by Nina Lindsey
He barked out a laugh. “Never expected him to end up with a software engineer, either. Joanna seems to think you two work well together, whatever that means.”
Gratitude toward Joanna filled her. “Your wife is right.”
“You’re staying in the Bay Area, huh?” He swallowed another gulp of liquor.
Deflecting a pang of sorrow, Rory nodded.
“Well, it’s not up to me to figure out the logistics.” Edward set his hand on the table as if he were calling a meeting to order. “I wanted to talk to you about your work.”
Her stomach tightened. “At Digicore or overall?”
“I know about your career and expertise.” Edward took a bite of steak and leaned back in his chair. “You applied for a position at Intellix a few years ago.”
She smiled faintly. “I didn’t get the job.”
“Sounds like that might have been our mistake. We still have your resume on file.” He sliced off another piece of steak. “You’ve garnered more experience since then, and I want you to know we now have an open role at Intellix for which you would be well suited, should you ever decide to branch out.”
Shock bolted through her. “You’re offering me a job?”
“I’m telling you there’s an open role at Intellix for which you would be well suited,” Edward corrected, eyeing her from underneath his thick eyebrows. “Systems Development software engineer. You’d be part of a team under Nathan’s management.”
Rory couldn’t speak. The sudden, striking beauty of that image crashed right up against the hard wall of reality.
“I’m not trying to poach you away from Digicore.” Edward set his fork down and reached for his drink. “If you’re intent on staying there, I respect that. Just be aware you have options.”
“I…I don’t know what to say.”
“In answer to the question you don’t want to ask, yes. I’m making this offer because I know you through Grant.” He swirled the liquor around in the glass. “However, your relationship with him only brought you to my attention. On an objective level, I’d have hired you based on your credentials and experience alone. I would never make a business or a hiring decision based on sentiment.”
Rory put down her fork and knife. Her chest was tight. Edward was giving her an out. All she had to do was turn in her notice, and she could start work at Intellix. The company was known for being inclusive and hiring strong, smart women—several of whom now held top-level positions. Edward hadn’t always treated his son right, but Rory didn’t doubt he ran a tight ship at his company. Harassment of any kind would never be tolerated or swept under the rug at Intellix.
This was also no coincidence.
“Don’t make a decision yet,” Edward said. “Think about it. Pay is either commensurate with or more than what you’re making at Digicore. Full benefits, vacation, the works. We can be flexible with a start date, but Nathan is starting to work on ways to scale AI learning models and increase computational power. Wouldn’t be a bad idea for you to get in on the ground floor.”
“I’m…” Her hand shaking, she picked up her water glass and took a sip. “I appreciate the offer very much. Thank you.”
“Let me know.” Edward patted his beard with his napkin. “If you want to leave or stay.”
Why would you want to stay?
Grant’s question ricocheted through her.
Later that evening, she didn’t wait around for his usual call. Instead, she left a message at Digicore that she wouldn’t be in the following day. Then she grabbed her keys and drove to Bliss Cove.
“He offered you a job?” Grant shook his head. He hadn’t heard that right. His father wanted to hire Rory? On an intellectual level, it made perfect sense—who wouldn’t want to hire her?—but on every other level, it made no sense.
“You didn’t know.” Her voice was flat. She was standing by the fireplace in his living room, tension lacing her shoulders.
“No, I didn’t fucking know. When did this happen?”
“This afternoon. It’s a software engineer job with a team in Nathan’s division.” She folded her arms tightly over her chest. “I asked you not to tell him. Not to tell anyone or to try and fix this for me.”
Grant stared at her in disbelief. “Rory, I didn’t ask my father to hire you.”
“Then this is one hell of a strange coincidence.” She lowered her arms, her hands fisting. “Maybe we’d better call Destiny and find out if Mars is in retrograde or whatever because clearly something is totally out of whack.”
“You told me not to tell anyone.” His jaw tightened. “I wanted to tell everyone—the cops, The New York Times, the managers, the senior execs, the CEO, and, yeah, even my father. But I didn’t because you asked me not to. Do you think I’m lying?”
“Why would he suddenly offer to hire me now, Grant?” Rory flung her arms out to her sides, her face flushing with anger. “Right after those fuckwads in my office thought it would be funny to mess with me? I haven’t gone to HR and certainly none of my coworkers have access to anyone close to your father’s caliber, so it’s not as if he’d have heard any random gossip. I don’t even think any of the senior managers at Digicore know or care what’s going on, and if they did, they sure as hell would make sure Edward Taylor didn’t hear about it. So how else could the founder and CEO of the Intellix Corporation have learned that low-level Rory Prescott is getting harassed and bullied?”
Grant dragged his hands over his face. There was no question his father knew stuff, owing to his standard practice of working alongside everyone from Intellix executives to programmers.
Had Edward been keeping an eye on Rory? Spying on her? Or had he just made a few inquiries and found out the sordid truth?
Or was it Nathan? No. His brother would have talked to him before asking their father to hire Rory.
“Wait.” He turned to face her. “My mother.”
“She doesn’t know, Grant.” Rory pressed her hands to her temples. “I had lunch with her the day I found the scoresheet. I didn’t tell her anything about it.”
