Remember Me? (Book 1) COMPLETED

3 Months Pt 2

"I'll be praying for you," said Matthew, shooting me a smile from the driver's seat.

"Thank you," I said, squeezing his hand. "I'll call you later."

Erland and I entered the building and made it to the top floor—the offices. So early in the morning, even the secretary, Stephanie, was half-asleep at her desk, propping up her head with her hands, elbows on the desk.

Erland whistled in appreciated when we entered my office. He gravitated to the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the drowsy city. "Looks nice, Kat," he said. "I knew Wayward was nice, but I didn't think you were so loaded."

"We won't be any more if I can't pull off this presentation." Now that we were here, the moment creeping closer and closer, anxiety choked my airway.

Erland looked at me, suddenly serious. "You'll be fine, Kat. You know the numbers inside and out. Matthew's a contract lawyer, and if he said you've got it," he said, "you've got it."

I offered a weak smile. "Thanks, Er."

We spent the first hour organizing the papers from my portfolio. I sent him downstairs a few times to make copies on the sixth floor, where I usually worked during the day. He was less likely to be spotted by Octavia or one of the board members and questions. The past few months has been difficult hiding my affiliation with the company, but Grey was loyal to a fault. He covered my work without asking questions. I owed him more than just lunch.

In the time that Erland was preparing the packets, I went to the thirtieth floor and plugged my computer into the projector. Then, I placed a pen by every desk with the name of the project—Wayward Teens: Back Home—only to come up one pen short.

How could that be? There were seven board members, and with Nick, Octavia, and me, that would make ten. But eleven chairs?

I'll ask Stephanie when I meet Erland upstairs with the copies. Finishing up the boardroom, I headed to my office.

Voices greeted me when the elevator doors opened. Stephanie, up from her desk, stood between a blond-haired man and the door to my office, holding up her arms to stop him from spying the name beside the door. When he spoke, voice taut with frustration, I recognized him.

Grey.

And there was Erland, a few steps behind him, standing straight as a pencil, though his arms seemed to tremble a bit. He had gone white, his face almost ghost-like beneath his mop of brown hair. He glanced at me when I entered.

"Kat, thank God you're here."

Grey turned, and froze. I could see the gears turning behind his frustrated expression, quickly shifting into confusion. "Katherine?"

I swallowed. "Yes, Grey. It's me." My heels clicked on the floor as I came up to greet him. I gestured to Erland. "He's with me. My brother."

Grey's gaze jumped between me and Erland. "He was making copies downstairs..."

"I told him to." I cleared my throat and nodded at Stephanie. "Thank you, Steph. I'll take it from here."

She stepped aside back to her desk. I gestured for Erland to go with her. He shot me a worried glance as he walked away, but he didn't protest.

That left me with my coworker. We'd worked side by side since September, and he wasn't just a peer anymore, but a friend. Maybe that's what made the betrayal in his eyes cut deeper.

"Come in." I opened the door. "This is my office."

Grey's eyes shot to the name on the door: Katherine Malloy. He spoke softly, but I caught his words nonetheless.