Jilted (13 page)

Even driving the kids to school had been an ordeal. Harper was still in a mood while the boys argued back and forth about some cartoon they both liked to watch. Though she loved her babies, Skylar was happy to drop them off.

She was a third of the way to the office when she remembered to get the bagels so she had to make a U-turn and had nearly gotten into an accident.

“Morning!” Gina greeted in her usual chipper manner.

Skylar plopped the box of goodies on her desk and opened the box to get a bagel out. There was no everything bagel. The cashier had gotten her order wrong. Just great. “What’s so good about it?” She mumbled.

“Aww, bad morning?”

“Terrible morning.” Skylar opted for a poppy seed bagel.

“Have you had a cup of coffee yet?” Gina asked. “If you didn’t I made a fresh pot.”

“Thanks, I need it. Wouldn’t you know it, my coffee maker decided to go on the fritz today. I could have used an injection of java earlier.”

“Well, maybe I should go make you a cup before I give you this message that was left from the answering service.”

Skylar groaned. “Must be bad if you think I need coffee before I even read it.”

“Maybe.”

“You don’t have to get up, Gina. I’ll make it myself. Just give me the message, I’ll read it when I get settled.”

“Okay, but you’re probably not going to like it.”

“I gathered that.” Skylar took the message Gina handed to her and headed to the kitchen.

Once she had coffee in hand and her bagel was lathered in cream cheese, she headed to her office. Skylar finished half the cup of the strong brew before she felt normal again.

She picked up the message and slowly read through it and froze. It was from Brady Solomon. The message simply read:
I didn’t do it.

Skylar grabbed her smartphone and placed her client’s name in the search engine. Sure enough there was a big headline declaring another body had been found in the same manner as the previous victims of the alleged “Sweetheart Killer.” She scrolled through different news articles that wrote about the same subject to find any more information she could gather. The articles talked about the killings of six women who were viciously killed from being strangled to death. The sick bastard who had been responsible for these murders was dubbed the “Sweetheart Killer” because he would leave some kind of memento on his victims, usually an item someone would give to their sweetheart like a box of chocolate, a rose of some other special keepsake. When she read further, Skylar noted that her client Brady Solomon’s name had been brought up as he had once been considered a suspect until another man came forward to confess to the killings. The man had later died while incarcerated.

Brady had airtight alibis where most of the murders happened and all the evidence the police had gathered against him had been circumstantial, so why had he contacted her now? Maybe, like Irving had suggested before, the police would probably focus on him again.

Even if she did believe he was innocent, the guy gave her the creeps. Skylar put it down to him being socially awkward; after all he had a pretty interesting background. Homeschooled all throughout his childhood, Brady Solomon had grown up the only child of an eccentric millionaire who had made his money by inventing some kind of kids’ game. His mother had abandoned him at a young age and apparently his father was abusive. From Skylar’s dealings with him, he seemed like a perfectly normal guy on the surface but he lacked social skills. He seemed to have a problem with allowing people their personal space, and often he’d stare at Skylar until she felt uneasy but again, she simply put that down to his awkwardness. Needless to say, she was glad to be done with the case, but it looked like it wasn’t over yet.

Only when she finished her coffee was she able to tackle the stacks of files on her desk. As she was going through a brief for an upcoming court case, her phone buzzed indicating Gina was phoning in.

Skylar pressed the intercom button. “Yeah, Gina. What’s up?”

“You have a visitor out here,” the receptionist replied.

She frowned because she wasn’t scheduled for any appointments this morning and they didn’t take walk-ins. “Did they give a name?”

“Yes. An Ashley Hollingsworth.”

Skylar slumped in her chair. Her day had just gone from bad to worse.

Why was he here? After all this time? She couldn’t deal with him right now, not when her day was already shit.

“Uh, what should I tell him?” Gina asked, interrupting her thoughts, reminding Skylar that she was still on the phone.

“Just tell him that I’ll be out in a minute.”

“Okay.” Gina clicked off.

