But where did that leave Caroline? Who’d thrust me into Jim’s world.
The box from the lawyer was there behind the desk. He’d said there was paperwork regarding the foundation. And Ronan that night in my bedroom had asked if I’d gone to the Morellis to get answers about the foundation.
I grabbed the box and put it on the desk.
“Poppy?” I jumped at the sound of another voice, and the door was pushed open to reveal Theo.
“Hi!” I said. I grabbed the box and put it back behind the desk, kicking it into the shadows.
“I saw the light on in the house and wasn’t sure—”
“It’s me.”
“You’re... all right?” he asked with a careful smile.
“Never better,” I joked. “You want some coffee?”
“It’s nine o’clock at night,” he said.
“How about a drink?” I asked, pointing to the senator’s drink cart.
“Sure.”
“Bourbon?”
I set my coffee mug down on the corner of the desk and walked over to the cart to pour half the bottle into one of the tumblers.
He was leaning against the desk, and I handed him the drink and grabbed my coffee cup by his hip. “Have you talked to the fire marshal?”
“Not yet,” I said. “My phone is charging.”
I sat down in one of the chairs in front of the cold fireplace and took a sip of my coffee. The heat and caffeine waking me up bit by bit.
“You can’t stay here tonight,” he said. “It’s not safe. The whole back wall is gone, and I don’t feel good about the roof.”
“I know. You know, considering the fire was mostly outside there is so much damage inside.”
“It’s the water from the hoses. You’re going to go back to Mrs. Constantine’s?”
I shook my head, had another sip of coffee. “No.”
“You want me to drive you into the city?” he asked.
“Yeah,” I said. I needed to call my sister, make some kind of amends. But I’d stay in a hotel in the city. I just needed some space. Some room to try and understand what had happened to me. A chance to go through the box in quiet. “I’ll pack a bag, call the fire marshal, and if there aren’t any problems I should be ready to go soon.”
I said all of that but did not get up from the chair.
He sat down in the chair next to mine. “You all right?”
“You know, I’ve never really spent much time in this room.”
“I understand that.”
“Did you know?” I asked. It was a stupid question, really. Of course he knew. “About him? I mean the senator?”
“Know what?”
I stared at him until his cheeks turned pink. “We... I mean, some of the staff had an idea. Of what he was like with you.”