Chapter 17
Luke drummed his fingers on the steering wheel as he stared at the strip club. It was Tuesday afternoon, and he was vacillating between going in to speak to Janie’s disgusting former boss or just driving back to the office.
He squeezed the steering wheel. He owed it to Jane to at least try and get her job back. He hated the idea of her working here more than he thought possible, but Jane was a grown woman. Not having the money from the club worried her. He could see it in her face. She’d already transferred back to Mark’s department this morning, but he’d dropped by before lunch on the pretense of getting her to type a quick document for him. The pinched and worried look was still on her face, even though she had smiled at him and assured him that everything was fine when he’d asked if she was okay.
So help her get a second job somewhere else, his inner voice argued. Working here is dangerous for Jane. You’ll never fucking relax again if you know she’s here.
No, he probably wouldn’t, and he could have suggested that Jane get a job somewhere else, but it was more than just the job thing. He’d fucked up by going off like a hothead, and he didn’t want Jane thinking he was trying to control her.
That asshole Jeremy probably won’t give her the job back anyway. But you’ll have at least tried and showed Jane that you feel bad about what happened.
That thought got him moving, and he reached for the door handle as someone knocked on his window. He jumped but managed not to shriek like a scared little kid as Tony bent and stared at him through the glass.
His heart thudding in his chest, Luke stepped out of the car as Tony gave him an assessing glance.
“Hey, dickhead.”
“Hello, Tony.”
“What are you doing here? Club don’t open for another hour.”
“I came to apologize to Jeremy and ask if he would give Jane her job back.”
Tony frowned. “You want your woman working here?”
“No,” Luke admitted. “But I want it to be her choice.”
“Fair enough,” Tony said. “C’mon.”
Luke followed Tony into the club. The chairs were up on the tables, and the stage was dark. Jeremy was sitting at the bar drinking a beer and studying a tablet.
“Janie’s guy is here to see you,” Tony said.
Jeremy stared at Luke. “What do you want?”
“To talk,” Luke said.
“Take this back to my office.” Jeremy handed Tony his tablet, who nodded to Luke before leaving.
“What can I do for you, Mister…”
“Dawson. Luke Dawson.”
Jeremy looked him up and down. “Jane got herself a real fancy boyfriend, didn’t she?”
“I’m here to apologize for starting a fight in your club and to ask you to give Jane her job back.”
“We got rules at this club. The girls know them. Always tell the customers you’re single even if you ain’t, and never let your man come to the club.”
“I didn’t know Jane worked here, and she didn’t know I would be there last night,” Luke said. “If I had known the rules, I would have followed them.”
Jeremy laughed. “Oh yeah? Why would I believe that? I seen the way you looked at her. You don’t like other men looking at your woman, let alone touching her.”
“It’s my fault. Jane shouldn’t be punished for that,” Luke said.
Jeremy took a swallow of beer. “How’d Jane meet someone so fancy anyway?”
“She works for my company.”
Jeremy’s eyes widened, and Luke stared at him in surprise when he burst into loud laughter. “You are fucking kidding me – you’re her goddamn boss?”
“Technically, yes,” Luke said. “She doesn’t work directly for me.”
Jeremy laughed again, and Luke gave him a cold look. “What’s so funny?”
“You have no idea how sweet little Jane has snowed you. You with your goddamn fancy suit and your fucking Rolex. I bet you’ve got more money than God, yet a little golddigger like Jane can sink her claws into you.”
“It isn’t like that,” Luke said through clenched teeth. He was holding onto his self-control by a thread. It had been a mistake to come here.
“Why the fuck are you with her? She ain’t that good looking, and she’s a fucking cold fish in the sack, so what is it?”
Cold washed over Luke as nausea rolled through his stomach. “What did you say?”
Jeremy grinned at him. “She didn’t tell you. You’re not the first boss that Jane has slept with. It’s what she does, man.”
“You’re lying,” Luke said in a low voice.
“Like fuck I am. I might be a bastard, but I’m not a lying bastard,” Jeremy said. “Jane started coming on to me not even a month after she started working here. We were fucking within two months.”
“No,” Luke said through numb lips. “No, she wouldn’t sleep with someone like you.”
“What’s wrong with me?” Jeremy gave him an indignant look before laughing. “Jane didn’t have any complaints, trust me.”
He took another drink of beer as Luke stared at him. “She start asking you for money yet?”
