Breathe into Me by Sara Fawkes Page A

attack.”
    “I can see that.”
    I looked up to see the store manager staring down at me, her lip curled with disdain. Her frosty gaze moved over to Macon, then Clare, and back to Rob. “Is she better now?”
    By now, air was flowing once more. I still wasn’t one hundred percent, but I nodded and answered anyway. “Yes, ma’am,” I croaked, my voice all but gone.
    “Very well. Ms. St. James, if you would follow me.”
    My gut shriveled into a hard knot. I couldn’t even look at the woman as I straightened up, knowing exactly what was about to happen. My gaze fell on Macon, who’d melted into the background to watch the proceedings. There was a savage glint in his eyes as he watched everyone’s reactions. A small wrinkle at the corner of his mouth told me he was holding back a smile.
    Oh, God
. The whole ordeal
had
been a cruel joke, and I was stuck on the butt end of it.
    Nearby me, I heard Clare speak up. “Mrs. Holloway, it wasn’t her fault … ”
    “Ms. Bishop,” our manager said in tones that brooked no argument, “please return to your customers.”
    I couldn’t bear to look at Clare or anyone else in that storefront. As I walked past the cash register I heard someone ask a question in a low voice, then Dolly answered back in a loud whisper. “Bless her heart, she had an abortion.”
    “No, I didn’t,” I snapped as I walked by, but it was too late. By the time I was out of the manager’s office, the whole store would know. The truth didn’t matter; this gossip was too juicy to bother with the details.
    I followed the large woman through the aisles and into the manager’s offices in the back of the building. It wasn’t large, but there was enough room for a desk and chairs. Mrs. Holloway closed the door behind me. “Do you know why I’ve asked you in here?”
    Because you’ve never liked me?
Whatever my grandmother had said in Glenda Holloway’s ear had poisoned the store manager against me since the day I was hired. I’d worked hard, been on time nearly every day, but nothing I could do ever seemed enough.
    “You’ve already been warned once about allowing personal problems to affect work performance,” she continued, not bothering to wait for my answer. She sat down and pulled out a drawer. “Please sit down, Ms. St. James.”
    I sat, too tired to argue. So Rob had told her about Macon’s previous visit.
    “I don’t appreciate having a liar among my workforce,” she continued, thumbing through her files until she pulled mine out. “You’ve made a habit of falsifying your timecard, clocking in either too early or too late.”
    I listened mutely as she ticked off a myriad of offenses that were either overblown or blatant lies. I just stared blankly at her, not giving her a chance to see how my heart was breaking. She was thorough, I had to give her that. She showed me every instance I’d gone outside the lines, proving that what was coming was inevitable and all my doing. Rob’s warning was a single-line statement, but it was also included in her laundry list.
    “I took a chance hiring you, Lacey, because your grandmother was a friend. Unfortunately, based on your performance, I’m afraid I’m going to have to terminate your employment. You will be escorted to your locker to make sure you only take what is yours and not what is company property.”
    Behind the desk, my hands clenched into fists but I didn’t allow any emotion to show on my face. I was going to be escorted out of the building as if I had stolen something, or wasn’t trusted enough to be left unguarded. As much as I wanted to rant and rave about how unfair this was, there was nothing I could do. Such a reaction would only validate Glenda Holloway’s opinion of me, and I had enough pride not to let the bitch win.
    She studied me, as if eager for my reaction. Seconds ticked by before she frowned. “Well? Do you have anything to say for yourself?”
    When I didn’t give her one, she seemed annoyed by my