by Kelsie Fann
“Are we going to another hipster pizza place?” Darcy asked his sister after the trio got in the car. Georgia shook her head and adjusted her jean jacket. She paired the denim jacket with a pair of loose-fitting cargos. With her hair in a long braid, she looked like she could still be in high school.
Darcy looked like he always did: tall, handsome, and all business in a black suit. She bit the inside of her bottom lip as her eyes met his.
Georgia interrupted her thoughts. “It’s a hipster taco place.”
Darcy took off his suit jacket and rolled up his sleeves. “I knew it.”
“You did not. You thought it was pizza.”
“I knew it was a hipster place. Everyone is going to have a beard, and the ‘locally sourced tomatoes’ will be grown across the country.”
Liz loved hearing siblings banter; it made her wish she had one. The connection between two people, raised in the same house, seemed was magical. Georgia ignored her bother and asked Liz, “Have you been to Shell?”
Liz nodded. “I have. It was good. The tomatoes were very ripe.”
“Where do you find these places?” he asked, turning to Georgia. “What happened to nice steak restaurants?” Darcy poked his sister in the ribs.
“What happened to your walker, Darcy?” Liz jumped in and teased her boss.
“Don’t start, Liz,” he said; his eyes lingered on hers for just a second too long. She held her breath until he looked away.
The driver dropped them off outside the restaurant. It was in an old gas station with a large patio out front where the gas pumps would have been. Mini taco lights hung down form the eves of the building.
“Ridiculous,” Darcy hissed as the trio walked into the taco restaurant outfitted with big, colorful chalkboards and a piñata hanging from the ceiling.
“Every fiftieth customer gets to take a whack,” the waiter said as Liz stared at a huge piñata near the drink station.
Liz knew her work-obsessed mind could really use a whack at the brightly colored treasure chest. “Am I fiftieth?” she asked him.
The waiter shook his head and pointed at Darcy. “You aren’t, but he is.” The waiter grabbed a stick from under the cash register and stretched it out to the suited businessman.
Darcy scowled at the waiter, then at Georgia, and then at Liz. “This is why I hate these places,” he said.
Liz laughed and waited for him to walk out of the restaurant. Darcy looked down at Liz. “Why did you laugh? You don’t think I’ll do it,” he said to her.
She chuckled again. “I know you won’t.”
Georgia confirmed. “Liz is right. There’s no way you’re going to hit that piñata.”
Darcy waited for a few seconds, and then he turned to the waiter. “Give me the stick.”
“Well,” Liz said in surprise, stepping back. She couldn’t stop smiling as Darcy walked up to the bright piñata and smacked it so hard that it was like a bomb went off through the restaurant. Papier mâché pieces flew in all different directions as candy rained down in the middle of the drink station.
Three little kids screamed and ran to grab treats as Darcy sat back down with Liz and Georgia with a smug look on his face.
“Impressive,” Liz told Darcy, and she meant it. It was good to see him do something that wasn’t related to work.
“I got you these.” Darcy extended his arm and opened his palm to reveal two suckers. Liz took the one closest to her, and Darcy locked his eyes on hers.
“Thanks.” She took off the yellow wrapper and popped the sucker into her mouth.
“You’re welcome,” he said back as the waiter set down a tray of tacos. As Darcy, Liz, and Georgia ate, they discussed work, life, and family. It felt like everything was up for discussion.
Except Stella. And Hamilton. And Caroline. After Liz ate her last taco, she looked up and saw Darcy staring at her. After a couple seconds, Liz didn’t think she could handle his gaze any longer.
Liz didn’t know if it was because she’d just inhaled a bunch of tacos, of if she just needed a break from the conversation, but she knew she needed some air. Fast. Just a second to breathe and to figure out how she was going to bring up Stella.
“I’m going to step outside for a second,” she told Darcy and Georgia. She stood up and walked to the door, feeling like she couldn’t get outside fast enough.