Skylar gathered her coat, phone and purse and ducked out of her office, heading to the back exit. Sure, it was the coward’s way out, but she couldn’t face him so soon after what had happened at the banquet. As she pulled out of the parking lot, she happened to glance out of her rearview mirror to see Ashley standing outside looking pissed. Skylar resisted the urge to throw up the middle finger. Knowing Ashley, this wouldn’t be the last she heard from him. If he had to get something off his chest, she was sure he’d find a way to do exactly that but today just wasn’t the day. The last thing she needed was to have him berating her on an already craptastic day.

Skylar drove around the city for a half hour before she decided on where she wanted to go. It was a couple hours to lunchtime and she didn’t want to go back home. After weighing her options she headed to Monica’s office in hopes that she’d be there. Her friend was a real estate agent and was often out showing houses to clients.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Monica’s red sports car parked in front of the building. When she walked inside the receptionist waved her by since she’d visited so often. Monica’s office door was closed so she knocked.

“Give me a minute,” Monica called out.

It took several minutes before her friend came to the door, and poked her head out. “Hey, Sky.”

“What took you so long to answers?”

“Oh, I’d spilled my breakfast on my dress and I was changing. You know me. I always have to put my best foot forward.”

Skylar noticed a blue dress with a dark stain hanging on the wall. It didn’t surprise her that Monica had a spare outfit at her office. For as long as Skylar had known her, Monica was very meticulous about her appearance. Tall and slender with a cascading crown of glorious dark red hair, Monica could have easily passed for a model. Her exotic features were a testimony to her Brazilian ancestry. Men tripped over their feet to get a date with Monica who was never short of male companionship.

They had met freshman year in college during biology class. Monica had forgotten her book and Skylar had offered to share hers for the duration of the class. They’d hit it off afterwards. They were total opposites but somehow they managed to make things work, where Skylar was more soft-spoken, Monica was loud and boisterous. Monica was tall and Skylar short. Skylar was studious while Monica preferred to party and socialize. During their junior year, Monica had been placed on academic probation because of her failing grades and even though Skylar had done her best to help her friend, Monica had eventually dropped out, deciding to pursue a career in real estate, but they still maintained their friendship. Monica had been a part of Skylar’s support system as she navigated her way through college and law school. She’d been a shoulder to cry on after the Ashley debacle and an all-around good friend. She owed this woman so much.

“Not that I mind your visit, hon, but what are you doing here at this time of day? You’re usually in the office by now.” Monica backed up, allowing Skylar to enter her office and then closed the door behind them.

“I’m avoiding someone,” Skylar sighed, plopping down into the chair in front of Monica’s desk.

Monica took a seat. “Oh? Sounds juicy. Who are we hiding from?”

“Ashley.”

Monica’s eyes grew large like saucers. “Ashley Hollingsworth? As in your ex Ashley?”

“The one and the same.”

“Wow, that’s a name I didn’t think I’d hear again.” Monica pursed her lips and folded her arms.

“Me neither.”

“Exactly how did this come about?”

Skylar sighed. “I ran into him about a week ago. You remember I had that date with Jeremy, right?”

Monica nodded, “Oh yeah. I forgot to ask you about that. How did it go?”

“I ran into Ashley how do you think it went?”

“Yikes. So of course I want to hear the details. And don’t leave anything out.” Monica leaned forward.

“Well everything started out great. Jeremy came by my house and met my family. He had flowers for all the girls and trading cards for the boys.”

“Oh, that’s sweet. I’m sure the kids loved getting gifts.”

“Of course they did. Harper goes to the window every day and sniffs her flower even though that thing is gross and brown now. She won’t let me throw it away.”

“That’s one determined little missy. So anyway, back to your story.”

“Well, the family really liked Jeremy and I think he liked them too. Fast forward to the banquet. The second we walk into the building, I see Ashley standing in the lobby. He was talking to some bimbo who stomped off. He must have said something to tick her off. But that’s not important. Anyway, my heart fell to my feet when Jeremy called out to Ashley.”

Monica’s eyes widened. “They know each other? Get out!”

“Yeah, apparently they were buddies in college. It’s a small world.”

