She promises to bring Daphne with her before she hangs up. Briefly, I realize that even though promoting three people is probably what's going to bankrupt us, at least it means that the girls and I have more time to deal with all this crap.
I ball up the paper and open the door with my key. It smells slightly musty after being closed up for the past few weeks. I flip the deadbolt and then go upstairs to the master bedroom. The majority of the furniture was stuff that Andrew bought for us so I don't want any of that. I throw most of my clothes in my suitcase and then zip it closed. I already packed most of my essentials when I moved into my mom's house so the only things left are my out of season clothes and some of my books.
I pack my favorite paperbacks into a duffel bag and then wrestle both the duffel and the suitcase down the stairs. I hear a car in the driveway and look out the window. Andy steps out of his white SUV. When he sees me in the window, he waves with a little smirk on his face.
I rush over to the front door and pull it open. I quickly flip the lock on the glass storm door and then close the front door again. He has a key to the main door but I'm willing to bet he doesn't have one for the storm door. I'm not even sure if I have it.
A muffled curse from the other side of the door proves me right. "Rissa! Open the damn door."
"Go away Andrew or I'm calling the police!"
"You can't lock me out, this is my house!"
I hear him fumbling with the latch again and then I hear a muffled thud.
"Son of a bitch!"
I look out of the peephole but I can't see anything. Then I hear Tara's voice.
"Hello, 911. Yes, Andrew Carrington is harassing my friend at her home. Yes, right now. You know I'm not sure if he's armed or not. It's probably better to assume he is. Maybe you should send a SWAT team and tell the local news to come too."
I run to the window just in time to see Andy jump behind the wheel of his SUV and reverse out of the driveway. Tara runs behind him and then throws something at the back of the car. It connects with the back bumper and Andrew swerves slightly.
Good one, Tara.
I run back to the front door and pull it open. Daphne looks terrified and launches herself into my arms. "Rissa! Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, thanks to you guys. I'm so glad you're here." I hug her back, then start laughing when I see the muddy rock on the front step.
"Did you throw that at him?" I ask Tara when she approaches.
She sniffs. "Damn right I did. And I'm bummed that my aim is so bad. I thought for sure I'd nail him in the face with that one."
"Did you actually call the cops?" Daphne looks impressed.
Tara makes a face. "No, I actually didn't have time to dial anything. I just wanted to scare him off. He's such an asshole." She looks down at her phone and then hits a few keys.
"Who are you calling now?" Daphne asks.
"No one." Tara pockets her phone but she won't meet my eyes.
She looks behind me to the suitcase and duffel I dropped in the middle of the entryway. "Come on let's box up your stuff and get it over to your Mom's house before that jerk comes back. I don't feel like going to jail today."
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
FINN
As evening descends, I sit staring at my phone. I've been on calls all morning, trying to figure out what I should do.
How could I have screwed this up so badly?
Patrick Stevens had several suggestions and I've considered everything from selling the company to outright gifting it to Marissa.
But in the end, I know it actually won't make any difference. Even if I could convince the Mercers to buy it back, the damage is already done. Rissa has seen just how far I'll go when I want something and how ruthless I can be when I consider someone an enemy.
It wasn't about the company it was about the reason why I'd purchased it in the first place.
My plan didn't seem to have any downsides in the beginning. My image of Rissa was of a beautiful materialistic liar, a girl who left me when I needed her the most. But after just a few days with her, I knew even then that I was wrong.
Worse, I wasn't the only one who'd felt betrayed. The things that I'd done and said had contributed to our relationship falling apart just as much as her decision to choose someone else. Maybe if I hadn't been deployed part of the time I could have seen the cracks in our relationship before it was too late. But I was so caught up in my jealousy and anger that all I could see was that she'd left me. And I'd felt completely justified in devising my plan to punish her.
I would have never thought we'd end up as friends again and definitely not lovers.
All at once, I become aware of the time. I've been sitting in this room all day. I've missed my usual visit with my mother. If I leave now, I can get over there before it gets too late. She goes to bed earlier now and sleeps longer.
I pull out my phone to call Jonah and then put it away. I grab the keys I keep on the kitchen counter and ride the elevator down to the parking level. Then I climb up into the old Ford pickup that I've had for ages.
When I get to my mom's house, Tank's motorcycle is in the drive and lights are on all over the house. Part of me wants to turn around and go back home but I park in the drive next to my brother's bike and get out. It's time I stopped hiding from the people who love me and let them help me.
I open the door with my key. Emma looks up from the couch. "Finn! You actually came this time?"