He's So Bad

by Z. L. Arkadie

  “Ralph Kennedy revered the antiquity of San Francisco,” he says and chuckles.

  I’ve noticed that his chuckles linger until Grace or I start speaking.

  “I’m more of a modern man,” I say. “As a matter of fact, I’ve been thinking about making Kennedy Creative a contemporary modern firm.”

  Grace chastises me with a look.

  Gerald Bush chuckles. “Well, contrary to the technical gold rush, Mr. Tango, San Francisco remains a city given to nostalgia.”

  Grace opens her mouth to speak.

  “Call me Robert,” I say, cutting her off. “So, Gerald”—I lean in close—“do you live in the district you represent—full-time?”

  “Oh yes!” He laughs.

  “Is that so? I’m sure you have more than one house in the city, don’t you?” I tilt my head, a gesture that warns him to not lie to me.

  “Oh yes, I invest in the right properties.” He chuckles again.

  I snort cynically. “Got you.”

  Grace’s nimble fingers dig into my shoulder. “Anyway, we’re looking forward to attending the Fall Ball this year. We’ll purchase the same number of seats as usual.” She looks at me for consensus.

  I take too long to respond, and her expression transforms into a grimace.

  “Well, we’ll hold the spots for you,” Gerald says. He extends his hand for a final handshake.

  I oblige him. “Nice meeting you.”

  “The pleasure was mine.” There’s the laugh again.

  As soon as he’s a safe distance away, Grace tugs on my arm. “What in the hell was that?”

  I curl my arm around her waist and put my mouth to her ear. “Listen, I know what’s important to that fucker, and it’s not nostalgia or his Fall Ball. If I need that parasite, then I’ll buy him.”

  Grace’s mouth drops open in shock.

  “Listen, I appreciate what you came here to do. I want you to keep doing it, but I’ve allocated over a billion dollars of capital to this company. You can buy his ten-thousand-dollars-a-plate meals and kiss his ass, but that gives him the potential to say no whenever he fucking feels like it.”

  Grace grunts as if she wants to negate everything I just said but then thinks better of it.

  I sweep the scope of the floor with my hand. “I do appreciate the tour, but this shit only gets you so far.”

  “Grace?” a man says.

  Grace and I turn to look behind us. A guy about my age stands there in a suit.

  Grace flinches as if she’s surprised to see him. “Tyler? What are you doing here?”

  Tyler watches me as though if he looks hard enough, he’ll find all the answers he seeks. “The same thing you’re doing here.”

  Grace and Tyler hug each other loosely. I’m not an intuitive man, but even I can sense the tension between them.

  He extends his hand to me. “You must be the new Ralph of Kennedy Creative.”

  I shake his hand. “Robert Tango.”

  “I know. Nice to meet you. Tyler Penso.”

  I grimace. The name sounds familiar. “You were a principal architect for Kennedy Creative?”

  He throws up his hands. “You caught me.”

  “Right…” I glance at Grace.

  She looks as if she swallowed a canary.

  “You did good work,” I say.

  “You looked through my projects folder?”

  “I’m thorough.” I’m like a shark that smells blood. “I’ve been meaning to call you.”

  He’s obviously trying to fight the urge to smile. “Is that so?”

  “You’re a great talent. I’m sure Ralph had to let you go because he couldn’t afford you but—”

  “That’s not why I was let go,” he says, glaring at Grace.

  Grace starts to say something, but her voice cracks. She clears her throat and tries again. “I’m glad you landed back on your feet.”

  “Right. How’s Carter?” His tone is bitter.

  Curiosity shoots through me like bolts of lightning. Grace glances nervously at me. She’s fucking hiding something.

  “Carter’s doing fine,” I say.

  He and I lock eyes, and it’s as if I’m looking through a mirror that can see past the image. He’s in love with Carter, and I’m intrigued by her. I think about reneging on my plan to ask him back, but I’m not the sort of man who shuns a challenge.

  “Carter’s now one of our principal architects,” I say.