Luke shook his head, and Jeremy tipped his beer bottle to him. “She will soon, trust me. She’ll start talking about that foster mother of hers, about how sick she is and how much it costs to take care of her. She’ll act like she ain’t got nothing. That she ain’t got no food and can’t make her rent because all her money goes to her foster mom. You start to feel sorry for her, maybe buy a few groceries or pay her heat bill one month. Next thing you know, she’s taking all your green and living the high life just because she thinks sucking your cock on the regular gives her that right.”
“Shut up,” Luke said. “Shut the fuck up.”
“Ooh, hit a nerve there, did I?” Jeremy said. “Listen, man, it’s better for you that you know how Jane really is. She’s got that sweet girl act down to perfection, but she’s using you for your money. It’s what she fucking does. She don’t care about anyone but herself. She’s a snake who hides in the grass and bites you when you least expect it.”
Luke stared silently at him, and Jeremy shrugged. “Keep dating her – you’ll find out. I was smart enough to kick her ass out of my bed before she got too much of my hard-earned money, but you don’t strike me as that smart. Jane’s got a tight little pussy, I’ll give her that, and men like you are always blinded by pussy.”
Rage pulsing through him, Luke punched Jeremy in the face. The smaller man fell off the stool, landing on his back with a harsh thud as his bottle of beer smashed on the floor and splattered him with liquid.
“You fucking asshole!” Jeremy gasped as blood poured from his nose.
Luke bent over and grabbed the collar of his shirt. He lifted him until their faces were inches apart and said, “Go anywhere near Jane, and I’ll kill you.”
“Get off me.” Fear flashed in Jeremy’s eyes. “Get off me, or I – I’ll call Tony.”
Luke barked harsh laughter and dropped him. Jeremy’s head bounced off the floor, and he winced before scrambling away from him. “Fucking asshole! Get out of my club!”
“Gladly,” Luke snarled. He turned and stalked out of the club.
* * *
Jane knockedon Luke’s office door. Today was her first day back in Mark’s department, and even though Maria was curious about why she was no longer working with Luke, she hadn’t pushed too much for the reason. Kyla had welcomed her back with no questions asked, and Jane was thrilled to discover that Mark was arranging to have her take some accounting classes. She was still worried about losing her second job, but she’d hidden it from Luke when he’d popped by before lunch to ask her to type a quick document for her.
Right before the end of the day, he’d sent her an email asking her to see him. She smiled happily to herself. Maybe he would go with her to see Mama J tonight and then spend the rest of the evening with her. It was worrisome not to have the extra money from the club, and she knew she would have to find another second job, but she’d maybe take a week or two and enjoy her extra time with Luke.
“Come in.”
She opened the doors and stepped into Luke’s office, closing them behind her. Luke was sitting at his desk and didn’t look up as she approached.
“Hi,” she said.
“Hello, Jane.”
Her smile faltered as he looked at her. She sank into the leather chair in front of his desk. “Is there something wrong?”
He sat back in his chair and folded his hands across his lean abdomen. He acted so strangely – stiff and cold – and apprehension trickled down her spine.
“I went to see your old boss at the club today.”
“What?” Her mouth dropped open. “Why – why would you do that?”
“I went to apologize and ask him to give you your job back.”
Warmth flooded through her, and she smiled at him. “You did? That’s really nice of you, Luke. Thank you.”
“It didn’t work,” he said.
“I’m not surprised. Jeremy isn’t -”
“Did you fuck him?” Luke asked.
The colour drained from her face, and she said, “Wh-what?”
“Did you fuck your boss at the club?”
She swallowed and nodded. “Yes. I dated Jeremy for a while.”
Anger flashed in his eyes, and he looked away from her before standing and pacing back and forth in front of the window. “I didn’t want to believe him.”
“What did he tell you?” she asked cautiously as she stood.
“Did he help you with money?”
“I – well, he bought me some groceries once or twice when I was low on food,” she said.
He laughed bitterly, and she gave him a defensive look. “I didn’t ask him to do it. He offered.”
“Of course,” Luke said. “So, is this what you do, Jane? You sleep with your boss? It’s some kind of game to you?”
