Chapter Seventeen
Jamie took a step away from Derek out of habit. Had she heard him correctly? “That’s such an odd question. Why would you ask me something like that?”
“I’m just curious is all. Asa is a good friend of mine. He’s been through a lot in his life but he’s not what he seems.”
“Wow, you…don’t seem like a very good friend if you’re saying things like that behind his back.”
He laughed it off. “I’m sorry. I was just…teasing. Asa and I sometimes joke around like that.”
Though his words seemed believable enough on the surface, something about them didn’t really ring true. She felt the sudden need to get away from him. “Um, if you’ll excuse me. I need to go to the lady’s room.”
“Sure.” He nodded.
Jamie remembered seeing the bathrooms outside of the ballroom. Why would his friend say something like that to her? It just seemed off.
When she made it to the restroom, she checked her appearance. Jamie still found it hard to believe that the woman staring back at her was in fact her. It was still hard to reconcile that this woman was the same little girl who used to cower in a closet, so thin and weak she could barely hold her head up.
“Well, well, well, don’t you clean up nicely?” A familiar voice said behind her.
A stunning Asian woman in an elegant black dress stared at her through the mirror. Jamie hadn’t thought of the possibility of running into this woman but she should have prepared herself considering this was a fundraising event for the hospital.
Without turning around, Jamie stared at the other woman through the mirror. “Thank you,” she finally replied even though the other woman’s words sounded far from a compliment.
Dr. Nguyen’s lips twisted into an unattractive sneer. “I suppose Dr. Stansfield purchased that dress for you.” she said making it sound like something dirty.
“I don’t think that’s any of your business.”
The other woman smirked. “No need to get defensive, sweetie. I’m just surprised that Asa is still slumming. I mean, if he wanted someone like you, I’m sure he could have found someone better than a cleaning woman.”
Jamie refused to be ashamed of her former occupation. Now that she was no longer working at the hospital, this woman had no power over her. She finally turned to face Dr. Nguyen. “What is your problem? I’ve never done anything to you. Yet, you go out of your way to talk down to me. And not just me, to other people. You think you’re better than everyone but you’re clearly a miserable person.”
The doctor flared her nostrils, warping her well put together appearance. “And just because you somehow managed to turn Asa’s head temporarily, don’t for a minute think it’ll last. He’ll eventually realize that the two of you aren’t suited because you don’t have the right attributes to hold a man like that and you never will.”
This wasn’t something that hadn’t already crossed Jamie’s mind but she refused to allow this woman to see that she’d hit the mark. “Whether he gets tired of me or not, he still won’t want you and that’s why you’re so mad. So, what if you’re an attractive doctor who’s probably better suited, as you put it, to be with someone like Asa. You might even have the looks and know the right things to say and how to act in social settings but at the end of the day, he still chose this cleaning lady over you.” Jamie sidestepped the other woman and started to walk away before she turned around to face her adversary again.
“I’d say it was nice seeing you again, but that would be a lie. So hopefully, our paths never cross again.”
Jamie turned to leave then but as she headed for the door, she felt a hand on her back before she was shoved hard. She stumbled forward and hit her head on the door as someone else was walking into the restroom.
“Oh, my goodness. I’m so sorry. Are you okay?” A light-skinned woman with the largest afro Jamie had ever seen, asked seeming horrified.
Jamie was dizzy from the impact. “I’m okay, just a little woozy.”
Dr. Nguyen smirked as she walked past them. “You really should be more careful before you really hurt yourself.”
Jamie wasn’t a violent person. She’d never raised her hand to anyone in her life. But more than anything, she wanted to snatch that witch by the hair and wail on her. She’d probably end up going to jail which was probably what Dr. Nguyen wanted.
“I’m Thea, by the way. When I was walking in, it sounded like you hit your head pretty hard against the door. Are you sure you’re okay?” she asked with concern.
“I think so. I think I just need to sit down for a minute.”
“Hmm, let me take a look at your head for a second.” Thea clutched Jamie’s head and examined her.
“Are you a doctor?”
Thea shook her head. “Nurse Practitioner.”
“Do you work at the hospital?”
“Yes, I’ve only been there for a few months though. It looks like you’ll be okay. No bruising or knots forming so that’s a good sign. Your pupils look fine. How many fingers am I holding up?” Thea held up three fingers.
“Three.”
“I think you’ll live.”
“Thank you.”
“You wouldn’t happen to be Jamie, would you?”
“Yes. How did you know?”
“A very good good-looking gentleman is standing outside of the bathroom waiting for you to come out. He asked me to see if you were in here and he gave me your description.”
“Did he happen to have reddish-brown hair and turquoise colored eyes?”
“That’s the one. If that’s your date, you’re a lucky woman.” Thea grinned.
Jamie grinned back. “I’m feeling much better. I guess, I should go back out there.”
“And I have to use the facilities before my bladder bursts.”
“I’m sorry to keep you.”
“No problem. Maybe we’ll meet again soon, Jamie.”
“That would be nice.”
Thea scurried off to one of the stalls. When Jamie stood up she felt a bit light-headed so she stood still for a moment until she felt better. When she stepped out of the restroom, Asa was standing by the door waiting just as Thea had said.
