24. Chapter 23
Chapter 23
When I wake up the following morning, I'm even more exhausted somehow.
I barely remember crawling into Hawk's bed, and despite sleeping soundly, I feel like I could use more.
From the moment I wake, my brain starts a frenzy of panic. I need to face it all today, and the thought of it makes me want to break down crying.
"Stop it," Hawk grumbles sleepily from behind me. His grip tightens around my waist, bringing me to reality.
"I didn't do anything," I argue back quietly.
"I can practically hear the gears turning in your head," he grunts.
I turn around, facing him. "How did you know I was awake?"
Hawk peers at me through half-closed eyes. "You jolted yourself awake."
"Oh," I murmur awkwardly.
He yanks me forward, pulling me into his chest. "How about I just tell you the plan for today?"
"You have a whole plan?" I say with a weak smile.
"I have a plan for everything," he answers, running his fingers over the curve of my waist.
I shiver slightly from his touch. "What's the plan then?"
Hawk's fingers pause over my ribcage. "We're going to get up, make coffee and get dressed. I assume you won't want breakfast since you rarely have it, and probably can't stand the thought right now. Then the three of us are going to head to your office. Jason is already expecting us."
I jolt upright. "You spoke to Jason?"
I can't even get into the breakfast thing and how he knows those little habits, too startled by his meeting proposal.
"I did," he says confidently, sitting up. The blanket falls down, my eyes shifting to his tattoos before I narrow my eyes at him.
"When?"
He doesn't falter at all at my question. "Last night after you fell asleep. Nice man."
"You spoke to my boss," I say in a panic. "How much does he know?"
Hawk shrugs. "We'll find out. Now, get your ass back down for more cuddles."
I feel sick walking into my work. People are working away busily, barely glancing at us.
I lead the way to Jason's office, greeting colleagues weakly. No one seems suspicious which puts me on edge, and before we even reach Jason's door, he's stood there.
"Come in," he ushers, stepping aside for the three of us to pile inside.
The door clicks behind us and Jett pats the chair next to him, motioning for me to sit.
I don't speak first, the words caught in my throat. Jason looks at me sternly, and I feel a wave of terror wash over me.
"Rayne," he starts, a serious expression on his aging face. "I've been made aware of an incident that occurred here last night."
Hawk's on the other side of me, and I glance over at him for support. He gives me a small nod, reaching for my hand out of sight from Jason.
"Yeah…" I mutter, looking at Jason.
How much does he know? Or better yet—what story does he know? Did Hawk tell him everything? Has Elijah contacted him?
Jason cups his hands on his desk, leaning forward slightly. "Your brother here," he pauses, looking between the two, probably unsure which one. "Mentioned that something happened last night with another colleague. Can you tell me about it?"
"Uh… sure," I stumble over my words. "I was attacked in my office." I choose my words carefully, feeling nervous. "By Elijah."
Jason takes a deep breath, frowning. "And when you say 'attacked'?"
"He forced himself onto me," I answer bluntly. "And then we left."
I don't know why I add that last part—I'm scared of the repercussions because sometimes, victims don't always win. Sometimes… the bad guys get away with things. I don't want Hawk to suffer because of me. I've seen it happen too many times before in cases.
Leaning back, Jason gives a stern nod. "The cleaners notified me about the state of your office and sent me photos. We haven't heard from Elijah but he hasn't turned up for work today."
My head snaps over to Hawk, silently pleading for answers from him. He squeezes my hand, looking at Jason.
"Mr. Steele was still in the building when we left last night," Hawk tells Jason. It doesn't skip past me that Hawk knows his name—hell, he probably knows everyone's blood types too.
"IT informed me that he left sometime after seven last night," Jason states. "Firstly, I understand how difficult this must be for you. It never should have happened. So the firm will support whatever you need while we look into this. We're also happy to pay for counseling should you wish to go that route. I'd suggest taking some time off."
I slump back into my chair slightly, the exhaustion creeping up on me again. "How much time?"
Jason stares at me, finally softening his gaze. "Whatever you feel is appropriate."
"I don't know," I admit. "But I do know I want to report the incident to the police," I say confidently, much to the surprise of the three of them.
"I think that's a good idea," Jason replies. "I'm happy to make the call on your behalf and have the officers contact you if you like."
I nod. "Okay. What will happen to Elijah here?"
