by Winters, KB
I stopped myself and waited for his reply, my eyes desperately searching his for the answers.
“Am I really that big of a jackass?” he asked.
His reply caught me off guard and I couldn’t help but laugh. “Apparently.”
“I’m so glad you have such a high opinion of me. At least you’re honest.”
“That’s my whole point, though! We don’t know each other. At all.”
“So get to know me. Go out to dinner with me. Nothing has to happen afterwards, no expectations, no strings.”
“Cooper, all we have is strings. This whole thing is a big rat’s nest of trouble. Tangled and getting more complicated every time we interact. I’m risking my job even just standing here, talking to you right now. Don’t you get it?”
“Fuck them. You don’t want to be like them anyway. You could do better.”
I huffed, astounded by his obliviousness. “You don’t get it. Not even one little bit. I’m not like you, Cooper. I don’t have a huge trust fund to fall back on if things go to shit. I am up to my eyes in debt and I have to work. People like me, we don’t have choices. If our job sucks, tough shit, you wake up and go anyways because if you don’t, your whole fucking life unravels.”
He dropped his gaze, as if embarrassed by my honesty. I mentally kicked myself for being so open book. It wasn’t like me to go on and on like that. What is it about this man that made me lose all control? Verbally and otherwise…
“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to simplify things. I could give you a job. A really good job.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m not that desperate yet. I have no interest in being your full time sex toy.”
He groaned. “That’s not what I meant and you know it. Why do you always do that? Why do you always have to paint me to be such a fucking dick?”
Now it was my turn to advert my eyes. He had a point. I was so convinced that I was just setting myself up for a fall that I wasn’t giving him a chance to prove me wrong.
“Fine, whatever. Legit job or not, I’m not interested.” I paused, wondering whether or not I should go on. “You still haven’t answered why you disappeared like that.”
“I wish I could. I want to give you a list of good reasons. I want to explain everything to you, but all I can really say is that I was busy and that my absence couldn’t be helped.”
In the history of bad answers to the “why didn’t you call” question—that women have been asking men since the invention of phones—that had to be the worst. The disappointment stung, but I didn’t bother digging for more information. It was over.
“It’s fine. Like I said, I just really need to focus on my job and getting things back on track here. The ads are done, so let’s just both move on. Anyway, I appreciate you stopping by and clearing everything up,” I said.
I turned and started walking and this time he didn’t try to stop me. Even though deep down inside, I probably wanted him to.
Chapter Eleven
I would have given anything to avoid going back into the building, but once I stomped away from Cooper, I realized I had nowhere else to go but back up to my desk. I stood in the shadow of the hulking building and took one last breath of fresh air before pulling open the glass door and going inside. My heart was begging me to turn around and see if I could watch him one last time. I knew he would have to pass by to get back to the parking lot. But my brain talked me out of it, knowing I was already a flight risk and could easily convince myself to fly out to him and go wherever he wanted to take me. Telling him off like that had worn down my defenses. If he had pushed one more time, said one nice thing, apologized again, I probably would have melted completely.
I took in a deep, steadying breath before heading back to the fifth floor.
Once inside the office, I didn’t even bother going to my desk. I made a beeline straight for Bryce’s office and shut the door behind me when he invited me in. I didn’t say anything and started frantically pacing back and forth in front of his desk.
“What is up with you? You look like you’re waiting for the third round bell to ring,” he asked, watching me with a curious expression on his face.
“Ugh! Where to even begin?” I asked, before flopping into one of the overstuffed armchairs in the corner of the office. “It’s that woman. It’s him. Everything, really.”
He nodded, as if he understood exactly what I was talking about. “Safe to assume that by ‘that woman’ you mean Rita, and ‘him’ is Cooper Brighton?”
“Yeah. I don’t know what to do about anything. I’m pretty sure I’m going to get fired. And then Cooper comes in, all knight in shining armor routine, offers me a job at his company, but I know I can’t do that. But maybe I should.”
“Okay, whoa, slow down. Let’s work through this one step at a time.”
I nodded and flopped into a chair, my energy suddenly zapped, the exhaustion hitting me like a truck.
“What’s going on with Mr. Brighton? He offered you a job? Why was he even here?”
I replayed the meeting with Rita for him and then explained the confrontation with Cooper outside.
“So, safe to assume, you and he…” his voice trailed off.
I nodded, pinching my eyes closed tightly. “I’m so stupid.”
Bryce laughed. “Oh honey, no you’re not. He’s a charming man. If he was gay…well, let’s just say I would have willingly fallen into that trap, as well.”
I laughed weakly. His attempt to cheer me up was appreciated but didn’t help much.
The pressure built and the laugh quickly dissolved to tears. Bryce rushed over, sat next to me and gave me a hug. “It’s okay, we’ll fix this. Don’t worry so much.”
“It’s not that. I just feel so stupid,” I answered. My face pressed into his shoulder and my voice came out mumbled.
