The Pink Rose: Secrets, Love and Betrayal

by Alicia Roberts

  ***

  "No way. No. Way."

  Zora spent the first five minutes of their conversation alternatingly expressing disbelief, swearing like a sailor, and exhorting Amy to tell her everything without giving her enough time to say anything at all.

  Finally Amy managed to get a word in. "It's really not a big deal."

  "Not a big deal? Are you nuts?! You've really lost it this time, girl. I'm coming over, this is too big."

  And within an hour, Zora'd appeared, filling the tiny apartment with her massive personality; her streaked blonde hair, pointy stilettos and gorgeous dress a striking contrast against the boring furniture.

  "Tell me everything, how it happened, what's happening next, everything."

  Zora was thin and glamorous, her perfect skin glowed, and she looked like she'd just walked off a Hollywood set. In reality, she was a tough, hardworking consultant at one of the most renowned firms in the city, and she'd almost definitely come straight from work.

  She found Amy's liquor cabinet and quickly made margheritas for both of them, waving aside Amy's protests and giving her a chance to talk about what happened.

  After hearing the details, Zora narrowed her eyes disapprovingly. "So you're saying he's good in bed but a jerk outside."

  "No, that's not true at all," Amy countered, but Zora didn't seem convinced.

  "So he's had a few dud girls, and you're going to let him walk all over you?"

  "Of course not." Amy refused to let Zora ruin her good mood. "I'm just having fun."

  "Right, like the last time you thought you were having fun till you discovered you were in love and wanted to settle down?"

  Amy sipped the drink and tried to summon a boldness she didn't feel. "It won't happen this time."

  "Well, be careful, hon."

  Zora had finished her drink and was already rifling through Amy's wardrobe, obviously trying not to make a mess but not succeeding.

  "You've got nothing to wear," she declared, as if she'd just made a major scientific breakthrough.

  "What do you mean, I have heaps of - "

  "Boring work clothes. What you need is seduction clothes." Zora raised an eyebrow and pouted seductively. "You're sleeping with the boss, you should look like it."

  Amy blushed furiously. "Of co - "

  "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. But you need some sexy blouses, and make sure you wear makeup. You don't want him to ditch you the moment he sees you at work again."

  Amy looked at her thoughtfully. She did have a point, and she could look professional while still… she made up her mind.

  "You're right. I'll get some new things."

  "Now."

  "Now?"

  Zora picked up Amy's bag and tossed it to her. "No point waiting, I know you'll just change your mind, and we're leaving immediately before the shops close."

  "Plus, you have to get back to work."

  Amy couldn't help teasing, but Zora frowned. "I'll have you know I have a hot date tonight. You're not the only one with - "

  "Oh really?" Amy couldn't believe it. "What's his name?"

  "Connor. I found him online, and this is our second date after Friday night, so, yeah, shut up already."

  But Amy couldn't shut up, and they joked and laughed as they headed to Zora's favorite stores and picked out some cute but work-appropriate clothes.

  Chapter Six

  The meeting with HR was first thing Monday morning, just as Max had told her. What he hadn't told her was how grim the whole affair would be.

  Louise, the head of HR, was a grey-haired, long-time Zetta Corp employee. And her eyes were stern and disapproving as she handed them each a contract to sign.

  Amy felt the judgment exuding from her. "Sleeping with the boss to get ahead" was the vibe Louise gave off, and Amy shuddered inside. She'd always liked Louise, who constantly encouraged women to apply for promotions and seek good career opportunities.

  But yesterday, after their shopping trip, Zora had warned her to be careful. "HR only looks out for the company's interests, not the employees'. So if something does go wrong they'll never protect you."

  Amy knew Zora was right, but Louise had always been so nice to her before, and she hadn't expected this chilly reception.

  Max rifled through his papers, signing and initialing everything blindly. Louise had given him a chilly look when she'd said, "It's best not to get involved with employees," and she was one of the few people at work who weren't scared of Max. But obviously Max knew what he was signing, and Louise's coldness to him must have been an act.

  Amy took her time reading through the contract carefully. Some of it was legal jargon, and she had to read it two or three times, but eventually she got it.

  "A clause saying you can't sue them won't be held up in court," Zora had told her, "And you can sue anytime if you've been mistreated. But make sure you're not signing away your firstborn, or something that they can uphold."

  "I would never sue Max!" Amy had been sincere in her protestations, but she didn't trust lawyers any more than Zora did, so she took her time signing the contract.

  "We're planning to keep this a secret," Max told Louise, and the grey-haired HR boss nodded in agreement.

  "That's a good idea. The fewer people know about this, the better." She turned to Amy, who was still bent over the papers. "Have you told anyone?"

  "No." Amy lied and shook her head quickly. Zora didn't count. And she'd told her cousin Nicky, because she'd called last night and badgered her till she'd admitted she was dating Max.

  "Good, we're not letting this spread any further. Now if you're done with those papers … "

  Louise held out her hand for them, and Amy signed the last page with a flourish. There. Not that those papers mattered anyway.

  When they left, they headed straight for Max's office.

  "You took a while with that contract." He smiled as he settled down on the sofa.

