Fall into Forever (Fall into Him Book Three) (8 page)

“I can.” Jennifer's voice was firm. “And I am. I'll mail the ring back
to you first thing in the morning.”

“No, you're going to...”

“I'm through with you telling me what I'm going to or not going to do,”
Jennifer interrupted. “We're done.
I'm
done. Good-night.”

Before he could argue any further, Jennifer ended the call. She stared
at her phone, her heart racing, adrenaline pumping through her veins. She'd
done it. And she hadn't just turned down the proposal, she'd let go of years of
bitterness and anger as she'd finally told Brad exactly how she felt. Her hands
were shaking as she opened up her messaging, but it wasn't from nerves, she
realized. She felt energized, alive, ready to take on the world. If she could
confront Brad, she could do anything, including pursuing a relationship with
Philip.

It took her longer than usual to compose the text message, but she
wanted to make sure she told Rachel everything, starting with her great dinner
with Philip and ending with hanging up on Brad. It ended up being too lengthy
for just one message and Rachel would probably yell at her for sending
something that insanely long, but everything that had happened was too
important to not include. The two events were the turning points, the point in
time that she would forever think of as the place where her life could have
gone one of two ways.

Tomorrow was going to be the start of something amazing, she just knew
it. That thought stayed with her throughout the remainder of the night, playing
over and over in her head as sleep eluded her. When she finally did slip under,
it was the last thing her conscious mind registered and, though she didn't
remember, it was the same thing that haunted her dreams until she finally woke
the next morning, far more exhilarated than she should have been after just a
few hours sleep.

Her alarm had just gone off when a text message from Philip came
through. It was business rather than pleasure, but it still gave her a thrill
to see his name. He'd gotten a confirmation email from the delivery service
that the Carlisle files would be in at eleven so he would be coming by to pick
her up at ten. They'd pick up brunch and stay at the office until they
finished, then he would drive her home. Part of her hoped that the driving home
comment would be open to interpretation.

Jennifer whistled to herself as she took her time getting ready. She
dressed with extra care, wanting to find the perfect balance of professionalism
and sex appeal, something different than her usual skirt and jacket, no matter
how nice they looked on her. She wanted something that reflected how wonderful
she was feeling that morning and reflected the new her, the strong, confident
woman she was trying to be.

By the time she finally decided on a cute pale green sundress that
she'd only worn a couple of times, it was almost nine thirty. She could have
sat inside to drink her protein shake, but the sunshine had been calling her
name since she'd first looked outside and seen what an absolutely beautiful day
it was. She didn't want to waste a minute of it.

There was a bench outside of the apartment building, perfectly situated
to take advantage of both sun and shade, and since it faced the street, she
could keep an eye out for Philip. Before heading out, she quickly packaged
Brad's ring in a pre-stamped box and wrote his address on the front. She'd drop
it in the nearby post office while waiting for Philip and be done with the
whole thing. A clean slate for her and Philip.

She was halfway down the front steps when she saw him out of the corner
of her eye. In all the years she'd known him, she'd never seen Brad look so
furious. She froze, eyes wide.

What was he doing here? Her heart began to pound as she frantically
searched her mind for a way to diffuse what she knew was going to be a volatile
situation.

He was at the steps before she was able to break free of the paralysis
that had overcome her. Using the placating tone she'd used during their years
together, she spoke. “Brad, I was just getting ready to drop this in the mail.”
She held out the envelope. “You didn't have to come all of the way over here
just to get it.”

“That's not why I'm here.” Brad's fingers closed around Jennifer's left
wrist before she could get away. She let out a pained cry as his grip
tightened, the envelope falling from her fingers onto the steps. He didn't even
glance at it.

“Brad, let me go!” Jennifer nearly fell as he pulled her down the last
few steps. She struggled, twisting her arm as she tried to loosen his grip. She
didn't know what he was planning to do, only that it couldn’t be anything good.

Brad stopped suddenly and yanked her closer to him. “Knock it off!” He
hissed and she could smell the alcohol on his breath. “I want to talk to you.
Stop being such a bitch.”

Had he seriously just called her a bitch for trying to get away from
him? Jennifer's anger suddenly overpowered her fear. She'd had enough. “You
know what, Brad? Fuck off. I'm done talking to you.”

“Wrong answer.” Brad yanked Jennifer's arm, twisting it up behind her
back at an angle painful enough to make her cry out. “And don't even think
about screaming. I'll break your wrist before you get out half a sound. Got
it?”

Jennifer nodded. She was no match for Brad physically, not unless she
could catch him off guard. As much as she hated it, she knew she had to wait
for the chance to gain the upper hand. Instead of putting more than minimal
effort into trying to get away, she focused on paying attention to her
surroundings as Brad practically dragged her off to one side. In the
background, she heard Brad muttering as they walked.

“Who do you think you are? Acting like you're better than me. As if
anyone else would have you. Stuck-up little bitch needs someone to teach her a
lesson.”

The words rolled off of Jennifer with an ease that surprised her, but
she didn't dwell on it. Now that she saw the narrow space between her apartment
building and the one next to it, she realized where Brad was taking them and
knew that she had to act before he got her in there. It was a dead-end barely
three feet wide, and the only way out would be past Brad. She wouldn't stand a
chance against him in such close quarters. Her only hope was something out in
the open. Eighteen months ago, at Rachel's insistence, Jennifer had joined her
friend in a self-defense class. She hadn't been as good as Rachel, but there
was one particular move that she'd learned well and she thought it might just
work.

