Daphne hadn’t talked to Landon for two days. She’d hardly even looked at him, and when she had, she’d quickly looked away before he noticed. Despite the tension in their retionship, Daphne’s workload didn’t decrease, leaving her to rely on Asher and Holly more than she really wanted to.

  Daphne sighed as she checked another thing off her to-do list for the day. This is going to take forever without Landon’s help. She yanked on her hair at the ends.

  Her phone vibrated on her desk. She grabbed it, her eyes widening. A message from Asher?

  Instead, she opened a message from her mother, her heart sinking, and a frown on her face.

  Are you free tonight? Would you like to get dinner as mother and daughter?

  Ugh, it’s not like her to be so cheesy. She sneered at her phone. I should just say no, but I’m unfortunately avaible. If only Asher wasn’t busy.

  She pursed her lips, considering what consequences may be ahead of her if she were to say no. It has been a couple of weeks since I heard from her. Not taking her up on this could come back to bite me in the ass, Kimberly Woods style.

  Daphne gritted her teeth. Being close with her has put me no closer to finding my killer. Maybe I should just cut her off again…no. I just need to be patient.

  That sounds nice, Daphne texted her mother back. When would you like to meet? I’m free.

  Let’s meet at the Applebottom. 6:30 sound good?

  Daphne’s eyebrows raised. The Applebottom? She looked down at her shabby office clothes. I’m probably underdressed. But six thirty gives me time to go home and put something more presentable on.

  That sounds good, Daphne replied.

  Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Are you pnning on coming to the family Thanksgiving this year? Her mother replied right as Daphne hit send.

  What is this, an ambush? Daphne curled her upper lip. Of course she’d ask me right as I agreed to have dinner with her.

  Daphne let out a heavy sigh, her shoulders raising and lowering with her breath. Do I really want to be a part of the next family function after the st one? She remembered how her older brother Cy and her mother had made the entire dinner about their joint business venture. It wasn’t fun, but maybe it would be better than being alone…

  Her mind drifted to the Thanksgiving she’d had before she came back to the past. She had gone to Gary’s home, where it had been cramped with all of his mother’s extended family. Daphne had ended up doing a ton of dishes and helping with the cooking, all in hopes of getting Gary’s mother’s favor. In the end, she hadn’t gotten a chance to sit down and enjoy herself for even a moment.

  I wonder what Asher’s family does for Thanksgiving. She grimaced at the thought of having to spend an extended period of time in the same space as Rose.

  Both of these options are garbage. She frowned deeply.

  I’ll let you know about Thanksgiving, she replied back to her mother’s text.

  Alright, Kimberly replied. But I will need to know by next week.

  Understood.

  Daphne sighed and tossed her phone onto her desk, off to the side. This day is going to suck! She ran her hands through her poofy hair, her chest tight.

  She heard her phone vibrate another time, and she grabbed it.

  Looking forward to tonight. Love you.

  Daphne rolled her eyes.

  Love you too, she texted back.

  She turned back to her desk, frowning as she heard a pair of high-heeled shoes coming up behind her.

  Daphne let out a heavy breath form her nose. Today with Fiona, too, huh?

  “Hey Daphne,” Fiona’s nasally voice said behind her. “Trevor is looking for you.”

  Daphne spun around in her chair and met the red head’s crystal blue eyes. Daphne’s head span on her shoulders, déjà vu crashing over her.

  Was Fiona…always the one who told me that Trevor was looking for me in the past? She studied the woman’s face closely. Maybe I was wrong to think the murderer was close to Fiona. I never did consider that the murderer might even be Fiona.

  A shudder went down Daphne’s spine. If it’s not Fiona, then I’m certain it’s someone she knows. Daphne recalled the conversation Fiona had in the restroom a couple of weeks prior. She’d told someone that she was trying to get Trevor to fire me. I never stopped to consider what that meant for my retionship with Fiona. I just assumed that whoever Fiona was talking to might be the killer.

  “Fiona,” Daphne said, cocking her head off to the side a little. “Do you ever wear red lipstick? I think it would look really good on you.”

  Fiona scowled at Daphne. “Red is not my color,” she replied. “Unless I want to look like an orange puff. I’ve never owned a tube of red lipstick in my life.”

  “What about any of your friends?" Daphne pried, her heart pounding in her chest.

  Fiona must not be the killer then.

  Fiona didn’t reply, her scowl at Daphne just deepened on her face and she finished walking back to her cubicle. “Trevor is looking for you,” she reminded Daphne from the other side of their shared cubicle wall.

