Chapter nineteen - Roseanne
I kept playing everything Tom said over and over again in my mind. There had to be something I was missing, but I couldn’t figure it out. His words hurt, but I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of curling up in the fetal position and crying myself to sleep. I was no longer going to let anyone hurt me, regardless of their good intentions.
I woke up to the sounds of birds chirping outside my window. If I had a gun, I would have made them run for their lives, screaming in defiance in a language I couldn’t understand. I was feeling like somebody had run me over and then put it in reverse to do it again.
“In a late-breaking development, the owner of the penthouse turned up alive and well. He apparently was no longer residing there and somehow avoided being seriously hurt or even worse. The top floor was the only damage to the building. Regrettably, the remains found after sorting through the debris was apparently a derelict looking for shelter…” I tuned out the rest of the broadcast. Somehow Tom had found a way to sweep it underneath the rug.
I had to grab a pair of slippers, as the floors didn’t have the heat his penthouse did. I thought I heard scratching at my window. I bounded over the bed and looked out, wishing to the heavens above that Tom had come to his senses. The source of my confusion was a stray black cat crossing my path.
There was no collar and his yellow eyes reminded me of the one who had pushed me away. I opened the window and offered him a refuge from the chill in the air. He was a survivor, and we had that in common. I scrounged for some food and found a discarded can of tuna with a layer of dust on the top of the tin can.
The wings of my love were broken, but they were still attached. I thought mistakenly we were the wind beneath each other’s wings. It sounded so stupid, like some kind of fairy-tale romance.
“I don’t know where your owner is, but I am more than capable of taking care of you. I’m a little hesitant–men have a tendency to disappoint me. I have to trust someone, and I may as well begin with baby steps.” I was going to name him Phoenix. He was born from the flames of society and had risen from the ashes of being rejected for one reason or another.
I wasn’t looking for anything to take care of, but this cat had literally fallen into my lap. I couldn’t in good conscience allow him to live in obscurity on the streets begging for whatever scraps he could find from some restaurant looking to get rid of day old food. I was going to dote on him and give him the life he deserved.
He was in pretty sorry shape and needed a bath to get rid of the stench of garbage in his fur. I didn’t have time, but I would pamper him when I returned from work. The very idea of stepping outside the door gave birth to a panic attack. I stifled it and pushed it down deep where it would fester into something else.
“I’m going to take a quick shower and then put this ugliness behind me. I’ve been forged into something stronger than metal. The walls are impenetrable. It will be a cold day in hell when I ever get into a relationship again.” It was nice to have someone to talk to without the possibility of him talking back.
I needed somebody to listen and this animal had come to me when my strength was waning. I considered him my spirit guide here to take the burden off my shoulders. I was going to become confidence in motion, by walking with the stride of somebody who had it all together. It would be a lie. I would wear the mask of strength. I was never going to let him see me sweat the small stuff.
The cat was feral and tried to take a swipe at me, but he was family. He had lived in the wild and didn’t know how to be domesticated. Tom reminded me of the same traits and how he couldn’t be tied down to one woman long enough to make a commitment. He said the sweetest things, but he couldn’t back it up.
“I’m going to make the best out of a bad situation. The money is too hard to pass up without having something else to go to.” I was seriously considering utilizing my mechanical engineering degree for the competitor.
I had a few interesting ideas to take the automotive industry in a new direction. I was going to mention them to Tom, but I didn’t want to do anything to make him richer than he already was.
“I’m going to leave you here to adjust to your new surroundings.” I felt like I was getting rid of one stray and replacing it with another. Tom was never down on his luck, but he was never whole until I came into his life.
He didn’t have to believe it. I believed it enough for the both of us. He needed a female influence to bring him into the next generation kicking and screaming. We were going to fight like cats and dogs trying to be civilized with one another. I decided sticking around was only going to cause me more harm than good.
I sat down at my laptop and typed my resignation. It was short and sweet. I was going to inform him of my decision when I got into the office. I was hoping to see a crack of disappointment in his eyes. It was wishful thinking, but maybe having the benefit of surprise on my side would make it easier to see what he was trying to hide from me.
I readied my verbal arsenal for a one-on-one meeting of the minds while in the shower. I was dead set on making him see he was making the biggest mistake of his life. The hot water only infuriated me further, and my temper boiled until I was looking for somebody to lash out at. I knew the perfect person.
I put on my armor, consisting of the same purple leather skirt that had made him stand up and take notice. I neglected to wear a bra, putting the girls on high beams. They were my secret weapon. I made a slight alteration to the leather skirt. There was now a profound slice up the side, practically giving away the milk and the cookies.
I only had to move a certain way to give him a bird’s eye view of what he was going to be missing. I decided on the new black leather jacket I had bought last night. It was an impulse buy, having my heart played like a banjo had made it necessary to splurge a little.
It fit me like a glove. It felt decadent to be walking without any underwear to impede my body from moving in a seductive manner. I felt liberated and free to speak my mind without a filter.
I had my hands in my pockets to ward off the inclement weather. My face was accosted by the chill breeze freezing my breath. The cold was a nice touch to make my nipples pebble hard.
I was about to storm the castle. I wasn’t in any mood to take prisoners. He was going to hear me whether he wanted to or not. Each step fortified my resolution to capture him while he had his pants down. I took the elevator, tapping my foot and waiting impatiently for it to open on a new chapter in my life.
I found Mrs. Wilson waiting for me. This was not the day to get in my face about some petty thing that didn’t mean anything. If she thought I was good for the company, then she wasn’t doing a good job of showing it. I could only assume what Tom had said was another one of his lies.
“I hope you have a good reason…” I brushed past her like I was a football player trying to avoid being tackled at the ten-yard line.
“I know he’s in and I want to see him. You are finally going to get what you wanted, from the moment I started here. I’m going to leave a very big set of shoes to fill in my absence.” She was bitter and hardcore, but she had nothing to say in the face of my imminent departure from the company.
I was almost chomping at the bit, waiting to see the expression on his face when he read the letter word for word.
I was stopped by a hand that came out of a doorway. I was pulled into an office, where I was faced with Logan. I tried to pull free, but he was not about to let me go until he made me hear what he had to say.
“Tom came in looking for a fight this morning. I didn’t have to ask him what happened to know the truth. Word has spread quickly of the Alpha’s demise. Do you have any idea what kind of vacuum has been left behind?”
I shrugged my shoulders not really caring and looking toward the door for a quick and hasty exit. “I don’t want to hear it.” There was no way I was going to back down from getting the last word.
He paced back and forth, his custom-made shoes wearing a hole in the carpet. He stopped and looked at me with his mouth open. I could tell he was afraid of what was going to come out.
“It’s not my place to say this, but he’s not going to. The vacuum has always been filled by the person responsible for vanquishing the previous Alpha. Tom’s position has risen to where he’s looking down at the little people. I have no doubt he said some despicable things, but you have to know he was doing it to keep you from being put underneath a microscope.” He had my undivided attention.
“He could have told me, and we would have been able to deal with it together.” I still felt his words like a boxer leveling an opponent until he was lying on the mat looking at the ceiling.
“If he didn’t care for you and love you with all of his heart then he would have gladly put you to the test by making you stand up to the shifter community. He wants you to be happy and thinks letting you go is the answer. I want you to storm in there and make him see that the two of you are stronger together than apart.”
His white shirt was soaked through with perspiration. He was no doubt wringing his hands with worry about how the Alpha’s death was going to affect the life of every shifter. Tom would be temporarily paralyzed from losing my love, leaving the door wide open for somebody to take the power out of his hands, dead or alive.