Chapter 3

 

 

Freddie handed off her remaining projects to the others in the marketing team, packed up her desk, and when she left for the day, felt thankful she would not be working under Zach. He spent most of the afternoon eyeing her from his office through the glass walls. He made her skin crawl. He left his office the same time she slipped out of her cubicle, but thankfully, she caught an elevator before he reached her.

That evening, she ignored the wine in her fridge, having had enough the night before, and settled on a simple dinner of leftover pizza and a bottle of water. Tomorrow would be her first day as Rhett Macon’s assistant, and every time she remembered their conversation from that morning, her cheeks warmed and toes curled.

When she went off on him about Mack, she’d expected him to tell her to pack her bags and get out, not give her the damn job. She would take it as a sign that these new bosses might not be so bad after all. Zach was one man she was glad she wouldn’t be working under anymore. The glint in his eyes unnerved her and sent chills down her spine. The more she thought about it, the more she realized Mack had looked at her like that on occasion. Her cell buzzed again and she rolled her eyes, not even bothering to check it. All day, the same number. If Mack thought he could win her back, he had another thing coming. No man cheated on her and stepped back into her life like it never happened.

Sleep abandoned her that night, but Freddie was determined to appear wide awake and ready to start her new job as Rhett’s assistant, no matter how much coffee she had to down to do so.

“Good morning, Freddie,” he greeted her brightly when she’d reached her new desk.

“Morning, sir.”

His smile was a little cocky, and she arched a brow at him. “Rhett, please.”

“Did you bring my things over?” she asked, motioning to the box on the desk and the other on the floor nearby.

“I did. I didn’t want you wasting all day getting set up. I have quite a list for you.”

“Oh, goodie,” she replied, grinning, and set her purse down.

“Nice to see you looking better,” he added when he passed her, moving towards the breakroom.

She smoothed her hands self-consciously down her wine-colored pencil skirt and black blouse. “Thanks, I think. Does my makeup suit you better, too?” she quipped, remembering his comment from the day before.

He leaned closer, and the heavy scent of his cologne surrounded her. Her heart fluttered in her chest as that smug grin grew even wider—as if he thought by the end of the week, he’d have her eating out of his hand. Just because she broke up with her boyfriend did not mean she would fall over swooning into his arms, no matter how good he smelled, or how sexy that crooked, cocky grin of his was.

“You are an exceptional beauty,” he said softly. “Coffee?”

“Really, I can get it,” she breathed. His presence was overwhelming, and suddenly, sitting down seemed like a good idea. She plopped into her chair and he let out a quiet chuckle. Smug moron, she thought to herself. “I mean, I should get it. I’m your assistant.”

“First day, so I’ll give you a break. How do you take it?”

“Black, if you please.”

“A woman who likes her coffee tasting like coffee. I like it. Be back in a few.”

She swore he had a swagger when he walked—a real swagger—and that he did it on purpose. She was helpless not to watch him move through the office like he owned the place. He does own it, remember? And he can make your life very difficult if you don’t put your foot down fast.

Freddie unpacked her boxes, whispering warnings to herself under her breath about not letting him get to her. After Mack, she needed to focus on her job and remember what was important. Falling into any kind of relationship with another man, never mind one as full of himself as Rhett, was by no means a good idea.

A steaming cup of coffee was set on her desk, and she lifted her head to look at Rhett. “Ready to get this day started?”

“Whenever you are, Rhett.”

She picked up her coffee and followed him into his office. She half expected him to flirt and get no actual work completed for the day. Freddie was pleasantly surprised by his urgency to begin changes within the company. She made a list as he spoke, and when she chimed in with a suggestion or opinion about how best to implement a change to the accounting system, or an overhaul in marketing, he was keen to listen. Several times, he asked what she would do if she was in his shoes. The first few hours together went by in a blur, but she was thankful to have so much to do.

For the next few days, she would be swamped, but that meant no time to think about Mack and what she’d witnessed a few days earlier. The only person that mattered in her life now was Clarice, and this new job was their ticket to easing their financial strain.