  Daphne put her hand over her heart, feeling it pound underneath her rib cage as she caught a breath she hadn’t even realized she was holding.

  She stood, trying to control her breathing, and peeked over the cubicle wall at Fiona. She was texting someone. “I’m surprised,” Daphne replied. Fiona looked up at her, glowering at Daphne’s interruption. “I figured would be your thing,” she added as she walked into the aisle.

  “What the fuck?” Fiona asked fiercely. “Are you trying to offend me right now?”

  “Maybe I am, maybe I’m not,” Daphne said, walking backwards, slowly towards Trevor’s office. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

  Daphne turned on her heel and began striding towards Trevor’s office. Just as she couldn’t in the restroom when she’d overheard Fiona’s conversation, Daphne couldn’t shake the intuition that Fiona definitely knew something.

  Reaching Trevor’s door, Daphne knocked. “Come in,” his voice said.

  Daphne entered, her head starting to spin again. “I heard you were asking for me,” she said, trying to ignore the sickening feeling growing in her head.

  “Yes,” he said, taking his feet off the top of his desk. Daphne noticed that his monitor was dark and next to his mouse was his phone, open with a game on it, again.

  In front of her, Trevor frowned deeply and crossed his arms. “I’ve been hearing a lot tely from the directors of the projects that you’re working on that things don’t seem…as timely as they usually are with your work.”

  Daphne pursed her lips. Hmm, I wonder why that could possibly be…? God, what I would give to tell him that.

  “I was really concerned to hear something like that about you, so I wanted to call you in and see if there was anything I could do to help.”

  Daphne had to fight the urge to ugh, and she pressed her lips together even tighter. So now he wants to help?

  She shrugged once she had choked down any inkling of a ugh. “I’m overloaded, sir,” she replied. “As I’ve kept trying to inform you. Of course, I haven’t been able to get things done in a timely manner.” She nodded a few times, studying him. “If you want to help, you’re going to have to give someone of the projects I’ve been managing to other people.”

  He drew his eyebrows together and slowly started shaking his head. “No, I don’t think you understood what I was saying,” Trevor said. “I’m not trying to help you; I’m trying to help the directors of your projects.”

  Daphne bit down on her tongue, hard, to suppress an eye roll. Ah. I should have known better than to assume that he was asking how he could help me. Trevor is not and will never be that kind of guy. No, he’s the biggest ass kisser I’ve ever met. That must be why he’s a manager.

  “Ah, my apologies for misunderstanding you then,” Daphne replied with a small smile. “Unfortunately, with all due respect, sir, there is nothing I can do to be more timely with my projects unless you start reducing my workload.”

  He smmed his fist on his desk, a growl coming out of his throat. Daphne didn’t even flinch. More, and more, she was realizing that Trevor’s behavior had never been about her in the first pce.

  “I’ve noticed you’ve stopped coming in early and leaving te,” Trevor said. His face was starting to change color, meaning it was only a matter of time before he exploded. “Perhaps if you start doing that again until you catch up with your workload, you finally might be able to be more timely?”

  Daphne snorted, she couldn’t help it. “I can’t do that,” she replied, smirking at him. “If you have no intention of lightening my workload, then I would be coming in early and leaving te indefinitely. There would be no getting ahead of the workload.”

  His face started to turn purple. “Stay te!” Trevor screamed at her.

  Daphne flinched. “No,” she replied firmly. “I will only work during my allotted work hours.”

  “You’re fired, then,” Trevor yelled, smming his palm onto the top of his desk.

  Daphne shrugged. “Go ahead, fire me then,” she replied. “I’ll make sure to sue you and the company, then, for having me work extended hours for an extended period of time.” She leaned on his desk, her hand ft against the top of it. “Don’t you think during the trial it would be fun to talk about how you’ve been fooling around with one of your employees and pying favorites? I think that would make an interesting wsuit, don’t you think?”

  Trevor’s face faded from purple to red, and from red to white. Daphne’s heart soared through her. He knows I’ve won. He can’t bully me when I could expose his secrets.

  “Fine,” Trevor replied menacingly. “Stay. But don’t expect me to reduce your workload after the shit you just pulled.”

  Daphne shrugged. “No skin off my back,” she replied. “But don’t be surprised if there continue to be directors contacting you about the timeliness of my work.”

  She turned and strolled out of his office. Her mouth tasted bitter from the fact that he still refused to reduce her workload. I may have just put an even bigger target on my back. Good thing I’ll leave the company soon.