Liz pushed open the glass door and leaned up against the old brick building and took a few breaths, trying to slow her heartrate down. She wiped her brow where tiny beads of sweat collected in spite of the January chill.
“Liz?” she heard a familiar voice ask. She turned around and saw the person she couldn’t stop thinking about head toward her: Stella.
Liz opened her arms to her friend and hugged her tightly. Stella’s body felt good and solid in Liz’s arms. There was something different about her, Liz thought, but before she could pinpoint it, the thought disappeared from her mind.
Stella grabbed Liz’s hands. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Liz,” Stella said. Liz looked at her friend as tears started to form in Stella’s eyes. At that moment, even though Stella didn’t say the words “I stole the money,” Liz knew that she had been involved somehow.
“I’m so sorry. It was my fault,” Stella repeated.
“It’s okay, Stella. I mean, it’s not, but it will be.” She squeezed her friend’s hands, and a gust of January air blew between them. Stella’s fleece jacket opened, and Liz noticed a sizeable bump on Stella’s usually flat belly.
Before Liz could stop herself, words flew out of her mouth. “Are you pregnant?”
Stella placed her palms on her round stomach. “Yep.”
The news hit Liz like a bomb. Neither of them spoke for a minute. “Whose is it?” Liz finally asked.
“It’s Hamilton’s.” She rubbed her belly.
Liz froze. Hamilton? Her Hamilton? The realization was like a cold knife slicing its way through her warm heart. No. It was impossible.
Hamilton had just been to dinner with her, and he said nothing about knocking up her ex-employee. Liz could still feel the heat from his lips as they had kissed goodbye.
“Are you sure?” Liz whispered.
Stella nodded again as Liz’s mouth went dry. Liz remembered seeing them together when she arrived at Wayfarer. “I thought you guys were just friends.”
Stella shrugged. “We started off as friends, just hanging out. Then it became a little more. Now it’s a lot more.” Stella’s arms fell to her sides.
All the feelings Liz had for Hamilton evaporated. Liz didn’t feel anything for the handsome man she dated, just concern for Stella, who was now pregnant and jobless.
“Everything okay?” a deep voice asked them. Liz looked up slowly, met Darcy’s eyes, and realized he was right about Hamilton all along. Maybe it wasn’t an old feud about an inhaler; maybe Darcy had actually been warning her.
Darcy and Stella stared at each other for a second; the last time they had been in the same place, Stella got fired.
Liz braced herself for—she didn’t know what. An altercation maybe?
Luckily, Stella spoke first. “I owe you an apology, Darcy. I’m sorry about the money. It was my fault.”
Liz clenched her fists and prayed Darcy wouldn’t yell or be upset with her now pregnant friend, but she didn’t need to worry. Darcy didn’t scream or berate Stella. His eyes, full of concern and not malice, simply looked at her and smiled. “Apology accepted,” he said.
“When are you due?” Liz asked.
Darcy looked down at Stella’s stomach, taking in the situation in front of him.
“In three months. It’s a girl.” Stella rubbed her stomach. “Not great timing,” she said.
“Hamilton’s ready to be a father?” Liz knew it didn’t matter. Stella was more than capable of being a single mom, but she also knew from her own childhood that being a single mom was really hard.
“Well, he hasn’t asked me to marry him yet, but it’s coming!” Stella’s wi
de smile spread across her face and made Liz’s blood run cold.
“And that’s what you want?” Liz asked.
Stella wrapped her coat over her belly. “I love him, and he’s so excited to be a dad,” Stella said.
“I’m happy for you,” Liz told her friend. And she was, but her stomach twisted thinking about Hamilton and the fact that Stella was unemployed. “Any job prospects?”
“Still looking. I’ve been pretty sick, so my mom is here until after the baby arrives. I’m hoping to be on my own soon.”
“Stella!” a woman shrieked. Darcy, Liz, and Stella turned and saw an older woman wearing a long orange coat, waiting at an intersection nearby.
“That’s my mom,” Stella smiled faintly at Liz and Darcy before turning around. “I better go.”