Jason crosses his arms. "It's with HR at the moment. Like I mentioned, we haven't spoken with him yet but I wanted to get your account first before we did so. I'll let our HR representative know and they will launch a formal investigation. Given the information we have on hand, I can confidently say that he will be terminated—with or without a police investigation. That matter is up to you and how you proceed with it."
Sighing in relief, I look over at Jett. "Will you help me with it?"
I don't want to involve Hawk. For some reason, I believe him when he said Elijah won't show his face. And that leads me to believe that he probably won't speak up either—whether out of fear of Hawk or because it will mean admitting guilt for his actions. I think reporting it to the police is the right thing to do—if not for me, but for all the other victims afraid to speak up. I can always make a decision about charges after that. But at least if it's on paper… it might stop him from doing it again. Maybe even encourage others to report offenders. Isn't that the whole point of the justice system? We need to be protected, because no one should ever have to go through that.
"Of course I will," Jett answers warmly, understanding my concern.
I turn back to Jason, feeling a little better. "We're mid-way through the week but I know everyone is busy. I also know that Elijah's absence is going to hurt the workload of others and that you have your big case in front of the Judge this week. If it's okay with you, I'll take the rest of the week off to sort myself out and start fresh again on Monday."
Jason nods. "Of course. And it will be paid time off obviously. I'll speak to the staff today and without personal details, inform them of the change in staffing for the week. We'll adjust workload accordingly, there's plenty of us."
I pause for a moment, contemplating whether I should mention anything about Elijah's previous job, but decide against it. It's not going to add any value to the situation or change the outcome.
Sighing, I thank Jason for his time and let him know he can pass my details onto the police. As we head out, I give Mary a small wave, barely breathing until I'm safely in the elevator with the doors closed.
"Are you okay?" Jett asks, the two of them on either side of me as we head down.
"Everyone keeps asking me that," I murmur. "How about this? I'll let you know when I'm not." I give him a soft smile, letting them exit the elevator first.
As we enter the parking lot, Jett halts in his tracks, digging into his pocket. I watch as he pulls my car keys from them, jingling them.
"I'll drive your car back to ours."
I turn around, scanning the parked cars until I find my little Mazda tucked in the corner. It's been here for two days, so probably a good idea to bring it home.
"I'm happy to drive and follow you," I say but he cuts me off.
"Absolutely not. You'll ride with Hawk. Enjoy the front seat. Just don't touch the audio—he hates when his settings get changed," Jett grins, heading toward my car.
Hawk sighs at his brother, motioning for me to follow to the Porsche. "I'll let you change it if you want. But no girly ass music. It's not a good look for the Porsche."
"Damn. I was going to play Barbie Girl really loud and you've just killed my dream," I mock, climbing into the passenger seat.
I sink into the comfortable space, putting on my seatbelt.
As Hawk slips into the car, my little Mazda zips past with a squeal, my mouth falling open in disbelief.
"He better not crash my fucking car," I scowl.
"It will be fine," Hawk laughs, the Porsche revving to life. We fly out of the parking spot, my body shoved back into the seat as Hawk takes chase. I squeal, grabbing anything I can for support as we fly out of the underground garage into traffic, giving chase.
My heart races faster than we're traveling, and Hawk puts his hand on my thigh, giving it a tight squeeze.
"Don't pretend you don't love it," he teases, fingers dancing on my skin. "I bet I could make you soak the seat before we get home."
"Keep your hands on the steering wheel," I scold loudly.
He ignores me, fingers dancing under my summer dress. One of them had gone to my apartment last night and grabbed some clothes for when I woke this morning, and I wasn't blind to the fact it was mainly things that had easy access.
"Do you really want me to stop?" he asks, waiting for the okay.
I glance down at his hand on my bare leg, stomach tightening. "No."
"Good," he muses, slipping under the fabric as he pulls my underwear aside. "When we pull up alongside Jett, I want him to see your face."
His finger slips inside me just as the car comes to a stop. Hawk puts the window down, nodding at Jett who does a double take.
"That's not fair," he yells back through the window.
Hawk laughs, curling his finger, making my back arch and my mouth fall open. "You're going to lose twice, brother. See you at home."
The tires squeal loudly as he hits the gas, launching us forward when the light turns green. And Hawk wasn't wrong—we did beat Jett home.
And I came twice before we reached the garage.