Chapter 2
Chapter Two
“I demand to see him right now!”
“Ma’am, this is a place of business, and your tone—and volume—is not appropriate.” The calm, reasoned voice of their intrepid receptionist and office manager, Hector Cordeiro, the heartbeat of the entire practice, had little effect on the screamer.
Julian walked around the corner and stopped short at the sight of Stacey yelling at Hector to “Get Julian Remington before things get ugly.”
Too late. Already there.
“What’re you doing here?” Julian asked from behind her.
When she whirled around, he was shocked by her ravaged appearance. “I need to talk to you! This… This man told me I had to leave.”
Julian wondered how she’d managed to get past security in the lobby and would be looking into that after he got rid of her.
He glanced at Hector and then at Rachel.
“Mrs. McDavid,” Hector said, “let me get you some refreshments while you wait for Mr. Remington.”
“Thank you,” Rachel said as she gave Julian a questioning look.
He rolled his eyes and was pleased by her hint of a smile.
If the scene with Stacey brought some much-needed levity to Rachel, he supposed that was one positive in an otherwise outrageous situation.
As he gently took hold of Stacey’s arm to steer her toward his office, he felt his colleagues watching him, including two of his brothers, knowing he’d be dealing with the fallout of this shit show for days to come.
If Stacey had truly known what mattered most to him, the last thing on earth she would’ve done was make a scene here, of all places.
Julian avoided the gaze of his faithful assistant, Matilda “Mattie” Jones, as he went into his office and closed the door, releasing Stacey the second she cleared the threshold.
She whirled around confront him. “I don’t know who you think you are, dismissing me like I’m a piece of garbage on the street when you’re done with me.”
“That’s not what happened, and you know it.” He went around the desk to check the messages and mail Mattie had left for him. “But if you choose to rewrite the story to fit your narrative, there’s nothing I can say that’ll satisfy you.”
“Don’t come at me with your lawyer bullshit.”
He glanced up at her. “If you want lawyer bullshit, I’ll tell you all about the Domestic Violence Protection Act that allows me to request a domestic violence restraining order against anyone who comes to my place of business and disturbs my peace.
I could have you served by the end of the day if you want me to act like a lawyer. ”
“You wouldn’t dare,” she said, her bravado seeming to waver somewhat.
“Try me. I’ve already gotten one restraining order slapped on a client’s husband today for the very same reason.
The court doesn’t screw around when it comes to DV.
” He came back around the desk and sat on the edge, crossing his arms and keeping his pose casual even as he seethed with anger.
“Here’s how this is going to go… You’ll walk out that door, go straight to the elevator and press the down button.
You’ll leave this building and never come back.
You’ll never call me or text me, even on someone else’s phone, or show up at my door again.
If you do, I’ll be in court so fast, you won’t know what hit you.
Is there any part of that you don’t understand? ”
Her chin wobbled, and her eyes filled with tears. “What I don’t understand is why you have to be such a heartless asshole.”
“I’m exactly who and what I told you I was at the beginning, when I was very clear about what wasn’t going to happen between us.
Do you remember when I said I don’t do relationships or commitment or happily ever after?
Do you recall when I said, very bluntly, that you weren’t going to be the one to change my mind about these things and to please spare us both the agony by not trying to? Any of this ringing a bell?”
She looked down at the floor.
“I’m not sure what else I could’ve done to avoid having you come to my office to make a dramatic scene that does nothing but piss me off.”
Looking up at him as tears ran down her face, she said, “I just wanted to talk to you.”
“Now you have.”
“So that’s it? We fuck like rabbits for a month, and then it’s over?”
“That’s it.”
“Something’s wrong with you.”
He held her gaze without blinking until she looked away. “Let me give you a little piece of advice, Stacey. When people tell you who they really are, believe them. It’ll save you a lot of heartache in the long run.”
She swiped angrily at her tears. “I don’t know how you sleep at night, treating people this way.”
“I sleep great because I never lie to anyone, which is more than a lot of people can say. Just because you don’t like my truth doesn’t make it any less valid. Now, I have work to do. Can you find your way to the elevator?”
She stared him down for a long moment that ended when she finally looked away. “You’re a dick. I hope you get what you deserve in this life.”
