It's Been You

by Rina Gray

  Just not as amazing as my view of Tiana.

  Richard paused at the door. “Please keep the promotion to yourself. We plan to let the other candidates know after lunch today.”

  Damn. This promotion is already a pain in the ass.

  “Richard, will Tiana and I still work on the smaller accounts together?”

  “Not as many. She’s a superstar, and we need her to lead other accounts. But really, it’s up to her.”

  Nodding, Nathan returned his attention back to the HR guy, droning on about director responsibilities and benefits.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Tiana read the email announcing Nathan as the new director. She had to admit, she was disappointed that it wasn’t her promotion. But after looking at the reports from the analytics, Nathan was cleaning house with his campaigns.

  She wasn’t surprised when Isaac called her into his office to tell her about the promotion. She’d seen the look on her lover’s face after returning from his meeting. Eyes conflicted. Body tense.

  She’d asked him a few times if anything was wrong, but he denied it.

  A sting of betrayal nipped at her heels. Cool it, Tiana. He probably was told not to share. You know company protocol.

  Nathan strode into the office, an unsure look marring his face and his shoulders drooped.

  Tiana crooked her finger. “Come here, handsome.”

  A flicker of hope wavered in his eyes as he walked to her desk.

  “Are you going to stop avoiding me now? Isaac told me hours ago, and it’s been announced via email.”

  Nathan scooped her from the chair, swinging her into his body. “Sorry, Peaches. I just wasn’t sure how you’d react. I didn’t want to lose you over a job.”

  She shook her head. “As much as it pains me to say, you won fair and square.”

  He kissed the top of her head. “Good. So everything is the same. We wake up together, work together, we go to sleep together.”

  Tiana stepped away, an uneasy feeling unfurling in her stomach. “Well … two out of three.”

  Nathan frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “After Isaac told me about your promotion, I asked to work on the opposite side of the business—in the cloth and beauty lines.”

  Nathan folded his arms. “Damn, I know that’s what we agreed, but I didn’t realize it would happen so quickly.”

  “Honestly, I think it’s for the best. And besides, I need the opportunity to lead more accounts. I’ll wrap up my work with Fiete, and then I’ll switch divisions. They’re a billion-dollar business, too, and that’s my fastest way to a director’s position.”

  Nathan groaned. “Damn, you’re right. I’m being selfish. I’m going to miss working with you.”

  “I knew you’d understand.” Smiling, she pressed a kiss on his cheek. “Come by my place tonight. I’m cooking you a celebration meal. Lasagna, your favorite.”

  He grinned. “I’m a lucky man.” His face grew thoughtful, and his voice grew serious. “I meant what I said. Nothing changes between us.”

  • • •

  Nothing changes between us. Tiana’s laugh was dry as a gas tank on empty as she remembered his whispered sweet nothings. Got that right. Sweet-friggin-nothings.

  Days later, Nathan had moved on up to the east side. Weeks later, he’d begun canceling dinner plans and, months later, their nights spent together turned into weekends only.

  Not all his fault. Her replacement on the Fiete account wasn’t as experienced and, unfortunately, Nathan hadn’t been able to delegate.

  But still, he claimed she was more important than a job. He said that he would make it this time. He’d been traveling all week for work and tonight was supposed to be their big reunion. She mentally calculated the canceled dates—this had to be number eight or nine.

  “Come hell or high water I’ll be there, Peaches. You cook the dinner and, later, you’ll be the dessert.” A beep from her phone interrupted her morbid thoughts.

  Sorry. On my way, Peaches. Wear something sexy.

  She huffed and quickly responded to his cavalier text.

  You’re three hours late. Don’t bother.

  Shoving her phone into her pocket, she grabbed the dish and transferred dinner into Tupperware containers.

  “Stupid director job,” she mumbled as she plunked the empty glass into the dishwasher.

  Buzzzzz.

  Tiana stomped to the intercom, determined to turn away her unwanted guest. “What?”

  “Peaches, baby, I’m sorry. Please let me up.”

  “No. I’m tired, Nathan.”

