“You know, I think I’m going to come with you,” I say in a hurry.
“No, Nancy, you go on. I need to talk to Edith.”
Nancy tells me to call her whenever I have the chance and heads out. I turn to my mother once the front door closes shut.
“What’s going on? I can tell something is off with you, so don’t lie to me?”
Irritated that my mother wants to have this conversation right now. I go over and gather my things so that I can leave.
“Edith!”
“Nothing is going on. I don’t understand why you keep thinking something is wrong. It’s like you are making something out of nothing,” I snapped. It’s not until after I’ve said what I said that I notice what I’ve just done.
She stares at in shock before she snaps out of it and walks over to me. “I don’t know who you think you’re talking to, but you do not talk to me like that.” She pokes my shoulder. “I’m just looking out for you, trying to make sure that my daughter is okay because I know something is wrong. You better watch yourself, Edith. Some people are only looking out for you.” She walks away from me, heading in the direction of her room. “Let me know when you get home safely.
“Mom, I’m sorry,” I quickly say. But she keeps walking to her room, shutting the door behind her.
My phone begins to vibrate, and I look down to see Aiden’s name on the screen. I wipe under my eyes and grab my purse.
I just made a huge mistake.
“Hey, Edith, can you come here, please?” Amos calls for me.
I stop filing the papers I have in my hand and enter his office.
“Yes?”
“I wanted to know if you could stay late tonight and work with Eric, show him the ropes here. He’s new.” Amos gets up from his seat and comes around to approach me.
“Oh, sure. That’s no problem.”
He hands over my files from my project that he reviewed. “Thank you, and I owe you one. Also, I went over your presentation. I loved it. There were only three questions I had that I left notes about for you to look over. But other than that, everything seemed fantastic. Let’s present this next week and see what everyone else thinks, then we can show Mr. Delfino.”
“Sounds good.”
I leave Amos’ office and take the secret elevator hidden by the stairs up to Aiden’s office. His secretary tells me that he’s not busy, as I go in. I walk in and see him sitting on his couch instead of behind his desk. He points to his phone, then moves some papers out of the way and opens his arms for me. I sit in his lap and listen to him, finish up negotiating a deal.
When he hangs up, he loosens his tie and sits back, taking me with him.
“What brings you up here? Aren’t you supposed to be working?” He runs his lips across mine in a teasing manner.
“I wanted to come up here and see you.”
“Oh really,” he says. He pulls on one of my curls, watching it bounce up and down.
“Yup, and I have something to tell you.”
“Okay.”
“I have to stay late tonight to help with one of the new employees. Amos wants me to show them the ropes.” I kiss him on the lips.
“No, he can pick someone else to stay. I will call him and tell him that myself.”
He’s starting to stand up, and I push him to sit back down. “Aiden, please don’t do this. Amos picked me because he knows I can help. I won’t be here that late.”
“Fine, but if you are staying here, then I am too. I have to get more work done anyways, so when you are done, ring me, and I will come down, okay?
“No, go home. I know you have that meeting tonight with everyone,” I say, trying to convince him to go home.
I’m not going to be that long. I will just show this guy around and explain how things work and come home. There is no need for Aiden to stay here with me.
There’s a knock on the door, and his secretary comes in to let him know that the guy he just made a deal with is on the phone and wants to talk to him again. There is something in the contract that the man doesn’t like.
“I guess you have your wish. I won’t be staying.” He pats my knee so I can get up, since now he has to deal with this guy again. “I think I’m going to take this guy out for some drinks to help him understand why this is the best deal of a lifetime. You already know that one of the guards will drive you home when you are ready. Just take the elevator down to the garage, okay?”
“Yup, I got it.” I take his tie from around his neck and retie it for him. “I will text you instead of call you when I’m on my way home, since I know you will be in a meeting.”
“All right, love you.”
“Love you too,” I say as I leave him.
Closing my computer, I grab the things I will need for the tour. I see Amos coming over with a young man who is my age, and I stand to greet them.
Amos introduces us, “Eric, this is Edith. She is part of our marketing team, so she will be someone you will be working closely with on a regular basis.
Eric put his hand out for me to shake.
“Hello, it is nice to meet you,” Eric says to me.
“It’s nice to meet you too,” I reply.
Amos collects his briefcase and hands over the keycard to show Eric around. “Put that on my desk when you guys are done with the tour. I left the conference room open for you guys to get to work. See you in the morning,” he instructs me.
“Will do, see you in the morning.” I grab my keys and Amos’ card. “Do you want to do the tour first, or get a little work done?” I ask Eric.
“Let’s do the tour first.”
“All right, follow me.”
I take Eric around the building, showing him where we eat, print, and have some of our meetings. He tells me where he went for college, and how he got the job here. I share the same information with him and let him know a little more about me.
“Working here as an intern for two years was challenging.” We get in the elevator and take it up to the top floor. “They really work you hard, but once you have a job here and begin work, then they aren’t so hard on you. You feel the difference over time.”