He wanted to wish her the same, but remained silent, giving her the last word while hoping he wouldn’t see her again.
Stacey stormed out of the office, slamming the door as she went. Through the glass wall, he could see her heading for the elevator, chin raised in defiance of anyone who might get in her way.
Good.
He exhaled a deep breath as he took a seat behind his desk, turning to look outside while taking a minute to calm the hell down.
While that wasn’t the first time he’d been confronted by an angry ex who’d expected to be the one to break through his defenses when it came to commitment and forever, it was the first time—and hopefully the last—it’d happened at his office, where he technically worked for his father.
No doubt Corbin was being fully briefed on the ugly scene and would interrogate Julian about it at the partner meeting.
Turning back to his desk, he picked up the extension and dialed 9 for Security.
“Security, Danvers. What can I do for you, Mr. Remington?”
“I’d like to know how Stacey Wilson was allowed up to the fourth floor, where she made a huge scene, demanding to see me.”
“Oh no. I’m so sorry. I’ll look into what happened. We had two new people start this week, and it’s possible one of them let her through.”
“She would’ve told them she was a close friend of mine, which she was until I ended things with her. Please remind them that everyone who’s sent up must be cleared by us first.”
“I’ll take care of that right away, sir. Won’t happen again.”
“Thank you.”
Julian put down the phone and ran a hand through his hair as he tried to find the inner calm that propelled him through chaotic days in the family law trenches.
Despite the surgical way in which he’d dealt with it, the encounter with Stacey had left him unsettled, even though everything he’d ever said to her was the truth.
Remaining unencumbered required honesty, and he was always, always honest in his dealings with women.
He didn’t want a girlfriend or a partner or, God forbid, a wife.
He wanted fun and sex and occasional companionship, but even that’d become more trouble than it was worth in recent years.
Stacey wasn’t the first to go out in a blaze of glory when he decided to end a commitment-free arrangement.
He was better off alone than fighting these kinds of battles with people who refused to believe him when he told them what wasn’t going to happen—ever.
A knock on his door had him sitting up straighter, preparing to answer questions from his family and colleagues about what’d happened with Stacey, which was the last thing he felt like doing.
His twenty-nine-year-old brother, Jackson, who worked as Julian’s associate, came in and closed the door behind him.
Like most of the Remington men, Jackson had wavy dark hair and brown eyes.
He sported a soul patch under his bottom lip that drove their father almost as crazy as their brother Carson’s longish hair did.
“Everything all right in here?”
“It is now.”
Jackson leaned against the closed door. “You need anything?”
“Better security, but I’ve already spoken to Danvers about that.”
“I was wondering how she made it up here.”
“Apparently, a couple of new people are still learning the ropes.”
“Let’s hope they learn quickly. Dad is looking for you at the partner meeting.”
“I’ll be right there.”
“I’ll let him know. Rachel McDavid’s sister came to pick her up, and they’re getting the boys from school. She said she’d let you know where she ends up.”
“Thank you for handling that for me.”
“No problem. You sure you’re okay?”
“All good.”
“I’m working on getting a digital copy of the restraining order for Rachel,” Jackson said. “Will keep you posted.”
“Thanks.”
After his brother left, Julian gave himself another minute to get his shit together.
He’d been off his game since he’d seen Aimee at her parents’ party during the holidays.
She held the distinction of being the only woman Julian had ever loved, but it’d been over between them for almost twenty years.
He hadn’t given her a thought in ages until he’d run into her—literally—at the party.
Two weeks later, he was still trying to understand how his feelings for her could’ve resurfaced so swiftly that they’d taken his breath away and left him spiraling ever since.
He would’ve thought he’d become immune to such things.
Finding out otherwise had been a huge shock to his system.
Aimee’s oldest kid was nearly an adult. That’s how long they’d been out of each other’s lives. He shouldn’t have felt a single thing for her except nostalgia when they’d come face-to-face for the first time in years.
But the reminder of what’d once been a wild, uncontrollable love had left a bitter taste in his mouth, as if he’d been chewing on burnt popcorn, or something equally revolting. It had ended badly, which had been entirely his fault.