Chapter 242: Making It Right

Holly’s POV

All the butterflies vanished. This…this was real. And right now, she needed me more than I needed to untangle my stupid heart.

She yanked her sleeve down fast when she saw me staring, tugging it all the way to her fingertips like she could hide the whole mess if the fabric just covered enough skin. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, avoiding my eyes, forcing this tiny, awkward smile that didn’t reach anywhere near her cheeks.

Amber’s lips trembled. She shook her head once, like if she spoke, she’d break completely. I gently took the file from her hand and set it aside, then stood, lowering my voice.

But I wasn’t letting it go.

“Amber,” I said quietly, pushing my chair back and standing up so we weren’t doing this over a desk like it was just another work chat. “What happened to your arms? When did it happen? Those bruises… they look bad.”

“Last night.” Her voice cracked. “He grabbed me in front of my apartment. Said if I told anyone, he’d make sure I lost my job and that no other company would hire me. It was terrible, Holly.”

Rage flared…hot, sharp, immediate inside me. What kind of animal is he? I curled my hands into fists to keep from shaking.

“He doesn’t get to do this,” I said, forcing calm into my voice. “He doesn’t get to go unpunished.”

She glanced towards David’s office door…making sure we were truly alone…then gave a little shrug. “It’s fine, Holly. Really. I don’t want anyone else to find out about this.”

“It’s not fine.” My voice came out sharper than I meant, and she flinched. I softened it right away. “There has to be something we can do…someone we can talk to about everything. You can’t let this continue, Amber. He could kill you!”

She sighed, long and tired, like she’d reacted to this outburst a hundred times in her own head already. “It’s…not new, okay? Stuff like this happens all the time.” She tried for another smile, this one even sadder. “I’m used to it. As long as I just give him what he wants, everything will be fine.”

Used to it.

Those three words hit me like a punch in the gut. Amber was standing there telling me she was used to coming to work with fingerprints bruised into her skin. And she thought that was normal. That she just had to live with it.

Anger boiled up so hot I could feel it in my throat. “You shouldn’t be used to it,” I said, keeping my voice low so no one walking by would hear. “No one should. Tell me what really happened. Please. Why did he get this violent all of a sudden?”

Amber leaned against the edge of my desk, eyes on the floor. “I don’t even know exactly. He showed up at my place last night, already in a mood. There’s a way he gets…one thing goes wrong and the whole world has to pay for it. And in this case…me. He kept mumbling about some arrangement he had with a girl that fell through. Said she led him on, wasted his time, whatever. And then…he just took it out on me. Like I was the closest punching bag.”

My stomach dropped. Hard.

That girl was me.

I was the one who’d made arrangements with him and canceled. So he went straight to Amber and hurt her just because something didn’t go his way?

This was my fault. I shouldn’t have canceled. I should have looked for a way to keep the appointment rolling.

Guilt slammed into me so hard I almost staggered. Those purple marks on her wrists? My doing. If I’d just kept to the plan, he wouldn’t have put his hands on her.

And today, David wanted me at his place tonight.

If I went… if I gave in and spent the evening there…then I’d have to cancel the meeting I’d set up with Amber’s ex…the one where I was finally going to record that scum bag admitting everything, get proof, get him locked up or at least scared straight out of his pants so he won’t bother her again.

If I skipped that meeting, he’d probably go looking for Amber again tonight. And next time could be worse.

No way. I wasn’t letting that happen.

I had to meet that creep today. No matter what. I’d find a way to sneak out before closing, get the evidence, and end this nightmare for her once and for all.

Amber was still talking, voice small. “He just… needs to have his way, you know? When things don’t go how he planned, he throws a fit. And I’m usually the one who ends up catching it.”

I reached out and gently squeezed her hand…the one without bruises. “Hey. Listen to me. You don’t have to keep taking this. Soon…that scumbag is going to get every single thing he deserves. I promise you.”

She looked up at me, eyes glassy. “I hope that happens. I’ve tried to get away, Holly. So many times. But he always finds a way to drag me back. Threatens my job, my apartment, my family… I don’t want anyone poking him harder and making it worse for me.”

Her words twisted the knife deeper. She had no idea I was already neck-deep in this, that I was the “girl” who’d pissed him off last night. And I couldn’t tell her…not yet. Not until I had proof and he was done for good.

I swallowed the guilt and forced a steady smile. “I hear you. But trust me…it’s going to stop.”

Inside, my heart was screaming something way louder. I’m going to make that douchebag pay if it’s the last thing I do. And to do it right, I have to get out of here and meet that creep before the day ends.

I shifted gears after that to make her relax a little bit. We talked about the stupid printer jamming again, the coffee machine that only worked if you sweet-talked it, and gossiped about two colleagues that are obviously lovers. Normal office stuff. It felt good to give her a few minutes of normal.

When we finished, I nodded at her wrist. “Hey…put something on those marks, okay? Vitamin K cream or concealer, whatever. Don’t let them scar permanent.”

She gave me a real smile this time, small but grateful. “Thanks for caring, Holly. Seriously.”

“Always.”

She headed back to her side, and I sank into my chair, brain racing. How was I going to slip out early without David noticing? I needed to distract him. What excuse could possibly work when he was already watching me like a hawk?

I stared at my computer screen, pretending to type, racking my brain for the perfect lie.

And just then I didn’t need one.

The elevator dinged down the hall.

I looked up just as the doors slid open.

And there was the perfect distraction, stepping out with a big smug smile and a grin that screamed trouble.