10. Billie

CHAPTER 10

BILLIE

" H i Terri. How's it going?" It's mid-afternoon on Monday and I'm sidling up to James's assistant in the break room.

Terri smiles warmly at me, and I can tell she's happy to have some company. "Hey Billie, it's going pretty well. Just trying to keep up with James's crazy schedule."

I chuckle, gesturing at the coffee I'm currently sipping. "He's a handful, all right — hence the need to caffeinate."

Terri laughs. "I hear ya. It's been a busy day so far."

"Yeah." I sip my coffee again, feeling nervous. Terri is one of the few people here who seems genuinely nice, but I'm not talking her up to pass the time. I need information.

Maybe she can tell me if any of James's family members have medical conditions. I can't ask directly, though. I need to be careful.

"Hey," I say. "Do you know if James has any family?"

Terri's expression shifts slightly, and I can tell she's surprised by my question. "You know, I don't know. I've never heard him talk about them. Why do you ask?"

I shrug, trying to play it cool. "Just curious, I guess. It's weird that he's never mentioned them before."

Terri nods slowly. "Yeah, it is strange. I know he's a private person, but I feel like I know so much about his work life and next to nothing about his personal life."

I nod in agreement, trying to hide my disappointment. "I know what you mean. Anyway, thanks for chatting with me, Terri. I should probably get back to work."

Terri smiles and waves goodbye as I leave the break room, frustrated. I thought I might be onto something here, but it looks like I've hit a dead end. Again.

In his office, James is walking back and forth, talking on the phone. I linger outside for a moment, watching as he gestures with each word. There's something so commanding about him. So intense.

It draws me in, making it impossible to look away.

Heat flushes through me, and I lick my lips. My body still hasn't gotten the memo that James isn't someone we should be interested in.

I try to shake off the feeling and enter his office, clearing my throat to get his attention. He turns towards me, his gaze piercing as always.

"Sounds good," he says into the phone. "Talk soon."

He hangs up and nods at me. "We have a meeting in about an hour that you'll need to prepare for. I'll email you the details, but it's with the client so I need you to make sure everything is perfect."

I nod, already mentally preparing myself for the task. "Got it. Anything else?"

He shakes his head. "No, that's all. You can go ahead and get started on that. And Billie?" He pauses, his voice low and commanding. "I need you to be on your A-game today."

I swallow, feeling a shiver run down my spine. "Of course, James. I always am."

He nods once more, and I go to take a seat across from him, but suddenly my phone starts ringing. It's Quinn's school.

I freeze and stare at the phone in my hand. It's not even two, and school isn't out for another hour and a half. Which means they're only calling because something is wrong.

Immediately, anxiety takes hold. A dozen different scary situations flash through my head, even as I tell myself it's probably nothing.

"Sorry, I need to take this," I say. I'm not asking James, I'm telling him.

Hurrying out of his office, I walk swiftly down the hall. It's not until I'm out of his earshot that I answer the phone.

"Hello, this is Billie," I say, trying to keep my voice steady. "Is everything okay?"

"Hi, Billie. It's Danielle Fields, the school nurse." There's a pause on the other end of the line. "I'm afraid Quinn has a fever, and she needs to be picked up."

I stop walking and chew on my lip. Chelsea is in her college classes until three. And Monica isn't available today.

Which means that I need to go.

James is gonna freak, but at this point I don't even care. I just need to get to my little girl.

"Thank you," I tell the nurse. "I'm leaving work right now."

I rush back to James's office, my heart pounding in my chest. When I enter, he looks up at me, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Taking personal calls now?"

I ignore him and start gathering my things.

"What's wrong?" he asks, his voice softer now.

Cool. So because I didn't respond to his being an asshole, he's trying on the nice-guy act.

I couldn't care less about his switching masks. Not at a time like this.

"I need to leave." I straighten up and face him. "Sorry, but it's an emergency."