  “I’m not leaving.” His deep voice was hard and determined. “I’ll serenade the entire complex if I have to.”

  Sighing, she buzzed him up. Not in the mood for neighbor complaints.

  The knob to the door jiggled, and she instantly regretted giving him a key.

  “Sorry I’m late. We ran late at the photo shoot and—”

  “I don’t want to hear about it.” She sliced her hands into the air and marched back into the kitchen. “I thought we agreed to not bring work home.”

  Shrugging off his jacket, he placed it on the coat rack. “You didn’t have a problem talking about work before … ”

  “Before what?” She shoved her hands onto her hips. “You mean before your promotion?”

  He leaned against the front door and folded his arms, large biceps flexing under his shirt. “I’m sorry, but this new role is challenging. Exciting, but challenging. I want to be able to share my frustrations and success with my partner. If you’re going to get angry and jealous—”

  No he didn’t! A haze of red filtered her vision. She raised a hand. “Hold up. I’m not jealous of your promotion.” She took a deep breath in an attempt to control her anger. “I’m concerned because in the three months since you’ve been director, we’ve spent more and more time apart.”

  He folded his arms across his chest. “I already told you, it’s not going to be like this forever. You know how it is with a new client. You have to be available at all hours, do a song and dance, and after six months or so, they settle.”

  Tiana shook her head. “There’s always going to be a new or demanding client. You need to learn to delegate. Let your junior teammates do some of the work.”

  Walking into the kitchen, he stood across from her. “Are you telling me I don’t know how to do my job? That I’m not a good manager?”

  Tiana sighed and pressed her hands against the counter, already drained from the conversation. “You need to let your other teammates shine. One, because it keeps them motivated and, two, because you’re going to burn yourself out at the rate you’re going. Something has to give. And right now, you’re pushing our relationship to the back burner.”

  “I thought you’d understand and be a little patient. Have faith in me.” His deep eyes sought hers. “You know how I feel about you.”

  “Actually, I don’t. Why don’t you enlighten me?”

  He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and crowded her. Her behind bounced against the edge of the kitchen sink. “I want us to work, and I’ll do whatever it takes.” He stroked her jaw and stirred her hope. “I care about you.”

  “You care?” She spat the words out as if they were poison and ducked away from his arms. “We’ve been together for almost eight months, and all you can say is that you care?”

  Nathan rubbed a hand over his face. “I see you’re in a mood.” He sighed, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his black slacks. “Maybe I should go.”

  “Yes.” Marching to the door, she yanked it open and then waved her hands toward the entry. “Give me a call when you can use stronger words than care and have more than ten minutes to breeze in and out of my life.”

  “Fine, Tiana. I’ll see you tomorrow at work.”

  Or not.

  • • •

  Anger and frustration burned Nathan’s chest. He took a swig of whiskey and sat on his favorite recliner. Why couldn’t
she understand that work wouldn’t always be like this? And how dare she tell him he didn’t know how to manage his direct reports? The woman had a lot of nerve. He’d like to see how she’d do if the roles were reversed. She had no idea the amount of work and pressure involved with the job. Add to the fact that for some reason his mother had been calling him lately. She’d even sicced her lackey Gerald on him.

  Probably wants me to play the doting son at some charity event.

  If he continued to ignore her—and he had all intentions of doing so—she’d most likely dig up dirt for leverage.

  His phone vibrated in his pocket. Tiana better be calling to apologize.

  “Nathan,” his stepmother breathed over the phone. “It’s your father. He’s had a heart attack.”

  • • •

  Rolling over, Tiana turned her phone back on. She’d turned it off in anger, afraid that Nathan would call with more excuses. Jerk.

  She pressed the voicemail notification that immediately dinged. The familiar Jersey accent cleared her groggy mind. Mr. Goldberg. Her heart stuttered. Nathan had had a family emergency, and they needed her to fill in. He didn’t say what it was, but she was determined to find out. God I hope everything is okay. She rolled out of bed and called Nathan.

  “Pick up, pick up, pick up.” The rings stopped, and voicemail picked up.