Grant strode into the bedroom and grabbed his duffel. He tossed a few clothes into it and picked up his keys. “Come on.”
“Where are we going?”
“To talk to my parents.”
“I just drove down here.”
“I’m driving us back.”
Chapter 24
Grant gripped the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles were white the entire drive to San Francisco. He punched in the code at the security gate and drove toward the circular driveway in front of the spot-lit mansion. Rory had barely said a word on the drive back up, but he sensed her withdrawing as if she were retreating into a shell.
She was reaching her breaking point. There was nothing more he wanted to do than pull her into his arms and let her retreat into him. He wanted to destroy everyone who had ever hurt her, and he wanted to build a world where she could do everything she wanted and be everything she was.
“Do they know we’re here?” Rory closed the car door, sweeping her gaze over the façade of the house.
“No. The element of surprise is the best approach sometimes. That’s partly how I got my mother to admit that she was involved in the set-up with Vivian.”
He took her arm as they climbed the porch steps and rang the doorbell. The massive door opened to reveal a sour-looking maid. “May I help you?”
“Grant Taylor and Rory Prescott.”
Her eyes widened slightly. “Please come in, Mr. Taylor. Can I take your—”
“We’re fine.” Pressing his hand to Rory’s lower back, he urged her into the plush, antique-filled living room. “Please tell my parents we’re here.”
“Of course, sir.”
She hurried off. Grant took Rory’s jacket and draped it along with his over the back of the sofa. He went to the sidebar and splashed whiskey into two glasses. After handing her one, he took a long swallow. The alcohol was a welcome burn through his cold veins.
&
nbsp; “Grant?” Joanna hurried down the sweeping staircase in a bathrobe and slippers, her eyes wide. “What on earth are you doing here? Is everything all right?”
“Everything’s fine, Mom. But we need to talk to you and Dad.”
“Your father is in his study.” She closed her eyes and pressed a hand to her chest. “I almost had a heart attack when Wilma said you were here. What time is it?”
“Close to midnight.” Grant set his glass down. “I’ll get Dad.”
“No, no. I’ll get him.” Joanna waved him to sit down and hurried over to embrace Rory. “Lovely to see you again, dear, but my goodness. Text or call in advance next time, would you? I’d at least have a chance to tell Wilma to prepare refreshments.”
She crossed the marble foyer to a heavy, closed door and entered after a swift knock. A moment later, she emerged with a rumpled Edward, who looked as if he’d been sleeping.
“What are you doing here?” With a scowl, he pulled his glasses from his breast pocket and set them on his nose. “What’s wrong?”
“They need to talk to us.” Joana nudged her husband in the side, her eyes suddenly brightening. “It must be very important if you need to talk to us so urgently in the middle of the night. Edward, pour us a drink.”
With a mumble of irritation, he shuffled to the sidebar to mix a couple of drinks. Joanna perched on the edge of a chair, her eyes slanting surreptitiously to Rory’s left hand.
“So.” She gave a happy little shrug. “What do you need to talk to us about?”
“Did you know that Dad was planning to offer Rory a job at Intellix?” Grant asked.
His mother blinked. Guilt flashed in her eyes for less than a second before she gave him a wide, innocent smile. “Well, isn’t that wonderful? Edward, what a marvelous idea. Rory is a perfect fit for Intellix.”
Grant rubbed the back of his neck. “You didn’t answer the question, Mom.”
“Your father has always trusted me with the details of the business, Grant.” She clasped her hands on her lap and pursed her lips. “Since Rory is your girlfriend, of course I knew that he was hoping to recruit her. Nathan’s division is doing more and more work with cloud platforms and AI, and I know that’s one of Rory’s interests. It’s an excellent idea.”
Grant shifted his gaze to his father. Edward handed Joanna a drink and took a gulp from his own glass.
“When and where did you get the idea, Dad?”
“Ideas come out of everywhere, don’t they?” Joanna lifted her hands and pantomimed plucking ideas from the air. “I wouldn’t be surprised if your father thought of hiring Rory when we first met her at the wedding. He’s no fool, you know. He can spot talent and dedication a mile away.”
“In other words…” Edward arched an eyebrow at his wife. “Your mother suggested it.”
“Why did you do that, Joanna?” Rory gripped her hands together, looking as if she were sensing the approach of a terrible storm. “I mean, I appreciate it, of course, but I don’t understand why now, of all times.”
“Well, why not now?” Joanna furrowed her brow. “Obviously, it wouldn’t have been prudent to have offered you a job when we didn’t know if your and Grant’s relationship would survive your move, but since you two seem committed to each other, I—”
“Mom.” Grant curled his hands into fists. “If you’re trying to hook Rory into the company because you think she can get me to move back to the Bay Area, then she and I are walking out of here and not coming back. I will not stand for you manipulating her the way you did me.”
“Don’t you dare accuse your mother of being manipulative,” Edward snapped. “All she has ever wanted is for you to be loyal to this family the way your brother is.”
“Right, and to do that, she has to constantly—” Grant stopped and shook his head, forcing down old latent anger. “This is about Rory. What’s going on, Mom?”
