Page 58 of Broken Halo

My ass. He should’ve told me the moment he found out. Someone should’ve told me. I’m not stupid enough to think the court system would, but I deserve to know.

I’ve had it. Trig has done nothing but put me into a tailspin of emotions and now I find out he’s hiding something from me? Hiding this from me?

No fucking way. Not anymore.

I pull my hand from Jen’s, push between them, and grab my bag on my way out the door.

“Wait, where are you going?” Jen runs after me, but I’m faster. I’ve always been faster than her. A ballerina might be dainty and lithe, but my body can stand up to any athlete. Cam was a wide receiver and I could almost keep up with him.

The fact I’m wearing flip flops to her four-inch heels doesn’t hurt, either.

“Ellie!” she calls after me but I don’t answer. I push through the front door and I’m halfway to my car when I hear her say to Eli, “Dammit, my keys are in your office.”

I’ve had it. Trig Barrett is going to come clean about everything. I don’t care if I have to drag it out of him. His hot-and-cold bullshit is bad enough, keeping shit like this from me is not going to happen.

Not anymore.

* * *

Trig

“I’m sorry your schedule is tight tomorrow morning. Your meetings are across town from each other, but it was the only time he had until late next week and I know you want to get the terms settled as soon as possible.”

“It won’t be a problem.” I look from my laptop to Jessica. She’s been with MI for more than ten years and worked under Patrick, the previous lead counsel, the entire time. She’s had an adjustment since he was killed mere months ago. I have no problem keeping my own schedule and she helps with that. She’s smart, efficient, and is way more than an administrative assistant—she’s also a paralegal. What she’s really good at is research and knowing the process. “Can you email me the financials and assets for the last year on the Corpus refinery? And is Ellie’s court hearing on the calendar? I want mid-morning through close of business blocked for that.”

“I blocked your entire day just in case.” Jessica doesn’t look up as she taps away on her tablet. “Just sent you the financials. I have the research on the—”

“Trig.” I look up and Jessica turns at the same time, both of us surprised by the intruder standing in my doorway. Her normally warm blue eyes are so sharp they could cut through something. By the way she’s glaring at me, my guess is she’d prefer that something to be my throat. Her face is flushed and her long, blond hair is pulled into a lazy, low knot at the back of her head with unruly strands kissing her face. She doesn’t give Jessica a glance and her words are just as cutting as her eyes. “I need to speak to you. Privately. Now.”

Jessica gets up and takes her things with her. “I think I know what research you’re talking about. I’ll organize and send it to your inbox. Can I get you something to drink, Ellie?”

Ellie’s frame is rigid and her small chest rises and falls with violent breaths. I’m familiar enough with her body to know she’s either just orgasmed or she’s trying to control her rage. Since she looks nothing but pissed, I’d put all my money and my retirement fund on the latter. Standing there in a long dress that matches my eyes more than hers, she’s not wearing a lick of makeup and looks almost as young as the first time I saw her.

Fuck. I’ll never forget that day even though it feels like another lifetime.

“No, thank you.” Ellie’s voice breaks as she shifts to make room for Jessica to leave. As opposed to yesterday when I swore she was uncomfortable being shut up in my office alone with me, today she has no issue because she doesn’t just shut the door, she slams it.

I start to move around my desk, but she tosses her bag to the floor, holds up a hand, and stalks to me. “How long have you known?”

I close the rest of the distance between us until I’ve gotten close enough to touch her, because I have a feeling, I know what this is about. There’s more than a decent possibility she’s going to scream the building down. Damn Pettit. He didn’t give me the full twenty-four hours like he said he would.

I narrow my eyes. “Known what, angel?”

“Holy shit. Are we doing this again?” Her voice hitches and her shoulders drop as if they’ve given up the fight. “You hate me, you don’t hate me, you insist on representing me, you use your mother to bait me, but you don’t tell me things,” she pauses and brings her hands up, threading her fingers through her hair as her tears form, “things I deserve to know.”

“Last night…” I take a deep breath and move closer, but she moves back in turn. I shake my head and start over. “I don’t hate you. Last night was good. We were able to be around each other without fighting. I didn’t want that to end and I didn’t want you to leave. I was going to come to you tonight, make you sit and listen to me.”

Her wounded eyes search mine as her arms fall to her sides. “So, it’s true? He’s out and he’s coming back here?”

I pull my hand through my hair, if for no other reason I need something to do with it. The craving to touch her, comfort her—hell, erase the last fucking decade—is so unbearable, it tears me apart.

“Answer me,” she demands, her bright eyes becoming cloudy and glassing over.

Fuck it.

I reach for her, grabbing her by the hips, and move her until her ass hits my desk. Bringing my hands up, I cup her face and tip it to mine. A lonely tear escapes and I swipe it away with my thumb, gone just as fast as it appeared. As much as I want to lie or make excuses, I can’t. She deserves the truth. “Yes, he’s out. And, from what I know, he’s on his way back to North Texas. I should know more soon. Maybe today.”

She grips my wrists but surprises me when she doesn’t push me away. She hangs on, like her life depends on it. Shaking her head in my hands, her tears start to spill. There are too many to make disappear.

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