Freddie was back at her desk after lunch, eating and typing memos that would be sent out over the course of the month as each new change came into play. All of them were good, and she smiled with pride knowing in this position she was able to help her fellow co-workers with these changes. A shadow fell over her desk.

“Give me one second,” she told the person as she finished the last few lines of typing, her nails clicking across the keys. “There, finished. What can I do for you?” She forced her smile to stay on her face when she realized Zach was standing at the side of her desk and not Rhett as she’d hoped.

“Nothing,” he assured her, his grin nothing like the cocky one steadily growing on Freddie. “I wanted to stop by and see if you were enjoying your new position.”

“I think it suits me,” she told him brightly.

“Too bad. I was sad to see you leave my department.”

She shrugged, leaning back in her chair and wishing her phone would ring or a message would pop up on her computer. “Marketing was never really my thing, but it was the job I was offered so I took it. I needed the money—that type of situation.”

He sat on the corner of her desk, invading her personal space, and Freddie’s smile fell. She crossed her arms over her chest and maneuvered her chair away from the desk to widen the space between their bodies. Zach was not a small man, and he towered over her. From the smile that was almost a leer on his face, he knew it and enjoyed it far too much.

“I have plenty of money,” he told her, holding the lapels of his perfectly tailored jacket and flashing cufflinks that had to worth a pretty penny. “You should let me treat you one night. A young woman like you works too hard. You need a night of fun.”

Freddie groaned inwardly as his eyes fell to her cleavage and her legs crossed in a tight skirt. “Thanks, but no thanks.”

He clenched his jaw and raised a hand as if to touch her hair, but someone cleared his throat behind Zach and his hand dropped to his lap. He glanced over his shoulder, and Freddie sighed in relief at Rhett glaring openly at Zach.

“You’re not bothering my assistant, are you, Zach?” Rhett asked lightly, but the strained muscles in his neck said he was far from teasing.

“Of course not. I simply wanted to know if she had plans for dinner.”

“I do,” Freddie quipped louder than she meant to. “I was explaining to him that I have so much work to do I couldn’t possibly make it to dinner.”

“See, she’s too busy,” Rhett emphasized. “Aren’t you meeting with Jeremy soon?”

“Yes, I am. Thanks for the reminder.”

Freddie sat perfectly still as Zach slid off her desk and sauntered away. Rhett stared him down and something clearly passed between the two men, but then Zach was gone and she pulled herself back to her desk.

“Thanks,” she told Rhett.

“Do you really have too much work to go home tonight?” he asked worriedly as he approached.

“Oh, no, not at all. And trust me, right now, the more work the better.”

“Keeping your mind off things?” He arched his brow and smiled.

“Something like that.” He nodded and reached the door to his office when Freddie stopped him. “Is he always like that? With the female employees, I mean?”

Rhett shifted on his feet, tapping the files in his hands on the palm of his other. “Zach thinks he is God’s gift to this world and that all women should fawn over him without question.”

“I see,” she said sharply. “I’m glad I’m your assistant.”

“If he bothers you too much, tell me. I won’t have him messing with my employees, not when he’s finally in such a high position.” His smile was polite, but Freddie sensed a lingering annoyance at Zach.

“I’ll be sure to do that.”

“Good.” He licked his lips and his cheeks reddened, but he said nothing else and ducked into his office.

Freddie’s fingers picked up their typing, ignoring the last few minutes as if they hadn’t happened. She worked until Rhett tapped her on the shoulder, startling her. “Shit,” she gasped and let out a nervous giggle.

“Sorry,” he said, laughing with her. “I’m heading out for the evening. Feel free to go, too.”

“Crap, what time is it?” She squinted at the clock on her monitor. “Yes, I have to leave.”

“Where are you off to in such a hurry—home?” he asked curiously.

Freddie tilted her head and shrugged. “Sort of.” She logged off her computer, picked up her purse, and after all her papers were stacked in a semi-decent stack, she waved at Rhett over her shoulder and hit the down button at the elevators. He was beside her again in a few seconds.

“Are you sure you’re all right?”

