Chapter 115 Earth to Carrie

Chapter 115 Earth to Carrie
The only place outside of the two apartments where the media couldn’t touch me was work. The first time someone had tried to sneak in to the office, Mimi had gone to a judge who’d slapped a restraining order on the reporter and ordered the press to stay at least five hundred feet away from the building. Mimi really was an amazing lawyer.
“Are you ready?” Krissy asked as she approached my desk. “It’s your party, after all. Can’t start till you get there.”
When Mimi had heard I hadn’t been able to go to my graduation, she’d decided to throw me a party at work. I’d dressed for the occasion, putting aside my usual wardrobe in exchange for one of the sundresses Gavin had bought me for our trip to Miami. That particular weekend had so many bad memories that I was determined to make new ones to overshadow the old. This would be my new memory in my cute mint-green dress.
“Have I told you how adorable you look in that?” Leslie asked as she joined Krissy at my desk. Dena followed closely behind.
“Thank you.” I smiled, and it felt a lot less forced than the ones I had been giving to people. Aside from Gavin, my three friends had been my salvation through all of this. They’d treated me no differently than they had before. The only change was that the teasing that had previously been directed at my lack of a romantic life was now about my rich, sexy boyfriend.
“Mimi said she bought a red velvet cake.” Krissy hooked her arm through mine. “Shall we go check it out?”
I nodded and we headed to the large conference room. There was, indeed, a red velvet cake with chocolate icing and “Congratulations, Carrie” in deep red frosting. It was huge. I’d never seen a cake that big before. My friends stayed close as our various coworkers came over to congratulate me, intervening whenever the conversation veered towards topics best left undiscussed.
I was just starting to try to figure out how I could get out of the rest of the party when Dena returned from the restroom by way of the outer office. She had a strange expression on her face as she approached me and said, “There’s someone here to see you.”
She didn’t appear to be upset or concerned, so I followed her back out. Standing by my desk was an older man with salt-and-pepper hair, and a young woman who was looking at the floor.
“Ms. Summers?” The man spoke.
His voice sounded familiar, but it wasn’t until the dark-haired girl raised her head that I realized who they were. A chill ran through me. “Patricia?”
“Ms. Summers, we had to come down here and personally thank you for what you did.” Frank took a step forward and extended his hand.
I took it, tearing my eyes away from the pale young woman long enough to see that her father had tears in his eyes.
“If it wasn’t for you, she would still be–” His voice broke.
“You saved my life, Ms. Summers.” Patricia’s voice was soft. “And that’s not an exaggeration.”
Frank had regained control of his emotions. “After you called me, I made arrangements to leave on the next flight to Saudi Arabia, and then called the detective who’d been assigned Patricia’s case to tell him that I had a lead and that I was flying out the next day. He tried to talk me out of going but I didn’t listen. When I arrived, I went straight to the American embassy and, with their help, was able to convince the Saudi police to raid the mansion.”
“There were four of us you helped rescue.” Patricia took a step towards me and started to raise her arms. She hesitated, as if unsure if I would hug her.
Of course I did. I could feel the tears streaming down my cheeks, but I didn’t care. Everything that I’d been through, in that moment, was worth it. Even if it had just been Patricia, if no one else would’ve been saved, every second of torment would have been worth it.
We didn’t talk long. I could tell Patricia was adjusting to being back and dealing with everything that she’d gone through. She had a good therapist and had found a support group for survivors like her. Her father was determined to do everything in his power to give her a good life, and I knew that would be as important as everything else. The support and love of family and friends would help her heal. And maybe then she could help others heal. I had a feeling Patricia would be the kind of woman who took her own tragedy and turned it into a way to help others who were suffering.
The Vinariskys left, and I had to stop in the restroom. I couldn’t go back into the party until I’d composed myself better. That was a part of the story that only Gavin and Krissy knew, though I would probably share it with Leslie and Dena soon. I didn’t want questions about why I looked so emotional.
When I came out of the restroom, Gavin was stepping off of the elevator. As always, the sight of him made my heart tighten and my stomach flip. He was dressed nicely, but nothing too fancy. Just a pair of dress jeans that hugged his body in a way that made my mouth go dry, because it only hinted at what I knew lay underneath. His short-sleeved dress shirt made his eye color pop, and was fitted tight enough to show that he was fit, but not so tight that it revealed every dip and curve of muscle. The man knew how to dress. Then again, I thought he’d look sexy in pretty much anything... and even more so in nothing.
“Earth to Carrie.” He waved a hand in front of my face. “Where’d you go?”
I smiled up at him and wrapped my arms around his neck. His look of surprise made my smile widen. I’d been very clear about no public displays of affection at work. His arms automatically slid around my waist though he still looked confused.