Page 66 of The Candle Palace (Jamison Valley 6)
Milo. He was here. My hand came to my thundering heart, rubbing my chest as it pounded. I wasn’t sure what he was doing here but the relief was staggering.
Vernon struggled, throwing his limbs every which way as he freed himself from Milo’s hold. When he was loose, he straightened, fixed his collar and combed back the hair that had fallen in his eyes. Then he pointed right at me while looking at Milo. “This bitch is trying to get me fired.”
I gasped as the color rose in Milo’s face. No one had ever called me a bitch before, not even petty girls in high school. I didn’t like it.
Milo didn’t either. “Call her a bitch again and you’ll lose your tongue.”
Vernon spat on the sidewalk by Milo’s boot.
One moment the men were feet apart, the next, Milo was nose to nose with Vernon. They were about the same height, though Milo stood an inch taller.
He walked forward, forcing Vernon to retreat on the sidewalk back toward the hospital. Right toward the edge where a car rushed by. One misstep and Vernon would trip, falling into the street.
Milo kept walking Vernon backward without pause. His fists were balled, ready to pummel Vernon in the face.
God, I wanted that. A lot. I wanted Milo to kick this guy’s ass, but Milo maintained his control, something I doubt most men would have been able to do.
“Get the fuck out of here.”
Vernon didn’t argue. He shuffled sideways and away from Milo, nearly tripping over his own feet, then walked for the side door. He combed his hair again before entering. He scanned his badge. And then, he disappeared.
“Oh my God.” I nearly collapsed. The adrenaline was too much. “I knew it was too good to be true.”
“Are you okay?” Milo rushed to my side, his hands roaming up and down my body, making sure I wasn’t hurt.
“I’m okay.” I nodded, trying to get my breathing back to normal. “Actually, no. I’m not okay. That asshole. I hate him.”
Milo pulled me into his arms, wrapping me up tight. “But you’re okay?”
“I’m okay. What are you doing here?”
“I, uh, may or may not have been hanging out in the lobby all day just in case that fucking bastard pulled some shit like this.”
“What?” I looked up at his face. “You’ve been at the hospital all day?”
He shrugged. “I saw you come out the side door through the glass. I’m sorry I didn’t catch you in time.”
I fell back into his embrace, melting into his chest. “I love you.”
“I love you too.” He kissed my hair. “Let’s get out of here.”
“We can’t,” I grumbled. “Not yet.”
First, I had to quit my job.
When Milo and I walked into HR, Vernon was already there. He was probably trying to spin this story his way. To twist the truth and portray me as the one who’d antagonized him. I didn’t stick around to find out what sort of story he was selling.
I delivered my statement to the HR director, who’d also called Amber down. Then I quit. I handed over my badge. I told them to keep whatever was in my locker. And I walked out of the hospital with Milo by my side.
“What am I going to do now?”
Milo put his arm around me as we walked home. “We’ll figure it out. Together.”
Eleven
The bells of my ringing phone woke me from a dead sleep. It took me so long to realize what the noise was and where it was coming from that I missed the call. I reached for the phone. It was nearly two in the morning as my phone rang again with Mom’s picture on the screen.
“Hello?”
