. “He didn’t say.”
“Good. Let’s take advantage of this. I think I know of a way for you to keep the money free and clear and get your intended message out.”
Penny continued reading the contract when Janelle wrapped her arms around her friend and hugged her harder than she’d ever had.
“I love you. Thank you for always sticking by me and never judging me.”
Penny hugged her back. “Of course. You’re my girl. We have to stick together.”
“When all this is over, I’ll tell you all about Gideon and how wonderful and thoughtful he is.”
Janelle headed to her office.
“And the fact that he’s hung like an elephant?”
That statement stopped Janelle in her tracks. She turned to Penny.
“It’s the word on the street.” Penny winked and kept reading.
“You concentrate on a plan and stop thinking about my man’s penis.” Janelle laughed a little as she ducked into her office.
Her man. She hoped after this stunt, she could repair what she’d broken with Gideon. She hoped he still wanted her as much as she wanted him.
* * * *
Gideon slowly opened his eyes. Soft light met his gaze as he took a deep breath. He felt oxygen tubes in his nostrils, giving him additional air. After a couple of long blinks, he spotted a nurse hustling by him to get to another patient in the expansive room.
“I see you’re awake now, Mr. Wells.”
Gideon turned his head toward the sound of the voice and saw another nurse standing by his bed. She smiled almost like she needed to reassure him he would be okay.
“Am I about to go into surgery now?” he asked.
“No, sir. You’re all done.” The nurse gazed down to his right leg.
Gideon hadn’t even thought about taking inventory of his body. He lifted his head and saw the bandages around his knee along with a compression sock. Right now, he didn’t feel a thing. He knew later the pain would come and hard. Then he would have to go through arduous months of rehabilitation. The pain and punishment would keep his mind off Janelle.
Forget Me Not Page 27