Rush

opened, Jace stalked out, leaving Ash and Mia to follow at a slower
     pace. By the time they got to the exit, Jace was already back, and as promised, he
     and Ash hovered so closely around her that it was hard to see who she was or what
     she was wearing.
    They surrounded her as she got into the car and then they quickly climbed in and shut
     the door behind them.
    To Mia’s relief, Jace supplied her address for the driver to take them to her apartment.
    “How long has this been going on?” Jace demanded.
    “That’s none of your business,” Mia said stonily.
    Jace’s expression grew stormy. “The hell it isn’t. That son of a bitch abused you
     and took advantage of you.”
    “Oh for fuck’s sake. He did not. It was a completely consensual relationship, Jace.
     Get off your holier-than-thou pulpit for a minute. He didn’t do a damn thing that
     I didn’t want. He was very clear as to what I was agreeing to when we started this
     relationship. All that bullshit you spouted was crap. I’m an adult whether you want
     to believe that or not. An adult who knows exactly what she wants, and I wanted
Gabe
.”
    “I can’t believe he did this. I can’t believe he’d want you to think this was normal.
     What about when you move on to someone else and start looking for the same kind of
     crap? What if you hook up with some loser who mistreats and abuses you?”
    Mia rolled her eyes, irritation seizing her. “You’re both such flaming hypocrites.”
    Ash blinked in surprise at being included in her insult.
    “Do you want your women thinking it’s normal to be fucking the same two guys, or that
     you two always want to share the same woman? What about their expectations? What happens
     when they move on to another relationship? Are they supposed to think it’s okay for
     two men to want to fuck her at the same time?”
    “Jesus Christ, Mia. Where the hell did you hear all of that?” Ash demanded.
    She shrugged. “It’s pretty common knowledge around the office. And after the night
     we had dinner together and the brunette’s claws came out, it was pretty much confirmed.”
    “We aren’t talking about me and Ash,” Jace growled. “We’re talking about you and Gabe.
     He’s fourteen years older than you, Mia. He has every woman he’s with sign a goddamn
     contract. Is that the kind of relationship you want? Don’t you think you deserve better?”
    “Damn right I deserve better,” she said softly, hurt and betrayal crowding in so tight
     that it was suffocating. Each breath hurt. Every breath felt like she was dying. And
     she was on the inside. Never had she felt pain like this. It was shattering. She could
     feel herself breaking into tiny pieces.
    She clutched the robe tighter around her body and her lips quivered as she stared
     at her brother and Ash.
    “I
deserve
a man who will stand up and fight for me, a man who will always have my back. Gabe
     did none of those things. We were planning to tell you about our relationship when
     you got back this week. Ironic isn’t it? I wonder how different things would have
     been if we’d been able to tell you on
our
terms instead of you bursting into his apartment like that. I guess I’ll never know
     now.”
    Ash looked chagrined, and he grimaced. Jace just looked pissed.
    She laughed bitterly. “I guess I’ll be looking for other employment now. Too bad,
     because I really enjoyed my job.”
    “You can work for me,” Jace said tightly. “It’s what you should have done from the
     beginning.”
    She shook her head vehemently. “Oh hell no. I’m not setting foot into HCM. I’m not
     going to torture myself on a daily basis by having to see Gabe.”
    “What will you do then?” Ash asked gently.
    Her lips thinned and bitterness crawled into her chest. “I don’t know right now. I
     guess I have plenty of time to figure it out.”

chapter thirty-nine
    When Mia entered her apartment in just a robe with Ash and Jace both hovering protectively
     around her, Caroline hurried forward, a worried expression on her face.
    “Mia? What happened? Are you all right?”
    Mia hugged her friend and to her horror burst into tears, no longer able to maintain
     her composure.
    Caroline held her fiercely and then lit into Ash and Jace, demanding to know what
     they’d done to her.
    “Just make them go away, Caro,” Mia choked out. “I’m fine now that I’m with you.”
    Caroline ushered her to the couch, helped her sit down, and then she stood