  Amy nodded. "I don't trust lawyers, I needed to make sure they didn't slip something strange in there. Like having to bring you lunch everyday or something."

  They both laughed and Amy touched the tiny pendant she was wearing around her neck, wondering if he noticed that she wore a bit more makeup today than usual. The girl in the cubicle next to her had commented that she looked "fresh" today, and Amy hoped that was a good thing.

  "We agreed on no gifts," she said softly.

  "Wrong. You said gifts are ok on special occasions."

  She sighed. "I meant like an anniversary or something."

  Max knit his eyebrows and said, "Do you not like it or something?"

  "No, no, I love it! It's perfect."

  "Then what's wrong?"

  Amy blushed. "You shouldn't be buying me stuff. I don't want you to think you can buy me."

  "I know I can't. Though I have noticed that you'll do anything to wake up in the morning…"

  She let him draw her close into his arms, and his lips met hers with a burning heat. But just then his intercom buzzed.

  "Max, your brother Matt's here to see you?"

  They pulled apart, and Amy stood up, straightening her skirt.

  Max looked at her regretfully, but he knew that work had to go on. "Send him in."

  Amy slipped out gracefully, leaving him to deal with his work.

  ***

  The moment Matt walked in, Max knew something was wrong. His face was dark and he stared through Max.

  "Well?"

  Matt leaned back. "Nicky Dunn's done it again."

  "Done what?"

  "What do you think?"

  Max walked over to the kettle he kept in his room and started to make himself some tea. "Well, our next target was FT World. So…"

  "Yep, she's made a bid for it."

  Max let out a curse. "How did she know?"

  "You tell me. Did you tell anyone?"

  He remembered telling Amy, but she wasn't really interested and didn't seem to have a good opinion of Nicky. Matt didn't need to know about his
carelessness. "No."

  "Ok, well, we need to do some damage control then…"

  Matt shook his head and sighed out loud. In their business of buying up underperforming, undervalued companies and making them more efficient and profitable, a competitor finding out their research and potential targets made life so much more difficult. Nicky was bidding up prices and making once-lucrative targets become not-so-lucrative by reducing their profit margins.

  As they hashed out a plan of attack quickly, Max became convinced that his father was probably right about the mole, as he was with most things.

  After Matt left and Max continued with the rest of his work, overseeing how things were going with their other companies, he wondered if there was some kind of bug in his office. Had he been watching too many spy movies? Maybe. But there was no one else he'd told about the FT World plan, and he was going to bring in someone to sweep the office for bugs…

  ***

  Over the next few months, things went quite smoothly for Max. In fact, he was surprised at how easily things progressed.

  He and Matt decided to feign disinterest in FT World. If Nicky thought they weren't interested, and if she'd heard about FT World through someone who knew about Zetta Corp's interest, she might get scared off if Max didn't make a move. And that was exactly what had happened - Max had lain low, and Nicky had lost interest.

  Now he'd wait for the right time and make the owner an offer. In fact, Nicky had helped him out in a way by making a bid for FT World - now the owners would think potential buyers were flaky and not so interested, and that they'd have to be willing to be flexible if they really wanted to sell.

  Max had also had the office swept for bugs. Of course, nothing had turned up, and he got the feeling that some of the employees were having a giggle at his expense. But the sweep had seemed to work in a different way - they hadn't had any more problems with Nicky bidding up prices for companies they were interested in. Perhaps the mole had been scared off.

  The next purchase would be the Reviera luxury handbags company. Max knew that Zetta could do a better job marketing the bags and making more money overall. And he was extremely careful not to mention it to anyone. Except Amy - it had slipped out one night after their love-making when Amy had asked him what he was thinking about. He'd gotten flustered and just said the first thing that came to his mind.

  Amy had made a funny face - so seeing her naked made him think of work? But she hadn't gotten mad like he thought she might. Instead, she just laughed it off as him being a workaholic.

  Apart from the thoughts that popped up in his mind once in a while, things with Amy had been going well. Almost too well, he thought.

  Their passion seemed to burn brighter the longer they stayed together, and he never ever seemed to have enough of her. He'd expected to get tired of her in a few days, and she'd switched to a new (and much better paying) job expecting the same, but their bodies reacted unpredictably. So every weekend they'd have two crazy days together, before he dropped her back at her apartment.

  Now that they weren't working in the same office, they didn't bother to be super-secret about things. He took Amy to galas and parties with him - she shared his disinterest for those gatherings, and they'd rush past the paparazzi, say a few quick hello's and then get back home. Sometimes they'd meet up with Zora and her new boyfriend, and have fun just hanging out and relaxing.

  In the end, there were only a few days in the week when Amy and Max didn't meet up and spend time together. Max wasn't only attracted by her beauty and how good they were together in bed, he loved spending time with her, telling her about how his day had been, his childhood, and his plans for the future. And he was surprised that he even enjoyed listening to her - and now he was worried.

  Doubts began to creep into his mind, did he want to settle down after all? Things with Amy were so comfortable and fun - but surely he didn't want to get into a relationship with her? There were dozens of other women out there who would love to date him, and they were prettier than her and from old, established families.