“Good, I’m glad, because I am tired of feeling overworked. Working two jobs and interning here was hard, and I’m ready to quit my other jobs and just focus on this one,” Eric tells me.
The elevator door opens to the outdoor garden.
“I quit my other job when I found out that I was hired here, too. So, I understand what you mean,” I agreed.
He looks around in amazement at the garden. “We can eat or do work here, sometimes? Wow, I am definitely going to be out here as much as I can.”
I nod my head back to the elevator so we can continue the tour.
“This is my favorite place to come whenever I need to get away from work. Sometimes I can get overwhelmed and need a break. We’re only two months away from the launch day of our new programs. I want to make a good impression so that I can do more in the future.”
I push the button to return to our floor so we can go into the conference room.
“I can’t wait to work with you and the team on the next program we launch, I’m ready to show off some of my skills and help out,” he says.
“It’s always good to have more people on the team. I’m excited to see what you can do.”
The elevator doors open, and I walk out first, but my heel gets caught, and I almost fall. Eric’s arms wrap around me, catching me before I hit the floor.
“Glad I was here to catch you,” he says.
I hold on to him so that I don’t fall. “Yes, thank you.”
We hear someone clearing their throat and look over to see Aiden standing there with his hands in his pockets and with a blank expression. I hurry and step out of Eric’s arms.
“Aiden, hey, what are you doing here?” I ask, fixing my dress and I take another step away from Eric. So, he doesn’t get the wrong impression.
“I came back to get you to take you home.
What are you doing?” he barks.
Eric takes his own step away from me.
“I was only giving Eric a tour of the place. He’s new here,” I explain.
“I see, are you guys almost done?”
“Well—”
Eric jumps in. “Yes, we are finished here. Thank you, Edith, for the tour, I should get home.” He leaves us to grab his bag off my desk, and instead of taking the elevator down, he takes the stairs.
I stomp my foot and march pass Aiden to going to my desk. “Really, Aiden?”
“What? Am I supposed to be okay with another man having his arms all over you? Especially when you’re dressed like that.” He waves his hands at my outfit.
“What are you talking about? All I was doing was giving him a tour, and when we were getting off the elevators, I tripped, and he caught me. That’s it!” He reaches for my arm, but I slap his hand away and grab my stuff. I walk by him again, heading for the elevators.
“One, when I am talking to you, you don’t walk away from me, do you hear me?” He grabs my arm again, and I snatch it out of his grasp. When the door opens, Aiden wraps his fingers around my throat and slams me into the elevator walls. He turns and pushes the button to stop it from moving. “Two, you will watch your mouth when you are speaking to me.” He tightens his grip around my throat, making it hard for me to breathe. “I don’t like it when another man’s hands are on my woman. He should have never touched you, and you shouldn’t have allowed it. Tomorrow, I will fire him, and you will not be working here either.” He lets go of me, and I cough, trying to catch my breath.
“You can’t do that,” I cough.
“Watch me.”
WHEN HE TOLD ME THAT I was fired, I hoped he was joking, but the next morning, I found out that I’ve been taken off all projects and switched to work closely with Aiden from now on. I can’t even go into the office. I have to work from home in one of the offices he made for me.
Things have gone from bad to worse between Aiden and me since the whole Eric incident at work. Now he hits me and yells at me more and more for little things I may do. If I don’t have his meals cooked in time and placed on the dining room table before he gets home, he hits me. If I’m not wearing the clothes, he’s picked out for me to wear every day, he hits me. There’s no way out for me.
I’ve tried to leave him, but I find that he has people watching me at every turn. He told me that it’s for my own protection because he doesn’t want anything to happen to me, except I know it’s a lie. They are only watching me to see if I will try and run so that they can drag me back. Therefore, I’m trapped, having to play pretend for these last couple of months, like I still want to be with him. Just until I can find a way out of this mess, I’m in.
“How long will you be away?”
Aiden laughs, putting his clothes down on top of his suitcase and walking over to me, taking me in his arms. “Don’t try and sound so excited to see me go.” He pulls me closer. “I will be back in a week. I know that I’m usually only away from you for one or two days, but this trip is important. My guys have found this new building that I need to go and see.”
This will be the first time in months that he will be gone for an entire week. I’m so excited and happy to be getting a break from him. I feel like I’m slowly losing my mind and myself. He is sucking the life out of me.
“Are you sure I can’t come with you?” I stick out my lip, really trying to sell that I will miss him and wish he wouldn’t leave.
He runs his thumb over my lower lip and leans in, taking it in his mouth. Soon it turns from us just sharing a kiss to him making out with me. He groans, wrapping his hands in my hair and tugging on it lightly. In my mind, I keep repeating the word ‘no’. Hoping this kiss won’t turn into him wanting to have sex.
He pulls back and looks down at me, proud of himself for causing my lips to be swollen from us kissing.
“We keep kissing like this, and I might just have to take you with me.” And that’s what I was afraid of—that he would take me up on my offer. I almost want to close my eyes and cry. That will be my worst nightmare if he makes me tag along with him. I need a break.
