Car Crash

by T Gephart

  It was a compromise because I wasn’t pleased with the idea of leaving him either when morning eventually came.

  He grinned, bringing me in closer. “I like the way you’re thinking.”

  I had a hunch he would, my lips inching their way toward his when my phone went off spoiling the moment. “I should get that, just in case it’s anything important.”

  He pouted playfully and released his grip, allowing me to be able to shuffle out of bed. “I’m heading to the bathroom, tell whoever is on the phone you’re busy.” He shot me a smirk as he headed out the door, my hand reaching my phone in the living room just before it hit my voice mail.

  Shit.

  It was Cameron.

  “Cameron,” I answered in a rush, panic flooding me thinking something must be wrong. “Is everything okay? Lani?”

  “Hey, Kitty, ummm, no she’s fine. Look, sorry to call you so late, but I know I promised you the report tomorrow so I’ve been doing some extra work from home.”

  My butt lowered to the chair wondering if “doing it from home” meant Lani had found out and he was giving me a heads up that he hadn’t been as confidential as he’d promised. “Is there something wrong?” I asked, not wanting to outright accuse him.

  “Well, yes and no. Look, I ran the numbers three times and you’re right, there is a variance. And not a small one either. It was buried pretty deep so it’s not immediately obvious.”

  I listened as Dallas joined me in the living room, his eyes on me and the phone at my ear. I mouthed, “work,” and he nodded slowly, but he didn’t leave, taking a seat beside me.

  “Okay, so do you know where the variance originated? Is it an accounting error?” I asked, not sure why he couldn’t have put it in his report and told me tomorrow.

  “Yeah, I do.” There was a rustle on the line like he was moving the phone. “I’ve checked it multiple times just to be sure.”

  It was clear he was nervous which didn’t make sense. “Cameron, whatever it is, I’m sure it’s fine.” I tried to reason, wondering what the hell it could be.

  “Kitty, it’s O’Shea.”

  Shit.

  Of all the people it had to be.

  “Does Lani know what you found?”

  “Kitty, of course not. She thinks I’m freelancing for NYU. Which, I am but obviously not tonight. Anyway, that’s not important. There’s some other stuff too. Do you know a Matthew Crisp and JD Easton?”

  My body tensed at the mention of Justin’s name. “Matthew is one of the senior executives on my floor.” I kept my eyes glued forward convinced my voice would give something away. “And Mr. Easton is an attorney.”

  “Yeah, well either O’Shea is the fall guy for these two, or he’s in on it. Either way, I need to see you first thing tomorrow.”

  O’Shea and Crisp being involved was terrible. Other than professionally, I didn’t know Matthew all that well, but I’d been to O’Shea’s house on more than one occasion. Not to mention he was Lani’s boss. But add in Justin, and I felt sick. He seemed like such a nice guy, cocky as hell, but not someone I’d suspect as being shady.

  Although, he’d been attracted to me so that should have been the first clue.

  “Sure, do you want me to come to you or would it be easier to meet somewhere else?”

  “You think you can get me an appointment with Garrett? It’s probably easier if I go through it with the both of you at the same time, especially since this screw up will probably affect him.”

  He was right about that, and while I had a long leash, when it came to work there were a few things that were above my pay grade. Possible embezzlement was one of those things. “Yeah, I can do that.”

  “Okay, well let me know what time is good and I’ll see you tomorrow. And, Kitty, I’m not sure how this is going to affect Lani, but there is no way she was involved. I know you have some pull with your boss, so if you can, make sure she’s okay.”

  “Of course,” I responded, the request not needed. “You know I will do everything I can.”

  We said our goodbyes and ended the call, the knot tightening in the pit of my stomach.

  Dallas asked, wrapping his arms around me, “Who was that?”

  There was no accusation in his tone but I could tell he was curious. After all it was late, the call ruining the awesome mood I’d been in minutes ago.

  “It was Cameron, Lani’s boyfriend. He was doing some work for me.” I turned to face him. “And he didn’t have good news.”

