Page 75 of Under the Table

How could she even explain this to him in a way that he might understand and drop it? She was actually impressed that he’d even noticed a difference in her countenance today. Angelica glanced toward Rex, wondering if he’d step in and explain. Perhaps that’s what Josef needed—a man to tell him what’s what.

“I have only an hour break for lunch, Josef. Was there something you needed to discuss with me?” Angelica rolled the electronic pencil in her fingers, using it as a distraction. She really didn’t want to dive deeper into why she was off because she’d already tried that with him and had failed miserably.

“Get your act together. I don’t want to have to scrap this episode because you’re moody.”

“That’s a bit uncalled for,” Rex stepped in, his hand flat on the table. And he wasn’t looking at Angelica, his eyes were locked on Josef.

Angelica raised her eyebrows at him, surprised that he’d even bothered to say anything. He’d never actually done that to Josef before.

“Let’s take the lunch for what it is and come back in the afternoon a bit more refreshed, all right?” Rex stared at Josef still.

Josef gaped, then shook his head. “Fine.”

Angelica would probably feel the wrath behind that later on when it was just her and Josef in a room together. He could be such an ass when he wanted to be—and when he didn’t.

“Thank you,” she said as soon as Josef was gone.

“He’s been an ass all day.”

Angelica grunted her agreement but didn’t say anything else. She was exhausted from being on guard with Julian wandering around the hotel and trying to find her every chance that he got. She relaxed as much as she could when she wasn’t alone, butat least with Josef gone and only Rex for company it was a bit easier now.

She was about to jump into another schedule when Rex’s throat clearing caught her attention.

“Ange, someone wants to talk to you I think.”

Angelica furrowed her brow and then looked from Rex toward the door.

“Sorry to bother you.” The woman was young, and she held her hands together in front of her. Angelica hadn’t seen her before, but she didn’t seem lost. “They said I could find Angelica Shields in here?”

“They?” Rex asked, jumping in before Angelica could say anything.

“The crew?” Everything this woman said sounded like a question. “Sorry, I’m Jennifer Plante.” She gave a weak smile, stepped farther into the room, and shut the door. “You sent me an email.”

“Right.” Angelica’s brain flicked from curiosity to understanding. “Come, sit.” She glanced at Rex. “Do you mind if Rex is here? He’s our director.”

Jennifer shook her head and pushed her long hair over her shoulder as she sat down. “I really just don’t want to see Julian.”

“I can take care of that.” Rex stood up and left.

Angelica was surprised at how quickly he reacted, but she was also extremely curious what Jennifer was here for.

“Do you have a minute? I don’t mean to interrupt anything.”

“You caught me at the perfect time.” Angelica smiled at her. Jennifer was nervous. Just about anyone within a mile should be able to see that. “What can I do for you?”

“You wanted to know why I left, and I honestly wasn’t going to come talk to you, but you also spoke with Tashi, and she said you were good people. That I could trust you.”

Angelica almost confirmed that she was trustworthy, but she also knew that could immediately make Jennifer suspicious. “I remember speaking with Tashi.”

“Julian. He’s why I left.” Jennifer sighed out those words, as if just saying them was a relief. “I should have done something about it back then, but I needed another job with a good reference. I’m a single mom, and I can’t let my kids go without food on the plate and a roof over their heads.”

“I understand.” And she did. Angelica had been in enough situations in her life that she understood exactly the choices that women made in order to survive into the next day or the next job. They’d always put children first and themselves last. “What did Julian do?”

“Harassment was the least of it.” Jennifer’s eyes watered. “The touching was the worst of it. But he never took it beyond unwanted touches. He never… raped me.”

Angelica breathed in sharply. “How long did it last?”

“Almost the entire time I worked here. I think it started my second week.”