Like Benson imagined, there was no denying it as Kurt sat hard at his desk. “Mr. Carter, I didn’t want to. I swear it.”
Benson softened, but not much. He and Luka sat in the two chairs in front of Kurt’s desk after Benson set the books and papers that were on the seats onto other piles on the desk. “I didn’t think you would, Kurt. I need to know everything, however.”
“Sure, Mr. Carter. And if you still want to fire me, I understand. I swear.”
Luka looked him in the eye and said, “Benson’s not like that. If you tell him everything, he’s going to give you a break.”
Benson smiled at Luka and agreed, “That’s right. I will.”
After they listened to the explanation, Benson told Kurt to go home for the day. He knew Joyce would be in a rage and wanted to save Kurt from her wrath. He and Luka left Kurt’s office, heading straight for Benson’s.
In the elevator, Luka said, “Do you have a bathroom or closet or something?”
“Of course.”
“Let me go in there, and I’ll come out after. I don’t want her to see me and know right off the bat.”
“Guaranteed she knows you’re here, but in case I’m wrong, that would be perfect, actually.”
As they entered his office, Luka looked around in awe. “This is beautiful.”
“I live here often, especially when I got this place going. I wanted something I liked and didn’t have to put up with.”
“It doesn’t look as…”
“Fancy. I know. The bathroom is through that door over there. There’s a very comfortable bench in there, and if you open that door in the cabinet under the bookshelf, you’ll find drinks and snacks. I doubt you’ll have time for snacks.”
Luka kissed him and said, “I’m glad you came.”
“I wish I’d done it sooner.”
As soon as Luka was in the bathroom, Benson called Joyce and tried to keep his voice from revealing his anger. “Come to my office, please.”
“Sure, Ben. I’ll be right there.”
Having the second biggest office in the place, right down the hall, Joyce’s office and his own were vastly different. She’d decorated hers to intimidate. There were tall metal art pieces that were pointed and sharp, like her cold, sharp demeanor. She had white furniture, the thick, long, white oak desk taking up the center of the office.
He’d never liked her office; found it gave off the exact emotion she’d been looking for. She was superior and untouchable. Well, she wasn’t untouchable, not to him. He still held the company, though he was sure she’d thought about how to wrangle it from him time and again.
Joyce came in without an announcement and walked right over to his desk, where he sat, seething with fury.
She sat with a smile and said, “Is this about the new prototype for the banks? I’ve begged Kurt to finish, but you know him.”
He knew immediately what she was trying to do. It wouldn’t work. “Oh? He’s slacking again, is he?”
“Well, he’s never had our work ethic, Ben. You know that.”
He was quiet for at least a full minute, staring at her smug smile. Then, he couldn’t take it another second, never being one to play games.
“You’re just going to sit there, and act like you care about my company, and more importantly, that you care about me?”
She didn’t flinch. She knew Luka was there and could figure out for herself that her scheme had been detected. “I’m focused on this company and you, Ben. I do nothing that isn’t for this company and you.”
“So, trying to pay off Luka and get him out of my life — that was for me?”
“Well, that was more for the company, but you’re one and the same, really. He was a gold-digger, Ben. You had to see that. He took the money and never looked back! So, you’re angry with me for pointing out the obvious, I’m sure, but once you think about it, that he was so easily bribed, well, you’ll see my intentions.”
From his suit coat inner pocket, he pulled the check and slid it across the surface of the desk to her. “This check? The one he never cashed?”