  I wasn’t sure how much to tell him especially when I didn’t know very much myself, but I needed to tell someone.

  “Lani’s boss, and maybe some other people are involved. I don’t know, Dallas. It’s just really not good.” My head dropped to my hands, Cameron’s words playing out in my head.

  “Is Lani involved, is that why you’re so upset?” he asked, lifting my chin. “Babe, talk to me.”

  I know I hadn’t done anything wrong when I went out with Justin. I had no idea who he was and what he was involved in, and at the time, I was unsure on where I stood with Dallas. But in my gut it had felt wrong, and I should have listened to my instinct. But the last thing I wanted to do—when Dallas and I had finally gotten our shit together—was to start that relationship with half-truths.

  “Remember the guy from work, who asked me out?”

  I felt his body stiffen beside me, his jaw tightening. “Yeah, I remember.”

  “He’s involved. How exactly, I don’t know but Cameron mentioned he’s been implicated somehow.” I wanted that to be the end, to give him enough so I wouldn’t feel guilty but I knew that wasn’t the end.

  “I’m supposed to be seeing him tomorrow, we made plans for a date. I didn’t think you . . .” I stopped, refusing to blame someone else for my actions. “He seemed like a nice guy so I agreed.”

  When Dallas had arrived, everything had happened so quickly. Who cared about plans I’d made earlier in the day, my mind was too preoccupied with Dallas and what he needed to tell me. Of course once I knew what that was, I was even less concerned, so happy to finally be able to tell him how I felt too.

  But now . . . well, obviously it wasn’t a date I was going to keep, but I needed to tell him all the same.

  “Kitty, the idea of you being with another man makes me insane.” The words were as clenched as his teeth, but he didn’t yell. His lips moved to mine and kissed them—either to reassure me or him—before he continued. “Like honestly, I want to know who the fuck he is, and then feed his own dick to him. And yeah, I know that’s irrational, but it doesn’t change the fact.”

  I knew it was wrong, but I liked he’d been jealous. The idea of him wanting to beat up someone else just because they’d been with me was hotter than it should have been. But I wanted to put him out of his misery too, tell him that nothing even remotely romantic had gone on.

  “Dallas, I didn’t sleep with him. I didn’t even kiss him.” I smiled as he grinned back.

  “Not going to pretend that doesn’t make me motherfucking ecstatic, even though you had every right to do whatever you wanted. I was the dumb shit who sent you into his arms in the first place, and there will be a cold day in hell before I ever make that mistake again.”

  “Dallas.”

  “Babe, let me finish.” He held up his hand, brushing his thumb against my lips. “There’s been no one but you. I went out a couple of times looking for someone because I was a dumbass, but I never even got close. I wasn’t interested. I need you to know that it went both ways, Kitty. I need you to know there was no one else, so there isn’t any doubt. I may not have been with you, but you sure as shit were with me.”

  Hearing those words made me want to cry; he was incredibly sweet. And like him, I’d been glad there’d been no one else. I’d tried to push it out of my mind, pretending that nothing mattered except what happened in the future, but I would have been faking it. So knowing that he didn’t, and that he hadn’t wanted to, was the best gift ever. And it was about t
he only good thing that had come out of Cameron’s phone call.

  “So unless you tell me you’re still keeping the date with the prick, I don’t want to hear any more about him.”

  “Yeah, I’d say the chances of me seeing him again are almost zero.” I screwed up my nose, not wanting to see or hear from Justin again.

  He stood, holding out his hand and waiting for me to join him on his feet. “Then let me take you to bed, sweetheart. I’ve got lost time to make up for.”

  It would figure that one of the best mornings of my life would also be one of the worst. I’d woken up with Dallas still in my bed, his body wrapped around mine. We made love slowly, showered together and then ate breakfast. We almost didn’t make it out the door, the temptation too great as we had sex up against the wall.

  But as much as I wanted to live in the new bubble we’d created, there was a reality that needed to be dealt with.