“No!” Jane said. “Luke, I tried not to sleep with you because of what happened with Jeremy. I realized it was -”
“Tried not to sleep with me, huh?” Luke said. “Guess that didn’t work out so well for you. Although, I’ll admit you put on a good show for quite a while. You did an amazing job of getting me all hot and bothered for you and worried you would starve because of me. Getting your heat and electricity cut off because I forced you to buy better clothes was a nice touch. Very convincing.”
“What are you talking about?” she said as Luke turned and glared at her.
“How did you manage the rent thing? Hmm? Or was that a lucky coincidence that you used to your advantage?”
“I don’t know what you mean,” she said. “Luke, calm down and tell me exactly what Jeremy said to you.”
“It doesn’t matter,” he said. “It’s over, Jane.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s over between us. We’re done,” Luke said.
“You’re firing me?” Fear stabbed at her heart. How would she care for Mama J?
More bitter laughter exploded from his mouth. “Right, it’s the money you worry about most, isn’t it?”
She chewed at her bottom lip and said nothing as Luke gave her a disgusted look. “No, I’m not firing you, Ms. Smith. But what’s happening between us is finished. Don’t contact me outside of work. Do I make myself clear?”
“Perfectly,” she said.
“Good.” He turned and stared out the window.
Her throat aching and tears sliding down her cheeks, Jane left his office.
* * *
Jane ignoredthe knocking on her bedroom door and continued to scroll through her phone. She wrote down a phone number before clicking on the next listing. She frowned. The apartment was in the Badlands, and she had hoped to avoid that area, but she didn’t think she had much choice based on her budget. She had applied for a few part-time waitress jobs tonight but didn’t expect to hear back from them for at least a week and didn’t know she would even get an interview. She needed to find a place to live that she could afford on her current salary. With the cost of Mama J’s care, that meant the Badlands.
“Jane?” Amy knocked again. “Please let me in.”
She sighed and rubbed at her forehead. “Come in, Amy.”
Amy opened the door and peeked into her room before holding out the mug she carried. “I brought you tea.”
“Thank you.” She scrolled through her phone again as Amy set the mug of tea on her nightstand and sat beside her on the bed.
“How was Mama J tonight?” Amy asked.
“Not great,” Jane said. “She didn’t remember who I was and was very upset because she couldn’t find Walter.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Me too.” Jane wrote a phone number down on her pad of paper.
“What are you doing?”
“Looking for a new place to live,” Jane said absently.
“What?”
Amy’s outraged tone made Jane look up in a hurry.
“Why the hell are you doing that?”
Jane set her phone down and sipped at her tea. “Your brother broke up with me yesterday.”
“I know that,” Amy said. “He was in a foul mood this morning and said you had broken up. I’m sorry, honey.”
“Thanks,” Jane said.
“I know it isn’t any of my business, but,” Amy paused, “what happened? You two seemed perfect together.”
“He didn’t tell you?” Jane asked.
“He wouldn’t give me any details. He just said that you were no longer together. What happened, honey?”
Jane sipped at her tea again, grateful that Luke hadn’t told Amy that she was a whore who slept with her bosses on the regular. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Jane -”
“I respected your privacy when you said you didn’t want to talk about Mark.”
Amy pressed her lips together. “You’re right. I’m sorry, and I won’t pry again. But I don’t understand why you’re looking for a new place to live.”
“I can’t live with you anymore.”
“Why not?” Amy said.
“Because your brother hates me, and he’s your brother.” Jane wondered if Amy was being deliberately obtuse.
“I don’t care,” Amy said. “You’re my friend, and I like having you live with me. You don’t have to move out. Yeah, Luke’s my brother, but it doesn’t mean I’ll automatically agree with all of his choices. I don’t know why he broke up with you, but whatever it was, he’s stupid for doing it.”
Tears welled up in Jane’s eyes. “I don’t want to come between you and your brother. Family is what’s important.”
“You won’t,” Amy said. “I love Luke, and I love you, and you being my roommate won’t be a problem. I promise.”
“It might be,” Jane said. “If it does, I’ll move out. Okay?”
Amy rolled her eyes. “Yeah, okay, but it won’t be a problem.”
Jane didn’t reply, and Amy rested her head on her shoulder. “I’m sorry it didn’t work out with my brother, Janie. He’s an idiot.”
“He isn’t,” Jane said. “Besides, it’s better this way. It would never have worked out between us – we’re too different. I was a fun distraction for him, and he just got swept up in the moment.”
She forced herself to smile at Amy. “It’s good that he realized how he really felt.”
