Chapter 46

A few days later while at work, Derek calls me into his office. I don’t think twice about it, but when I hear what he wants us to do, I can’t help but drop my jaw.

“A project with you?”

“As partners. Not as your boss.”

“Is that a thing?”

“I do projects with others all the time. This time, I’m asking you because not only do you deserve something good to come your way, but you also deserve it after the Max incident.”

Cue the shivers running down my back.

“But we’re going to get you involved in one the projects that just came across my desk. You do want this opportunity, right?” His eyebrow raises.

“Of course,” I state automatically. “You know me. This job is important to me.”

“I know it is. And a project with me will garner the attention of the other suits in the business.”

“You’re not wrong there.”

Derek holds out a file to me with his gentle smile dancing on his lips. “So, you’re in?”

“You had me at ‘new project.’”

He nods once, and I take the folder into my own hands with delight. I know it will take a multitude of hours to complete all the work, but Derek knows my work ethic, and I trust him to be my boss and not my neighbor.

He still checks in with me throughout the day while we’re researching.

“Any word from our intruder?” It comes out so casually I almost don’t seem to know what he’s asking me. When he can see my expression, he clears his throat. “Ryan.”

Oh. That. “Nothing at the moment. They still haven’t been able to serve him with the order yet. I don’t know how he’s avoiding it so well. I mean, the cops distribute the papers. Isn’t this illegal?” “I’d have to ask my lawyer,” he deadpans.

“I’ll just feel better if the court order has been given successfully. I don’t care about seeing his stupid face in court. It’s the idea that he might appear at any given time to my home.”

I bite my lip as I think through my next thought. “It’s almost like I need to get a security team to keep me safe.”

“I’d think just one cop or detective,” he says without a hint of humor.

“You don’t think I actually want someone to follow me around while I’m trying to heal, do you?” It’s a tricky question. I know he’s doing and saying what he believes to be right. That doesn’t make it true, though.

“I think you’re a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for, Esme.”

“Meanwhile, I got sexually assaulted because I wasn’t strong enough to fight off my aggressor.” I roll my eyes.

“You were assaulted because the man is a fucking idiot.”

I shake my head. “It doesn’t make me feel much better. I mean, Max could fight tooth and nail if they wanted to.”

Derek says nothing, just stares at me like he’s trying not to break his focus or contact with me. That makes my stomach churn as I narrow my brows at him.

“Why are you doing that?” He hasn’t blinked. And now that we’re sitting in silence, I notice the sweat starting to form on his forehead.

“Well…”

“What happened?” I push.

Derek looks away for a moment, but I know he’s just deflecting as long as possible.

“Max isn’t exactly settling.”

I must not hear him right. I blink my eyes and shake my head like I need a redo.

“Sorry?”

“They’re not exactly…thrilled. We sued the bastard and Max.”

“But I thought they fired him?”

“They did. They’re willing to compensate and settle with Mr. Marcy’s stupidity. But they don’t believe they should be held responsible.”

I stand up so fast I actually get dizzy, and it takes a moment to compose myself. I barely even wait because I’m so frustrated. “Are you kidding me? They hired a tool who doesn’t know to keep his hands to himself and his dick in his pants!”

Probably not a good idea to be screaming, even with his door closed. The rest of the office is blissfully unaware of what happened to me. They just think Max wasn’t the right fit for our group.

“Our lawyers were adamant this does not go any further. We’d even asked them to fire the pervert because that was what mattered. They’re the liability and don’t want to be seen as this kind of company.”

I scoff and roll my eyes. “What kind of company is that? One who hires men that assault other people? They did do that!”

“I thought this would be simple, and I’m sorry, Esme. I want this to be open and shut. I know money can’t fix what he did, but compensation for your emotional trauma should never be negotiable.”

I fall back into my seat, wanting nothing more than to cry out everything. But none of those tears can change this. I get why they don’t want to admit to any wrong doing. That doesn’t make me feel as though I’m believed.

I just feel violated again.

“My family got away with abusing me for years.” I say it without even thinking. He knows the full story, but it’s still hard to say all those words together. “Even if I tried to tell my mom after all these years, why would she believe me? I mean, you heard his Catholic stance! She’s not the kind of woman who can just assure me things will be alright.”

Derek says nothing back. He watches me instead, unmoving and listening.

“I wasn’t married. I wasn’t even a teenager yet. But I haven’t been a virgin for a long time. And Angie? With the way we were raised, she’d disown me not only for accusing people of heinous crimes but also for not staying pure.”

I wipe away at the tears as they cascade down my cheeks.

“There is so much she doesn’t know,” I continue. “I think it might kill her to hear the truth.”

“She’s your mother, Esme,” he pushes back. “She can have her opinion and still be on your side.”

I scoff, wiping my face again. It hurts to talk about this like there’s a chance my mom might listen and believe me. “I kept silent because that’s the power these people held over my head. They were sneaky and horrid. I didn’t even know what was happening.”

“But you wouldn’t make up something so disgusting.” Derek leans closer, and I watch his mind try to decide if he should comfort me or not.

“She just has to believe I’m wrong,” I insist. “I have been traumatized by my own family members, and in turn, my religion has become traumatic. There’s so much I haven’t told anyone. Why would I tell her over a decade and a half later? What good does that do?”

“Gives you closure.”

“I don’t believe in true closure.”

“Do you know the statute of limitations?”

Brows furrow down. “What does that have to do with anything?”

“There’s a timer on some crimes, and one is sexual assault. Do you know what the statute is back at home?”

I shake my head. “I didn’t even know that. But all these years later? How could the time not be up?”

“Then maybe instead of taking this to Max, we take it to the police.”

“Yeah, that sounds safe.”

“No one signed any NDA. Not to mention they fired him for the assault, which to me proves they’re actually feeling guilty and will listen to reason.”

“Still not getting it.”

“What happened here is well within the legal time limit to be open about it. Maybe we can’t do anything about the past. We can’t even do anything right now about Mr. Marcy or Max. But we can try.”

I sit forward. “Do you really want to risk all of this just to get a company to give me money, possibly? I don’t know if that’s stupid or crazy.”

“War doesn’t make sense, yet we’re still fighting in one every single day.”

I scoff again.

“There’s nothing wrong with trying to get justice. The best thing for you might just be to give his name up and tell Max you’re not going to back down.”

I make eye contact again. “And you don’t think that’s pretentious or entitled?”

“Someone putting their hands on you without your permission doesn’t get to choose if he’s the worst. And you aren’t being pretentious. You’re a victim.”

Shuddering through the words, I let my head fall to watch the ground.

“It’s bullshit, Esme. All of this is an unfair game. All I’m asking is to try leveling the playing field."