  “Oh.” He looks at Grace. “I take it you didn’t have anything to do with her promotion.”

  Grace glares at him. Now I see what’s going on. Grace is definitely the one who’s been holding Carter back. She’s jealous. If I think ill of her for it, that would be like me calling the tea kettle black.

  “A firm is only as good as its talent,” I say, choosing not to rub salt over Grace’s wound. “I was hoping to convince you to return to Kennedy Creative.”

  He grunts, sounding intrigued. “Then I’ll be expecting that call.”

  “Definitely.”

  Tyler and I shake hands again.

  “Grace,” he says, his tone cold.

  Grace’s lips are clenched tightly as she nods.

  “No,” she says once he’s gone.

  “No what?” I ask.

  “He can’t come back.”

  “That’s not your call. And what in the hell is going on between the two of you?”

  She shakes her head. “We’ll discuss this further tomorrow.”

  She’s so tightly wound that I choose not to have this argument with her. We continue making our way through the room, shaking hands and promising city planners, council members, and chief administrators that I’m willing to go with the program. But Grace isn’t the same after our run-in with Tyler. I still wonder what the hell is going on between them, but I figure I’ll get my answers in due time.

  I’m up the next morning before my alarm sounds. I’ve never been this excited to rise and shine and get to the job. As soon as I make it to the office and sit at my desk, I’m in go mode. My first order of business is to have Zoe call Tyler and schedule an interview. In less than fifteen minutes, he’s scheduled to come in this Friday.

  Grace walks into my office without being asked to come in. “About Tyler—he should not be part of my father’s company.”

  I sit back in my chair and rest my chin on the steeple I make with my fingers. “Why not?”

  She closes the door and sits across from me. “He insulted my father.”

  “How did he insult your father?”

  “My father likes manners, and Tyler will insult you too if you bring him back.”

  I sigh hard and shake my head. “Do you really think I’m a stupid asshole who can’t read between the lines? Have you two fucked or something?”

  Grace shoots to her feet. “Forget it. Do what you have to do, and I’ll do the same.”

  “That sounds like a threat.”

  “Take it however you want to take it.”

  “Then I won’t take it as a threat because you can’t threaten me.”

  Grace stomps out of my office, and as they say, out of sight, out of mind.

  As the week progresses, I finalize my contract with Ralph and keep rejuvenating his failing empire. I work day and night. Carter and I make eye contact every now and then, but there’s no time for me to try to make skin-on-skin contact happen between us. By Friday, I’m wiped but ready for my sit-down with Tyler. After reviewing his old projects again, I’m willing to pay whatever it costs to have him back in our stable.

  I stand in the doorway of my office when he stops at the main entrance and scans the entire floor. Carter, who’s at Matt’s desk, watches him in shock as he walks down the aisle. Then she looks at me with a question in her eyes.

  Tyler and I shake hands. The firmness of his grip says he’s here to deal and be victorious. I match his grip because I mean to do the same.

  “Glad you could make it,” I say.

  “Always willing to e
ntertain an offer. Although my current firm has already rewarded me for my talent,” he says.

  I make a mental note—he’s cocky. I ask him to have a seat. Carter stares into my office as she crosses the aisle to return to her desk.

  “Talent should be rewarded,” I say. “But if we can’t afford you, then I understand. After all, talented people are a dime a dozen, and I don’t mind going fishing for them.”

  He pauses to survey my expression. I can’t stand cockiness. I’ve been known to be a cocky prick every now and then, but it’s a part of myself that I want to leave in the Dumpster.

  Tyler looks out the window, surveying the floor. His eyes stop on Carter. “I see a lot has changed.”

  “All it took was five weeks, and this is only the beginning. I look forward to surpassing this firm’s former glory.”

  Carter takes her seat, and Tyler puts his focus on me. “Didn’t you come from the world of media?”

  “Yes, I did.” I’m getting used to answering that question.

  “Then what do you know about architecture?”

