Jardin’s Gamble

by Roberts, Laylah

  She placed her forehead down on the desk after ending the call with the school. After taking a bus to get the boys to school she’d gotten into an argument with one of the bitch moms. She’d had the fucking audacity to complain that Keir had been picking on her son during lunchtime. More like she was just bitter because Keir beat her little Arthur out for the top math prize last term. But all that had meant that Thea barely managed to get to work on time.

  And now . . . shit. A fight? Her boys wouldn’t have started a fight, right?

  With all the violence they’d witnessed at home, most people would say it was inevitable. But she knew her brothers. They were good kids, despite all the shit thrown at them.

  First things first. Taking a deep breath, she walked over to Jardin’s office and knocked.

  “Yes?” he called out.

  She opened the door and peeked in. He was sitting at his desk, looking at some papers. “Um, Jardin you busy?”

  Stupid question, Thea.

  When he glanced up at her, the look on his face echoed her thought. Yep, she got it. He was always busy. The man was a workaholic. He never seemed to stop. She wondered what he was like at home. Whether he ever changed out of his ubiquitous suit. Not that he didn’t look really good in a suit.

  Really good.

  But sometimes she wondered what he’d look like in, well, nothing at all.

  Not the time, Thea.

  “Are you well? You look flushed.”

  She could grab onto it as an excuse. Or tell him her hand was hurting. She was certain he’d let her have time off for either of those things. But she couldn’t do that. She cleared her throat.

  “Actually, I need to leave. See, my brothers have run into some trouble at their school. And I—”

  “Are you their legal guardian?”

  She wished she were. But she’d warned them against saying anything about their father until she was sure she was in a position where child services would leave them in her care. She needed a steady job and a better place for them to live. But once they were hers, then she wouldn’t have to stay and suffer the asshole’s abuse. She’d worn a high-necked, black shirt today, which also had long sleeves, to hide the bruises on her wrist and neck. It was going to be hot as hell on the bus going home since it wasn’t air-conditioned like this building, but she didn’t have much choice.

  “Well, no, but—”

  “Then let your parents take care of it.”

  “My mom has been dead for five years and my dad is, uh, busy.” That wasn’t a lie. She was sure he was busy drinking or sleeping.

  “So are you.”

  “I have to go.”

  “Leave and you’ll be fired.” No anger. No irritation. His voice was tinged with ice.

  “Fine. I’ll quickly pack up my stuff. Thank you for everything.” She turned away, cursing herself for that last part. Why had she thanked him? He’d just fired her. No doubt he’d blackball her like he said he would do with Jenny.

  Idiot.

  She’d reached her desk when he came thundering out of the office. “Excuse me?”

  “Um, which part didn’t you hear?” she asked, hoping it was the last part.

  “The part where you said, ‘Yes, sir,’ and got back to work.”

  Her temper stirred. “You fired me.”

  “I’m always firing you!” he shot back. “You never leave!”

  She wouldn’t say he was always firing her. It’d only happened twice.

  “Well, this time I’m going.”

  She picked up her photo of the boys. She didn’t have a lot of personal stuff. Jardin reached out and snatched the frame back out of her hand, putting it on the desk.

  Her hands went to her hips. “What do you think you’re doing?”

  “The photo stays.”

  “You hate that photo. You hate me having anything personal at work.”

  “And yet I’ve allowed the photo to stay these past two months. Just like you.”

  “You’ve allowed me to stay? Seriously?” Now she was getting angry.

  “Seriously.”

  She knew this wasn’t a good idea. Her control was shot. Worry over the boys. Over her father’s cryptic words last night, it was all getting to her.

  “I have to go. The photo is mine, and I’m taking it with me.”

  He kept hold of the photo and stared intently at her. “Why do you have to leave?”

  “I told you! My brothers need me at their school.”

  “Why?”

  She took a calming breath. You cannot kill him. “The principal just called. There was a fight—”

  “Someone started a fight with them?”

