Retribution (4 page)

I hadn’t seen Robert for an entire week. After his middle-of-the-night visit, he’d been staying far away from me. I wasn’t even sure if he had been sleeping at the house. He was never home when I went to bed, and I never heard him come home. His car was always gone by the time I woke up.

But I could feel his presence. Each passing day, an arrangement of flowers had been delivered. The card on each delivery had said only one word.

SORRY.

After the fourth delivery, I’d stopped reading them. I’d felt exhausted from just looking at them. He was trying to make me forgive him. If he thought colorful vases filled with flowers would make up for the fact that he’d slapped me, he was sorely mistaken. Things like that wouldn’t just go away because he wanted them to.

I’d let myself become weak around Robert. Every time I’d been angry with him, I’d made excuses so that I could forgive him without causing a fight—he was only looking out for me, he was trying to protect me, he knew best, blah, blah,
blah
. No more. I was done letting him control me. There was no way he could justify slapping me. That was a cowardly man’s action.

When I’d run from Cooper and straight to Robert, I’d stupidly thought that marrying him would fix things.
How wrong I was.
It seemed that the honeymoon stage of our marriage had come and gone at warp speed, and now, my life was an utter disaster. Without a doubt, I knew that it would only get worse once Cooper decided to return home.

I’d found myself thinking about him more and more often. I hated that I was actually worried about him. Even Ellie, who he adored, hadn’t heard a word from him in weeks. She didn’t seem concerned though. Cooper was prone to disappearing for a week or two whenever he wanted. That didn’t make me feel better. A small part of me worried that maybe Robert had discovered that Cooper had hired a private investigator to trail him. I didn’t think Robert was a killer, but after he’d hurt me, I couldn’t help but wonder if he would do the same to Cooper. Maybe Cooper wasn’t as unhinged as I’d first thought.

“Claire.”

I tensed at the sound of his voice before looking up. Robert was standing just outside the patio doors, only a few feet from where I was lounging by the pool. I had no idea what he was doing home in the middle of the day.

“We need to talk,” he said when I kept silent. He moved forward until he was near my lounge chair. He sat down on the one next to it. “I know you’re angry with me. You have every right to be.”

I snorted as rage filled me. “I’m so glad you think so. It’s nice to have your approval on how I’m supposed to feel. At least I know you won’t slap me now for disagreeing with you.”

He sighed. “I deserve that and all the anger you want to throw at me. What I did was inexcusable.”

“You’re right. It was. You
slapped
me, Robert.”

“I know I did. I’m sorry, Claire. I was stressed about work, and I just snapped, but please, you have to believe me. I will never do that to you again. It’s killing me inside. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what I could do to make things right with you, and I think I’ve figured it out.”

“And what did you figure out?” I asked. “Nothing in this world can make up for you hitting me.”

“I know that, but I also want to gain your trust back. I’m no fool. I know that it will take time and a lot of effort on my part, but this will be a start.”

“What will be?” I asked warily.

“I want to hire you at the firm. I know how much you hate staying home all the time, so I thought a job would be good for you.”

I blinked. “You want to do what?”

I couldn’t have heard him right. Robert always made sure that I did nothing but stay in his house. He’d cost me my job only a few months ago just to make sure that I would stay put. It’d caused a huge argument then, but I’d finally let go of it.

“I want to give you a job. You will be an assistant for anyone who needs you. You’ll file, do paperwork that no one else wants to do, and run errands.”

“Why are you doing this?” I asked cautiously.

“Because I want to win back your trust. I know how desperate you are to do something, anything really. I thought this would be a great way to let you have what you want.”

“You could just let me get a job on my own instead of hiring me at the firm,” I pointed out.

He shook his head. “I hate how far apart we’ve been lately. I want to be close to you again.”

“And if I refuse?” I asked.

I needed to know what I would be getting myself into before I agreed to anything. I didn’t trust Robert. I also knew that he was the king of controlling me. I would not follow him blindly into this
gift
.

He studied me for a moment. “You can do whatever you want, but I think you should take this job. I really do.”

“And there are no strings attached to this? Forgive me for being skeptical, but you’re famous for making sure I stay in your control.”

“No strings attached. Consider this the first of many gifts I plan to give you in hopes that, one day, you’ll forgive me for my mistakes.” He stood and walked to the patio door. “I’ll send an email with all the details later this afternoon.”

“This doesn’t mean I forgive you,” I called after him.

He stopped and turned back to me. “I know, but it’s a start.”

Then, he was gone.

That afternoon, I received the paperwork along with my new work schedule. I couldn’t believe it. Robert had been so against me working, and now, he was doing this. Granted, I would be working in the same building as him, but still, it was money that I would earn myself. I’d hated taking handouts from Robert since day one. Being able to earn my keep would mean a lot to me, and he knew that. Maybe he was trying after all. I shook my head. I was still angry with him, but his attempt to apologize had lessened it a bit. Giving me a job was probably the only thing he could’ve done to make me feel that way. Robert was no fool. He’d known what offering this job to me would do.