As Stella walked away, Liz felt like she’d gained twenty pounds of emotions. She felt devastated about Hamilton and horrible for Stella. She knew Stella didn’t get along with either of her parents and couldn’t possibly be happy living there.
On the other hand, she felt a little relived that Darcy had been right about Stella taking the money. For Stella to admit she was guilty lifted a huge weight off Liz’s heart. But before that weight could fully disappear, the weight of Stella’s future baby settled into its place.
Darcy and Liz walked back into the restaurant, and neither of them spoke. Darcy slipped his arm around her shoulders, and for a second, she curled up by his side. His touch felt good and solid, but only lasted a second before Liz slid into her side of the booth.
“What’s going on?” Georgia asked after a few minutes of silence.
Before Liz could answer, Darcy stood up from the table. “Georgia, I’m going to have to skip out on our weekend. I have some errands I need to take care of tomorrow. See you in a few weeks in Chicago.”
“Okay.” Georgia stood up to give her brother a hug.
“Goodbye, Liz.” Darcy bent down and kissed her on the cheek. Liz could barely feel his warm cheek brush hers; her heart was too busy aching for Stella.
19.
“I saw Stella,” Liz told Rose the next day as she arrived at work. She’d debated all night about whether to text Hamilton or not, finally deciding against it. He would just make up an excuse. She finally realized he was the kind man who could talk his way in and out of any situation.
Rose stopped typing and slowly looked up from her computer. Her mouth was tight, and her face told Liz that she already knew where this conversation was going.
“Did you know?” Liz asked.
Rose nodded, and Liz felt like an idiot. Of course, she knew. Rose was best friends with everyone; she was always the first person anyone went to when they needed to talk.
Rose tucked a stray piece of hair into her neat bun. “I almost didn’t believe her, but her belly doesn’t lie. That’s not just a food baby.”
Liz would have laughed if she weren’t still so stunned. “Sure isn’t.” Liz sat down in the chair in front of Rose’s desk and crossed her legs. She stared at the building door, realizing that while she’d been in here working, the rest of the world had been changing. “You could have told me what was going on.”
“I only found out a few weeks ago. I wanted to tell you, but you’ve been working eighty-hour weeks. I didn’t want to add anything else to your plate,” Rose said.
Liz tipped her head, looking up at the ceiling. Her hair bounced against the back of the chair. “I don’t deserve you, friend.”
She looked up, and Rose smiled. “No one does.” She winked as she finished typing on her computer.
After a few moments of silence, Rose took her hands off her keyboard and faced Liz fully. “I’m worried.”
Liz couldn’t even imagine all the hormones, aches, and pains that went along with having a baby. “What can we do? Other than give her a job, but I don’t think Darcy will hire her back.”
Rose shook her head. “Hamilton is the person who needs to do something.”
“What do you mean?” Liz asked.
“Last time I talked to her, Hamilton wasn’t even claiming the baby. Says he wants a paternity test. She doesn’t have health insurance.”
Liz stopped, emotions swirling around her again. “Wait. Stella said Hamilton proposed.”
Rose leaned forward. “She told me the same thing at first. Then she called me about a week ago, almost hysterical.”
“Hysterical because Hamilton wouldn’t claim the baby?”
Rose shook her head. “Worse. Stella said Hamilton asked her to make the charges. Said it was only once and that no one would notice. But then he kept using the card. She was pregnant, and she thought if she covered for him, then he would want to be a part of the baby’s life. Then, after she was fired, he dumped her and the kid.”
And there it was. Liz already knew Hamilton wasn’t the man he pretended to be, but now she knew the truth. He was a scumbag.
Liz didn’t think it was possible to feel any worse for Stella, but her heart broke again for her friend. Stella should never have stolen the money, but Liz didn’t know how she would react if the father of her child had asked her to do something simple that wasn’t supposed to hurt anyone.
20.
One week later, Liz, Rose, and Elise couldn’t get over the revelations about Hamilton and Stella. It was like a sad cloud had descended over the office.