“Yes. But I don’t want to be late for my appointment.”

“Appointment?”

Why do you have to ask so many questions? “Yes, appointment. It’s a weekly thing, I’m afraid.”

“You should have said something. I can let you go early one day a week if you need to.”

“Really?” The elevator door dinged open and she darted inside, Rhett joining her and hitting the down button for the lobby. “That would be nice of you… thanks, really.”

“Of course. I’m not here to make anyone’s life difficult,” he promised, and she believed him. His hazel eyes matched the cocky smirk playing at his lips, but there was an uncertainty there as well. “Taking over this company is meant to be a smooth transition.”

“So far, everyone seems happy,” she said and patted his arm.

Their gazes slipped to where her hand rested on his forearm before she hastened to pull it back. She just broke up with Mack. Any strange feelings roiling around in her belly stemmed from that and had nothing to do with her feeling something for Rhett, her new boss. The doors opened and she wished him a good night, hurried to her old Beetle, and slung her purse in the passenger seat. Her foot itched to speed, but being pulled over would only make her even later so she dealt with the traffic, blaring her Halsey CD, and finally made it to the home where her sister resided.

“Good evening, Ms. Sable,” Nurse Betty said happily at the front desk.

“Hey, Betty. Is Dr. Gibbons still here?”

“She is. Do you want me to page her?”

“Only if she’s not busy.” She picked at her nails, always anxious to ask her next question. “How is she today?”

Betty sighed, pushed back from her desk, and offered to walk with her down the hall. “She’s had better days, but it’s nothing she can’t get through with our help.”

“How bad?”

“Not bad enough that we had to sedate her. She’s been in the art room for the past few hours with two of her favorite orderlies. They helped calm her down and she’s been fine since. She hasn’t eaten anything, though.”

Freddie swallowed the lump in her throat. “I’ll see if I can’t get her to try something.”

“You’re a doll, young lady. There she is. Dr. Gibbons will be along soon.”

Freddie stood in the doorway of the art room. Clarice sat on a stool before an easel, a paintbrush in her hand and a tray with paint by her side. Freddie waved at the two orderlies, Hank and Theo, when they spotted her. Those two, along with Nurse Betty and Dr. Gibbons, were Godsends Freddie didn’t deserve. Without them to help her sister and stop Freddie from having a mental breakdown herself, she and Clarice would not be where they were today.

“Hey, sis,” Freddie said gently, announcing her presence.

Clarice, her black hair matching Freddie’s, including the dyed blue underneath, whipped around, and her face brightened with a wide smile. “Freddie!” She leapt off the stool and ran to meet her older sister.

Freddie held Clarice in her arms, lifting her off her feet as she kissed the side of her head. “Hey, kiddo. Sorry I’m late.”

“It’s okay.” Clarice smiled as Freddie set her on her feet, but it didn’t last long. The smiles rarely did. “Did you talk to Doc yet?”

“No, but Betty told me you had a rough day.”

Clarice hung her head, but Freddie lifted it right back up. “I didn’t mean to. I just… everything was confusing today.”

Hank and Theo both wore sympathetic looks as the two sisters walked back to the easel, and Clarice climbed up on her stool. “She made it through like the trooper she is,” Theo said encouragingly.

“I wish it would stop,” Clarice whispered, picking up her paintbrush.

“I know, hon, and they’re working on it. So are you, but you know it will never go away. We simply have to find ways to manage it.” Freddie held her sister’s hand as she watched her drag the brush across the canvas. “What are you painting?”

Clarice was a gifted painter. When the voices started and the depression kicked in, her artwork became one of her only outlets for her feelings and showing everyone else what she thought and felt. At first, the paintings had scared Freddie. They were so dark and hopeless, but Dr. Gibbons had told her to have some faith and speak with Clarice about them. Now she knew each one represented a struggle inside her sister. Half the time, she was winning in those paintings, but it was the other half that ate away at Freddie. Clarice struggled every day, warring against her own mind. Freddie used to pray in the beginning that her sister would magically wake up one morning and be her happy, carefree self, but that day would never come.