  It soothed something inside her that he immediately assumed someone else had started the fight. He didn’t know her brothers, but it felt good that he gave them the benefit of doubt.

  “The principal said they started it,” she admitted.

  He tilted his head to the side. “But you don’t believe it.”

  “Keir and Ace wouldn’t start a fight. But they would stick up for themselves or their friends. I have to go. I don’t have time for this. I’ll get my stuff later.”

  “No, you won’t.”

  “Sorry?”

  “Wait here. I’ll get my keys.”

  She blinked. She couldn’t keep up with him. “Keys?”

  “Your car broke down, right? How were you planning to get to the school?” he asked impatiently.

  “Um, I was going to take an Uber.” A bus would be cheaper, but she didn’t have the time to waste.

  His jaw hardened. “Ubers aren’t safe. You won’t be taking one of those.”

  “Jeez, I never knew people were so biased against Ubers,” she muttered.

  “What?” he asked as he turned away.

  “Nothing. Why would you take me? You just fired me.”

  “You’re not fired.”

  “I’m not?” She rubbed at her forehead. He was making her head spin with his back and forth.

  “No. Wait there.”

  He didn’t waste time, returning with his keys. “Come.”

  She wanted to protest, but she really needed to get to the school. And having him drive her would be quicker than waiting around for an Uber. She followed him to the elevator and got in. He pressed the basement button.

  “Are you really not going to tell me why you went from firing me one minute to giving me a ride the next? And what about your appointment with Mr. James at two?”

  Withdrawing his phone, he tapped on it as the elevator opened at the basement level. This building was only a year old and no expense had been spared. The basement was clean and well lit.

  She followed him as he started striding through the basement. He pressed a button on the fob in his hand and the headlamps on a car up ahead lit up. Thea gaped at the car she saw.

  A Lamborghini? Was he serious?

  Okay, so she knew he had money. But that was crazy. She’d never ridden in a new car before, let alone something like that. To her shock, he moved around to the passenger door and opened it for her.

  “Are you getting in or have you changed your mind?” he asked.

  Moving forward carefully, she slipped into the seat. Her hands moved over the buttery soft leather. He climbed into the driver’s seat and turned to her.

  “Belt,” he reminded her.

  She reached over and slipped her seatbelt on. “This car is gorgeous.”

  Jardin just grunted and started it up. Thea closed her eyes. She swore she just came a little.

  “You okay?”

  She opened her eyes as he backed out of the parking spot quickly.

  Holy. Shit.

  “Yep,” she said in a strangled voice. “I’m good.”

  “Hmm. Where’s the school?”

  She gave him the address, waiting for him to say something asking how she could afford to send her brothers to that school, but he didn’t say a word. As they exited the garage, he hit the call button on his phone. She ha
lf-listened as he moved his meeting with Mr. James, who was obviously a friend as well as a client.

  When he ended the call, she turned toward him, taking in his strong profile. Dark hair that was neatly trimmed. He was clean-shaven and impeccably put together. Yet there was a darkness swirling beneath the civilized veneer, and it called to her.

  Why couldn’t she be attracted to some nice guy? Someone with a steady job, cute smile. Someone who would come home each night, complain about his co-workers, eat a simple dinner, and get up and do it all over again.

  Why did she have to be attracted to the unattainable?

  Argh.

  “So, you didn’t say why you changed your mind about firing me?”

  He glanced over at her quickly then moved his gaze back to the road. “You want to tell me why you need to go to the school and not your father?”

  No. She did not. And she got his message loud and clear.

  “Fine,” she said. “Guess we just won’t talk. Probably better for everyone.”

  He cleared his throat. “You didn’t fight for your job like you did yesterday. Why? Why did you just give in?”

  “Have you ever thought that maybe you shouldn’t have “fired” me over such small things?”

  “Being late and having to leave during the day are not little things.”

