Page 101 of The Logic of Loyalty

Trevor

Carter has told me some of it, but it’s a lot. Taylor is coming for her job by any means necessary.

Paige

That fucking bitch.

“Damn, baby.” I suck in a breath through my teeth at her response. She’s going to go Momma Bear on this Taylor woman.

The rest of the day, I work with the guys and eventually Paige, Becky, and a couple of their friends to come up with a game plan.

Later, I introduce Becky to Joseph and walk her through making a police report. She’s a tough woman, but she seems lost. Carter can’t stop staring at her, and I don’t miss how she keeps darting her eyes in his direction. Something definitely happened over the weekend between them.

I’ll have to call Paige.

Chapter Thirty-Two

PAIGE

He fired me.

Okay, not exactly fired, but Josh has been giving me fewer and fewer hours, and every time I have watched his son, I’ve been given errands to run, or Josh himself was out of the house. He’s been avoiding me, not answering my questions, and has been an overall terrible employer.

The weirdest part is that he’s still paying me. I watched Cassian one time two days ago for two hours. I was going to come in again today, but he messaged me not to bother coming in when I was on my way.

So I came anyway.

Between what happened with Becky and that woman, Bethany and her mother, and everything that happened with me, I’m sticking to standing up for myself. I’m in my don’t take shit era. Bethany says it’s pregnancy rage. I told her to mind her own damn business.

She may have a point.

My phone pings with a message from Joseph, but a quick overview shows me what I already knew. We have a strong case. He thinks we have this in the bag.

Trevor responds to the group chat with a thumbs-up emoji. I have feelings about how nonchalant he’s treating this situation right now, but I’ll deal with him another time. Right now, Josh is looking through his blinds, directly at me, and he does not look pleased.

Tough.

I jog up to his front door and knock, ignoring the doorbell, fully aware that the baby could be sleeping. He opens the door, but stands in the way. “What are you doing here? I told you I didn’t need⁠—”

“What’s happening right now, Josh? Everybody is gossiping and saying awful things, and you’re not giving me hours when I know I’m damn good at my job.” I peek around him, but he sidesteps, blocking my view.

“Paige—”

“No, you listen.” His mouth snaps shut at my tone—his eyes widening. “I am so tired.” Traitorous heat gathers behind my eyes, but I blink it away. “I worked hard for you. Time I thought was going to be spent at home with my son over the summer became time I split with him and your son,” I poke him in the chest. “Because you made a special request that I followed.”

“I understand, but⁠—”

“I’m not. Done. Talking.”

“Alright, alright.”

“Now, my hours are cut to next to nothing without a single word from you, and all the while, our town is blowing up with all kinds of petty gossip.” He drops his head, and his shoulders droop. I step closer to him, and he takes a quick step back. “Do you know what they’re saying about you? About me and you and Carri?” He opens his mouth, then pauses. Closing his mouth, he nods. “What have you heard?”

A blush rises in his cheeks, then he stumbles on his words.

“Josh?”

He lifts his head and meets my eyes with resignation written all over his face. He steps back to let me through the door, but I hesitate. “I need to tell you some things, and it’s going to be wildly uncomfortable for both of us, alright?”