James stands, his hands slamming down on his desk. "Are you kidding me, Billie? We have this meeting in an hour. This could be a huge deal for the company. You can't just leave like this."

"I have to go take care of my daughter," I say, my voice firm. "I'm sorry, James, but this is more important."

I didn't plan on ever telling him about Quinn, but there it is: out there in the open.

I have to take care of the daughter you abandoned, I silently add.

He stares at me for a long moment, and I can see the anger in his eyes. But then, just as suddenly, it dissipates. "I didn't know you have a daughter."

I purse my lips. "Would that have changed your mind about hiring me?"

He pauses. "Legally, I can't—"

I scoff. "Legally? So if you could get away with not hiring parents, you would. Nice."

I shake my head and turn for the door, aware that I've pissed him off but not giving a rat's ass.

"It's why I never had children," James says quietly. "They get in the way of success."

I freeze, my hand on the door handle. Red clouds my vision. So that's why he walked away from Quinn. He didn't want her to get in the way of his "success."

"How can you say that?" I spin around to face him. "Children are not obstacles to be removed. They are human beings with their own lives, their own emotions. They are not objects to be discarded when they become inconvenient. God forbid someone had treated you that way as a child."

Something flashes in his eyes. Hurt.

I pause. Did I imagine it?

A moment later, and his cool facade is back. He raises his eyebrows at me. "I didn't mean it like that."

"Well, it sure sounded like it," I snap. "I have to go take care of my daughter, but you stay here and focus on your precious success."

I slam the door behind me and storm out of the building. James's words echo in my head, and I feel a deep anger bubbling up inside of me. How can someone be so callous towards their own child? It's unconscionable.

But I can't dwell on it now. I have to focus on getting to Quinn and making sure she's okay.

I speed through traffic, my mind racing with worry. When I finally arrive at the school, I rush inside and make my way to the nurse's office.

Quinn is sitting on the bed, her eyes puffy and red from crying. My heart drops at the sight of her. I rush towards her and wrap my arms around her.

"Oh, baby. It's okay. We'll get you home and feeling better." I touch her forehead. She's burning up.

"Her fever is a hundred and one," the nurse tells me. "I recommend fluids and rest, along with some medicine to take the fever down."

I nod. "Thank you. I'll take care of her from here."

The nurse hands me a small bottle of medicine and a sheet with instructions before we leave the office. I hold Quinn close to my chest as we make our way to the car, her small body feeling so fragile in my arms.

As I buckle her into her car seat, I can't help but think about James and his vile attitude towards children. It's fine to not want kids, but it sounded like James actually hates them.

How can anyone view their own child as an inconvenience? As something that gets in the way of success? It's unfathomable to me.

I start the car and we begin the drive home. Quinn is quiet in the back seat, her head resting against the window as she dozes.

As we pull into the apartment complex's parking lot, I feel grateful for the simple things. For the roof over our heads, for the medicine that will help Quinn, for the love that surrounds us. It's easy to get caught up in the pursuit of success, but at the end of the day, what truly matters is the people we care about.

I carry Quinn inside and tuck her into bed, making sure she's comfortable. Then I sit beside her, my hand on her forehead, monitoring her temperature.

James might very well fire me for today.

I want to say it was worth it, but was it? I'm doing all of this for Quinn, and every health scare she has terrifies me a little bit more.

As I sit there, watching my daughter sleep, my mind drifts to James again. It's hard to imagine what could have happened in his life to make him so bitter towards children. Maybe he had a terrible childhood himself. Or maybe he's just a selfish person who doesn't care about anyone else's needs.

Either way, I know that I'll never be like him. I'll always put Quinn first, no matter what. And I'll always cherish the simple things, like holding her hand or reading her a bedtime story, because those are the moments that matter.

James doesn't know anything about that, and he never will. So while he may have billions of dollars and hundreds of employees at his beck and call, and I live in an apartment and get clothes off the discount rack, at the end of the day I'm the fortunate one.