I walked over and pulled her behind me, positioning myself between her and Roger. His expression shifted to wariness.
"Apologize to my friend."
Roger stared at me like I'd lost my mind.
"Roger." I'd expected this moment to shatter me—to feel my heart being crushed until I couldn't breathe. But watching someone else burn with fury on my behalf, watching someone fight for me... it cleared my head instead. "Apologize to my friend."
"You've gone insane!"
The words barely left his mouth.
I swung my purse and cracked it across his skull. Then I seized the girl by her hair and slammed her face into the corner of the table.
"Roger Simmons."
My voice was ice.
"I won't let this go."
Then I turned, took my coworker's arm, and walked out of the restaurant.
She'd only been at the company six months. I'd trained her myself, mentored her from day one.
Now she sat in my passenger seat, face creased with worry. But I just stared at my phone, perfectly calm, as Roger's messages flooded in:
[Lorraine! You went way too far today!]
[Do you have any idea—someone filmed your little scene at the restaurant and posted it online! If this spreads, how is Judy supposed to show her face?!]