Page 49 of Doctor Bossy

“I feel much better,” I assured him. “And resting for so long will actually rot my brain. I was getting bored out of my mind doing it.”

“Still,” he grunted, then flipped a few more pages and signed off on a few more things before he asked, “What were you and Marco talking about?”

I was sure he tried to ask that in the most casual tone he could manage, but it still came out with just a hint of a growl. I nearly smiled but didn’t think he would appreciate that.

“Work stuff,” I said. “We’re coworkers remember?”

“I didn’t know our work was so funny that you would laugh so much.”

I shrugged. “He asked me how I was feeling, then he made a joke, and I laughed. That’s it. And if you really want to keep this relationship of ours a secret, you might want to work on this jealousy thing of yours.”

“I’m not jealous of thatboy," he bit out a bit too quickly, glaring indignantly.

I smiled. “Okay.” Truth be told, I didn’t mind his jealousy so much. Griffin seemed like a man who was assured in many aspects of his life, and to have him be jealous of me was…cute. And also somehow validating.

But I didn’t want to patronize him too much. He was my boss, after all.

“I’ll come to see you tonight,” he said, and I caught my breath a little. I knew exactly what it meant. Tonight would likely be the official start of our arrangement. Anticipation traveled through my spine, and I nearly trembled.God, I couldn’t wait.I tried not to show my eagerness as we held eye contact for a few minutes before I nodded.

The high from that single moment lasted throughout the work day and carried me all the way home on a cloud, overpowering the caution I felt this morning. It wasn’t until I reached my doorstep that I realized something was wrong.

My lock was broken.

Soul-crushing dread rushed through me as I pushed open the door, feeling my stomach drop at the sight of what met me—strewn furniture, smashed plates, shattered glass.

Someone had broken into my home.

22

GRIFFIN

Iwas reviewing the spreadsheets for the latest test results when my phone rang.

Initially, I thought it might be James. He hadn’t spoken to me since our last confrontation, but he should be running low on cash right about now. Unfortunately, even though my son made a decent salary at his teaching job, he spent way above his means, and no amount of talking on my end seemed to be able to curb it. I always eventually relented as I did with everything concerning James because I figured at least one of us should be spending the immense fortune I had amassed over the years.

But it seemed my concession made him entitled and wasteful, to say the least. I needed to at least put a limit on his spending and adhere to it, no matter what Heather would have said about it.

“Are you out of money again?” I asked, picking up the phone without looking at the caller ID.

“Griffin.” Rather than my son’s voice, it was Becca’s panicked tone that came through.

Every cell in my body immediately went on high alert. I hadn’t heard her sound that frantic before. “Becca. What’s going on?”

“Griff, I’m sorry to bother you, but…I didn’t know who else to call. Kayley isn’t picking up, and the police are still on their way, and I’m scared….”

She needn’t have said that. The fear was palpable in her voice, and it made me want to rage at something.

“Calm down,” I told her, using the voice that the officers had often used with new cadets when they were scared shitless during training. “Start from the beginning. What’s going on?”

I heard her take an audibly deep breath, but her voice was still distraught when she proceeded to talk. “Okay, so…I came home today, and…well before that, it actually started this morning. I don’t know what it was exactly. I just felt like…someone was watching me or following me, or I dunno. Then again, I could have just been paranoid. I mean, who would be watching me, for God’s sake? It’s not like I’m someone important, and I don’t have any money hidden somewhere or even much to spare. I swear to God, Griff, I don’t. Anyway, my house got broken into, and what little I did have, they destroyed it all. They broke the TV, Griff.” I heard her voice crack. “It took me six months to save up for that TV. I’ve had it since freshman year, and I had to scrimp and save every penny of my tips to get it. It had HBO on it. And now it’s gone.”

“Becca—”

“And my couch…it’s all torn up. That was nearly a thousand dollars on the couch. I knew it was a lot of money at the time, but Kayley needed to sleep on it for a few months while she got her business in order, and I wanted to get something comfortable for her. And they ruined it! They broke it clean in half, and I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

“Becca, where are you right now?” I asked. She was nearing hysteria, and I figured I wasn’t going to get the story out of her when she was in that state, so I figured I might as well get the most important questions answered. “Are you safe?”

“Yeah.” She hiccuped, and I knew she was close to tears. “I’m at my neighbor’s house, waiting for the police.”

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