Finding Tessa by Jaime Hendricks (best ereader for comics .TXT) 📗

and dial her up, but on second thought, put the phone down. He couldn’t go into this hotheaded. His heart was racing, and he needed to prepare what to say.

What the hell was he supposed to say?

Why did Rosita threaten his wife over a promotion? Was it because Rosita had a thing for him? She had made a move on him when he was with Joanna, knowing full well he was taken. And yes, Jace succumbed to her advances once. For a couple of minutes, anyway. One hundred percent his fault. When he stopped it from going too far, that pissed her off even more. She said something about how they could be a power couple, since one of them was due to be promoted anyway.

One, Jace didn’t want to get involved with a coworker, and two, he had a girlfriend. Yes, their relationship had been on the rocks for a while and yes, she lived far away, but potentially banging Rosita in her townhouse when he stopped over after work to give her some papers she conveniently “forgot” when she ran out early didn’t solve anything.

So he made an excuse about how it wasn’t right, he was still with Joanna, and he left. Rosita called him two minutes after he walked out the door and left a raging voice mail, which he should have saved. He hadn’t thought he’d need “proof,” showing Rosita’s obsession and clearing him of murder, and he also hadn’t wanted Joanna accidentally stumbling upon it. He wanted to break up with her officially, but he hadn’t done it yet. He didn’t want to be “that guy.”

As fate would have it, if you could call that heinous act “fate,” he came home to Damon trying to rape Tessa a few days later.

That night, he had been out with a couple of college buddies. Joanna knew he was out but texted him saying she was waiting at his apartment, which he’d never invited her to. He texted her to go home. She left a note on the counter before leaving, saying she missed him, and she knew something was wrong and she wanted to talk. When he immediately fell for Tessa, that massive love-at-first-sight stuff you only hear about, he stopped dealing with Joanna altogether. He saved Tessa, and the spark was immediate. He couldn’t help it. She was his person. His life had changed on a dime.

Yes, he lied to Tessa and said he came home early because he and Joanna had just broken up.

It was the best lie he’d ever told.

And Rosita was not happy to find out Jace was married two weeks later. Not even to Joanna—to someone he barely knew.

He didn’t realize how badly Rosita had taken the news.

Fuck it, he thought, and dialed her.

“Jace,” she said when she answered. “What’s up? Tessa come back?”

So casual.

“No, Rosita, she’s not back yet. And the cops don’t know anything about where she could be. Just that you and I had a moment a few weeks before I got married. What did you tell them?”

“The truth,” she said with a hint of anger in her voice.

“The truth? Really? The whole truth and nothing but the truth?”

Rosita gasped lightly, but Jace heard it, and he knew she knew what he was referring to. That other thing.

“That has nothing to do with anything.” Her words came faster, laced with annoyance. “What I do with my life is private. They specifically asked me about you. So, I told them what happened. I mean, it was right before you met Tessa, anyway. You had a girlfriend. I couldn’t exactly paint you up as some great guy. Why should I offer up any more information about anything else? It has nothing to do with anything.” She repeated herself, which she often did when she was scrambling.

“What did you say to Tessa?”

“Excuse me?”

“After I got promoted. You threatened her.”

“Says who?”

“Tessa told my neighbor. I just found out.”

“Oh, please. We’re supposed to be listening to a neighbor about what a missing person supposedly said? That’s hearsay.”

Rosita also clearly watched too much Law & Order. Why was she so indignant?

“Do you know what happened to Tessa? I’m warning you, Rosita. If you’re hiding something, I’ll find out.”

“Oh God, Jace. Come on. I was with you Thursday night.”

“You arrived late. We left the bank at the same time. Where were you before?”

The line was quiet. It spoke volumes.

“Jesus, Rosita.” Jace knew exactly where she was. “I knew it.”

“It’s none of your business.”

Jace blew out a deep breath. “The cops are trying to blame my missing wife on me. You know I wouldn’t do anything to hurt Tessa. Why are you trying to make me look like a shit? Because I said no to you?”

“Get over yourself, really.”

“What did you say to Tessa?” His voice strained.

“Nothing! Honestly, she started it. She said something about you being manager and how proud she was, and I know she was making a dig at me for being passed on. I said something about women having to stick together and she laughed. So, I told her she should know better than to laugh at me.”

“Uh huh,” Jace said, then used her own words against her. “And I’m supposed to just listen to you? How convenient that Tessa isn’t here to defend herself.”

“Well, when she comes back, ask her.”

She said it, but Jace heard in her voice that she didn’t mean it.

“I got an email from Andy and Kyle from VistaBuild. They picked us. They’re coming back next week.” She changed the subject. A tactic.

“What?” Jace pressed the home button on his phone and saw that he had emails. He scrolled through them quickly. Nothing from VistaBuild, at least nothing confirming his win. “I don’t see that email.”

“You weren’t on it. I guess they saw you on the news.”

“Not likely.” He gripped his cell tighter. She told them. Her, or Trey. Traitors.

Rosita had quickly diverted the conversation about her personal indiscretions into one about how she was going to take over