(Eve’s POV)“Finally!” I murmured and sighed in relief when I was alone in the elevator.Bethany spoke continuously from the basement until we reached her stop on the eighth floor. She apologized many times, explaining that she was just nervous about the meeting. This side of her was new to me, although I knew she was not as calm as Marga.I squeezed my eyes shut and shook my head as if they were enough to wake me up. I let out a sigh, thinking of how many cups of coffee I had to drink. I thought of sleeping on our way to the office, but Bethany must have been possessed by some annoying spirit playing a non-stop song.Only one song!She was singing Lathi while driving, and there was a line she perfectly sang, and when I asked her what it meant, she shrugged and giggled.“I don’t know. I searched it online, and it said you couldn’t run away from your mistakes,” she answered, singing again.Weird. Not that I wanted to argue with the singer, but I wasn’t running away from my mistakes; I
(Eve’s POV)Callahan stared at me without his eyes flinching. His gaze pierced through me as if he was trying to rack my brain. This was weird. Why did he have to know when he didn’t care? Although today, his first but my second, I clearly remembered what he said. He didn’t want to be responsible, but at this moment, he seemed to pull out my tongue to tell the truth.‘No, no, no! My mind screamed as if he could really read my mind.The shrill, persistent ring of the cell phone echoed in the small room. I jolted, thinking my heart had jumped out of my chest, when the ringing stopped.“Eve -”‘No, no, no! I cried in my mind.Ms. Jung saved me again when the phone chimed with a message. Immediately, I swiped the screen and sighed in relief, quickly reading her text message. I stood up, ready to escape Callahan, but Bethany grabbed my wrist.“Where are you going?” she asked, her eyes wide and worried. “Sorry, it’s a joke. I’m not trying to -”“I know,” I said, raising the phone. “But Mr.
(Eve’s POV)“Cat support?” Bethany laughed again, her palms on her stomach.When we got to Callahan's office, Bob and Bethany insisted on knowing the story behind the ‘cat support’ story.Callahan wasn’t there to object, so I told them about it without telling the whole story, of course. I had to make it believable. Probably because of lack of sleep, Bethany did notice I wasn’t looking at her when I told the story. Bethany would know if I were keeping something from her. She could not stop laughing while Bob only rolled his eyes, shaking his head.“Okay, enough,” I said, raising my hands. “What’s this meeting for?” I asked, glancing at the time.As if someone had pushed the stop button, Bethany sucked in her lips and looked at Bob.Bob tilted his head, widening his eyes at her.Bethany looked elsewhere and shook her head as if understanding each other in their silent communication.“Hello,” I said, waving my hand at them. “I didn’t get the password,” I joked.“Password?” Bethany lift
(Eve’s POV)“I thought you went home already.” My voice almost didn’t come out. I immediately picked up my clothes and stepped back. “Please don’t come in.”Callahan sighed and closed the door behind him.“This is my office, Eve. Don’t forget that,” he said, still walking in my direction.“Stop,” I croaked, feeling my defense melting.Callahan did halt but in front of me. Then, he leaned forward to pick up the car key on the side table.“Oh,” I murmured, realizing why he returned to the office.I swallowed hard when his eyes returned to my face and slowly lowered his gaze. I craned my neck, pinning my eyes on the elegant, linear pattern of the ceiling.Callahan gasped and lightly touched my arm. “Did I do this?”“Did what?” I asked curiously, looking at the still visible mark of his and Millicent’s grip on a day that didn’t matter anymore. “Ah,” I pursed my lips, unsure why it left marks on me when it was not supposed to exist or happen.I tilted my head, seeing the horror in his eyes
(Eve’s POV)“Jessy?” I murmured.My heart continued to thump, lost and confused as I stared at Callahan. He ended the call, not asking if I still wanted to talk to my daughter.He sighed, put his phone back in his pocket, and gently held my face. “You can relax now, Eve. Rudy saw her in the lobby. He’s bringing her here. What happened at home?”Home? I blinked the tears away, sad that Callahan made it sound like he was part of it. I opened my mouth, but no words came out. How could I explain that my daughter hated me because she saw me kissing Wyatt, and despite his lie, she knew what happened in the basement?The soft knocks were my cue to ease back, and I sighed in relief when Callahan let me go. When I opened the door, Rudy smiled softly and looked over his shoulder enough to tell me my daughter was in my working area.“Thank you, Rudy,” I murmured and walked past him. “Jessy -”Jessy was in my seat, facing my computer monitor. I grabbed the backrest and turned the swivel chair whe
(Eve’s POV)“Mommy, are you alright?” Cooper asked, taking my eyes away from my cell phone.My lips curved into a smile, and I nodded curtly to assure him I was okay. I returned my phone to my bag and pressed the small remote to open Moira’s car. With the gasoline price spiking almost weekly, I never considered using her Honda Civic. Five children would not fit there anyway.“Of course, she’s not okay,” Theo sighed, getting into the backseat. “She just told Mr. Barclay she’s feeling under the weather.”I did not mean to call in sick, but I was really mad at him after what Callahan did yesterday. My daughters could still be with me if he did not interfere with my life. I was not selfish, but I was sure Marcus had his reasons for not wanting the girls to come to her.“Where’s Rosie and Jessy?” Isabella asked, playing the buckle of her seatbelt.“Stop doing that, Isabella,” Cooper said when he entered the car. He looked over his shoulder and grinned at his younger brother and sister. “Wh
(Cal’s POV)Bob entered the office and dashed to the couch, moaning in relief as he sat. He piled maybe about ten different sizes of shopping bags on his side.“I think I broke my shoulders,” he complained, but his hand was on his neck. When I ignored him, he looked in my direction. “Where’s Eve? I haven’t seen her all day.”I fixed my eyes on the documents. “I don’t know. She called in sick earlier.”We had a heated argument on our way to her place last night, so her call this morning didn’t surprise me. After what happened yesterday, I doubted if she still wanted to talk to me. She thought I was the culprit of her children’s decision.When Bob went quiet, I raised my head and saw him staring at me.“What?” I sighed, returning my eyes to the paper and rereading the same lines in the budget request. With my cousin’s accusing look, I knew he had much to say. “You’ve been shopping again,” I said, hoping to change our topic and looking briefly at the shopping bags. “Stress?”I could tel
(Eve's POV) ‘I want to reset my life. Please, can somebody push that button?’ I groaned, wincing at the bright light when my expected guest turned on the switch. I immediately pulled the old, worn-out blanket and covered my face. “Reset? Where’s the button, Eve Bennet, and I will.” Bethany sneered, grasping the edge of the blanket and tugging it towards her. Bethany Bennett, my chirpy and goddess-looking best friend, beamed like the sun in her flouncy, off-shoulder yellow floral dress, contrasting my black pair of silk sleepwear, and like my blanket, it was old but comfortable. I grumbled, clutching the sheet and pulling it back to my chest as if it were the last thing that tied my sanity to me. I must have said my wish aloud when she entered the main bedroom. “Why are you still in bed?” Her eyes grew wider as she crossed her arms over her chest. I bet the sun wasn’t up yet because the bright light would usually spill through the window and cast a warm glow over everything. The