  “Nathan, honey, it’s me. Mr. Goldberg just called. Said you had a family emergency. I’m going into the office to take care of a few things for you, but please call me. I hope you’re doing okay. I-I … I love you.”

  She clicked off, sent a quick text to Mel canceling their girls’ day out, and then rushed to get ready for work.

  • • •

  “Tiana, so glad you could come in on such short notice. I know you had paid time off for Monday and Tuesday.” Mr. Goldberg waved to a chair in front of his desk. “Please, shut the door behind you.”

  She complied and then rushed to the seat. “Is everything all right? Nathan had a family emergency?”

  Mr. Goldberg nodded. “Yes, yes. His father had a heart attack.”

  Tiana gripped her seat as her heart beat wildly. Oh, no, no, no! Nathan must be out of his mind with worry.

  “My goodness! Is Garrett, I mean, Mr. Lawson stable? He didn’t d-die?” Tears welled, ready to fall from the bad news.

  Handing her Kleenex, Mr. Goldberg looked curious. “I didn’t realize you and he were so close.” His voice held a suspicious tone.

  Her heart leaped at the subtle accusation. “No, I-I … his father stopped by a few times. Very nice man. I know he and Nathan are close.”

  “Yes, which is why Nathan is taking a temporary leave of absence. Richard and I discussed it, and we think you’d be the best person to fill in. We’ll compensate you for your new responsibilities. As bad as we feel about Nathan and his family, Fiete’s high season is spring and summer. We need to create a blitz digital campaign to generate more sales. Can you handle this while Nathan is out?”

  Excitement bubbled in her chest. “Of course.”

  Mr. Goldberg slapped his knee. “We knew you’d be up for the challenge. Tammy can take over your current accounts and divvy them up amongst the other managers. I want your full attention on Fiete.”

  Tiana stood and shook his hand, trying hard to not give into the feeling that she was shaking hands with the devil. She tossed the feeling off on the way to her office. No, this is the best way to support Nathan. So he doesn’t have to worry about the job.

  Rushing into the office, she called him again. This time, it went straight to voicemail. She lightly tapped her phone against her head. “Think, Tiana.”

  She snapped her fingers. She’d exchanged numbers with his stepmother. Scrolling through her list of contacts, she found Martha’s name and pressed the call button. The call went straight to voicemail, too. Damn. Instead of hanging up, she left a message.

  “Hi Martha. It’s me, Tiana. I’m so sorry about Garrett. I heard about it from my boss, and I haven’t spoken to Nathan since last night. He … well, I just wanted to let you know that I’m praying for Garrett. I know you’re busy. But if you have any time at all, can you call me please? Or text. Whatever you prefer.”

  Tiana sighed after the voicemail limit cut her off. “Might as well get to work.” Turning to her computer, she reviewed the current marketing plan and project management spreadsheet. Scanning the tasks, she could see why Nathan was so busy. He alone had almost doubled the project hours of his team. First thing first, she’d meet with her new team. They wouldn’t be taking advantage of her man anymore.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Nathan clicked the answer button when he saw his company’s phone number flash on the phone screen. “Nathan speaking.”

  “How are you, Nathan?” Isaac’s voice muffled by poor reception greeted him.

  “I’m doing all right.” Nathan hurried down the hospital corridor toward the cafeteria, which had a better signal.

  “How’s your father?”

  Nathan moved his mouth from the receiver and sighed. Damned if he wasn’t tired of the question. He wished he could answer everything was sunshine and rainbows. But it had only been two days since the heart attack.

  “Day by day he’s doing better. Thanks for asking.” He stopped in front of the cafeteria and leaned against the wall.

  “Of course, of course.”

  Nathan could imagine Isaac pacing the floor of his corner office. “Let us know if we can do anything to help. Anything at all, we are here for you.” He paused for a bit. “Well, I know you’re busy, and I won’t take up too much of your time. Richard and I received your email about taking a few weeks off, and that’s fine. As far as working from home for the next month … well … the Fiete account requires a lot of face time and we need someone at the office to lead the team.”