“Honey, did you tell him that you loved him?” Amy asked.
“No, and it’s good that I didn’t,” Jane said. “I’m embarrassed enough, and it would have been much worse if he knew that I fell in love with him. I was an idiot to think I could have a relationship with him.”
She wiped briskly at the tears sliding down her cheeks before sipping her tea. “This is good. Thanks, Ames.”
“You’re welcome, honey.”
* * *
“Mama J?”Adrenaline pulsed through Jane’s body as she hurried into Mama J’s room. It was Thursday evening, and she had come straight from work to see her foster mother. It was just after dinner, and it was unusual to find Mama J in bed rather than her chair by the window.
“Mama J? Are you all right?”
She breathed a sigh of relief when Mama J looked over her shoulder and smiled at her. “Hello, my Janie.”
“Hi. Why are you in bed?” She dragged the chair over and sat down. “Are you not feeling well?”
“I’m feeling a little tired today,” Mama J said.
“Do you want me to come back tomorrow?” Jane asked.
“No,” Mama J said. “It’s been so long since I’ve seen you, Janie. Why didn’t you visit me last night?”
Jane smiled at her. She had visited but wasn’t surprised Mama J didn’t remember. “I’m sorry. I was a little busy last night.”
“Of course you were,” Mama J said. “You have a new boyfriend. How is he? Did you bring him to visit me?”
Jane froze. She hadn’t expected Mama J to remember Luke without seeing him, and a sharp pain stabbed her in the chest. She had kept her emotions under control today – it had helped that she was on a different floor and didn’t have to worry about running into Luke – but she was suddenly very close to crying. Luke had been so kind and sweet to Mama J, and knowing that she would never see that side of him again made her want to burst into tears.
“Janie?” Mama J touched her hand, and Jane began to cry at the look of love and sympathy on her face.
“Oh, my Janie.” Mama J shifted over in the bed and patted the space. “Climb into bed with me, sweetheart. Come on now.”
Crying loudly, Janie climbed into the bed next to Mama J and buried her face in her throat. She clung to her foster mother as Mama J stroked her hair and murmured soft words of comfort.
After a while, her sobbing eased to the occasional sniff, and she took the tissue Mama J handed to her. She wiped her eyes and blew her nose before resting her head on Mama J’s thin chest.
“Better, Janie?”
“Yes,” she whispered.
“Did you and your man fight?”
“Yeah. He’s angry with me over something I did in the past.”
Mama J snorted. “Men can be so foolish about things sometimes. He’ll come around, Janie, I promise you.”
“I don’t think he will,” Jane said.
“He will. I’ve seen the way he looks at you. He loves you.”
Jane didn’t reply, and Mama J put one finger under her chin and tipped her face up. “He loves you. He looks at you like Walter looked at me, and if there was one thing I knew for certain about my Walter, he loved me.”
“I wish I could have met him,” Jane said.
“Me too. He would have loved you.” Mama J stroked Jane’s hair as Jane rested her head on her chest again.
“Listen, sweetheart, your man will realize the error of his ways and return to you begging for your forgiveness. I guarantee it. I know I’m old and getting forgetful, but I haven’t forgotten what I’ve learned about relationships. Will you take a bit of advice?”
“Yes,” Jane said.
“When he comes around asking for forgiveness, don’t make him grovel too much. It can be hard for some men to admit when they’re wrong. If he says he’s sorry and asks for your forgiveness, give it to him without fuss. Love grows sweeter when you forgive easily. All right?”
“Okay,” Jane said. It was easy to tell Mama J what she wanted to hear. Luke would never ask for her forgiveness. She had fooled herself into thinking that he might care for her despite who she was and what she had done. Men like Luke didn’t fall for women like her.
“That’s my good girl, Janie.” Mama J ran her fingers through Jane’s soft hair. “Don’t tell my other kids this, but you were always my favourite. I remember the first day I met you. The last few years had been difficult for you – your social worker had told me all about it – but I could see the goodness and the sweetness on your face. I knew you were something special right away.”
Jane smiled at her. “I’m not the special one. You are. You saved my life, and I will never be able to repay you for that.”
Mama J kissed her forehead. “I love you, sweetheart.”
“I love you too, Mama J,” Jane said. “Always.”
