Page 97 of Tore Up

She nodded her head once, then turned and walked back toward the stables.

Slingshot nudged my arm, and I turned back to him to give the needy fella my attention.

“I need to go put these things away. Then, I will be right back. It’s almost time for you to get brushed down and fed,” I told him.

He nodded his head, although it was just to get me to keep rubbing him, not because he was agreeing with me. Although he was smart. So, maybe he was agreeing with me.

I gave him one last pat, then placed the items back in my bag and headed toward the right side of the buildings. Bane had his own office here, which he was in very little. We ate lunch in theretogether—among other things. So far, we’d had sex on his desk, the sofa, against the wall, and on the floor. Several times each.

When I reached it, I went inside and put the bag down on the sofa before turning to leave. It was still another hour before he’d seek me out for lunch.

I stepped out of the office and almost ran straight into Adalee.

“Oh!” I said, startled, then smiled.

She wasn’t a fan of mine. Okay, that was putting it nicely. She hated my existence. When Bane was around, she was syrupy sweet to me. When Bane wasn’t around, she had me do things, like shovel out stalls, run to get her supplies from the storage room, make her coffee. I did it all not because she was my boss—because she wasn’t. I had thought I could get her to like me. She was the only thing about coming to the stables that was unpleasant. I was trying to melt the ice around her with kindness.

It wasn’t working.

“Are you seriously in there, resting? And you just left the foal in the round pen? Do I have to do your jobs too? I’ve already got enough of a load on me. If you’re just going to cause me more work, then why don’t you stay home? You can lie around and mooch off Bane all day that way,” she snapped at me angrily. Then pointed toward the stalls. “Now, go get the foal and put him in with his mother! You barely look pregnant. Stop acting like you need special privileges.”

She was in a temper today. I could handle this and her. I’d been raised by Iris. This was nothing new to me.

“Yes, of course,” I replied, knowing there was no reason to tell this woman that I’d had to put away a gift Grissele had brought me and that I was not resting.

She’d then go on a rant about me taking things from the Cashes and how I was manipulating Grissele. I’d heard that one already from her.

It seemed the more I didn’t react to her, the worse she got. As if she wanted me to snap back at her. Tell her no. Tell her to back off or that she wasn’t my boss. I wasn’t giving her that satisfaction. She could see that I was a nice person and get over her jealousy with Bane or keep this up.

Her heels clicked on the hardwood floor as she followed behind me. I guessed she was going to make sure I did as I had been told. Rolling my eyes, I kept going, not looking back at her. Just before I reached the massive arched doorway that led out to the pastures, her hand slammed against my back, causing me to stumble forward. Thankfully, I kept my balance and didn’t fall on my stomach.

“Could you at least try and walk faster?!” she spat out.

I wrapped my arms around my stomach, my heart racing from the physical attack that I had not seen coming. She’d been verbal, but never done something like this. As if she wanted to hurt me.

“I said, MOVE!”

She shoved me again. I hadn’t been prepared for it, and this time, I fell forward. On instinct, my arms shot out, and I caught myself, hitting my knees so that my stomach wasn’t impacted.

“Get u—”

Her harsh words were cut off, and I started to get up in a panic to get some distance from her. Glancing back though, I froze.

Grissele was behind Adalee with a gun pressed against her head. I didn’t move. I wasn’t sure I was breathing.

“MOM!” I heard Bane shout from the parking-lot side of the stables.

I swung my gaze to see where he was and saw him running through the long, wide center of the main building.

“This is what’s going to happen, you nasty bitch,” Grissele said in a cold tone that startled me. It sounded nothing like the woman I had gotten to know. “You are going to get your things.Hand in your keys. Walk out of this place and never fucking return. You will get no last paycheck. If you even think about suing for any reason, I will find you, and you won’t walk away. This is your one and only warning.”

“Jesus Christ, Mom! What the fuck?” Bane asked as he reached us.

He didn’t stop at the two of them, but came to stand in front of me, reaching back to wrap an arm around my body, like he was protecting me. It was sweet and all, but he was a little late. His mother had morphed into a badass and beaten him to it.

“I’m firing this one,” his mother told him.

“Bane,” Adalee whimpered.

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