AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Gail’s the one who turned you in.”
In other circumstances, his shock would have almost been comical. He stared at her wide-eyed, his mouth working without him making a sound.
“Gail?” he asked finally. “It was Gail?”
“She figured out you’d crossed a line and she wasn’t happy.”
“But we’d worked together over a decade.”
“Probably why she was so shocked to find out about the illegal behavior.” Erica realized too late she probably shouldn’t have mentioned Gail. “You’re not going to hurt her, are you? You’re the bad guy here, not her.”
He stared at her. “Hurt her? I’m in jail. What can I do to anyone?”
“You could have an associate kill her.”
He swore and looked away, then back at her. “Is that what you think of me?”
“I don’t know what to think, Peter. The last time you and I had a conversation this long, you were explaining how much you didn’t want to be married to me and how horrible I was.” She forced herself to hold his gaze when she really wanted to turn away and find a corner to hide in.
She squared her shoulders. “When we were married, you had your flaws, but not money laundering and wire fraud. At least not that I know of. You’re different, so maybe I get to be worried about telling you Gail turned you in.”
“Nothing’s happening to Gail. She’s the least of it. Allison is the only one I care about.” He leaned toward her. “Have you seen her?”
Erica hesitated. “Briefly. We talked about the business and I said I would handle things. I found Hillary workspace in one of my salons and I’m paying her salary. She’ll keep things limping along for as long as possible.”
After that, Erica would write Hillary a glowing recommendation, give her a generous severance and ask her current accounting firm if they had any openings.
“How did she look? How is she doing?” His shoulders sagged. “Did you see Jackson?”
Erica assumed the “she” in question was his wife, not his accountant.
“She’s struggling,” she said bluntly. “You might have had some grandiose plan but it’s all gone to hell.” She leaned toward him. “What the fuck were you thinking, screwing with her life like that? You claim to love her and this is how you treat her? You abandon her to what? Live in her car?”
She thought Peter might blow up at her. He didn’t get angry often, but when he did, it was a serious event. But instead of pushing back, he crumbled, sagging in his chair, his head down, his shackled hands covering his face.
“You’re right,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “I did that to her. God, I’ve ruined her and it’s all my fault.”
He looked at Erica. Tears filled his eyes. “She’s everything to me. My world, and look at what she’s going through. I never wanted that. I wanted her to live like a princess. She’s my princess.”
His eyes squeezed shut. “And now she hates me.”
The intensity of his emotion made Erica squirm. She wasn’t used to Peter sharing so much, or feeling so deeply. Oh, sure, when they’d been married, he’d told her he loved her, but the words had always seemed casual. She knew for a fact she’d never been his “princess.” He used to joke that she didn’t need him for anything.
“Crying doesn’t help,” she snapped. “It makes you weak and then one of the other inmates is going to make you his bitch. Do you really want that?”
He sucked in a breath. “That’s the Erica I know. Always able to get to the heart of the problem.”
“You being someone’s bitch isn’t a problem that concerns me right now. In addition to your princess wife, you also have a sixteen-year-old daughter who’s pretty frantic with worry. It would be nice if you asked about her.”
He wiped his eyes. “How is Summer?”
“How do you think? Her father’s in jail, her stepmother and half brother are about to be homeless. She’s not planning a long weekend at a theme park.”
She stood and circled the chair, then faced him. “I can’t believe you did this. I can’t believe you were so stupid, not only that you got into something illegal, but then you got caught. I hope it’s worth it.”
He stared at her. “Tell me you’ll help Allison.”
“What?”