  “I have my credentials.”

  “What are they?”

  “I’m not the one being interviewed. But the short of it is, I have an MFA in architecture along with an MBA in Business Administration. I completed my apprenticeship under Barney Arsenault of Customize Designs.”

  He sits up in his seat. “You worked directly with Arsenault?”

  “Yes, I did.”

  “How in the hell did you swing that?”

  “I’m talented—just like you.”

  Tyler smirks. “Okay then, let’s get to the important part.”

  I open the offer folder Zoe compiled. Zoe’s more thorough than Mavis and without the fucking superior attitude. The first offer is a lowball offer but not so low it would insult him. As expected, Tyler rejects it. I ask him to counter, and he comes up just below the amount I was prepared to pay. I appear generous when I offer him the salary I had in mind.

  “That’s a lot of money, Mr. Tango.”

  “Robert,” I say, “and you’re welcome. When can you start?”

  “When do you need me?”

  “I thought you had another job?”

  I see that strained look in his eyes. He’s happier than he’s letting on, and there can only be one reason that could be.

  I look at him suspiciously. “You don’t have another job?”

  “No.”

  “You knew I would be at City Hall on Monday night?”

  He shows me his cocky smirk again. “Perhaps. Someone told me you might be looking to hire some of us back, and I wanted to be the first.”

  I’m impressed by his boldness. “Well, then you’re the first.”

  Then we negotiate his position. He agrees to start as another principal architect. He wanted to become chief principal architect, but I suspected he merely wanted to be over Carter. There’s something going on between Carter, Tyler, and Grace.

  Tyler will start tomorrow morning. When I catch the strange look on Zoe’s face as she watches him leave, I ask her into my office.

  “How did it go?” she asks as soon as she takes a seat.

  “It went well.” I show her the kind of smile that normally puts her at ease. “Hopefully I’m not overstepping my boundaries if I ask you this, but I sense tension between Carter and Grace, and I think it has something to do with the man who just left this office.”

  Zoe sighs and rolls her eyes as if she can finally let go of what’s been troubling her. She doesn’t take many pauses as she recounts how Carter and Tyler used to date. They were pretty hot and heavy. Zoe thinks they were together for two years. Then he cheated on her with Grace. However, the rumor was he did it because Ralph favored Carter as an architect and everyone thought that he would promote her to a principal before Tyler. When Carter found out he had cheated with Grace, she was devastated.

  “There was nothing gracious about the way Grace flaunted their relationship. That’s kind of why Carter stays in her corner and talks to no one.”

  “I see her talking to Matt.” I desperately want to know what’s really going on between the two of them. I’ve pictured Matt fucking her, and it drove me crazy.

  Zoe rolls her eyes a little. “Oh, Matt. He’s had a crush on her forever, like most of the guys around here.”

  I detect resentment in her tone. “I see…”

  “Anyway, that’s not the end of the story. After Tyler was promoted, he started up with Carter again. He was seeing them both at the same time.”

  She explains how when Grace found out, she wanted to have Carter fired, but Ralph wouldn’t allow it. However, Grace made things as difficult as she could for Carter. She gave her the worst assignments, which lowered her rate of commission.

  “She basically tried to starve Carter out. Then there were rumors of financial instability, and layoffs soon followed.” Zoe grunts thoughtfully. “Once again, Grace tried to convince Ralph to let go of Carter, but in a surprising twist, Ralph fired Tyler. Shocked all of us.”

  I tap my fingers on my desk as I ponder. I wonder if bringing Tyler back into the fold was a good idea. “Thanks, Zoe. That’ll be all for now.”

  Zoe stands, walks to the door, then turns to face me. “I want to say thank you for making this place what it is now. Everybody’s excited to come to work everyday. It hasn’t been this way in a long time, and for some, never. And everybody here respects you. And, um, if I may…”

  “You may,” I say.

  “I see the way Carter looks at you and vice versa. It’s so easy to lose respect around here, you know?” Her facial expression says it all.