“Tell me about it,” Skylar groaned self-deprecatingly. “So, I’m frozen to the spot while the introductions are being made and we pretend that we don’t know each other. As soon as I had a chance, I excused myself to the restroom and nearly had a panic attack.”

Monica pouted. “Oh, you poor baby. What happened after that? Did you see him again?”

“He came into the bathroom, locked the door and basically accused me of using Jeremy for his money. He was deranged. And then…”

Monica raised a brow. “And then what?”

“He kissed me.”

“Please tell me you didn’t give in to him.”

Skylar lowered her head, unable to look her friend in the eyes.

“You didn’t! Girl, are you crazy? After what he did to you? How could you allow him to take advantage of you like that? That’s really stupid.”

“Okay, I get it. I should have fought harder, and at first I did but then something came over me. Maybe it was the memories of something familiar but my body took over for my brain and I couldn’t think straight.”

“Girl, I wouldn’t let him back in my life if I were you. And what about the triplets? There’s no telling how he’d treat them.”

Skylar shrugged. “Considering he’d already denied them, I doubt he’d even care about their existence.”

“Well, to be on the safe side, you should probably keep them away from him. So why are you hiding out from him right now. Did he come by your house?”

“My office. He was waiting in the lobby for me but I ducked out of the back.”

Monica rested her chin on folded hands as a pensive look crossed her face. “What do you think he wanted? Do you think seeing you again made him want to rekindle things between the two of you?”

“I seriously doubt that. He probably showed up to warn me off Jeremy again.”

“Maybe you should leave Jeremy alone.”

Skylar raised both brows in surprise. “What? You’re the one who encouraged me to give Jeremy a chance.”

“Of course I did. He’s a cutie, even if he is on the geeky side. You two would be so adorable together. But his connection to Ashley has me worried. Who’s to say he won’t try to poison his mind against you? I mean, could you stand it if Jeremy just cast you aside based on Ashley’s word?”

“I told Jeremy everything. He said he still wants to give us a chance and I don’t see why I shouldn’t. He’s a great guy.”

“Hmm, I don’t know…”

Skylar frowned as she wondered what her friend’s problem was. “I thought you’d be happy for me.”

“Of course I am. You’re like a sister to me and I want to see you happy, but I just don’t see any good coming out of you seeing someone so closely connected to Ashley Hollingsworth.”

“I understand your concerns but they went to college together. From what I understand, they lost touch after graduation so it wasn’t like they were particularly close after that.”

“Maybe so but if he’s friends with Ashley, he must be an asshole too.”

“You met Jeremy when we went out for drinks so you know he isn’t like that. Look, I always knew you had reservations about Ashley because you thought he was a little too worldly for me, but Jeremy is not like Ashley.”

“You’re absolutely correct. I didn’t like Ashley but I supported you in your decision to be with him. It breaks my heart that I was right about him and I hope I’m wrong where Jeremy is concerned, but you’ve always been naïve when it comes to men and I’m just looking out for you.”

Skylar let out a heavy breath. “I know and I appreciate you. You’ve been the best friend a girl can ask for but trust me that I know what I’m doing.”

Monica threw her hands up in the air, signaling that she gave up. “Okay, girl. I hope you know what you’re doing.”

“You and me both.”

Part of Skylar wanted to take Monica’s advice and shut things down with Jeremy, thereby ending the chance of running in to Ashley again. But Skylar had fought too long and hard to get her life to a point where she was no longer afraid to give love a second chance and she’d be damned if she let Ashley Hollingsworth ruin that for her.

Chapter Eleven

Ashley was in a foul mood. He’d gone to Skylar’s office after looking up her information through the bar association, to warn her off from Jeremy. If his friend was stupid enough to fall for her charms then he just needed to go to the source. Seeing her drive off without giving him an audience sent him in a rage. He wanted to punch the wall but somehow managed to keep his impulse in check.

If he didn’t need to be in court for the rest of the week, he would have taken another trip to her office. Philadelphia was a large city so it was quite possible that they could go forever without running into each other; he’d made it a point not to look her up over the last five years but here he was paying someone to get her home address. If she wouldn’t see him at work then he would find out where she lived.