by Alina Jacobs
"No one," she said.
"So you're cheating on me."
"Excuse me? There is no us," she said under her breath. "You fuck me in the copy room. We're hardly in a relationship. Now go away. I'm working."
"Fine," Carter said, stalking out of the bar. He called a town car and waited outside of the bar until she closed out the registers and tidied up.
She froze as he jumped out of the car.
"What are you doing?" she demanded.
If Carter didn't know any better, he would say she looked terrified.
"Were you waiting for me?"
"Yes, I’m going to take you home."
"That’s not necessary," she said, her mouth a tight line, and started to walk off.
"Why are you doing this to me?" Carter called after her.
"I'm not doing anything. Your family hates me. And you…"
"What?" he asked, easily closing the distance between them.
She scowled, and he wrapped his arms around her.
"Why don’t you try to make it work with one of the girls at the fundraiser? They seem more your type," she said, looking away from him.
"I don’t want any of them," Carter said, cupping her face and searching her eyes for some clue of what was really wrong. "Can I please come back to your place?"
"No." She shook him off.
"Why won't you let me into your life?"
She ignored him and hurried away. He walked back to the car and wrenched the door open. He should have known better. Maybe his family was right after all and Allie was no good for him.
Be better. Snarling to himself, he asked the driver to turn around and follow Allie.
After driving down several blocks, he watched her enter a run-down-looking building. A few minutes later, another resident exited the building, and he bounded up, grabbed the door handle, and slipped inside.
He quickly walked up the stairs, listening for Allie's voice, trying to decipher which unit was hers. As he neared the top of the building, he thought her heard her. He paused on the landing. Yes, that was definitely her voice. She was yelling at someone, and her voice was punctuated by Margot's barking.
"Stop it, Arnold! Don't touch me," he heard Allie's muffled yell through the door.
Carter didn't hesitate. He threw himself at the door. It was made of cheap material, and the hinges gave way, and the wooden door splintered then crashed on the floor.
"What the hell!" Carter yelled as he barged into the room. There was a flabby, pasty man wearing nothing but a dirty robe. A porn flick blared on an old TV.
"Who is this?" the man yelled.
"Carter, what are you doing here?" Allie screeched.
"Step away from Allie," he growled and advanced on the doughy man—Arnold, he supposed. "Why are you living in a place like this?" he demanded.
"Get out of my apartment," Arnold slurred, stumbling into Allie.
That set Carter off, and he launched himself at Arnold and punched the older man in the face. Arnold stumbled back and crashed onto the floor.
Allie screamed at Carter, "Stop! You’ll kill him!"
Through the papered-over window, he heard sirens and then heavy boot steps coming up the stairs. Two police officers poked their heads around the doorway.
"What seems to be the problem here?" one of them asked, his voice echoing around the tiny apartment.
"This pervert was attacking my girlfriend," Carter said.
The officer grunted and mumbled a code into the radio on his shoulder.
The other officer checked Arnold's pulse.
"He’s very drunk," Allie said.
"How do you know this man?" the officer asked, taking out a small notepad.
"He’s my landlord, sort of."
"You live here?"
"Yes."
The officer looked around, taking in the soiled mattress, the filthy couch, and the greasy floors.
"Where do you sleep?"
"On the couch."
Carter winced.
"So this man"—the officer motioned to Arnold, who rolled over and started snoring—"isn’t your boyfriend?"
"No, I am," said Carter.
"Since you aren’t cohabitating, miss, you are subletting illegally."
Allie’s face dropped into her hands.
"I won’t write it up if you vacate immediately."
"I can’t," she wailed. "I don’t have anywhere to go!"
"Yes, you do," Carter said. "Thank you, Officer. We’ll leave immediately."
"See that you do. I don’t want to have to come back here," the police officer warned.
Carter picked up Margot and her bedding. It was filthy from the apartment.
"I hope you don't have bedbugs, Allie," he said, wrinkling his nose.
"I keep all my stuff at the office. I just sleep here."
"Why didn’t you tell me?" he asked, leading her down the stairs.
She started crying. "I'm not your problem."
She tried to hide her face from him, and Carter stopped on the landing and held her gently.
"Look," he said, wiping away her tears. "I… I care about you, okay? I’m going to look after you."
She shook her head. "That’s not what this is."
"Except that it is—this is happening. Come with me." He pulled her into the car after throwing the bedding into a nearby trash can.
"I can’t go to your family’s place," she said, her voice hoarse.
"You aren’t," he told her.
They pulled up in front of a fancy hotel.
"I cannot afford this," she said, wiping her eyes.
Carter ignored her and led her into the hotel.
"I need a room, please," he said, "and I have a dog, so charge whatever you need for that."
The hotel clerk looked him up and down. Carter watched the man take in Carter's cashmere scarf, bespoke suit, and tailored overcoat and then compare it to Allie's hole-riddled pants and trembling dog. Allie didn't look like she belonged.
"Is there a problem?" Carter asked tersely.
"If you could come with me," the manager said.
Carter and Allie followed him to a back area where a pair of police officers waited with hotel security.
"What is the meaning of this?" Carter demanded.
