by S M Mala
‘I’d rather buckle under you.’ Finlay leaned closer to her. ‘I’ve been accused of being distracted and not doing any work.’
‘That’s not an accusation that’s a fact,’ she smiled, before leaning closer and resting her head on his shoulder. ‘Why are you a dirty little fucker?’
He placed his hand behind her head and stroked her soft hair before smiling for a moment.
‘I don’t want to talk business but there’s going to be a problem selling part of the company with you holding on to a share. People want all or nothing,’ he said quietly as he heard her sigh. ‘And it goes without saying whoever buys our share will have to work with you closely and you might not like them.’
‘Then that could be the plan for me to sell my chunk.’
‘Aren’t you just better off selling them back to us?’
It was a hard shove that took him by surprise as she glared at him.
‘I’m not selling anything to you or your mother so if this is you being nice to me because you want something, then you can just fuck right off! And I’ll only sell to her if I really have no choice but I don’t want to be too negative just yet.’
Finlay started to laugh as she looked fit to burst before he grabbed her and pushed her back onto the bed.
‘I love you,’ he said, as she tried to push him off but he managed to pin her down. ‘It was only a suggestion, something to help you. That’s what you wanted. I didn’t say you’d like it.’
‘Then say something I like.’
‘Take off your knickers.’
Fifty nine
‘Listen to me,’ said Sylvie, as the mumbling in the meeting room grew. ‘Today is Friday 5th July and we have about seven weeks to sort something out. I admit, I’m really stuffed here and the most important thing is to save everyone’s jobs and this company.’
All the eyes looking at her didn’t seem convinced until she noticed Rosalind smiling sympathetically.
‘But Sylvie, if no-one wants to buy the bigger share, we’re stuffed, innit?’ said Pria, her arms folded in defiance. ‘What we gonna do? I need a job and money.’
‘You think Sylvie, we need to look for other job?’ asked Krystof seriously. ‘I not want to but I have responsibility.’
‘I know,’ sighed Sylvie, seeing her needs were nothing compared to her colleagues. ‘I won’t stop you guys from leaving if you don’t want to work with a shadow hanging over you. I don’t expect you to sacrifice anything.’
‘What can we do to help?’ Marianne asked as the others looked at each other. ‘We cannay buy that larger share.’
‘I haven’t got the money to do it,’ she replied and sat down in a chair. ‘And Stephen is sniffing around, probably totting up our assets as we speak.’
‘What you let him in for!’ shrieked Pria. ‘He’s a slimy toad, innit?’
‘Sylvie,’ Gillian said, clearing her voice before looking around. The others looked at the large lady and Sylvie clicked she was the spokeswoman for the group. ‘We have personal obligations and as much as we hope you find a buyer, we have to look at it long term. Whoever comes in will want to change things and maybe that means looking at the business, including us. You can’t be sure they’ll keep it the same, can you?’
Sylvie shook her head from side to side dreading what was coming next.
‘I’ll stay until the 31st August but if I find another job before, I’ll have to leave. I need the security and this whole selling of the company isn’t going to give any one of us that,’ Gillian said gently.
‘You rats desert stinking shit!’ snapped Samina who pushed herself forward. ‘I not let Sylvie down! I stay until they drag me out. See!’ She produced a box of fluffy pink handcuffs. ‘I lock against shelves so they not get rid of me! I not let anyone come between me and vibrators!’
The others started to laugh as Sylvie smiled at the woman’s determined face then sat back in her chair, knowing she was asking for too much and only giving little in return.
‘If you have to go, you have to go,’ she said quietly, feeling sick. ‘I’ll try and get you some payment of some sort, whether you leave or stay, if they don’t find a buyer and force my hand. You’re right you have to put yourselves first. I do appreciate all your help and I won’t give you a hard time.’
‘I give you hard time with whip!’ announced Samina. ‘I whip you all if you go and come to your home, stuff butt plug up all your anal holes!’
