Desire for Love (The Club #13) Read Online Free PDF Page A

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shudder at the humiliation of being strong-armed out of the building. What
Roberta was doing was probably illegal, but considering the rage the woman was
in, now wasn’t the time to debate the point. I’m not going to let this lie
though.
    Madeline said, “That
won’t be necessary. I expect to be paid for this week’s wages.”
    “You’ll be paid for the
hours you’ve worked and not a dollar more.”
    “Let go of me before I
sue you for assault.” Madeline shook her arm, dislodging the other woman’s hand
and stalked to the door, head high. I’m not going to cry. And certainly not
in front of this bitch.
    She’d hoped to have a
quiet word with the other staff before she left, but Roberta walked behind her
every step of the way. I have Sasha’s address and I know she’s a friend of
Brittany’s. I’ll go over tomorrow and see if Sasha can give me Jet’s private
email address or his mobile number. If that doesn’t work, I’ll seek
legal advice.
    ***
    The following morning,
Madeline dragged herself out of bed, showered, dressed in a flannel shirt over
a T-shirt and sweat pants before staggering out to the kitchen to where her
brother was wolfing down a bowl of hot oatmeal.
    “Wow. You look like
shit.”
    She wasn’t surprised,
having spent what was left of the night tossing and turning, worrying over
their future. What was worse were the tears she spilled whenever her wayward
thoughts turned to Harrison. You would have thought I’d learned my lesson by
now. I’m better off alone. Just me and Matty. Her vision blurred as she
stared at her younger brother. “Tone down the language, Matty, please.”
    “I left you some breakfast.
Check the pot on the stove.” Matty turned his attention back to the textbook he
was reading as he ate.
    “Thanks. Maybe later.”
Madeline eyed her brother’s down bent head. Do I tell him I’ve been fired?
Maybe I should wait until after I’ve spoken with Jet. She did some mental
arithmetic and calculated if they were careful, her savings would last five and
a bit weeks. Plenty of time to sort out this mess. “I’ll drive you to school.
It looks horribly cold outside.”
    “Thanks, sis. Give me
ten.” He shoved to his feet and carted his empty bowl to the sink to rinse it
out and place it on the drying rack. He shot her a quick grin as he grabbed his
book in passing.
    Alone, Madeline pushed
aside the curtain and stared at the rain running down the pane. Looked like today
was going to be miserable weather wise. Exactly how I feel. But I’m
not going down without a fight. If Roberta thinks she is going to get away with
whatever shady scheme she’s involved in, she is dead wrong.
    She swiped up her handbag
and car keys, and marched to the door where she pulled on a pair of flat-heeled
boots and her overcoat.
    “Hustle, Matthew!”
    “Okay, okay. Geez, give
me a break.” Her brother trundled down the hallway, grumbling while Madeline
opened the front door.
    The roads were slippery.
The light drizzle falling from the sky wasn’t sufficient to wash away the
residue oil and grease left by the traffic. It took them longer than normal to
drive to where Karim Academy was located in a more affluent section of town.
    Madeline double-parked,
leaving the engine running while her brother opened the passenger door.
    He hopped out, then about
to shut the door, ducked his head back inside to say, “I should have asked at
breakfast, but are you alright, sis?”
    “I’m fine.” She smiled.
“I didn’t sleep, that’s all.”
    The driver in the car
behind leaned on the horn.
    Matty frowned. “If some
guy is giving you grief, let me know.”
    Tears pricked Madeline’s
eyes. “I will. Now, shoo. The first bell’s sounded. You want me to pick you
up?”
    “That’ll be great but I’m
staying back to do some work in the lab. Later suits me better, say
five-thirty?”
    “It’s a date. Be good.”
Smiling, Madeline waved him on his way and drove off. Out of sight, she