“What do you mean? You’re not stupid. Far from it.”
“I’m smart, but so incredibly dumb when it comes to men.”
“Is this about your ex?”
I nodded against him. “That’s why I’m in this mess in the first place. When I found out he cheated on me, I got really mad and went off on him. So, then he took my credit cards and went crazy. He bought the new girl all sorts of shit, and bought himself a ton of stuff, too. He even opened new cards in my name that I didn’t know about, and when he was gone, there was nothing I could do. I owe over ten thousand dollars in credit card bills and then I have to pay for rent and utilities on my own too, now. It’s such a mess. That’s why I have to keep this job.”
“That horrifying!” Bryce exclaimed. “Did you call the police? Or a lawyer?”
I shook my head.
“Why not? That’s theft. He should be in jail for what he did to you.”
“I don’t know. Like I said, I’m really stupid when it comes to men.”
“Honey, trust me, that’s not a real man.”
“And Cooper is?” I said, skeptically.
“I have no idea what kind of man he is, to be honest. I’ve certainly heard my fair share of stories. But, that’s not really my point. I just mean that you are worth so much more and you never deserve to be treated that way.”
I sniffled, doing my best to get myself together. It wasn’t like me to be such a basket case. But everything that had happened was piled on top of me and making it hard to breathe.
“I’m so sorry, Allie,” Bryce said.
“Thanks. He was such a dick.”
“Cooper?” he asked.
“No, my ex.”
“Yeah, he sounds like a real piece of work.”
“He was a piece of something…”
Bryce laughed and I smiled through my tears.
I pulled out of the embrace and wiped at my eyes. “Thank you for always being so kind to me,” I said. “You took a chance on me by even helping to get me this job and I know you’re done your best to help me through everything. I hope I’m not making you regret it.”
“Absolutely not. I know we can get thi
s whole thing figured out. I think this is the turning point. We need to turn the page. The Plush ad fiasco is over with, so now you can get back to the computer training and we can stay in our department. I’ll have to deal with Rita, but that’s part of my job, not yours. So you shouldn’t need to interact with her going forward. Let’s put this all behind and move on.”
“Deal,” I agreed, feeling a little lighter.
A knock on the door broke into our moment.
“I hate to interrupt,” a voice chirped from the doorway.
I looked up and saw Brittany, Rita’s main assistant, standing over us, her perfect, Barbie doll smile plastered on her perfect, Barbie doll face. I frantically wiped at my face, sure that all I managed to do was spread my wet mascara all over my cheekbones.
“Yes, Brittany?” Bryce replied.
“Rita needs to speak with both of you, immediately. Please follow me,” she answered, never dropping her sugary expression.
What the hell did Cooper ever see in this girl? I started to wonder as I stared at her in disbelief. If this was “his type” then I was out, for sure.
I guess that was already settled, I reminded myself silently.
A new wave of tears rushed to my eyes but I blinked them away.
Bryce let me go first and we started to follow Brittany down the—now familiar—path to Rita’s office.
On the way, I started to wonder if Rita knew that her loyal pet had once been one of Cooper’s flings. I guessed the only difference between us was that Rita liked Brittany, and she didn’t like me. So where Brittany’s indiscretion was covered up, mine would, likely, be exposed.
Like right about now, I thought as we walked.
Chapter Twelve
Brittany smiled like a Cheshire cat as she held the door open to Rita’s office, and it took every ounce of self-control I had to resist the urge to throttle her. Luckily, for her, she disappeared as soon as Bryce and I stepped inside. Bryce’s whole demeanor changed as soon as the door closed. He spun towards Rita, “What is the nature of this meeting, Rita?” His lip was curled back into a snarl-like expression. I was taken aback simply because I had never seen Bryce so much as roll his eyes before. He was always jovial and patient with everyone around him. No matter what information he might share with me off the record, he treated everyone the same, even if he actually disliked them.
“I called you here to discuss your employee,” she started, gesturing at me but not bothering to even look my way. “Please sit, both of you.”
Bryce looked like he wanted to argue, but after a beat, he rounded the chair and sat down and I followed along and sat in the chair next to him.
“I have some upsetting news, Miss Rand.” She turned my way and folded her hands on the desk in front of her as she spoke. “I have received undeniable proof of your affair with Mr. Brighton and that, combined with your less than forthcoming behavior, is enough for me to be granted the power to fire you. Your services will no longer be needed here at Spotlight.”
“Rita, this is outrageous! You should have consulted with me long before it got to this point. I’m her manager. This is way out of line!”
“Oh, that should be the least of your concerns. You aren’t completely innocent in this whole fiasco. If I were you, I would be a little more worried about myself than some girl you barely know.”
“Really? And what authority do you have over me? We are both managers, you’re not my boss. I think you might be slightly confused on that point. In fact, I think you’ve always been confused by how our structure works here. You have always tried to pull rank on me, but this is the most outlandish thing you have done, to be sure. You need to remember your place.”
