Page 482 of Savage Bosses

Yeah man, she stood back and laughed as he and his friends jumped me. After they beat my ass, they took my shirt and pants. I tried to walk, but it hurt so badly that I collapsed. One teacher found me and took me to the hospital. They contacted my mother. Her treatment that day had been the worse, but she made her way to the hospital. I had a broken jaw, two broken ribs and damage to my eye socket. It hurt me to see my mother crying. I told her to go home and rest. I told her I would be okay, but she stayed with me in the hospital in an uncomfortable chair. When I woke up in the morning, she was still sitting in the chair, but she was so still. I thought that she looked so peaceful sleeping there. I called out to her, but she didn’t move. As I tried to stand, I called her again. Finally, I stood over her and touched her face. It was so soft, but I knew something wasn’t right. I shook her softly and her hands fell to her side. I yelled for help and the nurse ran in. She checked my mother’s pulse, and she was gone.”

“Wow, man, I’m so sorry. That’s fucked up.” He looked at Stephen. “Why haven’t you told me this story before?” Caleb was stunned by Stephen’s revelation.

“Because I buried all that shit deep inside. It all came to the surface when I saw her again.”

“Why haven’t you confronted her about that?”

“Because I don’t know if I can without losing my shit.”

“Stephen, you have to talk to her about it. She needs to know the damage she caused.”

“I will after we finish the project we are working on.”

“Fuck that project man, your mental health is more important. This woman has you rattled, and you need to deal with that shit.”

Stephen nodded. He knew Caleb was right. “You’re right, I will talk to her tomorrow after work.”

Chapter Seven

“W

here are we on the marketing strategy?” Stephen asked, his tone icy.

“Right here,” Deja replied, pointing to the document on the screen. “But we still need to finalize the budget and timeline.”

“Of course,” he said, his words dripping with sarcasm. “You think you can handle that?”

“Excuse me?” Deja spat, her hands balling into fists at her sides as she turned to face him. “I've been working my ass off on this project, while all you do is criticize and belittle me!”

Stephen shot back, his blue eyes blazing with contempt.

“Okay, that’s it!” Deja shouted, slamming her hands on the desk. “I can't take this anymore! If you want this project finish, I suggest you stop riding my ass and let me finish!”

Jeff and Angie looked at each other.

“I think your tone is inappro…,” Angie started, but was cut off by Deja.

“Angie, you don’t really know me, and I suggest you choose your words wisely, because I’m not for the bullshit, not today.” Deja said as she glared at Angie. Deja could see the surprised look on Angie’s face as she looked at Stephen for help.

“Now, if we can get back to work, we can finish this project.” Deja said in a softer tone as she sat back in her seat.

“Fine,” Stephen said through gritted teeth.

Deja took a deep breath and lowered her tone. “Look Stephen, I've been doing twice the work to make up for your constant interference. We're in this together, whether you like it or not!” The room fell silent, the tension between them thick enough to cut with a knife.

They stared each other down, neither willing to back down from their stance.

“Fine,” he finally said. “Let's just get this done.”

They returned to their work, but Deja knew that the battle between them was far from over. They had been working for five hours straight when Caleb walked in.

“It’s time for a break,” he said as a catering company brought lunch in for them. Deja stared at the glaring screen of her laptop, the cursor blinking mockingly at her. She rubbed her temples, trying to focus on the task at hand despite the tense atmosphere.

“That’s enough for now, Deja. Come get something to eat. You’re no good to us if you faint from lack of nourishment,” Caleb said with a smirk.

Stephen sat in the only chair farthest from Deja. His stony gaze fixed on his own laptop screen.

Deja looked up at the food, and Jeff and Angie were already eating. She walked over and grabbed a Cobb salad and water. “Thank you, Caleb.”

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