Jack (Secret Revenge #1) Read online

  By: Elle Crosby

  (C) Copyright 2016 by Elle Crosby (Author).

  All rights reserved.

  In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any part of this document by either electronic means or in printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly prohibited and any storage of this document is not allowed unless with written permission from the publisher. All rights reserved.

  Respective authors own all copyrights not held by the publisher.

  Prologue

  Emily Taylor grew up in a small town with big city dreams. Her parents owned a small farm in Nebraska, and she spent her youth planning her escape amongst the corn fields. The country life never fit Emily, even though she had never been in a place with buildings taller than three stories. Emily dreamed of skyscrapers, big business, corporate ladders, and shattering glass ceilings. Her youth gave her determination, and the world hadn’t had its chance to damper those spirits quite yet.

  Emily had a personality like a bull; hard, determined, and she paid little attention to others unless they were waving a flag of interest at her. When she saw or figured out something, she wanted she would charge full steam ahead and create a plan of attack that would ensure her success every time. Emily wasn't used to not getting what she wanted but not in a rich girl spoiled way but in a roll up your sleeves and plow the field by hand kind of way. Spoiled was not something that would ever cross the minds of someone that knew Emily, especially growing up as the child of farmers. Determined, hardworking, and headstrong would be the words to describe Emily to a tee.

  When Emily was nine years old, she wrote a report on future careers for her fourth-grade class and decided, after considerable research, that she wanted to "be in marketing and take over the New York market." Despite her parent's efforts to wrangle her into the family farm, her dreams were concrete. Emily knew, even at an age where Barbie's ruled the world and pink lace dresses were the talks between the other girls, that her dreams would take some work but that she wouldn't end up another debutant, married to the preacher's son, living in a white house on the corner of town. Emily’s aspirations went far beyond what the typical farm raised girls and she had the determination to not let small town America change that.

  Boys were a whole other story for Emily who hadn't put much thought into it until she reached high school and her parents pressured her to go to her freshman formal with Timmy down the road. After missing all the signs and ending up slapping him for grabbing her butt, Emily realized she had never had a single attraction to a boy in her entire life. Her sophomore year of high school, and a secret kiss in the girl's bathroom during lunch brought Emily to the finite conclusion that she was a lesbian. The news fell hard on her parents and though they supported her choices, never really talked much about it beyond the initial conversation.

  Emily put the thought of girls out of her mind for the rest of high school, being too busy for anything but making sure her grades were perfect, and her college applications brought her right where she wanted to be. Emily knew her parents wouldn't be able to afford the expensive Ivy League education she desired so she applied for every scholarship she could get her hands on. In the end, she went with her second choice, Princeton, because they offered her a full ride for being Valedictorian while Yale offered only a few thousand dollars a year in scholarships.

  After a teary goodbye, on her parent's part, Emily packed up her car and headed off to New Jersey for four years of intense study and a revamp of everything Emily knew about life outside of Nebraska's cornfields. The people at Princeton were just like her, and she felt completely at home sitting around drinking a pint talking Tolstoy and bragging on her plans for the future. Emily was so used to having her nose in the books and working hard that Princeton's rigid learning curve didn't affect her in the least. Around her Junior year at school, Emily met Rosalie who was petite, sweet and had strong ambitions in the environmental law field. They fell for each other immediately and dated for the rest of their time at Princeton. Two months before graduation, though, Emily was offered a job at one of New York's leading marketing firms, and Rosalie was accepted into Harvard Law. Emily being the realistic one who was able to separate emotions and reality let Rosalie down easily and they parted ways amicably, promising to keep in touch as their journeys went in opposite directions.

  There was a part of Emily that was incredibly heartbroken about the breakup, Rosalie was her first for many things and she held onto that for the rest of her time at Princeton. However, once graduation was upon her, and the excitement of moving to the City for her dream job grew close enough to feel real, Emily's attention was shifted to the future, and she spent her last week in New Jersey hanging out and sightseeing with her parents. They had come over from Nebraska and were going to stay to help her move into her new apartment in the city. The company had set of the flat for her so all she would have to do is get her belongings there and settle in. Emily would be moving in on Saturday but not start work until Monday, giving her ample time to explore the city a little and get comfortable with the work coming up.

  This was the beginning of everything she had been working so hard for and she was determined to continue her climb to the top with High Point Marketing Corporation. New York was full of inspiration and taking the time to soak it in after the weekend was not on her extremely forward goal list. Emily felt there needed to be no distractions; she would have plenty of time for that when she reached the top and could sit back and enjoy the ride she was just on. Everything seemed to be right where she wanted it but what Emily hadn't accounted for was Bridgette Harlan; someone that would change everything in the blink of an eye.

