Mergers and Acquisitions

by A. E. Radley

  “Problem?” Kate drawled.

  Georgina let out a long sigh. “I…” she paused. She looked up at the ceiling for a moment before meeting Kate’s eyes. “Do you know that feeling where you just can’t say the right thing?”

  Kate blinked. She hadn’t expected Georgina to want to discuss it.

  “Yes,” she answered honestly. “Quite often, actually.”

  Georgina nodded. “When I’m alone, I think of what to say to her. How to say it. And it all goes according to plan. But then, it’s like this outside force stops me, and when it comes to the moment, I find it impossible to say what I’d planned.”

  “It’s a defence mechanism.” Kate shrugged her shoulders. “In the moment, you can’t lower your defences because you’re afraid that it won’t be enough. That you won’t be enough. You’re afraid that you’ll abandon your stance, apologise, and it won’t mean a damn thing. It’s easier to stick to your guns and know what will happen than to roll the dice and risk failure.”

  Georgina chuckled. “Yes, I think you’re right.”

  “But sometimes we must fail, because if you turn around and start thinking, ‘What if I’d acted differently,’ then how would you feel?” Kate asked. She was unsure why she was helping the woman, but something pushed her on. “What caused the split? Was it because Jessica wanted to start a new job?”

  “Partly,” Georgina acknowledged. “It was more an overall desire to spread her wings. She always wanted to save the world. I thought giving her more freedom at Mastery would quench her thirst, but she accused me of nepotism. She told me that there were better qualified people lining up around the block for the job I gave her. So then I set up some interviews with top charities in New York, and for some reason she was mad at me for that, too.”

  Kate laughed. A hand drifted up to cover her mouth. She couldn’t believe how naïve Georgina was.

  “What’s so funny?” Georgina asked.

  “Can you really not see why she would be angry?”

  “No. I gave her opportunities that other girls could only dream of.”

  “You took away her self-worth,” Kate told her. “You didn’t give her the opportunity to do something for herself. To build her own brand. To create her own success. You made her an extension of your own success. If she had taken any of those jobs, she would have always wondered if she had been given the job or if she had earned it.”

  Georgina let out a bored sigh. “I suppose that makes some sense,” she allowed.

  “So, let me guess. She went out and found a job by herself?” Kate guessed.

  “Exactly.”

  “And?”

  “I told her she wasn’t going,” Georgina said. “The job she found would have involved spending weeks at a time away from home.”

  Kate blinked. Had she really spent the whole weekend feeling inferior to this emotional mess of a human being?

  “Your own job involves the same,” Kate argued.

  “Yes, but she’s with me when I go. Well, she was when she was my assistant.”

  Kate shook her head. “So, you handed down an ultimatum and then she left?”

  “Yes. She told me that her career was more important to her than me.”

  Kate frowned. Something didn’t ring true. If Jessica really was a charitable soul with a passion to save the world, it didn’t sound like she would be career hungry. “Did she actually say that?”

  Georgina waved her hand distractedly. “Words to that effect. I forget exactly.”

  So, nothing like that at all, Kate guessed. She’d had enough of the pity party Georgina was hosting for herself.

  “You’re an idiot,” Kate said.

  “Excuse me?” Georgina glared at her.

  “You’re an idiot,” Kate repeated. “You know you’re in the wrong. Even you can’t be that stupid. You had a loving partner. Then you said things that you clearly didn’t mean and now it’s over. And why? Because of your petty behaviour.”

  “How dare—”

  “If you had any sense at all, you would phone her and tell her how you feel, how you really feel. Tell her that you think she is brilliant and accomplished and that you were only trying to give her everything because you loved her. Not because you didn’t think she could do it herself. Tell her that you are sorry, that you love her, and that you want a second chance, even though you clearly don’t deserve one. If you’re damn well lucky enough to get her to agree to that, which you really don’t deserve, then you should let her choose her own path. Maybe try standing beside her and supporting her. Not in front of her, opening the wrong doors and trying to mould her like she’s some kind of prize doll.”

