Chapter 29
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Hartford
Was it weird to watch someone sleep?
I’d woken up about ten minutes ago. We hadn’t shut the curtains last night and somehow Joshua was managing to sleep despite the sunshine spilling through the huge windows.
That or he knew I was sitting here watching him, and he was indulging my weirdness by pretending to sleep. I wouldn’t put it past him.
I wanted to stay here until he woke and talk all day and do everything naked, but I had to leave for my shift in thirty minutes.
I checked my phone. Correction: twenty minutes.
Shit. I pulled on my dress and looked around for a piece of paper and a pen to leave a note, but there was nothing.
I opened the bedroom door, being careful not to make a noise, and saw a bunch of papers on the dining table and a printer that had overflowed whatever it was printing onto the floor.
I’d steal some paper for a note without disturbing what I was sure was organized chaos.
I crouched to gather up the fallen papers and an image caught my eye. I turned it the right way up.
Calmation.
I read it again to make sure I’d not imagined something.
No, I hadn’t. It definitely said “Calmation.” Heat crawled up my body and I tried to think.
Why would Joshua have papers relating to the very ADHD drug Gerry and I were set to campaign against?
My heart began to thunder in my chest as I turned over more of the fallen papers to try to see what was going on.
I stood and placed each page on the table.
Image after image of packaging with different logos.
Some of the packages were regular cardboard pill packets.
Others tubs of vitamins. One even looked like a packet of gummy bears.
Every few images there were a couple of pages of writing, which I skimmed in a kind of haze. I read the final page with more intent, my brain stumbling back from the shock that had sent me reeling. I dropped the paper like it was on fire.
It settled at my feet, right side up. I tried to ignore the nausea that growled in my gut.
Luca Brands presents Calmation for Merdon.
I covered my mouth with my hands to stop myself from screaming. There was no way Joshua would do this. He was the king of luxury goods. Why would he work with them?
I clawed at my throat as I tried to take a deep breath, but all I could pull into my lungs was heat and panic.
I tried to piece together the memories of our conversations. He told me he was working with a pharma company that was helping people. He said he was inspired by me to do good. Could he really believe that, or was he just doing the bidding of whoever would pay him?
Yesterday I had told him I was campaigning against a new ADHD drug with Gerry. With all the insider information he had, he must have put two and two together and realized I was talking about Calmation.
I sank to the floor and tried to think what I should do.
I could wake him and demand that he tell me why he didn’t say anything yesterday.
I could try to insist that he drop his campaign to help Calmation and join me in the fight against them.
And if he refused? I’d have to try to stop him and Merdon.
Before I could think twice, I was out of his flat and focused on getting to work.
I had to stop Merdon.
I had to stop Joshua.
I had to tell Gerry I might have tipped Merdon off that we were going to oppose the regulatory approval.
What had I done? I’d betrayed Gerry and slept with someone who went against everything I believed in.
For the second time in my life, I’d lost sight of what was important because of Joshua—only this time, I wasn’t about to let my carelessness spiral into disaster. Life was a lot simpler when I was focused on saving people rather than flouncing round in silly dresses eating too much cake.
I had a job to do.