No, I need to be free from him.
He seems to consider it for a minute, rubbing his arms down my back, then wraps his hand around the back of my neck, holding me in place. “But I won’t do that. You’ve been doing great lately, and I want to reward you. Maybe next time when I go on a long trip like this, I will take you with me.” I can feel him getting excited, and it makes me want to throw up. “I think we would have a lot of fun.”
More fun for him, and less for me.
He goes back to his suitcase, putting in the last two items. “I have to go, or I’ll be late.”
“Okay.” I breathe out a little sigh of relief.
Aiden checks his bag, then goes to our bedroom door to hand his luggage to one of the guards.
“Come on and walk me to the car.” I grab his hand and follow him out. “You already know that I will only be gone for one week. You can have a week off from having to do anything until I get back. Just make sure that the night I come home, you don’t have anything on.”
He kisses me on the head, then the lips. I hold on to him for a few minutes before letting him go. “I’ll see you soon, okay?”
I tell him, okay, and he turns to get into the car. An idea pops up in my mind, and I quickly grab the door before he can shut it. “Hey, do you mind if Nancy comes over and stays the night while you are away?” He steps out of the car and invades my space. I swallow the lump in my throat, but I try and keep my cool. I really want him to say yes, because I haven’t seen my mom and best friend in months. I have only talked to them on the phone with Aiden right beside me. Every time I talk to them, I tell them that I’m busy and promise to make plans to spend time with them soon. However, my mother and best friend haven’t seen me because Aiden doesn’t want them to see the bruises on my body.
“I haven’t seen my best friend in a while, and I thought that while you were gone, this would be the perfect time for us to catch up.”
He looks behind me, and I turn to see what he’s looking at. One of the guards nods their heads at him. “That’s fine, just cover-up.” His face goes hard as he leans down, getting in my face. “Don’t even think about trying to tell her what’s going on in this house, or I will make you regret it. You spend time with your friend, and that’s it. Don’t make me regret this, Edith.”
If looks could kill, I would be dead right now from the way Aiden is staring me down. If I mess up, there’s no telling what he’s going to do to me when he comes home.
He turns away and gets in the car, and as they drive away, I wipe the tears that fell from my eyes.
I have to get out of here.
Once I see the truck turn the corner, I pull out my phone and dial Nancy’s number.
“If it isn’t my best friend who I haven’t heard from in, I don’t know how long!” she teases. “I’m glad you’re still alive. You know that you could call me more, or at least answer my phone calls every once and a while.”
It’s so good to hear my best friend’s voice. If she only knew what was going on, she would be down here, causing a ruckus.
I don’t want to make it seem like something is wrong, so I clear my throat and push my emotions to the side. “Well, that’s why I’m calling you—to make it up to you. Would you like to come and stay with me for a week? Aiden is going away on business.”
She screams on the phone.
“Yes, let’s throw a slumber party,” she yells.
“Then hurry up and get over here. I’m waiting for you,” I laugh.
“Okay, give me ten minutes, and I will be right there,” she screeches with excitement and hangs up on me.
I chuckle while looking at the phone; this is going to be a great week. I’ve missed her.
Ahead of Nancy’s arrival, I use some makeup to cover up the visible bruises. Conveniently, winter is here, so she won’t
ask any questions about why I’m wearing long-sleeved shirts with jeans so much. My goal is for us to have a good time, help me get away from my reality for a little while before I have to go back to it. Go back to trying to figure out a way to get me out of this trap.
“I’m heeerrrreee!”
Hearing her voice, I race out of my bedroom to meet her. When we both see each other, we run to each other with open arms.
“I’m so happy that you are here,” I cry. I take her bag from her, and we walk upstairs so I can show her to her room.
“Me too.” She follows behind me, stopping to peek inside each room that we pass. “I thought the outside of this house was amazing, but it’s nothing compared to the inside.” She steps into a room, standing there in awe, and I grab her hand and pull her along since I know she will stand there forever. “Edith, why didn’t you tell me that you were living it up like this? I could have moved in with you guys.”
I open her bedroom door, which is down the hall from mine. I wanted her to be close to me. “Wouldn’t you like that? You would never leave this house if he let you live here,” I try and tease her.
Pushing the door back, she walks in with her mouth hanging open, looking around the room. I gave her the room that I would have stayed in when I first moved in here. She glides past the dressers, then over to the bed. She walks over to the window and looks at the backyard.
“I get this whole room to myself?”
“Yup.” I toss her bag onto the bed and walk over to look out the window with her.
She gives me a mischievous smile, and I can already see the wheels turning in her head. She’s coming up with ideas of things we can do all week.
“No, I see that look on your face. Whatever you have planned for us this week, that’s crazy. I’m not doing it.” I shake my head while crossing my arms. “This is not my house, technically.”
“Yeah, right, now that you are living with him, he’s pretty much telling you that this is your house, too,” she says, waving her hand around the room. “Give me a tour of this magnificent place.”
Roses Are Red (Edith's Fatal Love Trilogy Book 1) Page 14