‘Samina!’ said Rosalind aghast as Sylvie noticed Matthew shake his head from side to side. Samina winked at him. He shuddered. ‘We’re not all so employable but the others are young and they need to find jobs.’
‘What if we get buyer then what happens?’ said Samina, giving everyone filthy looks. Even Sylvie got one before the old lady grinned. ‘We have no people.’
‘Then we’ll have a smaller team,’ Sylvie smiled, trying to hide her deep fear that losing them will automatically mean losing the business.
‘Look at this guys, this will cheer you up!’ said Toby, bursting into the room with his laptop then stopping. ‘You had a meeting without me?’
‘The fact you’ve only just noticed when you can see we were in here for the past fifteen minutes is questionable,’ said Rosalind in utter disbelief. ‘We were just talking-.’
‘Yes, yes,’ he replied, totally uninterested before holding out his laptop towards Sylvie. ‘You have to look at this. I’ve just fine tuned it.’
Sylvie took it out of his hand and played the footage of Rosalind and Samina singing ‘Good Vibrations’.
‘If only this could make us money then we’d be fine,’ she laughed. ‘Have you shown everyone?’
Toby then played it and they all started laughing while Rosalind clapped her hands in delight. Before Sylvie could stop her, Samina had jumped up on the table and was singing the song as everyone joined in.
‘Mental!’ Toby said, laughing his head off.
Sylvie sat back in her chair and thought for a moment.
It was a long shot but maybe they could salvage something from the most unlikely angle. She looked up and smiled at her trump card singing out of tune before doing a bhangra dance.
‘Maybe?’ she muttered to herself before looking at the group of, soon to be, defecting friends. ‘Just maybe.’
Sylvie took Toby’s laptop and ran out of the meeting room going back to her desk. Pondering for a moment, she knew what she had to do.
It was her last hope.
‘You my beauty…’ she heard Finlay whisper in her ear the following week as they met for a quickie in the hotel room. ‘… are distracted.’ His lips were tracing up and down her back. ‘What are you thinking?’
‘Can’t say and you’re supposed to be giving me a massage,’ she smiled, knowing she had a busy week ahead and it was only Tuesday. ‘You’re not helping me with my business so I’m not telling you a thing.’
‘Sly, that’s not fair.’
‘It is! Have you found someone to buy your shares?’ Sylvie said, turning her head to look at him. His green eyes were sparkling against his mischievous grin. ‘I knew it. Your company isn’t making an effort and that means you’re going to close us down. You know my work force told me they were going to leave, other than Samina and Rosalind who are staying loyal to me and the company.’
The next thing she felt was him turning her around as he lay on top of her.
‘You’ve got that look,’ he whispered into her ear. ‘That one telling me you’re pissed off. Have I upset you again? Still stewing over that information about your mother in law?’
‘Ex!’ she snapped and felt momentarily angry at him.
‘It was a long time ago and I apologise for sleeping with her.’
‘Tell that to her husband and your mother.’ She examined his sun kissed face, his freckles prominent on his nose and cheeks. Sylvie grinned before kissing him gently seeing him pout at her last comment. ‘Fin, I love you. Please tell me what your plan is for my company.’
‘Oh you gorge
ous temptress,’ he said, giving her a big hug. ‘I’ll tell you when I find out.’
‘That’s a lie and you know it,’ she replied and stroked his cheek. ‘Finlay?’ For a moment she noticed his expression changed as did the tone of her voice. ‘How’s it going with you and Juliette? You’re spending a lot of time with her, not that I’m complaining as I know you’re seeing James.’
‘Why?’
Sylvie knew the defiant look so well, she realised she had to tread carefully.
‘Are you really proceeding with a divorce or did you say that to get me back into bed?’ That moment, she knew she should have kept her mouth shut as annoyance spread across his face. Sylvie smiled as his eyes narrowed. ‘I’m not pressurising you but I’d like to know and you’ve gone a bit quiet on that front.’
Finlay sat up and stared down at her for a moment before shaking his head from side to side. The mood in the hotel room had gone from sizzling hot to ice cold. Taking the lead she sat up.
