30. Chapter 30
Chapter 30
Nova
I went to work and pretended like nothing happened. I couldn't just sit at home and brood because that wasn't healthy for anyone, especially me, who was a world-class brooder.
I asked Nina about the Larue Homes project's status when I met her in the office breakroom. She told me it was on hold, and legal was looking into it. This was a big project for Savannah Lace, and I didn't want us to lose it.
"Put someone else on it," I told Nina as I made myself a cup of coffee in the kitchen. "That's a lot of business for us and it's an important project that'll put us on the map."
"He had you arrested," Nina exclaimed.
She wasn't very excitable as a person. Usually, she was calm and controlled, even when the shit hit the fan. But this had really wounded her. That her brother's friend had so relentlessly gone after me and set me up to take the fall for something was untenable to her.
"We don't know what happened," I told her, asking her to give Larue Homes the benefit of the doubt, though Anson was getting none from me.
"Well, he asked for a week before I made a decision," Nina added some cream to her coffee and stirred. "How are you holdin' up? I thought you were told to stay home?"
"If I stay home, I'll go out of my mind." I drank some coffee. " And there's a whole lot of work to get through."
Nina narrowed her eyes. "You're avoiding dealing with what happened."
"Yeah," I said easily, "I certainly am. I don't want to think about it right now."
"Why?"
"Because," I smiled wanly, "I don't have the energy for it."
Nina put a hand on my shoulder. "You're the toughest bitch I know, Nova King, you remember that."
"High praise coming from you."
She chuckled. "It takes one to know one—and from one tough bitch to another, you're not a young girl in Sentinel with no resources any longer. You have everyone at work. You have Noah, Gabe, and even Dom would have been at the station, but he was out of town. Trev made one call to Beau, and he rallied everyone. That's your village, your support system. You can't fail with so many people ready to catch you if you fall. You understand?"
My eyes filled with tears of gratitude. I was still in awe of how there were so many people waiting for me at the police station. I still hadn't digested the fact that Beau knew the truth and accepted me—no questions asked. I had an inheritance of a few million dollars. A few million dollars!
Usually, with bastard children, the legal heirs fought not to give them anything—with Trevor and Beau, it was the other way around.
I was still worried about how it would all go down with Donna Bodine, but Beau had told me that she was a grown-up and she'd just have to deal. Seeing Beau's reaction, both Trevor and I felt enormously guilty for keeping the truth from him—and Katya gleefully chanted, " I told you so. I told you so. " That was one winner who didn't know how to be graceful in victory.
"Thanks, Nina," I murmured.
She smiled at me. "We tough bitches need to take care of one another."
I was going through my email when Diego called me. "You okay?" he asked.
"I think so."
"So, I'm not supposed to tell anyone, but I'm gonna tell you. Bailey set you up."
"What? I can't believe it."
"Why? She's capable of such malice."
"I know that, but I didn't think she was smart enough to do a frame job," I explained.
Diego laughed. "It wasn't so hard, and what she lacks in business sense, she makes up for in sheer street smarts. It looks like the GBI will take over this case, and she will be arrested for embezzlement."
I didn't quite know how to respond to that. It seemed inappropriate to clap because anyone being charged with a crime was not a celebratory occasion. However, if anyone deserved it, Bailey did. So, I did a mental fist pump and left it at that. I would not be able to truly enjoy anyone's misfortune, even Bailey's.
"Nova?"
"Yeah. I'm…speechless."
I heard Diego's rumble of laughter. "Fine, querida , I'll be gleeful for both of us. Pete will go down, I promise you that. Don't ask me how, just know it'll happen."
"I don't care," I told him honestly.
"Well, I do. I don't want to have business in a county where the sheriff is a corrupt asshole like Pete Fontaine."
"Okay."
"I want you to continue being the project manager on—"
"Nina isn't even sure she's going to keep you as a client," I cut in indignantly, "so my project managing Sentinel Heights is moot."
"He is very—"
"You bring him up, and I'll hang up on you. I already blocked him, so I'd be happy to block you as well," I warned him.
I could all but feel his irritation from across the LTE network. "Alright, querida , I won't bring him up. But fair warning, he's coming for you."
My heart raced. "What do you mean?"
"I think the bastard just realized that he's in love with you and has been since the start, so, he's going to—"
"Fail," I snapped.
"Y'all are more entertaining than a telenovela, " Diego chuckled.