  Chapter One: On the Cusp of the Future

  Moving into the new apartment came with a little more stress then Emily had realized. There wasn’t a lot to move in because the company had provided her with a furnished apartment but her parents were absolutely lost when it came to navigating through a big city. Once they had finally maneuvered her father’s truck into a parallel spot somewhat close to the building, gotten her stuff up the elevator and to the door, Emily had to weather her mother’s abhorrence to the eclectic decor that decorated the apartment; she didn’t quite understand modern design.

  It was Friday afternoon by the time Emily had settled all of her things into the apartment, and the original plan was to get dinner with her parents and then go to sleep early since they had to be up before the sun to start their trip back to Nebraska; the farm wasn’t going to run itself. However, after sitting in the living room awkwardly for about thirty minutes, Emily’s parents decided they were going to dip out early and leave before the major traffic hit the city. Emily loved her parents, but she had spent a week with them, and she was ready to get back into her regular routine.

  “Oh I am going to miss you so much,” Emily’s mother said as she suffocated her with a hug. “I want to you to plan on coming home for Christmas, and please be careful in the city. Don’t walk around at night and wash your hands after you use the subway.” Her mother sniffled and moved to the side to allow her father to move in.

  “I am proud of you,” he said. “If you need anything just call us. I have some friends nearby that can be here in minutes...well, minutes if they don’t have to parallel park.”

  Emily giggled and hugged her dad. He always had towered over her, and he never gave in to her insistence that she didn’t need a protector. Though she loved her mother very much, her dad brought a feeling of sadness to Emily as she thought about the amount of time that would pass before she would see him again. She sighed and let him hug her a little longer before she pulled away.

  She walked her parents out and stood on the sidewalk and waved as they pulled out into traffic and made their way down the street. Emily stood in front of the apartment building and looked around, taking in all of the sounds and smells around her. Honking, sirens, and the smell of hot dog vendors was different from Nebraska, but she absolutely loved every bit of it. It was the
beginning of summer and the few trees that peppered the sidewalk were bright green, and the heat from the sun radiated off the sidewalk. Emily smiled and walked back into the building, up the elevator, and into her brand new apartment.

  The apartment smelled fresh and clean and everything was meticulously placed from the way the furniture was structured around the windows to the diverse array of paintings that hung throughout the space. The apartment was one of the perks that the company offered for the first year of her employment; they knew someone right out of college wouldn’t necessarily have the funds for a lush downtown apartment. Not that it was a determining factor, Emily had known she would work for High Point since high school so accepting the position was no brainer.

  High Point Marketing was one of the leading companies in the world and covered everything from cereal brands to sports teams. During the interview process, she was wined and dined with the other candidates who were from the top school in the world. What made Emily stand out was that while everyone else spent their evenings partying in the city and sightseeing, Emily was studying the current clients and marketing trends that pertained directly to High Point. Her preparation and lack of a hangover impressed the staff and her ability to be smart and charismatic gave her an edge with her new boss.

  Eric was her boss’s name, and he was what everyone would expect out of the Vice President of marketing for a multi-million dollar company located in the heart of Times Square. He was tall, salt and peppered but very handsome, had two ex-wives, a couple of girlfriends, and a smile that made all the other woman in the office weak in the knees. Maybe because Emily was a lesbian it gave her an advantage of not being so nervous around him as the other women. He supported Emily’s goals and already had pushed her harder, giving her motivation and opportunity from the start.

  Everyone else in the office seemed nice, and they all had something in common with Emily, motivation. High Point made it a point to treat their employees well, and they only looked to hire those with the best credentials and an intense hunger to be the best in their professions. Emily didn’t get to meet very many of the other people in the office during her tour last month, but she spent a considerable amount of time with Eric and his Assistant Vice President, Bridgette. Bridgette was just a little younger than Eric, maybe 35 or 36 but was extremely serious and didn’t talk a lot. She looked as if she had a lot on her plate as an extension to Eric and most of the time all Emily saw was her running around on her cell phone or whispering to Eric about a file she was holding.

  Emily crossed the living room and sat in a lounging chair that faced the far right window of the apartment. She was on the eleventh floor and could see the city skyline beautifully. Her apartment was located across the street from a park so she was lucky not to have a direct view into someone else’s home. There were a ton of people out in the park that evening, some running, some playing with their dogs, and others just wandering through the park as if they were thirsting for nature inside the cement confounds of the city.

  Emily grabbed the folder out of her briefcase that had been sitting on the counter when she moved in. It was full of brochures and flyers for activities, restaurants, and events in the city for the weekend. She thumbed through the restaurant flyers and landed on a diner that was apparently only three blocks over from her. Her stomach was rumbling, and she hadn’t had the chance to eat that day due to all the commotion from her move. She threw on a light sweater and made her way down to the diner.