It didn’t matter though. I meant what I’d said. I didn’t forgive him. He would have to work long and hard for my forgiveness.

The next morning, I showered and applied my makeup. I was scheduled to be at the firm at nine. Nerves caused my stomach to gurgle constantly. If it kept up, everyone I would be meeting today might assume I had some kind of stomach disorder or diarrhea.

Wonderful.

Robert had said that I’d be nothing more than an assistant, but I was still nervous. I had absolutely no experience working anywhere but at the diner. I was certain that things would be different at a law firm. I didn’t want to end up looking like a fool by screwing something up.

I searched my closet for something to wear. I wanted to look the part even if I didn’t feel like I belonged at a law firm. I finally settled on a pair of dark gray dress pants and a plain white button-up dress shirt. I took one last look in the mirror before walking to my door and opening it. I was as ready as I could be.

I stepped out into the hallway and turned toward the stairs. I froze when I heard the door across from mine open.

It can’t be…

I turned slowly and looked at Cooper’s door. My body locked up as I fought not to turn and run. Cooper leaned against his doorframe with his arms across his chest. He was watching me with a smirk on his face. I knew my face showed my shock over finally seeing him.

He looked exactly the same as he had the last time I laid eyes on him. He was tall, probably around six foot two, and he was built like a football player. The tight T-shirt he wore put his arm muscles as well as the hard planes of his chest and stomach on full display. His dark tattoos—that I knew covered his skin from shoulder to elbow on both sides—were peeking out from underneath the sleeves of his shirt.

His hair was a dark brown, so dark that it almost looked black, and his lips were full. But it was his eyes that stood out. They were the brightest emerald green I’d ever seen. A looped piercing adorned his eyebrow like always. That, along with his tattoos, made him look dangerous.

“Cooper?” I’d meant it as a greeting, but it came out as more of a question than anything.

“In the flesh. Are you surprised to see me, stepmother?” he asked.

His body seemed relaxed, but I could tell from the way his arm muscles tensed that he was just as uptight over our meeting as I was.

“Actually, I am. We weren’t sure if you were coming back home or not. It’s been weeks since we last saw you.”

“Well, I’m home now, so we can go back to being one big happy family. Isn’t that wonderful? We can stroll through the park and have picnics together with my father. I’ll even let you buy me ice cream.”

When I didn’t respond, he pushed away from the doorway and walked toward me. I tensed when he stopped only inches away from me.

“Or maybe we’re not one big happy family after all.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, fighting not to turn and run. I always ran when Cooper was around. I wouldn’t let him get to me anymore. I held my ground.

“You just walked out of your old room instead of my father’s.” He moved past me and pushed my door open. “And the bed has been slept in. Don’t tell me that your marriage is already on the rocks.”

“My marriage is no concern of yours,” I said as I turned to face him.

“It’s not. You made that abundantly clear when you slapped me the last time we were in the same room together. You ran to him instead of me. Your love life is absolutely none of my concern. I
am
a bit curious as to where you’re going dressed like that though. You’re usually in shorts and a tank top.”

I hated that Cooper knew even that much about me. He always noticed little things concerning me that no one else seemed to pay any attention to. He paid more attention to me than I was comfortable with. At times, it was like Cooper knew me better than I knew myself.

“I’m going to work,” I said stiffly.

He raised an eyebrow. “Work? You mean, my dad actually let you get a job? Wow, I’m impressed. What did you have to do to get this little piece of freedom?” He paused. “On second thought, I don’t think I want to know.”

“I’m working at his firm.” I glanced at my phone. “And if I don’t leave now, I’m going to be late. I’ll see you later, Cooper.”

“I’ll be here,” he said lightly.

I hated that the simple words unnerved me. Whenever Cooper was around, things always seemed to spin out of control.

Without a word, I walked down the hall to the stairs.

Just as my hand landed on the banister, he spoke again, “You didn’t tell him. Why?”

I looked back at him. “What?”

“You didn’t tell him what I’d told you that day. I thought for sure you’d run right to him and spill all my dirty little secrets. Why didn’t you?”

We stared at each other as I fought to find the right answer to his question.

“I don’t know.”

I didn’t give him time to question me further. I darted down the stairs and toward the garage with my heart racing in my chest. I hated that Cooper could still do that. He got to me like no one else could.

I clutched my file full of paperwork to my chest as I walked across the parking lot toward the law firm. It was located in a two-story brick building with
Law Office of Robert Evans
written across the top of it. I’d been here only once before. It seemed like a lifetime had passed since I last walked into this building.