“I thought I’d try something new,” she told her sister, dipping the brush in her water cup and switching to a dark blue. “Theo and Hank found me a few books at the library, paintings so full of color. I thought I’d give them a try.”

Freddie saw the stack on the floor by her sister. “Some color would be a nice change.”

“Rosie said something changed at your job. What was it?”

“Nothing much, not really,” she said as she drew over a second stool and Hank and Theo stepped back to give them the semblance of privacy. “We were taken over by a bigger company, but I actually landed a promotion.”

“That’s exciting.” Clarice’s brow furrowed, and Freddie feared she was hearing the voices again. However, she leaned in close and painted the outline of a few trees in the distance. “Are you still happy there?”

“Happy is not my priority,” she admitted. “Though my new boss is kind of cute.”

Clarice grinned. “Good. You should date him.”

“What?” Freddie gasped, and the two orderlies hid smiles behind their hands. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Why not? Rosie told me you broke up with Mack, called him a good for nothing, cheating fucking bastard who could kiss your ass and go to hell,” she repeated as if she had not just used very foul language. Freddie’s cheeks reddened as both orderlies had to turn away because they were laughing so hard. “It’s fine by me. I never liked him.”

“I thought you and Mack got along?”

“Eh, he was a bit much. He never took care of you. This new guy might, though.”

“He’s my boss,” she repeated.

“So what? Is there a policy against you dating your boss?”

Freddie started to say yes but stopped. She actually had no idea what the policy would be with these new people in charge. Her breakup with Mack was too close, though. Did she really want to get involved with another man so fast? It’s not like you were really involved with Mack. How many times did he call and cancel your dates? Or tell you not to come over? He was probably cheating on you then, too.

“You know, I might just do that,” she told Clarice, running her fingers softly through her sister’s hair. “What about you? Any boys coming to visit you from your school?”

Clarice’s face stiffened. “You know I don’t have friends anymore.”

“That’s not true.”

“It’s okay, Freddie. I don’t want anyone to see me like this anyway.”

Clarice was wise beyond her years. She’d had to grow up as fast as Freddie had, but she had landed the mental disorder while Freddie only had to find a way to keep them both financially stable.

The sisters sat in the art room, not talking much as Clarice painted. Their conversations were usually short and to the point. Clarice was not one to beat around the bush, and neither was Freddie. They’d inherited their bluntness from their mother. One day, Freddie told herself, she would get Clarice out of this place and find a better life for them both.

That one day grew further away every time she tried to picture it. All she had to do was hang on to this new position, stash some money, and she might finally come out on the winning end for a change.

“Freddie?” Dr. Gibbons waited by the door for Freddie to tell her sister good night and she would see her on Saturday.

“Betty told me about today, briefly,” she said to Dr. Gibbons as they stepped outside.

“I think she hasn’t been taking her meds,” Dr. Gibbons sighed. “Either that or it’s not working and we need to talk about trying a new drug.”

“But you said this one was our last chance?”

“Close. There’s a new one they’re coming out with to help with the hallucinations and the voices,” Dr. Gibbons told her. “Her depression has improved, but I’m afraid her other symptoms are returning.”

“Damn it.” Freddie paced down the hall, holding her face in her hands, her heeled steps echoing loudly around her. “What should I do?”

“We’ll give her another two weeks to be certain, but if there’s any more deterioration, we’ll talk about switching her to new medication. There’s a chance she’s not taking her meds, and if that’s the case, we’ll have to up her case to a higher priority. Have her watched around the clock if need be to make sure she’s not trying to sabotage herself.”

“You think she would do that? After how far she’s come?” Freddie asked in disbelief.

“I’ve seen patients do complete three-sixties,” Dr. Gibbons told her sadly. “I will do my best to ensure your sister does not join that list.”

Her Clarice, her baby sister. She was too young to suffer like this, too young. And all Freddie could do was stand by and watch.

It’ll be exactly the same as when Mom died, she whispered to herself as fear gripped her tightly. You’re going to lose her like you lost your mother. You’ll end up alone, nothing more than a broken shell.