I silently cheered for Bryce. Glad someone got to talk back to this horrible beast of a woman.
She laughed a humorless laugh, her eyes boring into him. “We will see about my place, or rank, whatever you want to say. I’ve already had a conference call with Todd and Rich, and let’s just say they are not at all happy with this latest development and want to contain the situation in any way possible. And if that means doing a little housecleaning…” She let her voice trail off, leaving the insinuation to do the rest.
My heart dropped, remembering the threats she had made during our first meeting about Bryce’s fate being tied to mine. I didn’t yet know what she had on me, but it couldn’t be good if she felt bold enough to speak to a fellow manager this way.
I looked over at Bryce and his face was rapidly turning a beet red, his fingertips gripping the armrests, his knuckles turning white.
“What about the meeting like half an hour ago? Did that mean nothing to you? I’m pretty sure we cleared this all up. Mr. Brighton was just here, sitting right there,” I started, before Bryce could explode. “He made it very clear that nothing unprofessional was going on between us. So, I’m confused. What exactly is the problem?”
She smiled and a chill went down my back and traveled down my arms, leaving icy goose bumps in its wake. Whatever was coming next, I already knew I didn’t want to hear it.
“I guess you weren’t listening before. As I said, I have just been given tangible proof that you are lying to me. Here, let me show you.”
She reached into a folder on her desk and pulled out a few pages. She set them one at a time on the desk, turning them around so they were facing Bryce and me.
I gasped and clasped a hand to my mouth, unable to contain my horror. The pages were each a full-sized image of Cooper and me in the dim hallway from the launch party. The first few were innocent enough. We just looked like we were talking, but then as they went on, it was clear that whoever the photographer was had waited around and caught the whole scene on their camera.
Cooper pressed against me, his head bent down, his lips on my neck, hands lost in my hair. My dress hem pushed up as I crushed my body to his.
The last picture showed me leaving the hallway and there was no mistaking it was me in the full frontal shot.
There was no room for reasonable doubt. The pictures were me and they were Cooper. No one would argue otherwise.
I searched my memory but for the life of me, couldn’t remember even seeing anyone the whole time I was in the hallway. I knew there had been photographers at the party. Lots of them. But none of them would have been looking in dark, bathroom hallways. Right?
I was starting to get a headache as I stared at the pictures in front of me. I wanted to reach out and grab them all away from Rita. Rip them into little pieces. Burn them. Anything! But my hands stayed glued to my lap as I desperately tried to maintain some appearance of professionalism.
“Is this really necessary?” Bryce asked as he began to gather all the pictures, setting the pile face down on the desk. He glanced at me and then back at the bitch.
“Apparently so. I spoke with Miss Rand earlier this afternoon and she was less than truthful with me in regards to this very situation.”
“Where did those even come from?” I asked, figuring I had nothing to lose. My job was already gone at this point.
“Does it really matter? The source is not the issue. The actions are. These pictures very clearly display your blatant disregard for the policies and procedures that are required of our employees. So, as I said before, I will have to ask you to gather your belongings and leave the building immediately. HR will ensure that your final check is deposited by the end of the business day.”
“Rita, come on, be reasonable. It’s not like this is the first time this has happened,” Bryce pleaded.
My eyes darted to him, wondering what he meant by that. Not the first time? Did he mean with Cooper? Or just in general?
“It’s a done deal. Miss Rand, you are excused. Bryce and I have further business so we won’t be able to walk you out. Brittany will be waiting to escort you.”
“Rita, please, you don’t understand. It was a mistake, and trust me, it will not happen again. Not with anyone! Especially not Coop—Mr. Brighton.”
As soon as the ou
tburst escaped from my mouth, I wished I could take it back. Giving that bitch the satisfaction of watching me beg was only adding to my nausea.
“The decision has been made. You’re done here,” she answered.
I got up and stalked from the room, shooting a final sympathetic glance at Bryce before turning to leave. All I could do was hope that it wasn’t too late for him, and that Rita was just bluffing to get rid of me and hopefully stifle any tantrum.
Brittany was waiting for me outside the door with a stupid smirk on her face. “Please follow me.”
I spun on my heel and glared at her. “Don’t speak to me. I know all about you and Cooper and I have half a mind to go back in there and spill your dirty little secrets. Leave me alone.”
She laughed in my face. “It wouldn’t matter even if you did. I was never stupid enough to get caught on camera,” she hissed back at me.
I was stunned. For a moment it seemed like I had my answer as to who sent the pictures in the first place. It had to be her. How else would she have known of their existence? But then again, she was Rita’s closest assistant, always half a step behind her and probably had access to all of her files and paperwork. She’d probably seen them on Rita’s desk prior to the meeting. I also realized that if she’d been the one trying to get me fired, she wouldn’t have gone out of her way to warn Cooper of what was going on here in the first place. Unless she was just trying to get on his good side. Possibly she wasn’t over him. Maybe she wanted him back.