Chapter 356 Tiger Versus Sick Cat
"You didn't have to do that. That was too petty even for you," Tom said with a chuckle as he and Harry headed for the car.
"I'm surprised you were able to stay so calm. God! I really hate her! You had no idea everything I had in my head to say to her. I had to try my best to hold back because she's our employee," Harry said, and Tom laughed.
"And you weren't even the one that dated her," Tom said in amusement, even though he understood Harry's hatred. He was filled with anger and hatred too, but knowing that he already had everything in place to deal with her was what had helped him to speak calmly.
"My best friend dated her, and that's enough. She made things difficult for both you and Lucy, and that, in turn made things difficult for me. I thought I was going to go crazy last weekend," Harry said, and Tom winced.
"I'm sorry. I know you must have been really stressed," Tom said apologetically.
"Don't be. Your problem is my problem, and your enemy is my enemy. Imagine her talking about friendship, the nerves! How can someone be that shameless? And what was that nonsense she was spewing? Did I hear her refer to Lucy as her friend? Really? If I were a lady, I'd have hit her head against that desk to reset whatever nonsense was broken in in that micro fish brain of hers," Harry swore, and Tom doubled over, ignoring the curious glances they were getting from the staff as they walked past them.
"Okay, now you should calm down, Harry."
"Sure. I will calm down after she and her crazy family pay for all they did and have planned to do. I won't let you take it easy on them," Harry said with a scowl as they stopped in front of the car that the valet had brought back to the front of the building.
Tom looked at Harry with a wide smile. His loyalty was second to none, and the amazing thing was that he couldn't even understand what he did to deserve Harry's friendship and loyalty. He really loved this best friend of his.
"Then let's get started on making them pay," Tom said as he slapped Harry's back lightly, and Harry got into the car while Tom went around to get into the driver's seat.
As Harry buckled his seatbelt, his phone started ringing, and his heart skipped a beat when he saw that it was Jade. All the anger he had been feeling a moment ago disappeared and left his mind blank and his mouth dry.
As he stared blankly at the phone which was ringing, he remembered their midnight chat and phone conversation, which he had been trying all day not to think about.
"Are you not going to receive your call?" Tom asked when he got into the car and saw Harry staring at his phone, which was ringing.
He cleared his throat before receiving the call, "Hey!" He greeted in a gruff voice and cleared his throat again.
"Hello, Harry! Did you sleep well?" Jade asked cheerfully as she sat in front of the dressing room. She was dressed now, and they were about to leave the house; hence she decided to speak with him.
"Yeah. I believe I did. What about you? I mean, did you sleep well?" Harry asked, and Jade smiled to herself when she heard how flustered he sounded.
"I didn't."
"I see," Harry said and then remained quiet as he waited for her to tell him why she had called.
Tom spared him a glance, wondering who he was speaking with, but he looked away from Tom. Seeing his reaction, Tom smirked. He could guess that it was Jade. Harry wasn't the type to look or sound so flustered when speaking with anyone.
"You see? You are not curious to know why I didn't sleep well?" Jade asked in a flirty tone.
"I'm kind of busy at the moment..."
"No, he's not busy. I'm driving, and he's just sitting here. Sup, Jade? Are you guys still at home?" Tom asked, and Jade giggled while Harry glared at Tom.
"We were going to talk about our plan for the meeting with those ladies," Harry reminded Tom, not pleased that Tom was insinuating that he had lied.
"Tell him we will be leaving in a couple of minutes. Since you're busy right now, I will call back later to let you know when I arrive. Is that okay?" Jade asked to Harry's relief.
"Yeah, sure. Have a safe trip," Harry answered quickly, and to his confusion, Jade giggled.
"Anyway, since you didn't ask, I'm going to tell you anyway. I didn't sleep well last night because I kept thinking about the kiss, and then I dreamt of kissing you. Although in my dream, we did a bit more than kiss. I will give you the details when I call you back later," Jade said before hanging up.
Long after the call ended, Harry still held the phone to his ear as he stared ahead of him with unseeing eyes. His heart was beating too fast, and his mouth was as dry as a desert.
Why did she tell him something like that? Why did she dream of kissing him? She said they had done more than kiss. What else had they done? Was it the same dream he had? Why was he even curious about it? Why was the thought of a mere dream making his body warm?
"Seeing how you have been silent for a while but still holding the phone to your ear, Jade must have so much to say to you," Tom observed dryly.
Harry snapped back to his senses and dropped his hand as he turned to glare at Tom, "You are not a good friend, you know?"
"I'm not? How? What did I do wrong?" Tom asked innocently.
"I have your back. I always have your back, but you don't have mine," he said accusingly.
"I'm sure you know that's not true. It's not like Jade was going to eat you up, and you needed protection. It was a simple phone conversation, yet you looked like you were going to pass out. When you talk to me, you sound like a tiger, but when it's Jade, you sound like a sick cat," Tom said in amusement, and Harry glared at him.
