“I’m not upset with you.”
“Well,I know you’re upset,” I say quickly. “But you need to put all that aside and listen to me, okay? Something is wrong.”
“With?” she asks, losing her patience.
“Okay,” I say, pacing back and forth to think over how to go about this. “Okay, yeah. This is what I’m going to do.” I stop to look at her. She looks so pretty today—though, she is beautiful every day. But I really love it when her hair is pulled back in a sleek ponytail like it is today. She looks sophisticated. I continue before she gets angry with me again. “I’m going to tell you exactly what I heard, and I wantyouto tellmewhat you think, this way I’m not putting any ideas in your head.”
“Your five minutes are dwindling, Cassius.”
“Cammy, please,” I say firmly.
She groans, throwing her arms up. “Fine.” She goes to sit behind her desk. “What office gossip did you hear?”
“After lunch, I was going to take the stairs back to my office, like I always do. I opened the door and heard someone who sounded mad. So, of course, I listened, because office gossip—obviously. But what I heard…” I shake my head. “Fuck, okay. They said something about doing their part. Now you have to do yours. What I did was riskier. He could have mekilled.” I emphasize that part. “Then he said, and really listen to what I’m about to say, Cammy. He said ‘He still works here, but that’s not the problem. He hasn’t been around.’ And then something about ruining an image because they’re gay. I started to get fuzzy at that point because of the adrenaline, but I got the idea.”
I stare at Cammy waiting for her reaction.
I don’t get one.
“Okay, and?”
“And?And?Doesn’t this sound familiar to you?”
She blinks, sighing. “Cassius, maybe you should go home.”
“How do you not see it?”
“Cassius, all I see is this work I have to do in front of me and you bothering me with crazy shit.”
“Cammy, he was talking about Harmon,” I growl, placing my hands on her desk and leaning in.
“Cass—”
“No,” I grit out. “Something isn’t right here. I knew it the whole time. Harmon wouldn’t do—he just wouldn’t do what he did for no reason. He wouldn’t.”
The anger falls off her face and in comes the sympathy.
“Maybe working here isn’t good for you.”
“Don’t say that,” I snap. “I am fine. And I’m going to prove it.”
I storm out of her office and go back to mine, where I sit for the rest of the day and can’t focus on a single thing. I know what I need to do, and I am going to do it.
I’m going to pay Harmon another visit.
Chapter Fifty-Three
Harmon
Working from home has been an adjustment. I miss the view. My home office gets stuffy quickly, and no matter what I do, there isn’t enough light. It’s enough to work for a little while, but handling day to day things isn’t great. I’ve had a few people ask why I’ve switched all meetings to virtual when I used to hate them, and I’ve had to lie and tell them I’m under the weather and it’s best I don’t see anyone in person. I do not like lying, though it’s not entirely a lie.
I feel awful. Not just mentally, but physically too. My whole body aches. I am sluggish all the time, no matter how much sleep I get—which is a lot more than it used to be. It’s almost impossible to work out in the gym; I don’t have the energy for it.
I’m done with my meetings for the day, and I’ve just finished a late lunch. I should consider it dinner, but that will be around ten tonight—when I can’t sleep. It is amazing how easy it was to slip out of a routine I’ve had for years.
I put the dirty dishes in the dishwasher and pour another cup of coffee. Caffeine is the only thing getting me by these days. I’m about to take a sip when the doorbell rings. I hadn’t noticed the alert that someone was at the gate. I pat my pockets—must’ve left my phone in my office. I put my cup down and go through the kitchen, dining room, and out into the foyer. The screen on the side of the door shows me who’s standing on the other side of the door.
And it knocks the wind right out of me. My hand instinctively reaches for the knob, but I yank it back. Cassius being here isn’t good. It could mess everything up. It’s best I ignore him. He’ll get the hint and go home.