‘I don’t doubt you but only a few months ago you wanted to be with her and she’s moved back to London to be with you… oh god, forget I said anything.’
Pushing her hair away Sylvie stared at his beautiful face glaring at her.
‘I’m going out to dinner with her tonight. She wants to talk.’
It was spontaneous, how she froze, realising he was watching her. Then she put on her smile before nodding slowly feeling an almighty panic seizing her insides.
‘Are you going to say something?’ he asked as she examined his sharp cheekbones and quizzical eyes.
‘Going anywhere nice?’ was all she could muster. ‘It’s nice to eat outside this time of the year. ‘Al fresco’ is the expression, I believe.’
Finlay sat up against the top of the bed and smiled for a moment. He seemed amused by something she’d said.
‘Why are you smiling at me? It is called ‘Al fresco’.’
‘Why do you still do that?’
‘Do what?’
‘The false smile? Your shield trying to hide what you’re feeling. I can see you’re bothered, why don’t you just say?’
‘Our relationship lacks trust and-.’
She couldn’t think of anything to say as she looked down at the bed clothes and then out through the window.
‘I don’t want to fight with you,’ she mumbled then got up, dropping the sheet before heading towards the bathroom. ‘And I have trust issues that only I can deal with.’
Sylvie took the shower cap in the complimentary pack, covered her hair, switched on the shower and went under.
All the time she wondered if his wife would try and seduce him then how much would it take for him to resist. A slow, large depression hit her as she knew she was on a losing battle.
Looking down at her feet, now covered in foaming shower gel, she examined her mottled thighs and stomach before wanting her confident feeling to return, the one she had when they first kiss on seeing each other.
‘Would it bother me?’ she whispered to herself thinking if he did sleep with Juliette.
The painful twist of her insides said it all.
Devastation!
Something touched her back, making her jump, then she realised he was behind her.
‘Why are you showering when we haven’t even made love?’ he asked as she watched his long arms wrap around her, feeling the closeness of his body. ‘You don’t smell that bad.’
‘I felt sticky.’
‘I like your head wear,’ he said, tapping her cap. ‘I’m being honest with you, I don’t want to lie but don’t doubt me. I see it in your eyes since you found out about that Freya thing.’
‘It’s pretty shit,’ she honestly replied, before turning around to look up at him, his hair now wet. ‘It’s not because I don’t love you.’
‘Maybe you don’t love me enough.’
‘Maybe I love you too much Finlay Chambers. That might be the problem.’
As he waited in the expensive restaurant, all Finlay could think about was the sex he had that morning and the feeling he was experiencing. This was different, something was overtaking his emotions and it made him feel good, warm and extremely happy. Finlay smirked when he recalled she wouldn’t take the plastic cap off when they started to make love in the shower.
He laughed out a little and realised he wanted to see Sylvie but knew Juliette wanted to talk, though he’d prefer to be elsewhere. Checking his phone, he looked for messages and re-read the last one from the company lawyer outlining the amount of money transferred to the restaurant and confirmation nothing was in ‘Le Font’ or ‘Chambers Caplin’. The cash was gone and the only person who could get it back was Juliette, but she wasn’t even making an effort, let alone admitting that she’d paid her chef lover.
From the corner of his eye, he could see someone walking towards him. As he turned his head it was obvious, from the admiring glances, that his wife was in the room. The quiet, but busy, restaurant seemed to have come to a halt. He could see she’d made an effort and looked like something out of ‘Vogue’, with her long perfect limbs in an expensive dress.
She was simply stunning.
Again the vision of Sylvie in the shower cap came to his mind and the refusal to get her hair wet, let alone letting him glance at her feet. He couldn’t help but smile remembering her laughter, when at one moment he thought she was upset about his plans for the evening.
‘Hello Finlay,’ Juliette said, as he got to his feet and she put her cheek out so he could kiss it. ‘I was a little delayed as Chao Lin was having a problem with getting James settled.’ She sat down, being helped by an over eager waiter. ‘I need a drink. Campari and soda, please?’
