Chapter 59
CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE
HECTOR
“I can’t believe I let you talk me into allowing you to come,” I said, hand gripping the steering wheel.
Heather sat in the passenger seat, wrapped in her knitted blanket and staring out the windshield. Somehow, she had weaseled her way into the car after I told the officer that I d come check it out.
Jacob hadn’t answered his phone the three times I called him on our way over. Prick. And of fucking course, this had to happen literally moments after I gave Heather her collar. She’d had such a huge smile on her face, and I had been so happy.
There goes that.
I wasn t going to let you come alone, she said. What if something happens?
“Exactly why I should’ve come alone.”
If something happened to her, I would fucking lose it.
“Well, I’d rather be here with you than pacing around our home and wondering what the heck was happening,” she said, furrowing her brows even harder and crossing her arms. “So, take that.”
While I wanted to stay mad at her, she had just called the penthouse our home, and it made me feel some type of way. So, I stayed silent and pulled into an empty parking spot in front of our office building. The officer pulled behind me.
Heather unbuckled her seat belt.
“You’re staying in the car,” I said.
“But—”
“Heather,” I growled even more sternly, taking her chin in my hand. “Stay here.”
Streetlights cast shadows on the empty sidewalk. I unbuckled my seat belt and gave Heather my most stern look. I didn t want to ever hold the collar over her head, but she needed to behave. This was for her own safety.
I m your Master, and it s my job to keep you safe. So, I don t care how hard you pout; you re not coming in with me. I don t know who s in there or what the fuck is going on. You re lucky that you re in the car. Stay.
Heather’s expression fell, and then she nodded. “Okay, I’m sorry.”
Once I kissed her on the lips to show her that I wasn’t mad, I exited the car and walked to the office building with a couple of officers. I entered my key code, and the door clicked open. One officer nodded to me.
“You can stay here,” he said. “We’ll check it out.”
“No, I’m coming in with you.”
After they peered at each other, he nodded. I followed them into the building and headed straight for the elevators. They swept around the first floor, but if someone was going to steal anything, they’d head up to the top.
Though I had a feeling that it wasn’t a robber at all.
Up and up and up, the elevator whizzed to the top floor in seconds. When the door dinged and opened, a strong scent of booze drifted into the lift. I blew out a low breath and closed my eyes.
Fuck.
Once I gathered up enough of a shit, I stepped out into the main office and spotted Jacob sprawled out on one of the couches, his hair disheveled and a distant, sad look in his eyes. He clutched a bottle of tequila.
It was you who tripped the alarm? I asked, walking farther into the room.
Jacob gazed up from the couch, staring through me. “Yeah.”
“Why didn’t you turn it off? Or answer your phone?”
Instead of answering me, Jacob took another sip right from the bottle. “How was Christmas with my daughter? Did you get her everything that she could ever want? She deserves it.”
“She deserved a fucking call from you,” I growled. “It’s Christmas.”
“I didn’t think she’d want to talk to me,” he whispered emptily.
I snatched the bottle from him and recapped it. Then, I threw it into the trash so he couldn’t get any more hammered tonight. I wondered where Evelyn was. Surely, they had spent today together, too, hadn’t they?
“She has been waiting impatiently by her phone all day,” I said. “For you.”
Eyes glazed over in a drunken gaze, he shook his head. I m a bad father. I wasn t there enough while she was growing up. I was too hard on her. She always told me that I was being too hard. I drove her to you.
Who is she? His ex-wife maybe?
Tears welled in his eyes, and a sob escaped his throat. “I should’ve called her.”
“You should’ve.”
Usually, I wasn t one to add insult to injury, but he deserved it. Yet my words only tore him into even sharper pieces. He dropped his shoulders forward and sobbed into his hands, shaking his head.
I sighed and sat next to him, deciding that insulting him wouldn’t get us anywhere. “I can’t imagine how difficult this must be for you. I know that it has been tearing Heather up since you found out about us.”
Tell her I m sorry, he sobbed, wobbling back and forth on the couch and still crying way more than I had ever thought he could. He started mumbling incoherently, but I made out the sentence, I should have handled things differently.
After running my hand over my face, I stood up and wrapped my arm around his to lift him to his feet. It looks like it has been a long night, Jacob. Let s get you home, and you can talk to Heather when you re sober.
Though I wasn’t sure how I was going to get him home with Heather in the car, nor did I know how Heather was going to react when I walked out of the office with him. But I couldn’t let him rot here.
Not if I wanted him to respect me as Heather’s … boyfriend.
And hopefully, one day, something more than that.