“For heaven’s sake!” she exclaimed. “They found my home?”
Alex drove past and turned at the corner before parking a few blocks away and calling Eddie. She listened as he told her how they had shown up, what he and Gabe had done to discourage them, and how her next-door neighbors, also Eddie’s tenants, had complained.
She relayed how her parents had called the authorities to make them leave and advised Eddie to do the same. As she talked, the queasiness in her stomach grew. She realized she hadn’t eaten in a while and told him she planned to grab a bite to eat and would call back before coming home. Hopefully, the police would dispel the crowd before then and food would settle her stomach. She disconnected the call and drove to her favorite diner for some home style cooking. Nothing like comfort food to settle a nervous stomach.
By the time she pulled into the carport an hour later, most of the reporters had left. The few who remained sat in their cars or vans along the street and off the property. Eddie came out and helped her carry everything in. Alex set the carryout containers of chicken and dumplings she’d brought home for him and Gabe on the counter and kicked off her shoes. She walked to the living area and fell backwards onto her couch.
“How bad was it? Am I in trouble?”
“Well, the last two days were definitely atypical. And, no, you’re not in trouble. However, I suggest you close your curtains tonight as a few of those vultures are still there.” Eddie walked to each window as he spoke, pulling her blinds closed. “And double-check your doors just to be safe.”
“Really? I mean, I always lock them, but you think a reporter would be so bold?”
“You never know. And why take that chance?” Eddie perched in the side chair. “How are you holding up?”
“I’m freaking out. I’m not sure all this is worth it. Does that make me a horrible person?”
“No, it makes you a normal person. Finley’s had years to become used to this. You’ve had days. They will disappear once there’s a new lead story. Just you watch.”
“Can it come soon?” Felix jumped up on the couch and rubbed his head against her, demanding attention.
Eddie made soothing noises and made his way to the kitchen. “Listen, you take the rest of the day to recuperate. Take a nap, soak in the tub, drink wine, read… whatever you normally do to destress. No TV and no social media.” He shook his finger at her before grabbing the doggy bags from the counter. “Thanks for this, darling. Never tell him I said this because I love Gabe’s hoity-toity cuisine, but sometimes you need the basics.”
He gave her an air kiss and disappeared down the hallway. The click of the lock being engaged echoed back to her and Alex silently thanked him for locking her in. She lay where she was and pet Felix until she drifted to sleep.
Alex droveto work bleary-eyed on Monday morning. She and Fin had played phone tag all weekend, leaving voice mails and short “I’ll get back to you” texts. It was as if the universe had conspired against them. Eventually, she gave up and spent most of her time doing exactly what Eddie told her not to do, hunkered inside reading and watching the entertainment news. She and Fin were everywhere. New photos of him in Los Angeles had popped up, plus a couple of her at the London airport, but nothing else afterward. The reporters at her house had thinned, appearing to give up on catching her.
She couldn’t express the violation she felt at having her life displayed like that. As much as she enjoyed being with Fin, she wasn’t sure anything was worth this upheaval. She would weigh it heavily this week when she visited him in Los Angeles. She had been looking forward to meeting Fin’s older brother and his family, but none of that seemed important anymore. All the positivity she’d felt about the ability to have an actual relationship seemed to have evaporated over one weekend.
As she pulled into the garage at work, the number of cars in the parking lot surprised her. She’d expected the number of people at the office to be low, with everyone using vacation time this week to supplement the time off for the Christmas holidays. Alex shrugged it off. Perhaps the other companies in the building weren’t as lenient with their holiday schedules.
She grabbed her computer bag and headed up the back stairwell. Constant travel made it hard to maintain a regular workout schedule, and one way she stayed in shape was to take the stairs to her ninth-floor office. The stairwell from the garage conveniently opened in the hallway close to where her team was located. She used her keycard to exit the stairwell and walked toward her office.
“Alex!”
Alex had been reviewing her to-do list in her head and failed to notice the crowd of people outside her office door. Sam’s call brought even more people into the hallway.
“Hey, Sam. What’s up?”
“You came in the back way?” he asked, nodding at the stairwell behind her.
“Yeah, same as I always do.” She raised an eyebrow at him. He was acting weird. They all were. Then it hit her. They’d seen the story. Alex sighed. “You read the article.”
“Well, yes, but more to the point, I waded through the reporters in the front lobby.”
Alex stopped walking. “What? You’re kidding me.”
The crowd standing in the hallway all shook their heads no.
She hung her head and closed her eyes, collecting herself. “Okay. Let me set down my stuff and I’ll find out what’s happening and what I can do about it.”
After dumping her things on her desk, she extracted the folder with all the HR paperwork for Frank to review. Might as well deliver it before she freaked out on everyone.
Alex stepped into her boss’ office. “Frank, I completed the paperwork needed to fill the PMO positions. I’ve also typed up my thoughts on each candidate and why they do or do not meet our requirements. You can let me know if you disagree with anything.”
“Alex. Hello to you too. Have you seen our lobby?”
Alex grimaced. “Sorry. Sam told me what was going on and I’m headed there next. Has anyone called security yet? Because that’s my next step if I can’t get them to leave with a simple request.”