  Georgina stared at Kate for a few seconds before swallowing hard. “Do you,” she whispered, “do you think she’d listen to me?”

  “She put up with you for long enough, she must see some redeeming feature in you.” Kate stood up. “Besides, I refuse to talk to you about advertising until you call Jessica and tell her that you’re an idiot. You’re no use to me like this.”

  “I couldn’t.”

  Kate opened a filing cabinet. “I see. You’ve destroyed that relationship and you’re unwilling to try to fix your mistakes, so now you’re permanently trading her in for someone else?”

  Georgina remained silent. Kate turned around to see the confusion on the other woman’s face.

  “Sophie,” Kate elaborated. “Your new girlfriend, remember? Sits outside my office, wears glasses.”

  “Oh, no, that’s over,” Georgina said. She picked up her phone and stared at the device, seemingly considering her upcoming call.

  “Over?” Kate tried to sound uninterested, but she could feel herself radiate with joy at the idea.

  “Yes, we both wanted other things.” Georgina stood and held up her phone. “I’ll go and call her now, since you seem to be refusing to work until I do. If it doesn’t go well, I’ll blame you, of course.”

  “Of course.” Kate rolled her eyes and returned her attention to the filing cabinet. “Just tell her that you’re an idiot.”

  “It’s almost as if you enjoy saying that to me,” Georgina said.

  Kate shrugged. “Tell her or don’t. I don’t care either way. Just resolve it so we can get on with work.”

  Kate heard Georgina leave and sighed. She leant against the filing cabinet. She was relieved that Sophie was out of Georgina’s clutches, but suddenly the feelings she had worked so hard to repress were starting to get loose again.

  Chapter 32

  Georgina gripped the phone tightly in her hand. She walked towards her office, her mind churning as she considered what she would say to Jessica.

  “Georgina?”

  She looked up to see Sophie staring at her expectantly. It was only then she realised that Sophie must have called her several times before she’d gotten her attention.

  She shook her head to gain some focus. “Yes?”

  “I asked if you wanted me to book the meeting room for your conference call with—”

  “Cancel it,” Georgina interrupted.

  “C-cancel—”

  “Yes, I’m not to be disturbed.” Georgina stepped around Sophie and continued towards her office. The moment she was inside she closed the door. She closed the blinds on the windows that separated her office from the main office. It was time to beg and grovel, and she wanted privacy for that.

  It had been a turbulent weekend. She’d flown back to New York to attend a couple of events that she was unable to get out of. Despite being home, she’d never felt more disorientated. The argument with Kate had weighed heavily upon her.

  She regretted the things she had said, not that she would ever freely admit it. No, she had an image to maintain. But she knew she had gone too far. Moreover, she knew she had gone too far in the name of petty jealousy. Jealousy that turned out to be completely unfounded.

  Kate hadn’t spoken directly with Jessica, but in the moment, Georgina had been certain that she had. And that had ignited a rage
within her that she couldn’t contain. Suddenly, all her steely dispassion at breaking up with Jessica had melted into a pool of white hot anger. After the event and Sophie’s subsequent visit, she could no longer pretend that the break-up wasn’t killing her inside.

  It was the push she needed to be honest with herself. To realise that Jessica was the best thing that had ever happened to her, and that she was fully responsible for her decision to end their relationship. It also highlighted what she had suspected about Sophie, that the poor girl was just a replacement. She’d felt sick at the realisation that she had dragged Sophie into this situation.

  She hadn’t really been interested in Sophie at all. She was merely a reminder of Jessica. And proof that Georgina could attract anyone she chose. There was also the uncomfortable truth that she had used the girl’s obvious feelings for Kate to make herself available as a handy stand-in. Not to mention using the relationship to irritate Kate.