"How did you know it was her anyway?" Harry asked since he hadn't mentioned Jade's name, and the speaker hadn't been loud enough for Tom to hear her voice.
Tom shrugged, "In all the years I've known you, I'm not sure I've seen you react to anyone else this way before. The look on your face when you received the call was similar to the look on your face when she was holding your arm yesterday," Tom said with a chuckle, and Harry scowled.
"I'm NOT going to have anything to do with her!"
"I never said you were or you should. I thought we both already established that she is our sister?" Tom reminded him, and Harry cussed under his breath.
"I hate you, Tom!"
Tom chuckled, "You should maintain this energy when next you talk to Jade instead of shaking like a leaf."
**********
Lucas had a wary look in his eyes as he walked out of a phone shop. He couldn't believe that he had been right and Rachel had been tracking his phone this whole time.
Just what did he really know about this woman? Everything Miley had said came back to him, and he paused to draw in a deep breath when he started feeling sick.
He was sick to his stomach. Frightened, and disgusted that he had thought she was the love of his life.
How? Just how had he ended up with such a scary person? If all of this had not happened with Lucy, he would never have found out the kind of woman he was getting married to.
He was lost in thoughts as he walked down the road aimlessly, unsure where he was headed. He still didn't want to go home yet... Speaking of home, he recalled that he was yet to give his parents a call, and his phone had been turned off once again while the guys in the phone shop were working on it, so he reached into his pocket and took it out.
He turned it on and then dialed his mother's line. Almost immediately, Janet received the call, "Oh, Lucas! Thank goodness you finally called. I've been worried sick about you. How are you? Where are you?" She asked in a rush.
"I'm fine, mom. And I'm sorry I made you worry," Lucas said apologetically.
"Are you sure you are fine?" Andrew asked from beside Janet.
"Yes, I'm fine. I just need to be alone for the time being..."
"Why don't you tell me where you are? And then I can bring you something to eat? Did you take your clothes? I could help you get some clothes too," Janet pleaded.
"Mom, thanks. But I can buy whatever I need. I'm fine, so don't worry yourself about me. I will leave my line on so you can reach me whenever you want. That way, you don't have to be so worried," Lucas said, and Janet let out a resigned sigh.
"Just make sure you call us whenever you need to talk or see us, okay? And come home when you're ready," Andrew said to Lucas' relief.
"Sure, dad. I have to go now." He hesitated, "Mom? Can you help me get my personal effects out of my apartment?" Lucas asked, not wanting to step foot in that apartment.
"Sure, we can. By the way, we called Rachel earlier when we couldn't reach you," Andrew said, causing Lucas' eyes to harden.
"You didn't have to. Please do not call her next time. She showed up here uninvited," Lucas said, and his parents exchanged a surprised look.
"Where? How did she get to know your location?" Janet asked since she doubted that Lucas could have gone somewhere he used to visit with Rachel when he was avoiding her.
"She installed a tracking device in my phone this whole time. I had no idea. She is dangerous and..." While Lucas was still speaking, the doorbell rang, and Andrew went to the door to see who was there.
"A tracking device?" Janet asked in shocked annoyance even as Andrew opened the door.
He was surprised to see Rachel standing there, "What are you doing here?" He asked without letting her in, and hearing his cold tone, Janet rose.
"I think Rachel is here," she informed Lucas quietly as she went to the door to see for herself.
"Mom, throw her out. Do not listen to anything she says. She is a liar, and she is very dangerous," Lucas said, but his mother was no longer listening.
Seeing the hostile expression on their faces, Rachel fell to her knees, "Please help me. Save my relationship with Lucas, please! I love him. I don't want to lose him. I can't live without him," she cried, making Janet's hand ball into a fist as she fought the urge to hit Rachel for all the pain she had caused her children.
"The only reason we had anything to do with you was because of Lucas. Now that he no longer wants to be involved with you, we have no reason to tolerate you anymore either. Leave!" Andrew ordered harshly.
"Andrew, please! Don't do this to me. I love Lucas! Please help me! Please help me save my relationship with him! Please!" She cried, reaching out to grab his calf, but Andrew sidestepped her, and she fell forward through the door.
Immediately, Janet dropped her phone and roughly pushed Rachel back, not wanting any part of her body inside their home.
"Save yourself this embarrassment and leave quietly. Make sure you don't show yourself around here or around my family again. Else I won't be blamed for what I do to a trespasser," Janet warned through clenched teeth as she shut the door in Rachel's crying face.
On the other end of the phone, Lucas gritted his teeth as he disconnected the call. Now he needed to just find somewhere he could stay for a while and try to figure out what he wanted for his life now.
He turned abruptly when a car honked loudly behind him, and his heart skipped a beat when he saw Miley seated gracefully in a red Ford mustang.