Chapter 39

Renee’s POV

No one saw Mia or Eric for the rest of that day. Presumably, Mia went to confront him and Eric attempted to assuage her nerves, probably costing him a fortune in the process.

The whole thought sickens me. Technically nothing did happen between us but only because I stopped it.

I can’t believe I’m defending her but Mia has every right to be upset-at least with Eric and not with me but of course her anger is directed at me too which influences how everyone else in the building sees me too.

With these two out of sight and out of mine, that leaves me the center of attention at work.

Even my co-designer Bella, has been keeping her distance from me. I’m worried we won’t get our design finished before the deadline, but honestly, that probably isn’t even on Eric’s mind at the moment.

I haven’t been able to talk with Eric because I haven’t seen him since we landed back home and now since soccer practice is over I hardly ever see him.

The irony isn’t lost on me that this is what I’ve been asking for now and now that there’s more distance between us, I need to talk to him and set things straight. For all I know, he thinks I told Mia he and I hooked up.

But I am not going to go out of my way to find him.

I keep my head down at my desk try to focus on my work and ignore that people are staring at me and judging me. Unfortunately, the work is very minimal at the moment with everyone using the time that Eric’s out of the office to gossip and work on personal projects.

“What’s it like to be boss’s pet?” Someone snickers over my shoulder, but by the time I look up they’re already down the hallway clacking with another colleague. Coward. It’s like I’m back in high school, that’s the thing with artists. Everybody can be so pretentious.

I lean back on my chair, the back of it bends with my weight cracking my back. I need to move. I’ve been sitting hunched over for too long I’m going to need reconstructive surgery if I ever want to stand up straight again.

I push away from my desk and rise to my feet, eyes follow me. “I didn’t do anything!” I shout.

“Ahem,” I hear behind me. I turn around and see Eric standing in the glass doorway. My face turns bright red as I realize for once people aren’t looking at me, but behind me.

“Can I speak with you in my office, Renee?” Eric says flatly. I’m so getting fired. I nod. I know if I speak my voice will crack.

As soon as the door shuts behind me I see people scoot their chairs out into the aisle to watch us walk to his office. That’s the thing with glass, it doesn’t hide anything.

The walk to Eric’s office is long and painful.

Inside his office Andrew stands in the corner he hardly acknowledges me. “Please sit,” Eric says and I do as he says. I know we have an odd relationship, even if he doesn’t know the half of it but above all, he is my boss.

Eric pinches the bride of his nose. I cross my legs and fidget under the silence. “Mia’s mother once saved my life when I stupidly was stumbling through a busy intersection,” Eric says and it’s not what I’m expecting at all that I get disoriented.

“I don’t know exactly what happened, but I was hit by a car and the driver kept going,” Eric continues, hardly giving me time to process why he’s telling me this. “As chance would have it, Mia’s mother found me on the road and nursed me back to health,”

I notice he doesn’t look at me the entire time he’s telling me this, almost like he’s ashamed.

“I was embarrassed to say the least, Mia’s mother, Jane, knew if I went to a hospital that word would get around that the great Alpha Eric was drunk and injured by some lowlife who didn’t even bother to stop and make sure I was okay,” Eric says his voice growing bitter.

Then he shakes his head as though to rid himself of the resentment he must still be feeling toward this person. “Jane had the decency to understand this and keep it between us, under one condition.” He lifts his eyes off the floor and then holds my gaze. “I date her daughter,”

I swallow. I want to ask Eric when this happened but somewhere in my heart, I think I know the answer. I’ve never known Eric to drink much, at least not to the point that he’s describing, so it must be after Annie died. He must have been grieving.

“I’m sorry, Eric.” I tell him as Annie. I apologize for causing him pain, I didn’t think that I would. I want to reach out and touch his hand, but I refrain.

Eric dismisses me. “I’m only telling you this so that you don’t think lowly of me,” Eric says and I know what he means. He’s only with Mia out of a promise to her mother, he doesn’t actually have feelings for her which is why it was easy for him to get carried away in the hotel room.

“Andrew is here to make sure no one messes with you,” Eric says nodding towards Andrew who stands with his back against the wall.

“Oh,” I say not sure if I’m supposed to thank Eric or not.

Just then Eric’s assistant knocks on the door. “Come in,” Eric says back to his business tone and just like that it’s like our conversation never happened.

“There’s a doctor in the lobby here to see you,” she says. Eric and I give each other curious glances. My first thought is that Debbie isn’t okay and Jasper wants to tell Eric that I’ll need to leave work so that business is all taken care of when I run to the hospital.

Eric sees my concern.

“Send him in,” Eric says and his assistant looks amused.

“Many of the designers are busy talking to him,” she explains as a way to say Eric’s employees are flirting with Jasper. Eric makes a sound and stands from his seat, but I’m already out the door.

I get to the lobby winded, and sure enough Jasper stands in the middle of a crowd of designers all toying with their hair and biting their lip.

Jasper and I make eye contact and he waves at me, causing the girls that he’s talking to to flash their eyes my way and scowl. I look away as those pretending it wasn’t me he was looking at, only then to see Eric eye me curiously and that’s when I remember he thinks Jasper and I are dating.

I walk up to Jasper and pull him away from the throng of women.

“Of course, she is with him too,” someone says just loudly enough for a few standing by to hear and murmur in agreement. Jasper gives them an odd look.

“I’ll explain later,” I say. “Is everything okay with Debbie? Why are you here?”

“Debbie is fine,” Jasper says and instantly my shoulders drop from my ears.

“I’m here for Eric,” Jasper tells me and I wait for him to say more but he doesn’t.

“Why?” I finally ask and Jasper looks at me kindly.

“I can’t tell you,” he says and I find it odd considering he’s stayed in my house for months and he feels that he can’t share this with me.

“Is it medical related?” I wonder aloud thinking that might be the only reason for the secrecy. Jasper opens his mouth but Eric approaches.

“I’ll talk to you later, Renee,” Jasper says to me and I feel like I’ve been slapped.

Jasper and Eric step aside and Eric tells everyone to get back to work. I keep my feet frozen in place as others mosey back to their desks.

Eric and Jasper step aside and I watch as Eric motion towards his office but Jasper shakes his head.

The lobby is circular with tall glass windows and an elegant wrap around front desk. No one is there right now so I take the opportunity to go over there and make myself look preoccupied looking for something to help me with my work and the desk just so happens to be closer to where Eric and Jasper are standing.

I flip through a calendar on the desk, and then move to open a drawer, leaning down and over toward the direction where Jasper and Eric are.

“He’s our father, Eric. It’s only right,” Jasper begs. I freeze. Father?

“That man may be blood but that’s as far as it goes,” Eric says coldly and walks away. I suck down behind the desk.

Jasper and Eric are brothers?