Forged of Steele Bundle (Books 1-4) - Brenda Jackson [137]
Then he remembered. She was standing in front of the display window at a baby store. Something about babies had her upset. He quickly jumped back to his earlier suspicion. Was Leah pregnant, and was that the reason she was hanging around?
“Reese, it’s good seeing you.”
Her words cut into him. The sound of her voice used to send excitement buzzing through every cell in his body. Now it hit a brick wall of resentment. How could she fix her mouth to say it was good seeing him when this was the first time they had come face to face in five years?
He sighed deeply. “I wish I could say the same thing, Leah,” he said, his voice low while he fought to keep it steady. “But at the moment, it’s not good seeing you again.”
Although his words hurt, Leah knew they were what she deserved, and she stood still, feeling the intense anger radiating from him. Jocelyn had warned her, but nothing could have prepared her for this degree of anger. Not from the man who had taught her how to love. The man who had shown her it wasn’t always about her but the people she cared about and who cared for her. She’d never got a chance to let him know she’d learned the lessons he had so lovingly taught. The night she was going to commit her heart and soul to him was the same night Neil had assaulted her.
She felt a tear she couldn’t fight back slide down her cheek as she met his hostile gaze and said, “I’m sorry you feel that way, Reese.”
She watched the frown that formed between his thick eyebrows and saw the narrowing of his eyes. “Why haven’t you left yet? There’s nothing here for you anymore. You made that decision five years ago, didn’t you? That none of us were worthy of your time, consideration…and love.”
Her heart clutched as a sharp pain ripped through it. He would think that, wouldn’t he? And since he would continue to think that, there was nothing she could say or do to ease the pain or soothe his anger. The best thing to do was to leave.
“I think I’d better go now,” she said, not wanting to argue with him. Besides, seeing the fury in his eyes was too much. Reese had always been one of the most easygoing, gentle and loving people she knew. To know he had become a ball of anger because of her was more than she could handle.
“Yeah, go, Leah. Walk away. Leave and don’t look back. You’re good at that, aren’t you?”
She felt more tears well up in her eyes, tears she refused to stand before him and shed. “Yeah, I guess I am. Goodbye, Reese.” And as quickly as her legs could carry her, she turned and began walking away. And although it broke her heart, she didn’t look back.
“What do you mean we got the wrong tile?”
“Because it’s not what we ordered,” Harry Henderson answered Jocelyn in disgust. “The box says it’s what we ordered but the color is off a shade. See for yourself.”
Shaking her head in frustration, Jocelyn put down the saw and went to inspect the box in question. Mason Construction had used Harry exclusively for all their tile work for as long as she could remember. Over the years the older man had brought his son and his grandsons into the business, however, he refused to give up the work and retire.
She often wondered how, at seventy-one, he was able to get on his knees to lay tile. But she had to admit he was still good at what he did and could be depended on more than a lot of the younger workers.
She opened the box and looked in. He was right. These marble tiles had the wrong accent color.
She glanced back up at Harry. “How much of the wrong tile did we get?”
Harry rubbed his bald head, reluctant to tell her. “All thirty boxes, which was supposed to cover over three-hundred square feet.”
The entire foyer. Jocelyn breathed in deeply. It was either that or scream. “Let’s get the store on the phone.”
“I did that already. They apologized for their mistake but said when they called the distributor they were told it’s a popular shade that wouldn’t be available for six weeks.”
“Six weeks! But it was their mistake.”
“I told them that. But six weeks was the best they could do.”
“That’s not good enough,” Jocelyn said, seeing