"You can’t come here with a prostitute, sir. This is an upscale establishment," the hotel manager explained.
Allie saw Carter’s face screw up in rage, and he launched himself at the hotel manager. The heavyset man crashed against a decorative vase. People screamed, and the security officers jumped on Carter.
"Stop struggling!" Allie said as they cuffed him.
"Are you going to go willingly?" one of the police officers asked as they cuffed her.
"Of course," she said. They led them out through the back door into the waiting police car. Carter blinked against the camera flashes. How did people know he was here?
"My family is going to hear about this," Carter snapped as the police pushed him and Allie into the waiting car.
Carter was nursing his bruises at the police station when the Holbrooks' lawyer showed up in the holding room followed by a nervous-looking station captain.
"I hope you didn’t say anything," he said to Carter.
"Of course not," Carter scoffed.
"I can’t believe," the lawyer said derisively to the station captain, "that you arrested an intern, a college student who is working two jobs to make ends meet, and locked her up under suspicion of being a prostitute. I should have you crucified in the press."
"It was an honest mistake."
"And I am sure the police chief will see it that way," the lawyer said, his voice laced with scorn as the captain unlocked Carter's handcuffs.
"Up, Carter. We're leaving."
He slumped into the car with Allie, Margot, and the lawyer.
The lawyer ignored Carter and said to Allie, "We’ll be suing the hotel, of course. I’m already in talks with the hotel's lawyers."
"They'd
better pay," Carter fumed.
"Human trafficking, Carter? Prostitution?" his father said as soon as Carter and Allie crossed the threshold into his family's penthouse.
"She’s not a prostitute. I tried to explain. She was crying and looked disheveled."
"But she is something," Grant said with a frown. "I heard you two talking, over Thanksgiving. I didn't want to say anything, but in light of recent events…"
He trailed off as Carter laughed bitterly.
"That’s not what it looked like."
"I checked your bank account," Kate said. "You’ve been transferring money to her."
"What is the meaning of this, Carter?" Jack said, shaking his fist.
Carter ran a hand over his face and started pacing. "You want to know the truth?" he asked, facing them.
"Please, go ahead," his mother replied. She looked sad.
"I just wanted to piss you off."
"By hiring a prostitute?" Jack raged.
"No," Carter said, "by hiring a bartender to pretend to be my fiancée so you all would be mad and have a fit."
"How childish," Jack sneered. "Not that I expected anything less from you. But of course, like everything you do, Carter, you screwed up."
"I hate you," Carter choked out.
"Well, you aren’t high on my list, either," Jack retorted. "Go shower. You stink like the inside of a jail cell."
"Allie, what are you still doing here?" Nancy asked quietly.
Carter didn't move. He wasn't letting them throw Allie out onto the street.
"Carter got me kicked out of my apartment," she said, leveling her gaze at Jack.
"Of course he did." Carter's father sighed.
"I’m sure she can stay here," Nancy said. "Just to clarify, it was all an act, over the holidays? You aren't actually marrying my son?"
"No, ma’am," Allie said. "I am very sorry to have come across as ungrateful. You were very hospitable despite the circumstances. I apologize for my rudeness."
Nancy gave her a warm smile. "Carter does have a way of convincing people to do what he wants. You must stay here tonight. We’ll figure out your situation in the morning."
39
Allie
Alone in one of the many bedrooms in Carter's family's penthouse, Allie luxuriated in the large shower. She looked longingly at the bath but decided it was too indulgent since it was a work night.
Maybe things are fine now, she thought. A huge disaster had been averted, and Allie had come clean with his family. Maybe, just maybe, this could work between her and Carter.
That night, Allie slept the best she had slept since she’d arrived in New York. She woke up early that morning, dressed, then went downstairs. Marveling at the sheer amount of space, she walked slowly down the wide-open staircase into the main living room that connected to the kitchen.
Margot peered at her from a corner in the room. Allie had bathed her the previous night, and the little dog hadn’t recovered from the ordeal. Carter had put down an old pillow and a blanket for her, and the little dog was huddled up, shaking.
Grant and Kate were at the kitchen table, and a chef was preparing breakfast.
"Good morning," Kate greeted her. "Just in time for breakfast."
"I suppose Carter isn’t awake yet?" Grant asked.
"I wouldn’t know," Allie replied.
The chef handed out plates heaped with delicious food. He had made tiny egg frittatas, broiled vegetables, and turkey bacon.
"We’re doing low carb," Kate explained, and she cut up her food. "We can have some toast or something made for you if you’d rather."
"No, thanks. This is amazing!"
Margot crept under Allie's chair and licked her ankle. Gus bounced around the table, crying for food.
"Sorry about Gus. You're being obnoxious," Grant said to the corgi and gave him some food. "How do you keep your dog so quiet?"
Allie shrugged.
"It’s because you keep feeding Gus at the table," Kate said.
"You feed him too!"
Allie smiled at their banter.
"Speaking of dogs, since you have nowhere to stay right now, do you think you could stay here and dog sit for the next few weeks?" Kate asked. "Grant and I are heading on a work trip. We’ll be in and out but mostly out."