  I’d told Cameron to come in at ten, clearing most of Garrett’s schedule for the day and giving me enough time to explain to him we had some serious issues to discuss. I didn’t bother calling Justin, texting him a lame message that something had come up and I wouldn’t be able to make it. I didn’t bother explaining that I’d never be able to make it, not really concerned about him or the date.

  He’d responded of course, telling me that he would keep the date open just in case, but I was positive he’d soon find out it was never going to happen.

  “Hey, Kitty.” Cameron nodded, taking a seat in Garrett’s office as I showed him in. “Your boss ready?”

  “I’m right here.” Garrett walked in, straightening his tie and holding out his hand.

  Hands were shaken, introductions made and seats were retaken as we got down to business. And my heart pounded nervously the whole entire time.

  “So money was embezzled?” Garrett looked over the reports, trying to make sense of it.

  Cameron shook his head. “No, that’s where it’s tricky. The money wasn’t actually taken, it was moved. See this account.” He pointed to a column that looked like all the others in a sea of numbers. “The money has been taken out of your budget and parked there. There have been some payments made from that account by Matthew Crisp to JD Easton—which from what Kitty tells me is an attorney—but no money has been stolen.”

  “Which means no crime has been committed. Why would someone move around money and park it elsewhere? And what do Crisp and the lawyer have to do with it? I though you said it was O’Shea?” Garrett leaned back in his chair as he waited for Cameron to explain. I didn’t blame him for being confused; I wasn’t following either.

  “O’Shea moved the cash, he authorized the transactions to the holding account. But Mr. Crisp paid Mr. Easton, which other than O’Shea’s deposits, are the only activity on those accounts.”

  It didn’t make sense.

  Why would someone hide money within a corporation?

  I flicked through the reports, not that I expected to decipher anything from them. “I’d understand if they took the money and dumped it into an offshore account, or just stole it outright. But parking it in plain sight seemed ridiculous. What were they going to do, see if no one noticed and then steal it? And why use the money to pay a lawyer? What was Justin’s involvement?”

  “Who’s Justin?” Garrett asked, looking at me curiously.

  Shit.

  Considering my track record of men and shady pasts, I figured it was just easier to come clean. Besides, I hadn’t done anything wrong. We’d seen each other outside of work and we never spoke business. So technically I didn’t break any rules. Not that it made me feel any better, hating there was a connection at all.

  “Justin Easton, the lawyer.” I bit my lip. “We saw each other socially one time.”

  “You dated him?” Cameron asked, looking surprised. “Why didn’t you tell me last night when I brought up his name?”

  “Because my relationship with him isn’t relevant, and there isn’t much to tell. I ran into him at work twice, the second time he asked me out. He’d assured me his business with the company was done so I didn’t think there’d be a conflict.” I turned to Garrett to assure him. “It was just drinks at a bar, it wasn’t really a date.”

  “You think he was targeting you?” Garrett asked, which honestly never occurred to me.

  I shook my head, convinced it was just a coincidence. Justin had known nothing about me, he barely even knew my name. “No, no I don’t think so.”

  “Well, let’s not rule it out.” Garrett snapped his fingers. “In any case, while a crime might not have been committed, it stinks of impropriety. I want a meeting with in-house legal counsel, and then we’ll go from there.”

  Cameron handed over all his findings and promised to be available if anyone needed anything else. And after thanking him for a job well done, Garrett got on the phone and started talking to one of our attorneys.

  “I’ll walk you out.” I motioned to the door, Cameron following me out of Garrett’s office.

  We headed into my office and I closed the door. Other than money playing hide-and-go-seek, we didn’t know why. “Thanks, Cameron, I’ll get your check. I really appreciate what you’ve done for us. I know it couldn’t have been easy keeping it from Lani.”

  He rubbed the back of his neck clearly uncomfortable with the situation. “I just want her to be okay. Her boss is a douchebag, but this is the best job she’s ever had. I’d hate for something to happen to her.”