“You were in there for a while. Are you okay?” Concern etched lines in his face.
“I had a bit of a spill.”
“What happened?”
“I hit my head on the door when I was trying to walk out of the restroom. It felt like I had been pushed but maybe I imagined that.”
“Who was in the bathroom with you?”
As much as she disliked that witch woman, she didn’t want to cause tension between Asa and his coworker. “I could have just imagined it.”
“Who was it, Jamie? Don’t make me ask again.”
“Dr. Nguyen. But like I said, I could have just imagined it.”
“How do you imagine someone pushing you?”
“I just did, okay?” she said with more sass than she meant to. Jamie already knew she would get a spanking later on that night because of it…not that she minded.
He gave her a look that confirmed what she already knew. She was in for it. “Okay. Are you up to going back into the ballroom or would you rather go home?”
“We haven’t been here that long so I don’t mind staying for a while.”
“Okay, but we won’t stay much longer. I need to get you home and out of that dress.”
Jamie smiled. “Promises, promises.” She was willing to put the strange events that started the evening behind them. She just hoped the rest of the night got better.
* * *
Asa sipped his glass of whiskey as he watched Jamie from across the ballroom. Apparently, she’d made a friend in the bathroom, the NP from the hospital. The two of them were chatting like old friends. He was happy to see his woman enjoying herself. She looked absolutely stunning tonight and he’d been fighting a raging hard on since he’d seen her in that dress. That dress was so low in the back that it showed ass cleavage.
There were women who were wearing far less but there was something about an exposed back that dared a man to touch. He could see several men glance at her with appreciation in their eyes. He wanted to kick all of their asses and claim her right in the middle of the floor for all to see who she belonged to. She brought out something primal within him.
In the last several months they’d been together, Jamie had really opened up from a shy rose bud to a fully blossomed flower. She was in school full time at his encouragement and had made a few friends. Before Jamie had come into his life, he’d been dedicated to his job. He lived and breathed it, not because he loved it, to the point where that was his only priority. He’d done it because it filled a void. Being a doctor, was all he knew. Since he could understand language, Asa was made to understand that he’d be a doctor, but not just any doctor—an outstanding one. He had to be head and shoulders above the rest in his field and nothing less was acceptable.
So, he worked and toiled, made it through medical school, a residency and a fellowship to get to where he was today. It was all just part of his façade that he presented for the rest of the world to see, and to hide the real him. But with Jamie, he felt he could be his true self even though he couldn’t tell her everything, just yet. When the time was right, he’d reveal everything. For now, he would enjoy having her in his life and deal with the fallout later when she learned the truth.
But regardless of her reaction, he had no intention of letting her go.
Ever.
“You haven’t been able to take your eyes off your lovely date, all night.” Derek approached him.
“I thought you would have left by now. You said these types of functions aren’t your thing,” Asa pointed out, never taking his eyes off Jamie and her friend.
“I didn’t want to leave without having a chit chat with you.”
“If it’s what I think it is, you can save it. This is neither the appropriate time nor the place.”
“Maybe not, my friend, but when is it ever? Eventually, you’ll have to tell her. She seems like a sweet girl. It would be a shame if she learned the truth by seeing you hauled off by the police.”
Asa turned to his friend then and placed his drink on the table. “Say it a little louder for everyone else to hear you.”
Derek waved his hand dismissively. “No one is paying attention. Besides, I wouldn’t be a real friend if I didn’t tell you want you needed to hear. I’m very worried about you. People are starting to wonder if the disappearances are connected.”
Asa finished his drink off and spot checked where Jamie was standing to make sure she was still there. She was talking animatedly with her friend. Her smile was enchanting.
“Are you listening to me?”
“No.”
“If you keep this up, you’ll be caught and I can only cover you but for so long.”
“Then don’t.”
“If that’s the stance you’re going to take, then I can’t do any more work for you either.”
Asa shrugged not bothering to answer. Derek wasn’t the only private investigator in town with ties to the police department.
“Dammit, Asa, I’m trying to be a friend.”
“Were you being a friend when you asked Jamie if she felt she was in danger with me?” Asa turned to look at him then.
Derek paled. “I had to ask. She seems like a sweet woman and I’d hate to read about her in the paper because you snapped.”
Asa cocked his head to the side. “And what exactly do you think you’d read in the paper about her?”
“That maybe she went missing, too.”
“Jamie is the last person on Earth that I would hurt. Hurting her would be like cutting my own arm off so fuck you for even making such a suggestion, friend.”
Asa stood up and would have headed in Jamie’s direction if Derek didn’t catch him by the elbow. “This is eating me up inside. Knowing that you’re playing a dangerous game that you can’t continue to win.”
“Save your worry for those who need it.”
Derek sighed in seeming defeat and shook his head. “I suppose you won’t be up for squash this weekend?”
“I’ll be there as long as you don’t spend the entire time lecturing me.”
“Even if I did, I doubt you’d listen.”
Asa smirked. “You know me so well.” He walked away then to get his woman. He wasn’t a fan of these gatherings but they were a necessary evil. But now that he’d put in an appearance and spoke to all the right people, he was ready to go home and have a party of two with Jamie.