  Even though she had finally been honest with Sophie, she still felt awful. It wasn’t something she often felt, and it was very uncomfortable. Nothing had been particularly resolved. She had cast Sophie free and apologised for her behaviour, but she knew Sophie would do nothing about her feelings for Kate. And she had thought that she would do nothing to repair her own relationship with Jessica.

  Until now. It pained her to admit that Kate was right. She was an idiot. She’d held onto Jessica too tightly, and she’d fled, just as any sane person would. But maybe Kate was right that Jessica might give her another chance. If she could just be honest.

  She sat down and stared at the phone in her hands. She’d shared a happy relationship with Jessica for some time. Maybe she would listen. She knew she had to try.

  Georgina stood at Kate’s office door. “Knock, knock,” she said, by way of announcement.

  Kate looked up and removed her glasses. She seemed confused. She’d probably just read the email that Georgina had sent. The email in which Georgina provided several assets that she’d been holding back, as well as some information that would greatly assist Red Door with their marketing pitch.

  “Did you get my email?” Georgina gestured towards Kate’s laptop.

  “I was just about to read it.”

  Georgina smirked. It was obvious that Kate was lying. She’d read it, now she was wondering if it was a new ploy. She was giving herself some time to read, digest, and figure out Georgina’s latest scheme.

  Except there wasn’t one.

  “Good. There’s nothing in that email that won’t wait until tomorrow. I’d like to buy you a drink. A peace offering and a new start, if you will?”

  Kate blinked. “Peace offering?”

  Georgina nodded. “Yes, I think we need to start over. Bury the hatchet and work out a way to work together for the rest of this awful project. And then never, ever work together again.”

  “And what brought about this change of heart exactly?” Kate folded her arms across her chest and regarded Georgina suspiciously.

  Georgina blew out a breath. “Wouldn’t you much rather discuss this over a drink? The workday ended over an hour ago. You can leave the office without your staff thinking you’re slacking.”

  Kate chuckled. “Fine. But only because I’m curious as to what kind of head injury you’re suffering from.”

  Georgina smirked in return. “Wonderful, I’ll go and get my bag.”

  She left Kate’s office and walked slowly across the floor, listening out for the sound of Kate telling Sophie she could leave for the day. It was all coming together quite nicely.

  A few moments later Georgina waited by the elevator door. She’d glared at a couple employees who had dared to think they would get in the elevator and ruin her precision timing. Miraculously, they had a last-minute desire to take the stairs.

  Kate arrived with her bag and coat, and Georgina pressed the call button.

  “So, what brought this change of heart on?” Kate asked, apparently eager to know what she was getting herself into.

  “Oh, nothing much. Sophie, are you heading downstairs?” Georgina called out.

  “Um, y-yes, I suppose.” Sophie rushed to gather her belongings.

  Georgina stepped inside the waiting elevator and held the button to keep the doors open. Kate stepped inside, and a few moments later Sophie joined them. It was all too easy.

  “Oh, you know, I’ve forgotten my umbrella,” Georgina said.

  “It’s not raining.” Kate frowned.

  “I heard there was a chance of rain this evening,” Georgina explained.

  “I hadn’t heard that, it’s supposed to be dry all week,” Sophie added.

  “A recent development. I like to keep a close eye on the weather. I don’t want to hold you up, Sophie. I’ll meet you in the lobby, Kate.” Georgina slipped out of the elevator, pressing the button to close the doors as she left.

  She looked across the office to the IT technician she had managed to snag earlier and nodded her head. He swallowed and nodded his head in return. She crossed the room and approached him.

  “Is it done?” She looked at the gibberish on the computer screen.

  “Yes, and I’m going to be fired.” He ran his hands through his hair and sighed.

  “That’s only going to happen if you let them out too soon,” Georgina assured him. “An hour and a half ought to do it.”

  “Kate’s going to kill me.”

  “Kate doesn’t need to know that this happened. As far as Kate will ever know, this is a simple elevator malfunction.”

  “And a telephone malfunction, and an alarm malfunction,” he added.

  “Details.” Georgina waved her hand. “Trust me, everything will work out wonderfully.”