  I glance at where Carter sits. We had fun at lunch last Friday, and I want to spend more time off the clock with her. She’s constantly on my mind. I’ve been in an embittered battle between maintaining my integrity as the man in charge and my desire to be in her presence. I hate that Matt and now Tyler were allowed to make an effort to be with her, but I can’t. I haven’t forgotten the harsh opinion Maggie and Mavis had of me. It wouldn’t have been so impactful if I hadn’t been fucking a chick whose name I never knew when I overheard them. What Zoe just said abolishes the shame and disappointment within me. There are plenty of fish in the sea. Carter is one that I’ve caught but I’m forced to release back into the ocean. I choose duty over desire.

  Soul Proprietor

  Three Months Later

  The conference room erupts in applause. The entire company is gathered together. We’re one hundred fifty-three employees strong, and I try to take in as many faces as possible. To think, three months ago, I was rich in resources but poor in self-worth and faith in my future.

  Yesterday, Richard Darling and I spent the afternoon at Ralph’s lawyer’s office, finalizing the sale of Kennedy Creative. I sat back and let Richard do most of the talking. Ralph and I were in agreement on all the terms except one, and when Richard lowered the boom, Ralph could hardly believe it.

  “Regarding the name of the company,” Richard said. “My client is allowed to add subsidiaries, giving them equal weight as Kennedy Creative.”

  Ralph looked at his lawyer for clarification, and he explained that I could create subsidiaries to the architecture firm and assign them functions at will. Ralph glared at me as if he wanted to rip off my head.

  I said, “I’ll respect the initial objectives of the company.”

  “Which are?” Ralph’s posture indicated that he thought I was bullshitting him.

  “Integrity first,” I said, although the shit he’d pulled with the interest payment wasn’t very scrupulous.

  Ralph and I engaged in a stare-off.

  Richard put the finalized document in front of me to sign. “I’m sure Mr. Kennedy doesn’t mind a little name change. He just got a half a billion dollars richer today.” He winked at Ralph. “Collecting all of that interest money my client refuses to contest.”

  That was a point that needed to be made. Ralph took the snide out of his grin, shook my
hand, and wished me luck.

  At this very moment, as I stand in front of my entire enterprise and run the state-of-the-company meeting, I can happily say that this all belongs only to me.

  I’ve just finished giving them the rundown, including why we’re operating in the black even after losing Ralph’s capital. Last month, our acquisitions team submitted bids for eight of the most coveted projects in the city, and we’ve heard back from seven out of eight. We were chosen to represent all of the projects, and there’s a good chance that we’ll receive the eighth as well. The room erupts in applause once again. I notice how the project teams eye each other. They all want the most expensive account, and I’ve developed a system where the only way to be rewarded is by merit and not favoritism.

  I lift my hand to quiet them down. “We’ve slaved like hell in the last three months. Some of you have gone for weeks working fifteen-hour days, which doesn’t leave much time for fun or sleep.” I raise my hand. “I’m guilty.”

  There’s laughter. I adopted the motto that I’m the first to arrive and the last to leave. I’m not sure if it’s because I don’t want to be perceived as a failure, but I never let my employees out-work me.

  I wait until they quiet down to deliver the next much-needed news. “And that is why this Monday and Tuesday, we’re closed for business. I want you all to take a four-day weekend to try to reclaim your lives.”

  The applause isn’t so loud this time.

  “Whoa, I think I’ve created a bunch of workaholics!” I smile as a rumble of laughter fills the room. “I realize your minds are heavy with all of the shit that you have to get done; mine is too. But I’ve always respected the idea of work-life balance, and we’re all way out of balance. And don’t worry, you’re still getting paid.”

  They laugh again.

  I allow myself to finally glance at Carter. Just like everyone else in the room, she’s watching me. It’s been a while since I focused on her face, and it takes a moment before I realize that my eyes have lingered for too long on her. I look down at the lectern and clear my throat. When I lift my face, I’m grinning big.