  Acid burned in Nathan’s stomach. Here for me, my ass. He didn’t need this shit. He didn’t need the silent threat of his job in jeopardy lumped on top of his father’s poor health.

  Isaac continued speaking, not realizing Nathan’s mounting anger.

  “We talked to Tiana, and she is going to take over your account. She’s keen to get started and—”

  “Is she?” Nathan asked. He couldn’t remove the coolness from his voice. His heart felt as if it was stuffed and twisted in a meat grinder.

  “Now, now. It’s temporary of course. We cannot and will not replace you. You are a valuable person to our team.”

  Nathan exhaled and gripped his phone. “Of course, Isaac.” He pushed off the wall. “But you must realize this came out of nowhere. I am fully prepared to work from my father’s home. I’m only a drive away and—”

  “I realize that, Nathan. I know you are willing and able to do so and we appreciate your dedication. But Tiana is prepared to step in, and Fiete has requested to work with her in your absence. We’re darn lucky Tiana is able to jump in and help.”

  Sure we are. He clenched his jaw, determined to keep his doubt to himself.

  Isaac cleared his voice. “Besides, we looked at your vacation time and you have nearly eight weeks saved. Take time off and spend it with your father. We’ve got you covered.”

  Nathan’s anger crested, ready to crash. He didn’t want to take it out on Isaac. His heart was somewhat in the right place, but Nathan had no doubt the company was just as concerned, if not more, about keeping Fiete as a client.

  No, his anger funneled to the woman who’d claimed to uphold honesty and integrity. Damn, damn, damn. She’d tricked him again. Each kiss she’d given him was a setup. A setup to soften the eventual hammer that would slam down once she enacted her betrayal. She had waited for the right moment and took advantage when he was at his weakest.

  “Nathan. Are you still on the line?”

  “Yes, Isaac. I’m here. I’ll see you in a month.” His voice was clipped and precise. He wouldn’t allow anything to seep through. He wouldn’t allow himself to feel or think. To think about Tiana’s begui
ling hazel eyes. To feel the softness from her deceiving lips.

  “Good talk, Nathan. We’ll be praying for your father. Oh, and by the way, we’ll need you to send Tiana your latest files and notes.”

  “All the files are stored on the D: drive,” his robotic voice answered. “I have to go. Thanks for the call.”

  “All right, Nathan. Take care.”

  Nathan lowered the phone from his ear. A text message notification blinked on the screen. Tiana.

  Hey, sweetie. I’m checking on you again. Martha told me things are looking better for Garrett. I miss you … Please call me back when you can.

  Nothing about taking over my account. She’d called the morning after Pops’s heart attack, but he hadn’t had the time to call her, so he’d sent a quick message. Between meetings with doctors, calls with insurance companies, and watching over his father, he’d been swamped. He’d planned to call her back today but after Isaac’s call, he wouldn’t call. He didn’t trust her. And if she cared so much, she’d be here with me. Career over love and career over family. Just like Renita. He shook his head. He didn’t have time to obsess about Tiana; he needed to focus on Pops.

  • • •

  Nathan crushed the paper-thin coffee cup in his hand when he spotted the bloodhound—better known as his mother—turn the corner of the corridor. Thank God he’d left Pops’s room to stretch his legs and fuel up on caffeine. Otherwise, that woman would’ve been there to do the very thing she’d threatened all those years ago—to gloat over Pops on his deathbed.

  Her low-heeled pumps tapped against the bright white linoleum floor. Fire burned his veins as he rushed to cover the twenty-foot distance.

  “Get out, Renita.”

  “My, my, Nathaniel. Did your father’s lover teach you those bad manners?” She clutched her pearl necklace. “It’s Mother to you.”

  “You don’t deserve the title, and Pops’s wife’s name is Martha. If anyone deserves the title, it’s her.”

  Martha had been the gentle touch he’d so desperately craved as a teenager. She was at every graduation and every game when he’d played sports. Hell, she was the president of the booster club when he played high school football.