‘Certainly madam,’ the waiter said and scurried off as Finlay sipped his whiskey.
‘You look beautiful, as always,’ he said, noticing the defiant stare. ‘What’s wrong?’
‘You say it as if it was an insult. Can’t you sound a little more sincere?’
Glancing around the restaurant, at the clear glasses and crisp linen, he smiled for a moment at how lovely everything looked. Sylvie took him for a bacon sandwich in the local café before she had to pick up Daisy. They sat outside as he knew she was making a point about eating ‘Al fresco’, though the cars were coming past down the road at full speed, but there it felt more intimate than his current surroundings.
Finlay knew he had it bad because Juliette had barely been sat for a minute and he was counting down until he could see Sylvie again.
‘It’s a lovely evening,’ she sighed as Finlay smiled back. ‘Thanks for meeting me.’
‘You wanted to talk.’
‘I wanted to talk to you,’ she said quietly with a faint smile.
He recognised that look, the seductive one he knew so well. Finlay immediately realised Juliette was up to something as she touched his hand.
‘Have you tracked down the chef and asked about the money for the restaurant?’ he said quickly and noticed the smile fade. ‘Legally it’s ‘Chambers Caplin’s’ money.’
‘It’s not important,’ Juliette replied as she stroked his skin. ‘You haven’t called the counsellor about setting up any meetings.’
‘I don’t see the point.’ Finlay leaned forward. ‘You know as well as I do that the marriage has been a sham, well for you not for me. I don’t see why-.’
‘Who is she?’ Her eyes darted up to his. ‘I know there’s someone as you wouldn’t be turning your back on our marriage if there wasn’t a woman involved. A younger version of me who worships the ground you walk on?’
‘You never did that darling, did you? You just lay on your back at the first possible opportunity and the chef not only knocked up a good meal but could have possibly done you in the process.’
He felt angry.
Something inside him still burned as he stared hard at his wife, whose face seemed as gentle as before. She wasn’t rising to his bait.
‘I think we have too much to lose.’
‘You mean you
don’t want to lose your business?’ he replied sharply before pulling his hand away and taking a swig from his drink. ‘It’s as good as gone until you tell me where that man is so I can get the money back.’
Finlay leaned back in his chair and watched her turn angry as she stared at her drink being put down on the table. In one swift move, she picked it up and knocked it all back.
‘I won’t ask if you’re breast feeding,’ he said quietly, glancing at her small but perfectly pert bosoms.
‘If you think screwing around will get it out of your system then go ahead,’ she said gesturing the waiter for another drink. ‘Exact your revenge on me, that’s fine. But I’m not going to divorce you Finlay now I realise you want me to.’
The stab was sharp and hard in his gut.
Juliette wasn’t going to let him go and he didn’t know what to think.
Staring hard at her beautiful face, he shook his head in annoyance.
‘You stole money from the company to pay for your lover to set up his business. He’s disappeared and is now selling it. You didn’t get jack shit sorted when it came to making it legally binding and, in the process, have sabotaged the company I let you set up. You don’t have to divorce me. I can divorce you for thieving money from right under my nose and let’s not forget adultery.’
‘I’ll screw you for every penny.’
‘So what’s new? I expect that’s why you want us to stay together, purely for finance,’ he laughed and then something caught his eye.
Andy Simmonds was in the restaurant with a beautiful young woman. He tried to look away but the man waved at him and was now walking towards the table.
‘And who thought this evening could get any worse,’ Finlay mumbled as he stood up and greeted Andy with a bright smile. ‘What a surprise!’
‘Certainly is,’ Andy replied, shaking his hand then turning towards Juliette. ‘This must be your wife. Pleasure to meet you! I’m Andy Simmonds.’
He watched how Juliette’s face lit up as she put her hand out and he kissed it. He clicked Andy was a few shades lighter than her lover.
Finlay tried not to squirm at the memory of her fucking the chef on the sofa.