Page 133 of Consumed By You

“Because I’mnota good person. I tear people’s lives away from their hands for aliving, Doris, and the worst part is I honestly don’t have it in me to stop.”

“You have helped many companies,” she argues defensively.

I snort a laugh. “I’ve made my money doing the opposite. I can literally give that woman the world, but it’s still not enough.”

“Why not?”

“Because I won’t tell her that I love her.”

“Do youlove her?”

Ah, the infamous question.

“If I do, I don’t like the feeling.”

“What are you feeling?” Doris asks curiously.

“Terrified.”

“It shouldn’t be that terrifying, Benjamin. I know your parents had problems…” I look away, feeling the familiar hatred that runs deep through my chest whenever they are mentioned. “I know they really messed up when Daniel passed. But they got married for the wrong reasons. They married formoney. Marriage is not always like that.”

“I realized that today,” I murmur.

“There is no better feeling than someone staring at you like you’re still twenty while your skin is saying you’re fifty, Benjamin.”

I wish my mind, my heart, would listen, and I could suddenly be a better man.

“My company is in jeopardy, Doris,” I admit, knowing I shouldn’t be telling anyone what’s been hovering over my mind the past week.

“What do you mean?”

“I’m in jeopardy. An account we’ve been pursuing for over a year now…I don’t know if you remember it—SECRO.”

“I do,” she replies.

“I told Jack to search into them about a month ago, make sure they were a solid company to pursue. He didn’t search hard enough.”

“What did you find?”

“Child labor violations. It didn’t take long for me to find out that they are hiringchildren. They pay them barely anything and make them work over twelve hours a day. There are more than thirty of them employed in just the Los Angeles location.”

“Oh my god.Ben, you have to tell the police.”

“I did, and they have been exposed. Unfortunately, my company is about to undergo investigations because we pursued them so ardently. I fucked up letting Jack supervise that deal, and now I may lose everything.”

“Jesus.”

“It won’t even matter when it gets out that we’re clean. Just this getting into the news will have our current clients backing out, not to mention our investors. The stock market…” I shake my head, which is throbbing.

“I’m so sorry, Ben. Now I understand the tension. I didn’t know what it was that was troubling you.”

“Ishouldlet Darcy go. I know I should. She doesn’t deserve to go through this. She’s been through enough.”

“She’ll stand by you, Benjamin.”

“I know she will.” That’s what’s frightening.

“Trust her. Tell her about this.”