How could she have thought Hamilton was such a great person? How could she have fallen for him? Liz’s skin crawled thinking about how Stella’s fate could have easily been hers.
Since it was time for Liz’s quarterly review, she took the opportunity to get a break from the glass walls she’d been looking through. Usually Darcy or James would have flown down to Savannah, but Liz volunteered to make the journey to Chicago to meet with her bosses.
For the first time, instead of being completely nervous about meeting with her boss, Liz felt excited to see Darcy. She could still feel his arm around her shoulders in the Savannah restaurant. Had they finally had a breakthrough in their tense relationship?
Liz got to the Chicago office without a hitch. Unlike the open, glass walls of the Savannah conference room, the Chicago headquarters was separated with dark, rich wood panels. It looked incredibly rich and old-school business-like. Liz took a seat in the conference room, smoothed the skirt of her best black suit, and double-checked her sleek ponytail.
“Liz, so good to see you.” James walked through the conference room doors to where Liz sat. Darcy followed behind, looking down and typing on his phone.
Liz ran her hands down the arms of the expensive leather chair she was sitting in and nodded to James and Darcy who were sitting across the table from her. She was ready for their verdict on her performance.
“Hi, James. Hi, Darcy,” she said to the two men. An immediate smile spread across James’s face as he pushed his ginger hair out of his eyes. Darcy, on the other hand, still didn’t look up; his thumbs flew across his phone.
“First, we think you’re doing a great job,” James said. “You’re consistently gaining new clients; your work is exceptional. Darcy couldn’t have hired anyone better.” James paused for a second and smiled at Liz. “In summary, A-plus work.”
For the first time in a week, Liz didn’t think about Stella or Hamilton. She sat in the big leather chair and let the praise warm her body. She’d put every ounce of energy into getting the office off the ground, and it was finally being recognized.
Darcy put his phone down and unzipped a black portfolio. “Let’s go over your clients.” He launched into an hour’s worth of questions about the new companies she’d brought on board. She was ready, answering each inquiry with just enough detail to satisfy her bosses, but not too much to bore them.
“Wow,” James said after she finished. “Very thorough.”
“Thanks.” Liz looked to Darcy, trying to read his response, but he stared straight through her. What was going on? Was this the same man who comforted her in Savannah?
After a
few seconds, Darcy shut his portfolio, signaling her review was over, but Liz wasn’t ready to leave.
“Wait.” She held out her hand, stopping the partners from leaving. “One more thing. Over the past few months, I’ve been trying to keep costs low. I’ve been the creative manager, sales manager, and office manager. I’m running the place without any help. I need to hire more people now.”
Darcy swiveled his chair away from the table. “It’s not time for that yet.”
“Wait, Darcy,” James said. “I know Denver is still struggling, but Liz has proven herself. Give her some people.”
“Fine.” Darcy’s phone buzzed, and he looked down. “One person should get you started.” Darcy picked up his phone and tucked his portfolio under his arm. Liz studied her boss. Did he not realize how much work she’d been doing? Where was the warm man she’d sat across from at Shell?
“No.” Liz didn’t care how cold he was being; she wasn’t going to budge this time. “I need at least five people.” She needed two more sales guys, an administrative assistant, a sales manager, and someone to oversee creative. Darcy’s head whipped up to face her with a look that made her fingertips buzz with electricity. She was ready to fight.
“That seems fair.” James elbowed Darcy.
Darcy held Liz’s gaze. “That’s way too much. You would be doubling your current staff. Our board won’t approve it.”
Too much? His words sent a set of shockwaves through her system. This man in an Armani suit didn’t want to spring for a receptionist? Darcy should be on his knees, thanking her for carrying his company for the last few months, not debating how many people she needed.
“We’re going to lose clients if we give them a mediocre product or don’t deliver on deadline,” Liz snapped.
“Let’s take a moment to talk this through.” James placed his hand on the table in front of Darcy and tried his best to mediate. “You’re doing a great job, Liz.”