Page 88 of Not As Advertised

“What decision?” This was all news to me. Abbie wasn’t in the office? Then where was she?

Jack gave me a curious look. “There’s no way she can return as your EA.” Jack held up his hand, knowing that I would be pissed that they’d thought to fire her. “I didn’t suggest she leave or that she firing was on the table, so calm down. But I will need to figure out the best way to manage the situation with her input upon her return. She didn’t tell you?”

I shook my head no.

That news hit me harder than my own consequences. After witnessing how hard it had been for Abbie to deal with her family issues at the fundraiser, I understood why she was so fiercely determined to make it on her own. I hated the idea that she was in some sort of professional limbo where she had to worry about money more than she already did.

“Listen, Aiden, I don’t like to speculate on the personal lives of my employees. But if you want the perspective of a man who’s been damn lucky to be married to a very tolerant woman for forty-two years, that young woman loves you very much. She didn’t say a single word that could harm you when Linda and I met with her. It could have been a very different type of meeting, and I still believe she would have done what she could to protect you. That type of selflessness doesn’t come around more than once or twice in a lifetime. Don’t you dare waste it.”

Reeling from the revelations of everything I’d missed while away, I stood numbly and shook Jack’s hand, leaving his office with a quiet “Thank you. Let me know the next steps with the board.”

I didn’t think I could feel worse than when I’d arrived home to my empty house. Missing Abbie was a physical pain at this point. But after hearing she’d been put through the wringer with Jack and Linda, the ache in my chest was building brick by brick, threatening to wall me in.

I’d been naïve to think they wouldn’t meet with her too about the situation. I’d mistakenly thought that Jack would wait until I was back in the office to pursue the problem.

As I checked my phone yet again, there were still no notifications. Abbie was either ignoring my messages or not in the state to reply to me. I would be running through worst-case scenarios unless I found out where she was.

Before I headed to Abbie’s apartment to plead with her to hear me out, there was one person who could help me: Indigo Layne. I’d bet all my money that Indigo knew everything about this. The only question was how generous she was feeling.

Upon arriving back on the main floor, I rounded the corner to face the reception desk, where my second dressing-down of the day awaited me.

Indigo looked up from her computer. No hint of shock was visible on her features.

Interesting, so she knew I was coming back today. But of course she did. She had access to our security passes, after all.

Her arms crossed as if to dare me to lay my grievances at her feet. I was sure she would stomp them out with great pleasure.

Once I was within hearing distance, one of her eyebrows rose in a “Really? We’re about to do this here?” kind of expression. That was an impressive trick. Her take-no-shit attitude probably kept most unwanted attention at bay, but I was on a mission for answers this morning. Indigo wasn’t going to stand in the way of that.

“Hey there, Daddy Aiden.”

That nickname had me stopping abruptly and rocking back onto my heels as if I’d been struck. She had achieved whatI thought was impossible in my current frame of mind: she’d shocked the shit out of me.

“Excuse me?”

“Oh, Abbie didn’t tell you about my little nickname for you? Can’t imagine why, DA. It fits, don’t you think? You know, with your advanced age and all?”

Fuck. The attitude of this young woman. It was like getting blood from a stone.

“Jesus Christ, Indie. Can we just be serious for a minute? Where is she?”

She looked at me impassively.

“Pardon me, Indie. Jack told me Abbie took vacation time.” I injected as much sarcasm into my enunciation of her name as I could. “Is she at her apartment?”

“Are we talking about my best friend, Abbie? The person you left standing alone in your living room in the middle of the night? Or the Abbie you broke up with her over the fucking phone? Wait! Those two Abbies are the same person.”

My jaw clenched so hard I was surprised I didn’t hear my molars cracking under the pressure. Fuck, I felt bad enough about the way I’d handled everything already. Now here was Indie, applying excruciating pressure to the already gaping wound.

Any other day, I’d give her credit for being such a good friend. Today, I was on the receiving end of her wrath, and it was keeping me the fuck away from my girl.

I took a deep breath to calm the raging inferno of impatience within me. The superior look on Indie’s face said she knew exactly what she was doing and was enjoying my pain immensely.

“Yes,” I ground out. Okay, not the calm and collected tone I was going for. “I just want to talk to her. I know I need to apologize, but I can’t do it if I can’t find her!”

Indie chose that moment to sit back down primly in her chair and turn to face her computer. She didn’t look at me as she spoke.

“Well, that’s too bad. I’m sure you would like to apologize for all your fuckups. But I don’t have any interest in making things easier foryou. So no, I don’t think I’ll be telling you anything. Have a great day,Mr. Sullivan.”

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