  The evening crowd hadn’t flooded the diner yet, so there was ample space for Emily to sit and she chose a booth by the front window. The food was mediocre as it would be for just about any generic diner but it was quiet, and she was feeling the need to be focused on her inner thoughts. She ate slowly, going over different points that had been given her for review for her first day on Monday. The rest of the evening went quickly, and Emily fell asleep immediately after lying down in her new bed.

  The rest of the weekend was pretty uneventful, and Emily decided that sightseeing could wait. Besides, New York was her new home so there was no reason to run out immediately and see everything in one weekend. She went grocery shopping at the local organic supermarket and got all the essentials for her quick, easy smoothie breakfasts and healthy packable choices for lunch. Emily never was one for spending excess money, which is probably why she was one of the few people that graduated college with a nest egg. The bonus she received from High Point when she signed would get her through her entire first year in New York if she were careful, especially since she didn’t have to pay rent until next year.

  Saturday she spent the day unpacking the few boxes she had brought and ironing her clothes so she could hang them up in the closet ready to go. She knew life in the city was going to be a lot higher paced than in Nebraska, and she wanted to make sure she didn’t mess herself up by not always being prepared with the little things. She ate take-out in the park across the street, and people watched, trying to force herself to relax a little before her career kicked off on Monday.

  Sunday was a day of preparation for Emily, and she spent her time reviewing the projects that she would start assisting on when she got there. By dinner time Emily had laid her outfit out for the next day, programmed the coffee maker, made her smoothie and put it in the fridge for the morning, gotten a thorough plan of attack for the subway system, and had her briefcase sitting next to the door. She ate a light dinner and jumped into the shower. After her shower, she spent about two hours reading one of her favorite books by the view of the bedside table before she snuggled into bed. Her excitement, something she didn’t feel very often, kept her awake in bed for a while but the sound of evening rain on her window lulled her to sleep. She dreamt of High Point and how she would climb the corporate ladder, making sure to have Bridgette’s position by the time she was 30. A smile crossed her face in her sleep as the night slowly turned to dawn and the day she had worked so hard on quickly approached.

  Chapter Two: Rookie Homeruns

  Emily’s alarm went off, and she bounced out of bed with enthusiasm. It didn’t take her long to get ready, and she stood in the mirror examining herself. She had chosen a classic black pencil skirt, light blue silk blouse, and light weight black suit jacket for her first day on the job. Her stockings were nude, and her heels were a little higher than kitten heels but still comfortable enough to spend the day on her feet. She popped a straw in her smoothie and decided to finish it before she left since she still had twenty minutes before she had planned to leave for the subway station three blocks south of her.

  The park was quiet except for a couple of homeless people who had spent the night on the benches out front. Emily tried not to stare as she walked past but there weren’t any homeless people in her small town, and the only ones she had experienced were on her eighth-grade field trip to Washington, DC. She reached the opening to the subway and went with the flow of the people hustling down the stairs. Luckily she had done her due diligence and purchased a month-long pass and practiced a couple of times on Saturday so that she knew what she was doing. Though she was new she didn’t want to seem that way since she was warned that people who looked new and confused were much more likely to be mugged, well at least that is what her mother told her.

  The subway ride was uneventful, and she was lucky enough to find a seat next to other business clad people mundanely traveling to their job. Emily thought about the looks on their faces and hoped that all of her work didn’t lead to a life where her spirit was crushed like the people on the subway. She had to switch trains a couple of times but eventually made it to Times Square where she stood staring up at the building that housed several large corporations including High Point Marketing. For some reason, the building seemed bigger and more intimidating, and she pushed her nerves down as she stepped into the lobby.

  Emily had scheduled herself to arrive twenty minutes early so that she could make sure her security pass worked correctly and she had time to collect herself before she met with Eric
at 8 am. The security guard was in his fifties and wore a uniform similar to that of the New York City Police officers she had seen earlier that weekend riding horses through the park. He smiled kindly at her as he checked her badge in the computer and motioned her through the line. She stuffed herself into a full elevator noticing that the next would be just as full and made her way to the twentieth floor where High Point was located.

  The office was quiet when she walked in, and the desks were only half full at that point. The receptionist was in her thirties, blonde, and wore a sweet, comforting smile as she answered phone calls at the desk at the reception. She looked up at Emily and motioned for her to come over as she hung up the call she was on.

  “You must be Emily,” she said with a forced bubbliness in her voice. “I remember you from the interviews. I have been instructed to show you to your desk, and Eric’s receptionist will call your phone when Eric is ready to see you.”

  Emily nodded and followed her to the bank of about fifteen desks that covered the main floor of the office. There were no partitions, and each desk faced someone else’s. Emily hoped her office partner wasn’t going to try to become bosom buddies, but she noticed the desk across from hers was empty as she sat down at her computer. Emily sat her briefcase on the desk and unpacked the files Eric had sent over to her apartment. She was about three sentences into the Xbox file when someone tapped her on the shoulder.