With just a few feet left before she would find herself caught,
Jennifer took a deep breath and prayed that she could do this correctly. Before
her nerves could get the better of her, Jennifer let her muscle memory take
over and she stopped, kicking her right foot out behind her. She felt her
sandal make contact and Brad let out a stream of expletives, loosening his grip
on her wrist.

“Bitch!” He snarled as he shoved her.

Jennifer stumbled back against the building, the impact knocking the
wind out of her lungs. She tried to push herself off of the wall but a sharp
pain shot through her wrist and shoulder. Her palm scraped against the rough
brick as she tried to get her feet back underneath her even as Brad limped towards
her.

“You fucking c...”

He raised his hand and Jennifer tensed, bracing herself for a blow.

A hand closed around Brad's wrist and, as Brad was propelled away from
Jennifer, she saw Philip standing there, his eyes flashing. When Philip spoke,
his voice was ice cold and so dangerous that Jennifer shivered.

“If you ever lay a hand on her again... no, if you ever come near her
again, no lawyer in the city will be able to get you out of the charges I'll
have filed against you.”

Jennifer couldn't take her eyes off of Philip, in complete shock over
what had just happened. He started to turn towards her when Brad rushed
forward, head down, teeth bared.

“Philip!” She called out a warning even as he reacted.

Her cry of alarm died as Philip stepped aside and slammed his fists
down on Brad's back. His next series of moves were so quick that Jennifer
barely registered them before they were over. His right hand connected with
Brad's jaw, his knee with Brad's stomach. As the man dropped to the ground,
Philip drew back his foot as if to kick Brad, but paused as the other man made
no move to defend himself.

“You're not even worth it.” He spat out the words, a look of disgust on
his face.

Jennifer took a shaky step forward as Philip turned towards her leaving
Brad lying—likely unconscious— in the dirt. His expression instantly turned
from one of anger to one of concern. He crossed the distance between them in
two long strides, his arms automatically going out to her.

“Did he hurt you?” Philip ran his hands over her hair and her face, his
gaze searching her features as if looking for something wrong with her.

“I'm okay,” Jennifer hurried to assure him, all thoughts of her injured
wrist and shoulder banished by the thought that he'd been hurt. “Are
you
okay?”

“I'm fine,” he dismissed the question as if it had no importance. “Are
you sure you’re not hurt?” He repeated.

His hands moved down her arms and she winced as his hand touched her
wrist. His face darkened as he took her hand in his. With a surprisingly gentle
touch, he ran his fingers over her wrist, sending little tingles of electricity
across her skin.

“Does that hurt?”

Jennifer let out a shuddering breath. “N-nothing too serious.”

A small smile played on Philip's lips, as if he knew exactly what his
touch was doing to her. Although, based on prior experiences, his insight
didn't exactly surprise her. His expression stayed serious as he began to
manipulate her fingers, studying her face to gauge her reactions. It wasn't
until he started to move her wrist that she sucked in a breath.

“We're going to the doctor.”

“No,” Jennifer started to protest. “I've already screwed up the
beginning of our morning and we have so much work to do...”

“Listen to me,” Philip's voice was firm but held a tenderness that
Jennifer hadn't heard before. “You did nothing wrong. This was not your fault.”
He apparently could see that she was still skeptical because he bent his head
and brushed his lips against hers. “Have I ever lied to you?”

She shook her head. Even when he'd hidden things from her, he'd never
lied to her about them.

“Do you trust me?”

She nodded.

“Then believe me when I say that nothing that happened here was your
fault.” While cradling Jennifer's injured hand in his, Philip led her back to
his car, stepping around Brad without a second look. “And no arguing about the
doctor. I'm not risking you having serious damage to your wrist. There are too
many fragile bones there that could have been broken.” He gave her wink. “Gotta
make sure you can still type all of my reports, otherwise I'll have to do it
myself.”

Jennifer smiled as she slid into the passenger's seat. The dark cloud
that had threatened to ruin the day was beginning to pass. Now, if she could
only get her hands to stop shaking, she really would be fine. Neither one said
much of anything until Philip pulled into the parking lot of a very
expensive-looking office that Jennifer didn't recognize.

“Where are we?”

“Doctor Kevin Dawson,” Philip got out of the car and jogged to the
other side to open Jennifer's door. “The best general practitioner in the
state. Maybe the country.”

“Just take me to the ER, Philip. I can't afford this place.”

“You didn't thoroughly read your contract did you?” Philip took
Jennifer's uninjured hand and began to walk towards the doors. “There is a
clause in the contract of every one of my employees. The company has an
emergency fund specifically designed to cover any and all circumstances deemed
necessary by the CEO.” He glanced down at Jennifer as he opened the door for
her. “And before you argue about me using it for you, know that this isn't the
first time I've dipped into it. Since it's been opened, I've paid legal fees
where an employee was fighting his abusive ex for custody of their three
children, two medical procedures not covered by the insurance company unless as
a last resort, adoption fees for two families, and six months' rent for a
family that lost their home in a fire.”

“Wow,” Jennifer was impressed.

“Does that mean you're going to let Dr. Dawson take a look at your wrist
and not fight me on this?”

“Yes,” Jennifer agreed nodding her head.

The doctor turned out to be a middle-aged man with a brisk but polite
bedside manner and it was obvious from the way Philip spoke to him that he
admired the doctor. Despite not having an appointment and it not being a
life-threatening emergency, he saw Jennifer shortly after she arrived and had a
diagnosis less than an hour later. She didn't think she'd ever gone through a
medical examination so quickly. To Jennifer's relief, the injury was mild. The
wrist was a sprain that would heal with time and rest, and her shoulder would
just be sore for a few days. The doctor wrapped her wrist, gave her a
prescription for pain meds if she needed them and told her to keep her usage of
that arm to a minimum.