Chapter Twenty-Six
JANE
“You told him you needed a break?” Audrey prompted.
“Yeah, just—” I paused abruptly and rolled my shoulders back to ease the tension tightening between my shoulder blades. “Audrey, I've had four reporters call me inside of an hour. I feel like I'm flying blind. He knew this whole thing was going on, way back when we got together over Christmas.”
“It’s not like he could tell you he was a whistleblower on a major investigation.”
“Well, he could have said something big was happening that he couldn't talk to me about.”
“At first?” My friend eyed me skeptically.
“Well, no, but when we started getting serious.”
“I get being frustrated, but Ian was in a tight spot. He was a whistleblower against three people with lots of money. They've been criminally charged with felonies, and they're looking at serious time. He’s lucky he's not the only whistleblower, so it takes some pressure off. I’m not sure you could expect him to say something. I know I’d have asked questions if he tried to be all vague.”
“I know.” I sighed, my shoulders sagging with it. “I feel like I'm emotionally ahead of him.”
“Because you love him? Have you told him how you felt?”
“No. Are you insane?”
“Last I checked, no,” Audrey offered dryly.
I let out another sigh. “I know you're not crazy. It's just—” I paused abruptly, taking a gulp of my coffee. “We're still pretty fresh.”
“What do you mean by fresh?”
“I mean, what started out as just—”
“A holiday fling,” Audrey interjected helpfully when I stuttered over what to say.
I laughed. “Okay, a holiday fling. And now, I don't think either one of us planned on this. I don't even know how fast relationships are supposed to move.”
“I don't think there are rules on that. I think if he was brand new to you and you didn't know him, four months would be different. But you've been spending every weekend together. And it's not like you haven't known him for—”
This time, she paused, and I interjected, “As long as I can remember. We weren't exactly close when we were younger, though.”
That got me a hard eye roll. “We all hung out together all the time. He was one of Thea’s older brothers. My point is, he's not a stranger. We know he’s not a secret serial killer by now.”
I threw my hands up in the air and glared at her. “I know he's not a secret serial killer. But he had this major thing happening, and I didn't know about it.”
“He couldn't tell you,” she said, leaning forward.
“He could have told me something was going on.”
“And then what? You’d have had questions. I see your point. It's just where was that conversation supposed to go? It's a weird situation. That's all I'm saying. But it's obvious you really have feelings for him, and I hate to see you throw this away.”
“I know. I do have feelings for him,” I murmured. “It’s just I felt like he was out of my league anyway.”
“Why is he out of your league?” Audrey asked, her tone almost sharp.
“You knew what he was like in high school. He was handsome and popular with girls chasing after him.”
My friend gave me a searching look. “I'm not going to argue the point that Ian was handsome. Obviously, he was and is. But that doesn’t make him out of your league.”
“I think I'm still hung up that I was pretty much the opposite of him in high school. It’s hard to believe he wants to be with me now when he barely noticed me then.”
“Well, believe it. You're beautiful, you're smart, and you're totally a catch. Trust me. These are facts.”
“If I am such a catch, how come no one else noticed before?”
Audrey’s brows hitched as she gave me a considering look. “Because you don't give anybody a chance, and maybe you just didn't meet the right guy. Plus, men are stupid sometimes.”
I laughed. “Fine then.”
“I think you should call Ian. Stop letting this get in the way.”
I wrinkled my nose and sighed. “I'll think about it.”
“Dallas thinks Ian's in love with you.” I almost choked on a swallow of water. Audrey continued, “Actually, he doesn't think. He said he knows it.”
“How could he know?” I managed.
“He knows Ian well. They're all close. They’ve gotten really tight these past few years. They lost their mom, and they got even closer in the aftermath of what happened with their dad. They talk all the time.”
Just then, Audrey glanced at her watch. “Oh, I need to go. I've got a meeting at work.”
I stood from the table as she did. “It’s good to see you. Thanks for listening.”
Her smile was warm. “Always. I'm so glad you're in Boston now.”
She left with a smile and a wave. I promised her we'd have lunch soon. Her parting comment about me being in Boston had me mulling over it. Living hours apart was no small barrier to Ian and me.
I finished my coffee and walked back toward the university, only to encounter a reporter.
“Ma'am, can you tell us what you knew about Ian Tate being the primary whistleblower on the finance case?”
Ugh. I hated that the case was all over the news. “No comment,” I said firmly.
“Surely, you knew something about this,” the reporter countered.
“Actually, you probably know more than I do,” I said, my tone a little too sharp.
I'd had to field phone calls, so having a reporter thrust a phone in my face with another reporter holding a camera left me feeling unsettled.
“We understand you're an old family friend. Do you think it's possible Ian was involved in the scam himself? Like father, like son.”
I knew that was bullshit, but I pressed my lips together and took a breath. “Of course not,” I said swiftly. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.”
I hurried past them, relieved to reach the main entrance of the building where my office was at the university.
I jogged up the stairs, closing and locking my door before sitting down at my desk with a giant sigh.
I didn't have time to dwell. I had three classes in a row.
For that, I was relieved. I didn't need to be obsessing about it this afternoon.