by Mia Ford
“Oh my god!” I shrieked. “What is this?”
Ruth looked guilty. “This was there, too,” she said. She handed me a crumpled piece of paper and I unfolded it, gasping in shock when I read the words scrawled on the page.
“June Rogers is a fuck slut!! She is a sexual predator!! She will fuck your male students so keep them locked away!! She is a pedophile and should be arrested!!!”
I screamed and grabbed the page with stick figures off the wall, crumpling it and tearing it into a thousand pieces. Tears stung my eyes and I covered my face with my hands before I began to cry.
“Ruth, what’s going on,” I cried, feeling helpless. “Why would someone do this to me?”
Ruth looked nervous. “You probably don’t want to rip that up,” she said. “You probably should want to keep it as…you know, evidence.”
“Evidence?” My jaw dropped. “What’s going on, Ruth? Why is someone trying to sabotage me?” Tears of humiliation and hurt streamed down my face and I wrapped my arms around my body, hugging myself tightly.
Ruth licked her dry lips. “I don’t know,” she said softly. “Is someone mad at you, June? Is that what’s going on?”
“I have no idea,” I said. Then, an image of Andy popped into my mind and I shuddered.
“June?” Ruth asked cautiously. “It’s okay – you can tell me.”
I shook my head and bit my lip. “Forget it,” I said. I tried to pull myself together, and wiped the tears from my face with the backs of my hands. “It’s not worth talking about.”
Ruth nodded slowly. “Okay,” she said. “But if you need to talk, I’m here.”
I set my lips in a thin line. “I’m fine,” I said softly.
At least, I hoped I was fine.
By the time I left school, I was a nervous wreck. All of the happiness and joy that my date with Thomas had brought me over the weekend had vanished. Why was Andy doing this? Why did he hate me? I knew that I shouldn’t have ghosted him, but that didn’t warrant any of this insanity! He was acting like a total crazy person.
I was a few blocks away from school and almost to the subway when someone grabbed me and pulled me into an alley. Before I could scream, a hand clapped over my mouth. Someone’s arms wrapped around my torso, pinning my arms to my sides, and carried me far away from the street.
“Help!” I tried to shriek. It only came out as a muffled grunt. Panic began to race in my belly and a cold sweat broke out over my body. This is it, I thought as my unknown assailant dragged me farther and farther from the safety of the street.
“Shut up, bitch,” a familiar voice hissed. “Did you like my notes?”
When I realized it was Andy who had grabbed me, I twisted and shrieked in fear. Andy gripped me with surprising strength – he was a smaller guy, and I was shocked that he was able to carry me at all.
Finally, Andy took his hand away from my mouth and I gagged and coughed. Pain bloomed in my chest and I shuddered as sobs began to wrack my body. When I looked at Andy, he looked smug and satisfied.
“Hi, June,” Andy said coldly. “I was hoping you’d see my drawings.”
“Why?” I asked softly. “Why would you do something like that, Andy?”
Andy’s eyes flashed with anger and he stepped closer, balling his hands into fists. I shivered with fear.
“Please don’t hit me,” I said softly. “Please, Andy. I’m sorry – I know I shouldn’t have stood you up, that was wrong and I’m sorry.”
“You’re right,” Andy said coldly. “That was a shitty thing to do, June. I thought girls like you were nice – I thought girls like you didn’t mess with innocent men and their emotions.”
“I swear, I wasn’t trying to hurt you!” I shrieked. “I was just feeling scared. Andy, you made me feel like I couldn’t say no to you! But I don’t have time for a relationship,” I added quickly. “I don’t have time to date you – or anyone else!”
Andy shook his head and licked his lips. “I don’t believe that, June,” he said softly. His voice was as cold and chilling as steel. “I think you lied to me on purpose because you wanted to hurt me. Tell the truth, June – you lied because you wanted to hurt me.”
He stepped closer and my heart began to pound in my chest. Cold sweat raced down my back and I put my hands up in a weak defense as Andy advanced on me. My bag slipped from my shoulder but I was barely even aware of the contents spilling all over the wet asphalt of the alley.
“Andy, please,” I begged. “Please, please don’t hurt me!”
“I’ll do whatever I want to you, June,” Andy hissed. “So don’t think you can get out of this alive.”
When he put his hands on my shoulders, I screamed and screamed. My throat was burning as I called for help. Knowing that I was only feet away from the safety of the street somehow made me feel even more panicked, and I twisted furiously, trying to free myself from Andy’s grip. Enraged, Andy pulled one of his hands free from my body and slapped me across the face.
The pain stung, but it was enough to startle me into action. Before I could even think about what I was doing, I screamed and threw my whole weight to one side.