"Of course," Allie said, surprised that they even asked.
"We were going to have Carter do it, and I suppose you guys can tag team, but it sounds like you're the more responsible one, to be honest."
"I’m responsible," Carter called out as he staggered into the kitchen.
"You aren't even dressed," Grant said. "Did you even shower?"
"I'll shower after breakfast," Carter said, stuffing his eggs into his mouth.
Allie took Gus and Margot for a quick walk, then she joined the three Holbrooks in a car and headed to the office.
"The lawyers are going to be dealing with the hotel. They’ll be in contact with you," Kate said. "I'm copying you on this email."
"Why?" Allie asked. "I thought it was all taken care of."
"They’re working out a settlement."
"A settlement!" Allie exclaimed as the car stopped.
The driver opened the door for them.
"Of course," Grant said, "and it will be very generous. You’ll keep the money minus the lawyer fees. Carter doesn’t really need it."
"Oh." Allie felt shocked. She wondered how much money it would be.
The days grew warmer as the weeks went by. Allie still felt slightly on edge in the penthouse, alone with Carter. She would lie next to him at night and try not to silently freak out.
It did help that they had the dogs as a point of interest.
One late night, after Allie returned from her shift at the bar, Carter warmed up food for her. Gus immediately cried and whined for a snack.
"You are so spoiled," she told the fluffy corgi.
"Just give him something so he stops making that noise," Carter said.
"No," she said and picked up the dog and shut him in the bathroom.
Carter sucked air in through his teeth. "Grant's going to be upset."
"That dog needs some manners and training," Allie replied and sat back down to eat. "When he’s quiet, he can come out."
"I’m just so ashamed," she said to Liz over drinks as they planned the finishing touches on Brandy's engagement party that weekend. "It's such a trashy thing to do, sleep with a coworker. If anyone finds out, I'm finished."
"It's fine. It happens. Carter seems like he's pretty serious about you."
Allie grimaced. "I don't think he can be serious about anything."
"But you two are living together."
"Yes, in his family's penthouse."
"It's a nice penthouse," Liz said.
Of course it is, Allie thought. It was everything she had ever wanted. But it wasn't real. It wasn't hers.
Allie turned the conversation back to the engagement party. It felt as if she spent her meager free time with Liz, planning Brandy's wedding events.
This was in addition to the normal work she was doing, which involved a lot of scenario testing and human-behavior modeling. She set one program to run and watched the little dots representing people bounce around the screen.
She started when she saw motion in her peripheral vision.
It was Vance. He was on their floor, looking around. Carter was upstairs, and she wondered if Vance was trying to make sure Allie was alone before coming to talk to her.
"Can I help you?" she asked as she stood up.
He looked over her shoulder. She had papers strewn on her desk about the Halcion Drone project.
"Just seeing if you made any progress," he replied.
"I'm busy," she said.
She knew how to handle belligerent drunks, but slimy businessmen were another story. Vance could bring lawyers down, sue her, or have her fired.
"Just know I'm watching you," he said, and she suppressed a shudder as he left.
40
Carter
Carter liked living with Allie. It felt right, being with her.
They had a comfortable rhythm in the empty penthouse with Grant and Kate gone. Carter's favorite part was lying next to her at night, his arm draped over her.
A couple of days before Brandy's engagement party, he played with the dogs in the penthouse while Liz and Allie went over last-minute items for the party.
"Grant and Kate will be back for the party," Carter said, "so it will be a full house."
"She's staying with me, Carter," Liz informed him. "We have to help my mom set up for the party."
"I guess I'll see you over there," Carter replied.
Allie looked at him, incredulous. "You're coming to help, too, so I don't know what you were planning on."
Carter sat in the car on the way over while Allie and Liz went over Brandy's wedding choices.
"She wants orchids," Liz said. "And hydrangeas. They aren't going to be in season, of course."
"What is her budget?"
"Unlimited," Liz said, making a face. "Her father doesn't want to deal with the fallout if Brandy doesn't get what she wants."
Carter let his mind wander while the girls talked about the wedding. He had never thought seriously about being married. A large party didn't interest him that much. He was experiencing the residual stress of wedding planning just by living with Allie, and he didn't know if he wanted to repeat it.
As they pulled up at the Davenports', the caterers were already arriving. Inside the large house, flowers and lengths of fabric were being hung around the room for decoration.
Liz's mother hurried into the room and hugged her daughter.
"Eric isn't here to help," Mrs. Davenport announced. "But I see you brought a big strong man with you, Liz. Good girl! Carter! Look at you. A big-shot businessman."
She kissed his cheek. He'd always liked Liz and Eric's mother.
"And you must be Allie," Mrs. Davenport said and kissed Allie on both cheeks.
"This is Carter's girlfriend," Liz announced. Carter felt a thrill of pleasure, hearing Allie introduced as his girlfriend.
"So terrible how they treated you at the hotel. My brother-in-law is on the board, and I have already complained to him. It's unconscionable, especially with your being so sweet to help Liz with Brandy." Mrs. Davenport lowered her voice and said conspiratorially, "No one else wanted to deal with Brandy. She is a handful and very intense. You are a saint, Allie."