Page 26 of Promising You
“Jade, I wasn’t hiding from you.” He lets me go and wipes the tear from my cheek with his thumb. “If you’re really worried about this guy, we’ll leave and go back to my house. Or I’ll get Brian, my dad’s security guy, to come down here.”
“No. Forget it. You’re right. If the guy really wanted to do something to me he would’ve done it, not just walked off.” I picture the old man’s face in my head again. “Maybe it wasn’t the same man who was at the fundraiser. A lot of old guys look the same.”
“Still, if you’d feel better being back at my house, we’ll leave. We’ll just try this again next New Year’s Eve.”
The thought of being back at his house with Katherine confirms my decision. “I want to stay here. I don’t want to go back to your house.”
“I need to get a pain pill. I’ll be right back.”
While he’s gone, I bring our drinks to the living room and take a seat on the leather couch. He comes back in the room and I hand him his soda as he sits down.
“Garret, I need to tell you something.”
“That doesn’t sound good.” He takes a drink and swallows his pill.
“I overhead a conversation between your dad and Katherine.”
He leans back on the couch, still holding his soda, and waits for me to continue.
“I got up early this morning to get a glass of water downstairs and I heard the two of them arguing in their room. So I kind of listened in.”
“Why would you listen in?” Garret sounds mad. I probably should’ve kept this to myself.
“Because it sounded like they were talking about me. And they were. Katherine told your dad she wanted me out of the house and that I was never allowed back.”
“Did she give a reason?”
“She uh . . . she said she didn’t want trash like me in the house.”
“That bitch actually called you that?” Garret bolts up from the couch and goes to the kitchen.
“Yes. And she banned me from seeing Lilly again.”
He returns with his cell phone.
“What are you doing? You can’t call her!” I try to grab his phone but he holds it away from me.
“She needs to know she can’t talk to you that way. And she can’t ban you from seeing Lilly or staying at the house. I can’t believe she fucking said that.” He starts calling, but I snatch the phone away before he can finish.
“She didn’t say it to my face. She said it to your dad. I told you I overheard them. And your dad totally stuck up for me, which made Katherine even more angry. That’s why I don’t want to go back there right now.”
Garret looks like he might punch in a wall. “I fucking hate that woman. She’s ruined my life. And my dad’s life. And Lilly’s life.”
“She said something else. She said I was the reason for the problem they’re dealing with now. What problem? Do you know what she’s talking about?”
“She’s probably blaming you for whatever’s going on with my dad. I told you he’s in trouble for what he did to Sinclair.”
“I know, but what does that mean? Is someone trying to kill him?”
“No. These people like you to suffer. Killing you is too easy. Instead they attack your company. Or your reputation.” He pauses. “Or they kidnap your little girl. That’s why my dad is so on edge right now.”
“And it’s all my fault. I guess Katherine has reason to hate me and want me gone.”
“None of it was your fault, Jade. And my dad will take care of it, like he always does.”
“Who are these people? Does your dad even know who wants revenge?”
“I don’t know. I don’t even know if it’s about revenge. That day I overheard him on the phone he said something about how he knew he would be punished for what he’d done, but he didn’t say what that meant.”
