CHAPTER 16DENISE
CHAPTER 16
DENISE
It was lunchtime and I still hadn’t talked to Hugh. He’d called on my walk into the office, and I ignored him. I wasn’t looking for a daddy, I had one of those and the last I heard his bitch ass was in Arkansas somewhere. If he wanted this to work, he couldn’t just order me around and expect me to obey.
Cleo had sent me a few options on how we could handle the video, and I was mulling them over as I worked. The video view didn’t appear to be growing, and she was thinking it may be better just to issue takedowns and let it die out. That was my favorite option, but Cleo still wanted to release something and get it to gain traction.
That’s what I was spending my lunch thinking about. I wasn’t really interested in hanging out with anyone, I just wanted to watch the city and enjoy a few minutes of peace and quiet that didn’t have anything to do with digging into people’s business.
Digging up dirt was an icky, but necessary, part of the job. Thankfully, my day had gone by quickly. With my renewed focus, I was able to get almost halfway through my list of investors, and I’d already removed another organization from the running. I’d sent Hugh email updates, and I was happy with the way things were shaping up. If I was lucky, I’d be able to get through the rest by the end of tomorrow.
Someone knocked on the door and I turned to see Lucian walking in with a file in his hand. He was wearing a light blue suit that made his eyes appear far more piercing. I smiled at him.
“Hi,” I said, standing from the spot near my window. I ran my tongue over my teeth, hoping that there wasn’t spinach in them.
“Hey. I have something I need you to sign,” Lucian said, passing me the folder he was holding.
It was a relationship affidavit. Hugh’s signature was scrawled across the bottom and dated a few weeks ago to the night of the party. Reading it over, it looked like it just released Foxx from liability and laid out the rules, some of which we’d already broken, like fucking in the office.
Whoops.
As pissed as I was at Hugh, I pulled out my pen and signed across the bottom, backdating it like he had. Lucian was watching as I signed it. When I went to hand it back, my office phone rang.
“Go ahead,” Lucian said as he grabbed the pen from my hand so he could sign his name underneath ours.
I grabbed the headset and placed it on my ear.
“This is Denise Roberts. How can I help you,” I asked.
The line was quiet for a second, and I was ready to hang up when someone cleared their throat.
“Hi, this is Denise. What can I do for you?” I studied the dock to see if there was maybe an issue with the connection. That’s when I heard an unfamiliar voice on the other end.
“I know you like to eat, you fat cunt. You’re gonna gag on my cock until you choke. Miserable bitches like you don’t deserve to breathe air.”
I ripped the headset from my ear and threw it across the desk, shock and nausea hitting me all at once. Instant and heavy dread ripped through my body as my hand went to my mouth. Who the hell? Those words, that tone. I felt queasy, and my stomach roiled as acid-tinged the back of my throat. Lucian picked up and investigated the headset before creasing his brow and watching me. I stared at it in his hand like the caller was going to pop out of it like a creepy, long-haired girl from a horror movie.
His words echoed around in my mind:
Cock.
Choke.
Fat cunt.
Lucian rushed over to the office door and shut it. When he walked over to me, he stopped a little bit away and tentatively reached out to me.
“Hey,” he said, touching my shoulder. I could see him, but my attention was far away. I was glancing past him at the people in the office, walking around and talking amongst themselves.
“What the fuck?” I whispered. “What the fuck?!” I hissed, rage and fear battling and sending adrenaline coursing through my veins and making me tremble.
“Denise?” Lucian asked.
I was trying to form words, but before I could say anything, my cell phone buzzed. Cleo’s name was across the front. Lucian answered and put it on speaker.
“Den!?” Cleo’s voice rang through the room.
“Cleo,” I said, relieved.
“What’s going on, Cleo?” Lucian asked, looking from me to the phone.
“I’m still… Someone left me a voicemail and I—”
There was a heavy moment of silence before I heard something break as Cleo screamed, the rage in her voice was heavy.
“Spineless ass muthafuckin’ limp dick shit-eating asshole,” Cleo screamed.
“Cleopatra?” Lucian’s voice was soft.
“Curtis went on a podcast. He named us and our employers.”
Dread and fear washed over me as I numbly grabbed the phone from Lucian and spoke into the speaker.
“They know where we work?” I asked.
Lucian had his cell in his hand as the steady sound of the dial tone could be heard from my headset.
“A meeting just popped up on my fucking calendar with my boss and HR. Shit.” Cleo was shuffling on the other end of the phone.
Lucian looked up from his phone and I saw the rage flaming in his eyes. His mouth thinned.
I stuttered, “When Curtis ca-called me, I sh-should’ve—”
“Shut the fuck up, Den. This is not on you,” Cleo hissed.
Lucian leaned over and plucked the phone from my hand.
“My driver is going to take her to your place. Stay inside, both of you,” he said, before hanging up and pointing to my bag. “Get your stuff together. My driver will be here in two.”
When I reached out to grab the papers off my desk, Lucian slapped his hands on top of them.
“Don’t even think about it. Your project is on pause for the rest of the week.”
Immediately, I interjected, “Sir, that’s unnec—”
“I can put you on pause too,” he raised his eyebrows, and I knew he wasn’t joking.
“Damn, you’re just as bad as Hugh,” I grumbled as I slipped my heels off.
“I’m worse. Especially when a bum ass nigga puts his hands on women.” The fury in Lucian’s voice surprised me and the switch out of his corporate voice was unexpected.
“Don’t let the suit fool you, sugar,” he whispered.
Despite the anger flowing through me, I laughed. These men and their code-switching… and I thought I was good at it. I slid on my coat and shouldered my bag.
“Call your man, I know you’re ducking him,” Lucian said as he opened my office door.
I glared, and he held up his hands as I walked past him.
“He asked me to look out for you since you were ignoring him, that’s all I know.”
Folding my arms, I cleared my throat and kept walking towards the elevators. Once I got into the back of the car, I did as I was told… sort of.
Our names are out. I’m heading to Cleo’s now, which I’m sure Lucian’s already told you.
His bubbles typed while I held down the power button and turned off my phone.