“Do you know what happened at Digicore?” Rory leaned forward, her eyes dark. “How?”
Joanna pressed her lips together. She picked up her glass and walked to the sidebar. “I would like you both to know that I had no manipulative or nefarious intentions whatsoever. I was simply concerned. As it turned out, I had good reason to be.”
His expression darkening, Edward poured her a fresh drink.
“What did you do?” Rory rubbed her hands on her thighs. “How did you find out?”
“That day I came to pick you up for lunch.” Joanna took the glass from her husband and turned to face Rory. “You looked as if you were about to be sick. You looked as if you were sick.”
Grant’s heart started beating too fast. That must have been the day Rory found the fucking scoresheet. It made him crazy to think of how horrified and shocked she must have been…and that he hadn’t been there for her. She’d been alone.
“You had this crumpled piece of paper in your hands, and you kept twisting it around and wadding it up…it was very strange to see you like that, Rory.” Joanna shook her head as Edward put his hand on her shoulder. “It wasn’t like you at all, and the only thing I could think of was that something had happened with Grant. But, of course, I didn’t want to pry, so off we went to lunch. You’d put the crumpled paper in the side pocket of your handbag.”
She shifted her gaze to the opposite wall and took a sip of her drink. “I noticed it when you went to use the ladies’ room.”
“Mom.” Grant grated the word out past the anger collecting in his throat. “You did not take that paper out of Rory’s bag.”
“Grant, I was terribly worried!” Joanna lifted her hand as if that explained everything. “I just wanted to take a quick peek. I thought maybe it had something to do with you, and when I saw what it was… Well, it was quite clear that someone was being very cruel at Rory’s expense, and that was the reason she was so upset.”
Rory lowered her head, her breath escaping in a hard rush. Every muscle in Grant’s body locked in defense of her. He forced himself not to cross the room, or he’d grab her hand and walk out the door without looking back. Maybe he still would.
“That was a complete violation of her privacy and her trust in you.” He turned to his mother, his anger boiling over. “You had no right to do that. None! I don’t care what you were worried about or why you think you can justify it. This is the kind of shit I can’t fucking stand, when you—”
“Stop.” Edward held up a hand. His voice boomed, but he sounded loud rather than angry. “I will agree that your mother overstepped her bounds, but I won’t have you shouting at her.”
“Overstepped her bounds?” Grant stared at his father. “She took Rory’s property because she has to be in the fucking center of everything and interfere every chance she gets.”
“Grant, please.” Rory stood swiftly and crossed to him, putting her hand on his lower back. Though her expression was calm, he could feel her shaking. “I don’t want to be the reason you’re fighting again.”
“Rory, I am so sorry.” Joanna dabbed at her eyes with a cocktail napkin. “I really didn’t mean to snoop. Well, I did, obviously, so I suppose in some way I did mean to, but it wasn’t premeditated. I just saw a corner of the paper sticking out of your bag and impulsively wanted to see what it was.”
“Why didn’t you ask me?”
“I did ask you when I was picking you up. You said it was nothing when it was clearly something.” Joanna crumpled the napkin in her hand. “Then I couldn’t upset you further by telling you I’d seen that horrible drawing. So, later that day, I made some calls and did a bit of investigating.”
“Christ.” Grant sank into a chair, wishing he could disbelieve what he was hearing. Unfortunately, mucking around in other people’s lives was one of the things his mother did best.
“Your mother knows several women whose husbands work at Digicore.” Edward swirled the liquor around in his glass. “They were all too eager to gossip about what was going on in The Hive, as they call it. Though we didn’t know the details, it wasn’t difficult to
piece together the situation. Rory had become the target of inter-office bullying and harassment, and neither HR nor management appeared to be interested in doing anything about it.”
“You may think I’m just an extravagant housewife who hosts dinner parties and spends time at my women’s club.” Joanna lifted her chin, eyeing Grant with a sudden hard glint in her expression. “But since the day your father founded Intellix, I’ve made it my mission to be educated about technology. I wanted to be able to talk to anyone, from programmers to vice-presidents, about software development, research, virtual reality, even game design. You’d better believe I know the business profiles of all the top players in the industry and all the rumors surrounding them.”
She spread her hands out. “When I discovered that Rory was in a bad situation, I also guessed that she would have a difficult time extracting herself from it without ruining her other job prospects and possibly even her career. I’ve heard plenty of revolting stories about the way some companies treat women, and I couldn’t stand the idea of Rory being one of them. So, I approached your father.”
And, of course, Edward Taylor would do whatever his wife asked. Grant shook his head, his insides knotted.
“The situation instigated the job offer.” Edward studied Rory, a deep crease between his eyebrows. “But I wouldn’t have made the offer if I didn’t know you’d be a valuable asset to the company.”
“I appreciate that,” Rory said. “But surely you can see how it looks, given my relationship with Grant and with both of you. Even with Nathan. This is not a normal hiring practice.”
“Why should it be?” Joanna shrugged. “People do favors for others all the time. It was easy enough for Edward and Nathan to create a role that would suit you.”