  “Every other morning, I’ve been early. I’ve probably put in so much overtime, I could have a week off and still be in the positive. I’m good at my job. I’m good with the clients. Yet you couldn’t say yes when I ask to leave to go to my brothers’ school because they’re in trouble.”

  “You didn’t ask.”

  “Pardon?”

  “You didn’t ask.”

  Huh. She hadn’t thought of it that way.

  “So, you’d have let me go if I’d asked?”

  He seemed to think about that. “Likely not. But you also didn’t give me the full story.”

  “So, let me get this straight. If I’d walked in and asked if I could have time off to go get my brothers because they were in trouble at school for fighting, you’d have let me go?”

  “I’d probably still have told you to let your parents do their job.”

  “Like I said, my mom’s dead.” It was a wound that never healed. It hadn’t even scabbed over yet. How could it when it was continually scratched at?

  “And your father?”

  “He doesn’t factor in.”

  He grunted.

  “Are you driving me there to make sure I’m telling the truth?” It was the only thing she could think of.

  A look of surprise filled his face. “No. It didn’t actually occur to me you might be lying.”

  “Then why?”

  He tapped his fingers against the steering wheel. “You were prepared to walk away.”

  “Yes, well, you fired me.”

  “That’s how I knew this was important to you.”

  She puzzled that through. Had he thought she was playing him? That if he’d pushed back, she’d have rolled over? Well, in a way she usually did. Although she preferred not to think of it like that.

  “My brothers are more important to me than anything.”

  “Hmm.” He pulled up outside the school. It was close to two in the afternoon. She rubbed her forehead tiredly, reaching for her belt as he climbed out and opened her door. He held out his hand. Surprised, she reached out to take it, forgetting it was her injured hand.

  He grasped hold of her wrist and she flinched with a small cry.

  “What the hell? Why does it look so swollen today? Why does it hurt when I touch your wrist? It wasn’t burned.”

  “It’s nothing,” she said quickly, snatching her hand back and managing to climb out of the low-slung car without his help.

  “We’re taking you to urgent care after this.”

  “I’m fine,” she told him, walking past him and moving quickly toward the office. The last thing she needed was to end up having to explain the bruising on her wrist that was very clearly finger marks.

  Not happening.

  She strode into the office, aware of him behind her. She thought she felt his stare, but when she turned to look at him, his gaze was on his phone. Unaffected. Uninterested.

  Well, what did she expect? It wasn’t his problem.

  The receptionist looked up at her with a sneer. Yeah, she got it. Everyone there considered her trash, blah, blah, blah. She wasn’t really in the mood for any of it.

  “I’m here to see Ms. Mackerly,” she said abruptly. “Thea Garrison.”

  As though the bitch behind the desk didn’t know exactly who she was.

  “Take a seat.” The receptionist’s gaze moved over to Jardin. “Can I help you, sir?” Her voice became far more deferential.

  Thea clenched her jaw against her reply as she slammed down into one of the hard seats.

  “No, you can’t,” Jardin replied, taking a seat next to her.

  “Well,” the receptionist huffed.

  They sat there. Thea tapped her fingers against her thigh, wondering what the hold-up was. Jardin sat beside her, busy working on his phone, seemingly unconcerned about the fact they were wasting time. She knew what this was. A powerplay by the principal. But the thing was, she was using her brothers to piss Thea off. To make her feel small. And she wasn’t going to put up with that.

  She jumped to her feet. “This is ridiculous. I was called in. Why am I having to wait?”

  The receptionist frowned at her. “Ms. Mackerly does have other things to do than just meet with you. Please sit down.”

  The door to the principal’s office opened just as Thea opened her mouth to blast the receptionist and Ms. Mackerly stepped out. The older woman had pale blonde hair that was twisted back off her face. Her slim body was encased in a long skirt, white shirt, and a jacket. Her entire outfit probably cost more than Thea made in a month. But she didn’t give a shit.

  “Where are my brothers?” Thea demanded.

  The principal looked her up and down. “Your father is absent again?”

