Page 15 of The Monster I Loved
Thaddeus stood. “Ashley, it was nice meeting you. I don’t want to ruin your beautiful dinner, so I’ll go.”
Shit. The great state of New York actually taught the man some decency after all.
“No.” Henry looked at me with the most uncaring expression I’d ever seen. “This is your welcome-home dinner. Summer, I’m sorry for the confusion. If you want to stay, then okay, but if you feel uncomfortable, please go. I’m not letting Thad leave his own party.”
“Henry.” Ashley shot her husband a questioning glare.
I wasn’t wanted here. I stood.
“She doesn’t have to go. I’m totally fine with her staying; it’s no big deal to me,” Thaddeus said without looking at me.
My cheeks flamed.How fucking gracious of you!What was he saying? I couldn’t handle this? Did Thaddeus think he was better than me? Fuck that.
I slammed back down into my chair. An internal struggle raged through me. “Eating a meal with my dad’s murderer is no big deal. I used to sleep with him, after all.” I hoped the words sounded as nonchalant as I intended them to.
The tension in the room was so thick one could choke on it, but I wasn’t about to leave.No, I won’t give you the satisfaction of seeing me run.
When he killed my dad, he settled a sick score that no man with a heart would even keep count of.
But I understood Thaddeus’s game now. He enjoyed the power he held over me. He wanted me to squirm, to be uncomfortable.Meanwhile, he’s a murderer getting a celebration dinner.
I’d stick out this ridiculous evening. It would only be a handful of hours at best, and if I got to wound his ego by showing how unbothered I was, then that was a win for me. Since, you know, we were keeping score of adding to each other’s misery.
Thaddeus
The night was unbearable.Summer sat at the far end of the table, squeezing her napkin for dear life, trying to pretend my presence wasn’t impacting her. It wasn’t a successful performance, and every time I spoke, or God forbid, laughed, her body tensed. Me, sitting this close, enjoying my own fucking party was infuriating to her. I must admit, I laughed a bit more often because of that.
I kept catching Daisy’s eye. The last time I saw her before the sentencing, I’d thanked Summer’s best friend for the phone call and promised never to reveal the tip that led me to Clive.
I hadn’t expected the two of them to still be friends.
Now that I think about it, that little spy Daisy might come in handy again. Maybe she could help memanageSummer during our little historical project. I’d get her number from Henry.
“So, Thaddeus, what are you doing at Fitzgerald?” a strange voice asked from across the table, probably desperate to get the guys and women to have the same conversation for once tonight.
I noted her jet-black hair and distinct green eyes. We were strangers, and I’d earned a scary reputation as a murderer, yet this woman still boldly stared over at me, tapping her fingers on the table as she waited for my response. She wore a simple black dress, which hugged her curvaceous body closely. Damn, I’d been out for two days and still hadn’t had sex. That foolishness needed to be remedied as soon as possible.
“That’s Mimi, well Melissa,” Henry announced with a smile. “Ashley’s best friend.”
Grateful to him for providing background information, I nodded, remembering her question about plans at Fitzgerald. “Ireceived an assignment for a project to save some old people from dying in a building about to fall any day now.”
“That sounds easy,” Melissa said lightly.
Felix looked around. “Since when does Fitzgerald do charity?”
I cleared my throat. “We don’t. Once the building is gone, we’ll do what we do best,” I said, knowing that Summer wouldn’t be able to help herself.
She lowered her wineglass, took a deep breath, and then did exactly what I expected her to do. “There are so many employees at that company. People with far more experience than you, given where you’ve been the last ten years. Why did your father give you that assignment?”
The table fell silent again; this time everyone was probably surprised she was addressing me directly. I shrugged.
Summer continued, “Those people have lived there all their lives. The building just needs a bit of work. If something doesn’t work, you fix it, you don’t tear it apart.” Her voice gained an edge to it, subtle enough that you could miss it if she weren’t gripping her wineglass like she was the Hulk. Something was simmering inside her.
Daisy shook her head. “Wait, don’t tell me you two are working on the same project.”
“Seems that way,” I muttered and winked at her. She wanted to claw my eyes out. I could tell.
Summer rolled her eyes. “We won’t be taking this lying down.”