* * *
Luke leanedback in his chair and rubbed at his eyes. They were burning and itching from lack of sleep, and he stared blearily at his watch. It was the longest goddamn Friday of his life, and he wanted to get the hell out of the office and go home. He planned on spending the weekend getting very drunk. Maybe then he would sleep. Maybe then he would stop thinking that he’d made the biggest fucking mistake of his life.
He closed his eyes and then popped them open almost immediately. Fuck, would he ever have a moment where he closed his eyes and didn’t see Jane’s face? He had promised her that he would always take care of her, and instead, he’d ended it. God, the look of hurt and betrayal on her face when he had told her they were finished. It had nearly killed him.
So why did you end it?His inner voice complained. You miss Jane, I miss Jane – talk to her.
There was a knock on his office door, and Mark walked in. He sat in the chair across from him and stared at him.
“What?” Luke said irritably.
“You look like shit.”
“Unless you have something work related to talk about, I’m not interested in chatting.”
Mark didn’t reply, and they sat silently for a few minutes before Luke blurted out, “I broke it off with Jane.”
“What? Why?” Mark said. “I thought you moved her to my department so you could date her.”
“I did, but then I found out something…”
Luke stared miserably at Mark. His best friend leaned forward and said, “Tell me what happened.”
* * *
Half an hourand a shot glass full of whiskey later, Mark put his feet up on Luke’s desk and leaned back in his chair. “You’re an idiot. You know that, right?”
“You’re not helping,” Luke said.
“I am,” Mark insisted. “You need someone to be straight with you, and I’m the asshole who’s gonna give it to you straight.”
“Fine,” Luke said. “Get it over with.”
“You’re in love with Jane Smith. That’s fucking easy to see, and you went and screwed it up because you hate that she fucked that wanker from the club. You hate the fact that Jane had sex with someone you think is beneath her.”
“That’s not it at all,” Luke retorted. “She sleeps with her boss, Mark. That’s what she does. She sleeps with them for their fucking money. I was just another boss for her to fuck and take advantage of.”
“You asshole,” Mark said. “Did you even listen to her side of the story?”
“No,” Luke admitted.
“So, you’re taking the word of that scumbag at the club over the word of the woman you love. A ridiculously sweet woman who went so long without food that she passed out in your goddamn office. A woman who has worked two jobs for how fucking long to pay for the care of an old woman who isn’t even her family. She lived in the fucking Badlands with no heat and no electricity in the middle of the goddamn winter. When you made fun of her wardrobe, she bought clothes instead of food.”
Luke winced, but Mark continued mercilessly. “She’s a good person, and you know that. Even if she did the stuff that the dillhole at the club said she did – people make mistakes. Don’t condemn her for her past. She loves you for who you are. Do the same for her. Do you have any idea how lucky you are to get the chance to be with the woman you love? Don’t throw that away, you fucking asshole.”
Luke stared at his best friend in silent shock. Mark glared at him before dropping his feet to the floor with a loud thud. “You can still fix this with her. Get on your goddamn knees and beg for her forgiveness if you have to.”
There was a moment of silence, and then Luke groaned. “Fuck, I’m such an idiot.”
“Yeah, that’s what I’ve been saying,” Mark said. “Where are you going?”
Luke had jumped up and headed toward the door. “I’m going downstairs to talk to Jane.”
“She’s not here today,” Mark said.
“What? Is she sick?”
Mark shook his head. “No. She cc’d me on her email to Kyla. Her foster mother is in the hospital, and she asked for a personal day.”
Luke swore loudly and yanked his phone from his pocket. He dialed Jane’s number and cursed again when it went straight to voicemail.
“Did she say in the email what hospital?” he asked.
“No.”
“Shit.” He thought for a moment before googling the number for the care home. He waited impatiently as it rang twice before Bev answered.
“Bev, it’s Jane’s boyfriend, Luke.”
“Hello, Luke.”
Bev’s voice was uncharacteristically solemn, and Luke swallowed down the anxiety brewing in his chest. “Listen, I’ve been in meetings all day and just got Jane’s voicemail about Mama J. But she was upset and forgot to tell me what hospital Mama J is at or even what happened.”
“Josephine had a brain aneurysm this morning. It’s not looking good for her. She’s at St. Mary’s in the ICU.”
“Thanks, Bev.” Luke ended the call and grabbed his coat.
“What happened?” Mark asked.
“Mama J is sick. I have to go to the hospital.” Luke ran out of his office.