“Help!” I screamed. “Help, someone’s trying to assault me!”
Andy was clearly stunned and he made another grab for my arm but I darted out of the way and started to run towards the street.
“Help!” I shrieked again. “Somebody, please!”
My heart was pounding and the adrenaline was rushing through my body as I tore out of the alley and stumbled onto the sidewalk. A curious pool of people circled around me and I launched myself towards one of the men who had gathered in confusion.
“Ma’am, what’s going on? Are you okay?”
“Please,” I sobbed. “The man in the alley! He was trying to assault me!”
A couple of the people nodded and ran into the alley while someone else called the police. Suddenly, I felt faint. The world around me began to zoom and spin and I clutched at my chest. Sharp pains were spreading from my heart out into my shoulders and I gasped as my eyes rolled back in my head and I passed out.
When I came to, I was surrounded by uniformed police and EMTs.
“Miss Rogers?”
I nodded weakly. “Did you get him?” I asked softly.
Two of the cops exchanged a dark look.
“No,” one of them said shortly. “He ran off before we were able to make the scene.”
Despair welled up in my chest and I began to shiver as the tears came rushing back to my eyes.
“Please,” I begged. “He was trying to assault me! He grabbed me from the street and dragged me into the alley!” Please, you’ve got to help me!”
One of the cops nodded. “That’s why we’re here,” he said. He sounded tired as he pulled a small notebook from his pocket and began to scribble notes.
But as I recited the story, including the part where Andy and I had gone on a date before, to the cops, I could practically see my chance of success draining from their eyes.
“This is someone you’ve dated before?”
“Just once,” I said quickly. “Because he pressured me into it.”
The cop frowned. “But you asked him,” he said.
“Yeah, because I felt like I had to!” I said hotly. “And now he’s stalking me!” I told them about the messages Andy had sent to my apartment, as well as the lewd stick drawings he’d posted in the break room.
The cops exchanged a look. “We’ll go talk to him,” one of them promised. “Just don’t get your hopes up.” He chuckled. “Men don’t like it when women aren’t straight with them. You should’ve just told him no.”
My heart sank. “I can’t believe you’re blaming me for this,” I said softly. “That’s so messed up.”
The cop sighed. “Look, I can’t say anything else right now. Just know that we’ll do our best.”
I closed my eyes and tears streamed down my cheeks. I couldn’t believe that the cops weren’t doing more to help me. I’d j
ust gone through one of the scariest experiences in my life and they were acting it was my fault!
“Forget it,” I said bitterly. “I can handle this on my own.”
Chapter Eleven
Thomas
The first few days without Hannah were nice, almost quiet. I hadn’t realized it at the time, but she’d become an incredible distraction. I had one of my secretaries place a job ad for a new personal assistant, but I told myself that in the meantime, I would step up and start doing all of that stuff for myself. Even though I was a busy man, I knew that I wasn’t above picking up my own coffee and dry-cleaning. Maybe having an assistant, especially one like Hannah, had really gone to my head.
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday all passed in a blur. I called June a couple of times, just to talk. But something was bothering me, and no matter how many times I asked, she wouldn’t tell me the truth. I desperately wanted her, and I knew how much she wanted me. So why was she playing these games?
She agreed to another date with me, on Saturday, and I told myself that I’d really throw myself into work on Thursday and Friday. Thursday morning, I was supposed to have a meeting with Keith Carner – he was one of my old buddies from MBA school, and we’d been doing business together for almost ten years. At one point, Keith had been one of my best friends in the world. Hell, he’d even been a groomsman in my wedding to Marlene.
When I called Keith’s office, he sounded distracted.
“I know it’s been forever, but I was hoping we could talk about a new deal,” I said. “I’m really hoping to acquire UPS by the end of the year, and I need your help.”
There was a long pause.
“Hello?” I narrowed my eyes in irritation. “Keith, you there, man?”
“Oh, yeah,” Keith said after a long pause. “Sorry, man. Just a little busy at the moment. How ‘bout I stop by your office later, after lunch?”
“Sounds good,” I said. “I’ve got to look for a new assistant anyway. See you then.”
“I’ll be there around two,” Keith said.
We hung up and I treated myself to a long lunch at the new Russian restaurant down the street. As soon as I saw the inside, I knew that June would love it – it was even more posh than Daniel had been, with lots of intimate touches. Thinking about the way she’d reacted to the escargot made me laugh. I wondered how she’d react to caviar.
