again so she grabbed it, wadded it up, and tossed it on the floor.
“I know all that, the question I want answered is… Who?”
“Who, what?”
“We are not playing this game. Who hired you?”
“Does it really matter?”
“Yes! If it was her, I’m getting off this bus right now and you can kiss my…”
“Really?” Instead of looking shocked, he had the most devilish grin on his face. Then she realized what she had been about to say and what he had done to her last night, and her face turned beat red.
It took her almost a full minute for the heat in her body to dissipate.
“Jason, tell me who hired you.”
“No.”
“Then you’ve just confirmed that it was her.” She moved to stand up, and he grabbed her by the arm and pushed her into the seat next to his.
“Stop this, you’re not going anywhere. Why does it matter who’s been fronting my bills? What matters is, I’ve been following you to make sure you’re okay.”
“Fronting your bills? We both know why she hired you. Why she picked you for the job is a mystery to me, but this is just her way of keeping me under her wing. Her viscous, cheating, controlling wing. I don’t care what she has paid you, the fact that you have even been talking to her makes you a traitor in my book.” She was working herself into an emotional state. She was upset that she’d let it go this long. This time when she got up to move, he grabbed his bag and followed her. When she finally convinced the driver to stop, Jason followed her off the bus.
“No! You don’t get to get off the bus now!” She tried to push him back on, but he just laughed at her until she turned and stormed off down the road.
Now she was still stuck with him, the biggest traitor imaginable, and they were in the middle of… looking around, Katie realized there was nothing but hills and grass. Nowhere, again! She could just make out the bus as it disappeared over a hill.
“Aaugh!” She tossed down her bag and rounded on him. “You! How could you do this? First, you embarrass me at the party, then at the coffee shop, then on national television. And now …” She poked him in the chest, but he didn’t even blink. She turned and started pacing; she was on a roll and didn’t want to stop. “Now you’re taking her money, sleeping with the enemy so-to-speak, doing her bidding, stabbing me in the back, selling me down the river, no… worse,” she pointed her finger in his face, “Judas…” she was almost running out of steam, so she turned and started pacing again.
“Are you almost done?” he asked with a tight smile.
“No!” she rounded on him again. The hurt showed on her face and she knew the moment he saw it. “Why her? Why not my brother or my fathers, either one of them?”
He walked forward and took her shoulders in his hands gently. “Katie, she was the only one who asked me. She was frantic those first weeks. She called me almost daily, asking if I knew anything about where you would have gone. Then a few months after your parents’ divorce was final, she asked me to follow your trail and she paid my way. She just wanted to know that you were okay.”
He pulled her close and just held on. “To be honest, I was just about to come after you myself if she hadn’t asked me. I would have done it for free, but she insisted on paying for the travel expenses. You really scared everyone, leaving the way you did, not taking a phone, not contacting anyone to let us know where you were or that you were okay.”
“I know, I just needed this time. I needed to experience life outside of being Katie Derby, daughter of two high-powered men. Being stuck between two major corporations on opposite sides of the globe with the media in your face does something to you.” How had he turned this around on her? He always had a way of diffusing the situation.
“I’m sorry, I can’t imagine it. I
“I know all that, the question I want answered is… Who?”
“Who, what?”
“We are not playing this game. Who hired you?”
“Does it really matter?”
“Yes! If it was her, I’m getting off this bus right now and you can kiss my…”
“Really?” Instead of looking shocked, he had the most devilish grin on his face. Then she realized what she had been about to say and what he had done to her last night, and her face turned beat red.
It took her almost a full minute for the heat in her body to dissipate.
“Jason, tell me who hired you.”
“No.”
“Then you’ve just confirmed that it was her.” She moved to stand up, and he grabbed her by the arm and pushed her into the seat next to his.
“Stop this, you’re not going anywhere. Why does it matter who’s been fronting my bills? What matters is, I’ve been following you to make sure you’re okay.”
“Fronting your bills? We both know why she hired you. Why she picked you for the job is a mystery to me, but this is just her way of keeping me under her wing. Her viscous, cheating, controlling wing. I don’t care what she has paid you, the fact that you have even been talking to her makes you a traitor in my book.” She was working herself into an emotional state. She was upset that she’d let it go this long. This time when she got up to move, he grabbed his bag and followed her. When she finally convinced the driver to stop, Jason followed her off the bus.
“No! You don’t get to get off the bus now!” She tried to push him back on, but he just laughed at her until she turned and stormed off down the road.
Now she was still stuck with him, the biggest traitor imaginable, and they were in the middle of… looking around, Katie realized there was nothing but hills and grass. Nowhere, again! She could just make out the bus as it disappeared over a hill.
“Aaugh!” She tossed down her bag and rounded on him. “You! How could you do this? First, you embarrass me at the party, then at the coffee shop, then on national television. And now …” She poked him in the chest, but he didn’t even blink. She turned and started pacing; she was on a roll and didn’t want to stop. “Now you’re taking her money, sleeping with the enemy so-to-speak, doing her bidding, stabbing me in the back, selling me down the river, no… worse,” she pointed her finger in his face, “Judas…” she was almost running out of steam, so she turned and started pacing again.
“Are you almost done?” he asked with a tight smile.
“No!” she rounded on him again. The hurt showed on her face and she knew the moment he saw it. “Why her? Why not my brother or my fathers, either one of them?”
He walked forward and took her shoulders in his hands gently. “Katie, she was the only one who asked me. She was frantic those first weeks. She called me almost daily, asking if I knew anything about where you would have gone. Then a few months after your parents’ divorce was final, she asked me to follow your trail and she paid my way. She just wanted to know that you were okay.”
He pulled her close and just held on. “To be honest, I was just about to come after you myself if she hadn’t asked me. I would have done it for free, but she insisted on paying for the travel expenses. You really scared everyone, leaving the way you did, not taking a phone, not contacting anyone to let us know where you were or that you were okay.”
“I know, I just needed this time. I needed to experience life outside of being Katie Derby, daughter of two high-powered men. Being stuck between two major corporations on opposite sides of the globe with the media in your face does something to you.” How had he turned this around on her? He always had a way of diffusing the situation.
“I’m sorry, I can’t imagine it. I
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