Chapter 11

She couldn't believe she had let all that slip. Not even Ash and Trista knew how defeated she felt most days. Not because she didn't trust that they would have her back; both would in a heartbeat and she would bet her yearly salary that both would help her find something new. No, she didn't tell them because she didn't want to be an added burden or to sound like a failure when both of them were exceeding in their lives.

Ash was an event planner, and a damn good one, whose client list was waitlisted because she was that popular. In three years, her best friend had managed to not only succeed when her father had thought for sure she would fail, but was thriving.

Then there was Trista. A famous retired model who now owned several halfway houses that catered to human trafficking victims and helped them get their lives back. Her friends were literally changing the world and here she was begging for scraps in a company where the owner hated her.

She didn't actually think Carmichael hated her, but some days that's what it felt like.

"That's a lot of pressure to put on yourself."

That was the understatement of the year. She lived with constant knots all over her neck and back because she was always so damn tense. A masseuse would have a field day with her.

"Yeah, I know, but hey, I excel under pressure. Always have and it's just part of my life now."

Luke didn't look convinced and who could blame him? She wasn't even sure she believed herself anymore. She needed to change the subject.

"So, is that why you came over? Because I wasn't answering your calls?"

He actually looked sheepish. Now she was curious what the real reason was.

"Sorta." He cleared his throat. She noticed he did that a lot. "I actually had some information, so I figured I would use that as an excuse if you refused to talk to me about us."

Information was never good. Not lately anyway. Everything she was told only seemed to add more shit to her already over-full plate.

"What kind of information?"

"Alexander Fletcher has disappeared. He checked out of the hotel, but no one has seen him since. He didn't board a plane, rent a car, or catch the train. As far as we know, he doesn't have a house local but that doesn't mean a friend didn't loan him one."

Case in point. Why would this guy not go away? But really at the end of the day was it a problem for her?

"Isn't that a good thing? If he's hiding, then he can't be bothering me or trying to get information about my clients."

"Guys like Fletcher don't just give up that easily. They don't take no for an answer. It's just a matter of time before he decides to approach you again. Him going to ground means it's harder for my team to keep an eye on him. That worries me."

Well, wasn't that just great? There went her chance of convincing Carmichael that everything was fine.

"What did I do to deserve this?" She dropped her head into her hands.

She was a good person. She donated to charities. She treated people well and helped anyone out when she could. She was easy to talk to and always made sure her employees knew that she was someone they could come to in their time of need.

Despite all that, it was as if the universe was out to get her and keep her from her dreams.

"It's nothing you did. This is solely a Fletcher problem. He prides himself on making other people's lives as miserable as possible so that he can live the life he wants. He's a narcissist with a God complex."

And clearly it was working well for him because instead of sitting in jail right alongside Silverstein, he was hiding out in what was probably some luxurious villa while she was forced to deal with the messes he made.

Pity party for one.

No, that wasn't her. It was time to pull up those big-girl panties and deal with the situation like the smart woman she was.

"So how are we going to handle this? I assume you have a plan. I doubt you would come here without one."

Maybe that was presumptuous of her, but he seemed like the type of man who always had a plan in place. He reminded her a lot of her friends" husbands and the guys, and gals, on their teams.

"Right now the plan is to keep you safe and that means eyes on you at all times while Caden locates Fletcher. If he can't find him, then he has a few friends who can."

"So we're stuck together, is that what you're telling me?"

She almost pulled it off. It was the wine, or at least that's what she was going to blame it on, when she could no longer keep the straight face she had mastered over the years.

"I see frisky Monica is back in full gear. I was beginning to think she was just a figment of my imagination that first night at the bar."

Not only couldn't she keep the smirk off her face, but she nearly hurt her sides when she laughed so hard she could barely breathe. Monica couldn't remember the last time she had been this carefree around someone other than Ash and Trista. Probably not since college.

"This is still tame Monica. You haven't seen frisky Monica yet."

It sounded so weird to speak about herself in the third person. Almost like she was some prim-and-proper old-school money matriarch.

Despite the dressy clothes, she was very much the opposite of prim and proper. At least when she wasn't in work mode. What the world saw and who she really was were two completely different people.

"I look forward to that side of you."