June was easily the most refreshing person I’d met in my life. I wondered what made her tick, I wondered how she’d grown up into such a stunningly beautiful woman who didn’t even know her own power. Even though she was naïve, she was obviously quite smart. I closed my eyes as I sipped infused vodka and thought of taking June on weekend trips to Boston or Maine, watching her play in the snow. I snickered – somehow, I just knew that she’d be as eager as a child when it came to playing outside.
It wasn’t long before my thoughts turned to lusty ones. My cock stiffened in my pants as I thought of June’s lithe body spread out on a bearskin rug before a roaring blaze. I knew she’d have perfectly pink nipples and a neat little thatch of dark pubic hair. Normally, I liked my women hairless. But I knew that June would take immaculate care of herself, and I felt a hot bolt of lust careen through my cock when I thought about how it would feel to eat her out. Her pussy had to be soft and velvet smooth…and likely, unexplored. I knew that realistically, she couldn’t be a virgin…but at the same time, her obvious lack of experience with men told me that she’d still have that new car smell when it came time to fuck.
I closed my eyes and imagined June’s pale hands running over her body, teasing me. The idea was astonishingly arousing and I growled as I thought about taking both of her pale wrists with one hand, pinning them over her head, and holding her helpless while I fucked her raw.
After lunch, I was pleasantly drunk. The fall day was a chill one, but I sauntered back to the office and chain-smoked Dunhills while thinking about June. My meeting with Keith was in a little over an hour, and I thought I’d take a little nap in my office while I waited for him to show up.
I locked myself in my office, loosened my pants, and reclined on the black leather couch that Hannah had picked out. Even if she was a manipulative brat, she had good taste, I thought sleepily as I settled down and relaxed with my head in my arms. And I’d much rather have this couch around than her.
My head began to feel pleasantly exhausted and the next thing I knew, one of the secretaries was waking me up.
“Fuck,” I groaned. “What time is it?”
“Mr. March? It’s just after two,” the secretary replied. “Your phone has been ringing nonstop.”
I blinked and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. I couldn’t recall it immediately to mind but somehow, I knew that I’d been dreaming of June.
“Thanks,” I muttered. I hauled myself into a sitting position, still rubbing my eyes with my fists. Outside, the sky was dark and gloomy. Despite my nap, I still felt tired.
The secretary pranced out of my office, leaving the door open behind her. I growled as I stood up and stretched. I need a shave, I thought as I rubbed my fingers over my chin and jaw. My hands were greeted with prickly hairs that somehow felt coarser than they had twenty years before.
I walked over to my desk, expecting to see a flood of notes from Keith. But oddly, there was nothing. When I checked my messages, they were all spam. I frowned. Still, it was only ten past two. Keith wasn’t exactly known for being punctual. I decided to give him ten more minutes, then call over to his office to make sure he hadn’t forgot about our meeting.
I opened my email and sent off a few quick replies. There was an email from Marlene asking if we could meet for dinner, but the thought of that made my stomach curdle. I sent her a short, terse reply and five seconds later, she’d already replied.
“Don’t u think it would be for the best if Brett had both of his parents together?”
Ugh. Slamming my laptop shut, I strode into the hall.
“Hey Susie,” I said, leaning over the head secretary’s desk. “Did a Keith Carner call here for me?”
“Keith?” Susie wrinkled her face. “I don’t think so, Mr. March. Do you want me to place an outgoing call?”
Strange. We just made these damn plans and he already forgot.
I rolled my eyes. “No, thanks,” I said. “I’ll be in my office. If Keith – or anyone from Carner Enterprises – shows up, please show them in.”
“Got it,” Susie said. She bent her head over her desk and scratched at her scalp with long fingernails. Flakes of dandruff scattered across her keyboard and I tried hard not to shudder. Susie had been working for me for years – hell, she’d probably been working since I was in diapers. She was a repulsive elderly woman, but she knew what she was doing.
“Hey, how’s the hunt for my new assistant coming?” I turned back and cocked my head to the side.
Susie frowned. “Do the same…restrictions still apply?”
I laughed. “No,” I said. “They don’t.”
Susie’s frown melted and she gave me a tentative smile. “Very good, Mr. March. I hope to have someone for you by the end of the week.”
“Excellent. You’re the best. Thanks, Susie.”
Her smile grew a shade wider and she dipped her head, obviously unused to compliments. Grinning, I turned on my heel and sauntered into my office, closing the door behind me. Thinking of the “restrictions” made me laugh. When I’d first placed the ad to hire Hannah, Marlene and I had been in a rocky place. I knew it would piss her off if I found someone young, gorgeous, and blonde…so I specified that all candidates had to fit those criteria before I’d even consider hiring them. But now that we were divorced – not to mention, now that I was seeing June – they seemed ridiculous.
