You Only (Cameron Farms Book 1) - Melanie Jayne Page 0,45
away at school most of our dating time, so we talked on the phone a lot. It wasn’t like we were living in the same town.” Jasmine explained. “It was what was expected of me, to give it up to my husband.”
“You moved in with Finn didn’t you?” Ashley turned to Hale.
“We weren’t living together officially, but when things were going good I stayed at his apartment.” Hale shifted on the sofa.
“You got lonely when he started work on the trial. Finn had been able to spend a lot of time with you before then, but he was working non-stop on that case,” Jasmine mused.
“Let me start at the beginning.” Hale recited the tale of the princess who ran away, repeating the salient details to a rapt Ashley.
“So, I gave up everything here and the relationship of a man that I loved so that I could repair what was broken within me. I chose to fix myself over staying for Finn’s love.” Hale finished the tale.
“Nothing new there, a man’s career coming first,” Ashley said.
“Finn was always honest about his ambition. I liked that about him, he had his shit together. He moved here and got what he wanted, like a badass in a tie.” Hale giggled as she thought about how good he looked in a suit.
“You were young, pretty, and rich. I can see why you were a bitch.” Ashley pointed to the bottle, asking if she wanted another shot.
Hale shook her head. “Almost everybody let me get away with it.”
“We didn’t know any better. I was wrapped up in my classes and Izzy. My folks kept me on a pretty short leash, I was going to marry Israel Benton and be happy. That was my job, my path. I remember you talking about how you wanted to change, but I didn’t get it.” Jasmine pointed at the bottle.
“So, you snuck out of town…” Ashley looked expectantly at Hale.
“I had talked to my dad about how I was feeling about myself. I did the research about where I could go and the final decision and timing were mine. Dad told me it was the hardest thing he ever did, letting me go. I’m glad he got to see me succeed.” Hale let out a sigh. “Dad had a good relationship with Finn. He got to see both of us grow up and have success.”
“So, did you know anyone in Florida? Is that why you moved there?” Ashley wanted the entire story.
“No, not a soul. I wanted to go somewhere that nobody knew me, where I could be anonymous. Back in high school, I’d visited the school and liked it, so I moved into a little apartment near the campus. Dad paid for my first year of school and rent. He also covered my bills with the therapist. I got a job at a call center and worked until classes started. I had decided that I wanted to be an accountant. I did well enough that I qualified for scholarships, so I decided that I would stay for my M.B.A. I did an internship with Cantor Hart, and they offered me a position before I graduated.”
“Izzy and I flew down and helped you move. That was fun. It was so hot that weekend. Remember?” Jasmine chuckled at that memory.
Hale shook her head. “I thought we were all going to die. I don’t think I’ve ever been so hot in my life. I’d rented a truck and the air conditioner died, it was like ninety-eight degrees and poor Izzy, he drove that truck. He was almost cooked alive.”
“Hey, it’s what friends do.” Jasmine shrugged her shoulders.
“So, I put in a lot of hours at work and started climbing the ladder.”
“What did you do exactly? I don’t know what a forensic accountant does.” Ashley looked at Jasmine, then poured another round.
“When I left, I was in charge of a team of five. What we did, basically, was go into a business and examine the books, the flow of business, and analyze their net worth. We could recreate the money’s movement. We were hired for lawsuits, purchases, or internal investigations.”
“It could get intense and you were gone for months.” Jasmine said.
“I think the longest stint was about a year in Knoxville. I liked the job, but when I got Miller, I stopped traveling so much.” The job could be stressful. She was always on the clock, trying to work quickly, but thoroughly.