Page 51 of Battle with a Billionaire

“No.”

“Thank you. So, maybe you can call him back and tell him that because he won’t listen to me.”

“Okay, I’m going to call him back and tell him you’re not dead in a ditch somewhere and to tell you when he’s going out.”

“Don’t make fun,” Ally said.

“I’m not.”

“You are so. You’d understand this if you were married.”

The words slapped her. She was married. Sort of. She shook her head at the statement. “Sorry, you’re right. Anyway, I am going to call him back and let him know you’re okay.”

Alicia groaned. “I guess I can call him. I’m being stupid.”

“You’re not, but I think it would be best if you called. Maybe you can work something out.”

“Yeah, right. Wishful thinking. But I’ll give it a try.”

“Good luck, sis.”

“Thanks.”

They said their goodbyes and hung up the phone. Julia leaned back in her chair and blew out a long breath. Too many things were going wrong lately. Her life was getting harder and harder to juggle.

Her ringing phone startled her. She expected another call from Ethan or Alicia, but instead, Kyle’s name filled her screen. “Hello, Kyle.”

“You can’t ignore me, Julia,” he answered.

“I’m not ignoring you. My brother-in-law called, then my sister.”

“The ones who still don’t know you’re married.”

Tension built at her temples at the words. “Yes, those ones. My only sister and brother-in-law.”

“Well, anyway, what’s going on with the DG investigation?”

She sucked in a breath, wondering if she should take him along. The crackle of the hospital’s paging system sounded through the speaker.

“Are you at work?”

“I don’t like that you’re not answering,” he said. “Yes, I’m at work.”

“Shouldn’t you be checking on patients instead of calling me?”

“I’m between patients.”

“Right. This is why it takes so long in the emergency room. Because doctors keep calling people to chat.”

“Julia, you’re the one who didn’t answer your texts.”

“I’m sorry, I have a family and a company to run.”

“And now you have two minutes to tell me what’s happening. I don’t like that you keep avoiding that.”

Julia pressed her lips together. If he was at the hospital now, he’d probably work through the meeting. She’d be on her own. There was no way she was going to tell him she was going to a secret DG meeting alone. “Nothing yet. Sorry. Maybe it’s a false alarm.”

He hesitated for a moment before he answered. “Well, keep me informed. If you hear anything, let me know. I’m on until eleven, so I’ll be up.”

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