  She walked back towards her office, feeling very pleased with herself.

  In just one day, she had managed to fix everything. After she had grovelled intensely, she and Jessica were on their way towards fixing things. She had explained her feelings, her thought processes in a way she had never done so before. She admitted things that she hadn’t even admitted to herself. Once she started, she’d found it hard to stop. They spoke for two hours, Georgina making promises, Jessica giving reassurances.

  It was the happiest Georgina had felt in years. And she knew she had a debt of gratitude to Kate. It was so very obvious that Kate and Sophie had feelings for each other. Georgina recognised much of herself in her rival.

  Kate was bound by her duty to her staff member. She would never even dream of doing something that could be construed as taking advantage of Sophie. The chance of Kate ever making the first move was out of the question.

  It would all come down to Sophie. But Sophie would never admit her feelings to Kate, not under any normal circumstances. Much like Jessica. The similarities were staring her in the face, as was the solution. If it had worked for her and Jessica, then surely it would work for Kate and Sophie.

  Chapter 33

  Kate pressed all the buttons on the control panel again. It was the third time she had gone through every single button to no avail. She picked up the elevator phone again and tapped the receiver to try to get a line. Everything was dead.

  Sophie stood in the middle of the elevator cart with her mobile out. She held the phone in the air.

  “There’s never a signal in here,” Kate explained. “We’re in a metal box, in the middle of the building.”

  Sophie lowered her arms and looked at the screen.

  Kate couldn’t believe her luck. She hadn’t even wanted to go out for a drink with Georgina. She was just so curious what the woman was up to. The sudden email with all its helpful information was a clear indicator that she’d either lost her mind or been abducted by aliens. Perhaps both.

  And now she was stuck in the elevator with Sophie. Sophie, who she had been happily avoiding for the entire day. They’d yet to speak about the press launch, and Kate wanted to keep it that way. She’d sent a short text message in reply to Sophie’s eight messages, informing her that she was fine and th
at the conversation was over.

  But still the girl was giving her strange looks. Probably pitying her.

  “Georgina will notice that the elevator isn’t moving and will call someone,” Kate mused. “We’ll be out of here in no time.”

  Sophie softly nodded and put her phone in her bag.

  The silence was deafening.

  Kate could feel her headache throbbing behind her eyes. This was the absolute last thing she needed. An awkward encounter with her assistant.

  “It’s weird that the alarm isn’t working. Or the phone,” Sophie mumbled. “Didn’t the engineer check it last month?”

  Kate thought back to the stacks of invoices she had recently signed. Sure enough, she could remember one from the lift maintenance company.

  “Well, they’re sacked,” Kate said.

  Suddenly she heard a sharp intake of breath. She looked at Sophie curiously. Something was wrong.

  “What?” Kate frowned.

  She saw Sophie swallow nervously. Sophie had clearly had an epiphany and wasn’t about to share it.

  She put her hands on her hips. “What?” she repeated.

  “Georgina doesn’t have an umbrella in her office,” Sophie whispered.

  “So?” Kate frowned. Then, she began to realise what Sophie was suggesting. “Are you… are you saying that she trapped us in here?”

  Sophie slowly nodded. “I think so.”

  “I knew she was up to something!” Kate dropped her bag to the floor. She stared up at the ceiling, wishing she could somehow glare at the woman who was no doubt standing above them and laughing. “I’m going to murder her.”

  Sophie lowered her coat to the floor and sunk down against the wall.

  “What possible reason could she have for trapping us in here? What can she possibly hope to gain?” Kate fumed as she paced the tiny space.

  Kate looked at her watch. “Ten minutes. Ten whole minutes have passed. If she wasn’t behind this then she would have raised the alarm by now, and we’d hear men… fixing… whatever sounds you hear when men are fixing whatever it is that needs to be fixed. But we don’t hear those things.” She stood in front of Sophie and glared down at her. “And why do we not hear those things, Sophie?”