  “Where are my brothers?” she repeated.

  “Come in.”

  Thea stepped forward and Jardin stood up to follow. She was kind of surprised. She’d thought he’d wait out there and finish whatever he was doing on his phone.

  “Sir, if you’d like to wait out here, I’ll be with you as soon as I can.” Ms. Mackerly looked Jardin up and down, and a predatory sort of hunger filled her gaze.

  Bitch.

  Thea felt the ridiculous urge to tell her to get her eyes off her man. But he was her boss. He wasn’t hers. Besides, the principal was probably his type.

  “I’m not here for you,” Jardin replied coldly. “I’m here with Thea.”

  The principal’s eyes turned frosty and her mouth turned down. “Thea, as this is a family matter, perhaps you’d like to request that your friend wait outside.”

  “We’re not friends,” Jardin said before Thea could reply. Probably just as well considering what she would have said. “And I’m not waiting out here.”

  The principal was fuming, but she nodded stiffly. Thea stepped inside and her stomach instantly knotted as she saw Ace and Keir. Both of them looked a bit roughed up. Ace had a bleeding knee and Keir’s shirt was ripped and he had a black eye. They were both covered in dirt and leaves. And they looked scared. But they were okay.

  She rushed forward and got to her knees in front of them, wrapping her arms around them both. Normally, they’d push her off. Even at seven, Ace thought any affection from his older sister was gross. But this time, they both clung to her.

  She forced herself to move back, ignoring the glare from the other woman who sat across the room.

  Rosemary Pincher could kiss her ass. She was the same bitch she’d had a run-in with this morning, and it didn’t surprise Thea to see her there with her son, Arthur.

  “Are you all right?” She looked them both over, wincing. Fury bubbled under the surface. Why hadn’t their injuries been
seen to? Why were they sitting there, scared and in pain?

  “If you don’t mind, I’ve been made to wait long enough,” Rosemary said in that nasally voice of hers. “Some of us do have things to do and now I need to take Arthur to his pediatrician and have him examined. That bill will be coming to you, Miss Garrison.”

  Oh, hell no.

  Thea ignored the bitch behind her and looked at each boy in turn, waiting for their reply.

  “We’re okay, Thea,” Ace whispered while Keir glared at Rosemary and Arthur.

  She gave them both a small smile. “I’ll take care of this, okay?”

  “Unfortunately, there is little you can do, Miss Garrison,” the principal said smugly. “Keir and Ace were fighting on school grounds. Two against one. We have a no-bullying, no-violence rule. One strike and you’re gone. I have no choice but to expel them both.”

  Oh, and didn’t that just make the bitch happy? She’d been waiting for her chance to get rid of the boys. To get one up on Thea.

  “Is that so? Where was that rule when Arthur was bullying Ace every day?” she asked, standing and turning around so she stood in front of the boys, protecting them.

  “My Arthur would never,” Rosemary said, holding her hand to her chest.

  “Your Arthur would, and did constantly.”

  “And where’s your proof?” the principal asked.

  “Where’s yours?” Thea asked, glaring at the principal before turning her gaze to Arthur and his mother. “Jesus, he doesn’t even have a scratch on him. And you’re accusing my boys of attacking him?”

  “We didn’t, Thea,” Keir told her. “He and his friends were picking on Ace. I stuck up for him and they attacked us.”

  “See. Keir has told you what happened.” Thea knew the principal wasn’t going to take their side, but she wasn’t letting it go without a fight. The boys deserved to see someone sticking up for them.

  “Well, it’s his word against Arthur’s,” the principal said.

  “So, Arthur is lying. Guess it’s one strike and you’re out,” she said with false sympathy to Rosemary.

  Oh, she knew it wasn’t going to work that way. She wasn’t stupid. Rosemary Pincher’s husband was wealthy. She spent her days doing yoga and drinking almond decaf lattes. Keir and Ace were going to be thrown under the bus. But she wouldn’t go down without a fight.