  “I promise you it won’t.” I reached out and touched his arm to reassure him. “If O’Shea is fired or something like that, I’ll get Garrett to reassign her. Maybe we can finally work on the same floor?”

  I was just about to go write Cameron his check when my door swung open. Standing in the door way was Lani, looking at me with my hand on Cameron’s arm.

  “What the hell?” She looked to her boyfriend and then to me. “You guys are sneaking around behind my back?”

  I snatched my hand back, taking a step toward her. “No, Lani, that isn’t what’s going on. I would never do that.”

  “Never what, Kitty? Screw someone else’s man? No, you’d never do that,” she spat out at me, clearly not willing to listen to reason.

  Cameron tried, reaching out for her as she took a step back. “Baby, listen. I’m just here for work. Nothing else.”

  Lani’s nostril’s flared, her eyes glassy as they narrowed. “Work? Please, I’m not an idiot. I checked your phone and I saw your late night call to her last night. You expect me to believe you were doing business?”

  “Lani, it was. I swear to you.” He tried in vain, looking at me for help. “Kitty hired me to go over some numbers, that’s all. There’s no way I’d cheat on you, especially not with Kitty.”

  WOW.

  It was like a slap to my face, my name almost sneered like it was trash. Like I was trash. And while I believed he wouldn’t cheat on Lani, the added insulting blow was unnecessary.

  “Don’t lie.” Her head shook before turning to me. “You can have any man you want, why did you have to take mine.” Her tears began to fall. “What they say about you is right, you’re nothing but a whore.”

  My chest hurt, the air knocked out of me as I watched a person who I thought was a friend think I was capable of sleeping with her boyfriend.

  I’d made mistakes.

  And yeah, when it came to men, I usually screwed up. But I never would intentionally hurt someone, not someone I thought was my friend.

  I wanted to scream at her, to tell her that I wasn’t and would never be a whore. That despite me enjoying sex and being open about it, I still had feelings like everyone else.

  But I closed my mouth, not willing to show my vulnerability when she clearly didn’t care. “Why are you here?” I managed to croak out, not allowing myself to cry.

  “O’Shea told me he saw Cameron coming up here, considering the phone call last night, it made me suspicious. I never thought you’d be stupid enough to get caught red hande
d. But I guess I was wrong.”

  Of course O’Shea had told her, it was like the man lived to start trouble. He probably didn’t even suspect that Cameron had come because of the shady shit he’d been up to with his buddies. No, he was too cocky for that. Instead it had to be me, having sex with one of my friends boyfriends on the company time.

  “You need to both leave.” I pointed to the door, not willing to waste my time or energy explaining myself.

  What was the point? She’d walked in, seen a conversation completely out of context and immediately thought the worst. We hadn’t been kissing—we were barely even touching—but of course the only explanation could be that we were having an affair. That she made that leap so fast meant she’d always had such little faith in me.

  When they didn’t move, I squared my shoulders, cleared my throat and slammed my hands down on my desk. “Get out of my office. NOW.”

  Lani looked at me stunned, like she couldn’t believe I’d had the nerve, while Cameron didn’t seem like he knew what to do either. He worked it out though, hooking Lani around the arm and edging her out of my office.

  I followed them to the door, slamming it in their face as I breathed a sigh of relief. I didn’t care what he told her—it was no longer my problem—but it didn’t make what she said hurt any less.

  I didn’t care that she’d called me a whore, I cared that she’d believed it.

  Alone, and no longer needing to be strong, I walked back to my chair and crumbled.

  All I wanted to do was go home, but that wasn’t an option. I had no idea what Garrett and legal were going to do, or what it all meant for the company. Not that I cared about any of that at that moment.

  I reached for the phone, just about to call Dallas when there was a gentle knock at my door.

  Great, because dealing with more people was exactly what I needed.

  I wiped the corners of my eyes, mopping up any tears that were threatening to fall and cleared my throat. “Come in.”

  It was Garrett, his large frame filling the now open space. “Kitty, everything okay in here? I thought I heard screaming.”