  Had he been unwilling to settle down because he was waiting for a love that would knock him flat on his back? Was he in love with Amy? The last thought sent him into a state of panic. He didn't believe in love. But why was he so addicted to her?

  He knew what to do. Much as he hated his family's constant commentary on his love life and the fact that they’d been insatiably curious about Amy since he’d told them about her, they'd probably understand what was going on.

  ***

  "We really are going to your parents' house."

  Amy tried not to sound too surprised. He'd told her where they were going beforehand - it's just that she hadn't believed him, figuring it was a joke. After all, he'd told her weeks ago that none of his girlfriends had ever met his parents - except for Chloe, who'd maneuvered to "run into" them. And her plan had backfired since neither of his parents had liked her.

  And if they hadn't liked Chloe, why would they like her? Chloe had a lot of things going for her - her great looks and an amazing family background and elegance and… well, she wouldn't depress herself with that list, Amy decided.

  The last few months had been amazing. Switching jobs meant that she was no longer "sleeping with the boss" and the weight of secrecy had been lifted off her shoulders. Both she and Max had fallen into a comfortable routine - weekends and frequent weeknights together.

  The only thing that made her feel uneasy was the fact that she hadn't yet told Max that Nicky Dunn was her cousin. For the first few weeks, she thought they'd break up soon, so what was the point of saying anything? But now they'd been together for a while, and the longer she didn't tell him the worse she felt

  She tried not to read too much into Max's taking her to the Sunday family lunch. She didn't want to think he was falling for her - but what else was she meant to think? They'd been together for longer than most of her brief "relationships" and far longer than she'd expected. Could it be that…

  No, she pushed that thought from her mind. What was more worrying was that she was feeling herself falling in love with him. And that could never happen. She'd never meet Mr. Right if she kept falling for the wrong men. Her biological clock had started ticking, and maybe it was time for her to move on.

  Max had warned her about his family - they were "rude", "nasty", "immature" and a whole lot of other unpleasant adjectives. Combined with the fact that they hadn't liked Chloe, it was hard for Amy not to be nervous as Max pulled up to the house.

  The house looked large and imposing from the outside, but inside it was warm and cozy. And as soon as they stepped in, Max's family greeted them loudly and excitedly, they were all happy to meet her and eager to know more about her. It was impossible to be nervous around such a boisterous and good-natured group, even Max's parents were friendly and looked on at his siblings with indulgent pride.

  Amy realized that she didn't have to try to impress anyone - they were down-to-earth, fun-loving people. So she laughed at their jokes, and when his siblings told her stories about a younger Max, she thought they were hilarious. Of course he frowned and grumbled and tried to get them to shut up, but Amy encouraged his sisters to tell her more, and soon she had enough embarrassing stories about his childhood to tease him for an eternity.

  Lunch was a delicious pot roast, and over the meal everyone traded stories of their week. Amy was impressed that everyone had their own careers and interests - nobody expected to get a trust fund and live off it. When Max's sister, Violet, asked her where she'd grown up, she found herself telling them all about her father's death, and the fact that she'd lived with her aunt for a while.

  Of course, everyone sympathized immediately, and she bonded instantly with Mel, Max's cousin who had lived through something similar.

  After lunch, Max's parents called him aside to talk with him in the study - Amy assumed it was something about work - and she found herself chatting with Mel. Both their experiences growing up and moving on beyond their
parents' deaths were different, yet alike on so many levels.

  After Max emerged from the study, they got up to leave. Matt had driven there on his own and didn't need a lift back, so they said their goodbyes and left together.

  "What did you talk about in the study?" Amy asked, once they were in the car. "Work stuff?"

  Max shrugged. "Yeah, mostly."

  It sounded like something private, and Amy didn't want to probe too much, so she dropped the subject, and they talked about other things instead.

  ***

  Amy picked at her food, wondering if now was the right time to tell Max about the fact that Nicky Dunn was her cousin. The bidding war between the two seemed to have cooled down a bit, and she'd had such a good time with his family.

  "Amy?"

  She looked up. Max must've said something she missed, so she smiled at him and cocked her head.

  "What do you think of this place?"

  The cozy bistro was dark, and they were sitting in a private corner. "It's nice," she murmured. He always did pick the nicest places.

  "Nicer than my place?"

  Amy looked puzzled. "It's the complete opposite."

  Max's place was sunny, open and airy. The question didn't seem to make much sense.

  Max looked at her and began to mumble something.

  Amy frowned. He'd never been awkward around her before, or had a hard time saying something. Was he trying to break up with her? It certainly was a small, private bistro.

  "Max, is everything ok?"

  "Um. Amy, you like my place, right?"

  "Sure, I mean, it's nice."

  "So, will you move in with me?"

  Amy looked at him in shock. She put her fork aside, her meal untouched. And then the anger began to build up inside her.

  "You don't seem to realize this," she said slowly, "But moving in isn't exactly something you do lightly."

  "No, I do realize it. I want you to be near me."

  She shook her head. "No, people move in together when they have a relationship, when they want to move things forward. You've always made it clear, our deal was a fun time together, and moving in was not a part of that."