She wasn't so sure about that. Not that he couldn't handle that side of her. One night together proved he indeed had what it took. She just didn't know if she had it in her to be that person anymore. So much of her time was spent acting one way, she didn't even know if that other side of her still existed.

"You and me both."

Mornings weren't her favorite.They hadn't been in college and they still weren't years later. She considered saying fuck it and not try to beat Carmichael into the office, but she wasn't there yet.

It was true, after Ash's pep talk and her time with Luke, she was ready to take some of her life back but baby steps. She didn't need to rock the boat all in one day.

Tossing back the covers, she tried to ignore the dull ache in her head. She was regretting the amount of wine she consumed the night before. Damn Ash and Trista for plying her with alcohol. Although, she couldn't blame them entirely. It had been her stupid ass who opened the second bottle, despite Ash insisting it was a work night. Sometimes she forgot she wasn't twenty-one anymore.

Speak of the devil. There was that obnoxious tone that alerted her it could be one of two people. However, at this time of the day, it was more like it could only be one person.

BFF: Good morning, sunshine. I hope I'm not disturbing anything. ;)

MONICA: Kinda late now if you were. And why are you up so early? I mean I know why I am but you should be able to sleep in.

Ash was the early riser of the group. Both she and Trista preferred sleeping in. The later the better but that hardly ever happened anymore, not since she tried so hard to make a good impression at work.

BFF: I have a five-month-old who eats as much as her father. There's no such thing as sleeping in. Besides, when she falls back into a milk coma, I get to do my morning yoga.

Some things never changed. She never got the appeal even after being dragged to a million sessions. There was just something about the quietness of it that made her stir-crazy.

MONICA: No wonder your body bounced back so quickly.

BFF: Ha. That's called breastfeeding. It does wonders for a woman's body.

Good to know for the future. Where did that thought come from? She wasn't considering children anytime soon, or really, at all. Work was her only focus and the thought of marriage and children had long since been forgotten about. She was going to be a spinster and the cool aunt that Mallory always wanted to come visit.

But what about Luke?

BFF: So did Luke spend the night?

No such thing as subtlety in this friendship.

She glanced back at her empty bed. Not only had Luke not spent the night, he had left with nothing more than a kiss on the forehead after telling her he couldn't wait to see the other side of her. Understandable considering how much she drank, but damn his chivalry.

MONICA: Sadly no. He refused to take advantage of me in my "drunken state." His words, not mine. I wouldn't have minded being taken advantage of.

It was easy to admit that to Ash because she knew without a shadow of a doubt that her best friend would never judge her. Quite the opposite. Considering her lack of sex lately, Ash would probably cheer the idea on.

BFF: Ugh! I knew he looked like the chivalrous type. Those men are all the same. What does a woman have to do to get her ass bent over the bed and spanked some days?

TMI and oddly specific. Somehow Monica had the feeling the conversation was no longer about her and Luke.

MONICA: Projecting much?

BFF: Maybe a little. Ever since I had Mallory, Bentley has been gentle with me. He says it's because I pushed a watermelon through my vagina, but damn it, I don't want gentle.

That was definitely more than she wanted to know. Even if she had been there and could attest to the fact that Ash had indeed pushed a watermelon out of her cooch. That didn't mean she needed the dirty details of her friend's sex life. She got enough of that from Trista.

MONICA: I think this is a conversation you should be having with your hubby not me.

Morning yoga used to relax Ash. Her best friend sounded the opposite of relaxed at the moment.

BFF: Oh I have, and don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with our sex life. I just want my damn hair pulled already.

Well, alrighty then. It was time to move the conversation along. There was only so much sex talk she could handle in a twenty-four-hour period and Trista usually exceeded that limit in the first five minutes they hung out.

MONICA: I'll be sure to pass the message along when I see your husband. But right now I need to get ready for work. Can't be late.

BFF: Remember what we talked about. Don't let my father push you around.

Like she could forget. It wasn't just Ash and Trista pressuring her now. Luke had joined the bandwagon as well.

MONICA: I won't. I even plan on leaving at a reasonable hour tonight.

She didn't add that her reasoning was because Luke was having someone watch over her. Maybe that someone would be him, but either way, she wasn't about to make the person hang out at her office for longer than necessary. Besides, one day wouldn't hurt or maybe this was the start of turning over a new leaf.

Only time would tell.