Page 103 of The Roommate

He swept his eyes across the parking lot. “What? Where did you get a car?”

“Well, it’s kind of a funny story . . .”

chapter thirty-seven

JOSH TOOK THE news of her spontaneous road trip with remarkable aplomb, all things considered.

“Do I love that you ran back to that dude the first chance you got? No.” Josh broke into a grin. “But at the same time, I love the visual of you demanding that chump’s keys to make a beeline back to me.”

Butterflies beat their wings inside Clara’s stomach. She’d gone from one emotional roller coaster to the next, and now Toni wanted to see her?

Josh squeezed her hand as they stood outside Jill’s office. “What’s going on in that beautiful brain?”

“I’m a little nervous.” A lot nervous. “I had all that adrenaline pumping in my veins back at the studio, lots of endorphins, but now I have to face the consequences of my actions.”

“Do you regret it?” His voice came out unnaturally neutral.

“Absolutely not. If other people don’t like it, they can take a hike.”

Josh shook his head. “We gotta get you a millennial phrase book or something. Phrases like that are why telemarketers are always trying to sell you osteoporosis medication.”

He hesitated when they reached Jill’s door. “Maybe I should wait out here.”

Clara pressed her lips to his cheek. “Please come with me. Whatever happens. I’d like to introduce you to my aunt.”

He squared his jaw. “Lead the way.”

“Good morning,” Clara said, taking Josh’s hand as they walked into the conference room where Jill and the DA waited. “I apologize for keeping you waiting.”

“That’s not a problem.” Toni Granger rose to her impressive height. “I understand you probably weren’t expecting to hear from me.”

The DA turned to Josh. “Nice to see you again, Josh.”

Clara took an involuntary step backward.

Josh stared at the ceiling with his hands crossed behind his back. Goose bumps erupted across Clara’s skin.

“You can imagine my surprise,” Toni said, “when I stepped out on my front porch this morning to collect the paper and found this vaguely familiar young man on my doorstep.”

Toni put a hand on Josh’s shoulder. “When I asked him what exactly he thought he was doing, he told me that he had some valuable information to share with me. Information relevant to my campaign. He handed me a thumb drive and graciously said he would wait outside in case I had any questions.”

Clara shot Josh a look that said, What the hell? He had some serious explaining to do.

“Now I will admit my first instinct was to kick his ass for trespassing on private property, but something in his eyes made me decide to listen to him.”

Josh threw up his hands. “I want to clarify that the situation was urgent. I didn’t want to waste valuable time waiting for your office to open. You should make it harder to find your address on the Internet if you don’t want to receive visits from concerned constituents.”

“I’m glad you found me,” the DA said before holding out a small drive to Clara. “Josh has collected a huge amount of incriminating information on the Black Hat corporation and H. D. Pruitt.”

Josh stepped directly into Clara’s slightly blurry vision. “I’ve been gathering a bunch of emails and text messages documenting Black Hat’s shady behavior for a few weeks now. The cast and crew found out what I was up to—I’m not exactly known for my stealth, as you know—and they volunteered stories of their own. Toni says we’ve got evidence of almost thirty violations of labor and employment laws. Stu even uncovered production footage we can use in court.”

“What?” Clara’s mind raced in a thousand directions. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I wasn’t sure if I could go through with it, and I knew if I told you I would have to. I needed a reason that was bigger than my fear. As soon as you left, I knew I had one.”

The DA smiled through closed lips. “He also volunteered to serve my office as a witness on behalf of the adult entertainment industry. He said he thought if he aligned himself with my efforts, it would help the community see that I wasn’t—what were the exact words you used?”

Josh blushed. “Just another asshole politician using sex workers as a soapbox.”

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