She spun around, finding Christian standing there.
“Can I talk to you?”
Torn between Angelica and Christian, she nodded and walked back toward him. “Sure. What’s up?”
“It’s about Ange.” He tilted his head down to look at her, being much taller than Hope. “She’s…she and our father have never really gotten along. I didn’t think coming here was a good idea. He did. And I know now that I was right.”
“What do you mean?” Hope was more confused now than ever. The issue she had with Angelica wasn’t because of Harold or Christian. It was with how she’d treated Kayla.
“They’re very similar.” Christian sighed heavily. “And I suspect Ange is feeding off her frustration with us being here, which is making her behavior worse.”
“But nothing happened explicitly?” Hope looked at him directly, wanting to make sure that she understood what he was telling her.
“He was trying to tell her how to do her job.”
“Ah.” Hope nodded. “All right. Well, thanks.”
Christian shrugged. “Good luck! You’re braver than I am.”
Hope wasn’t sure about that. Stupidly in love with a woman who had no desire to love her back was more like it. Not that she’d say those words out loud either. Pushing her way into the conference room, Hope wasn’t surprised to find Angelica nose-deep in her iPad, a scowl on her face.
She wanted to be sharp in her tone, but she held back. Perhaps Christian was right, and it wasn’t the time to approach Angelica with anger but with compassion. Hope slid into the chair next to her, putting her hands on the table.
“Angel? What happened out there?”
Angelica looked away from the iPad and glanced in Hope’s direction. “Kayla needed to be fired. She came in drunk today. Isuspected she was drunk yesterday. And I strongly suspect that she has a problem with alcohol, which is why she can’t keep working here.”
“But to do it so publicly?” Hope reached forward and curled her fingers around Angelica’s wrist.
Angelica dropped her gaze to the touch and breathed slowly. “I didn’t have a choice.”
“There’s always a choice.”
“No, there’s not.” Angelica winced and then dug her fingers through her hair as the facade of angry manager faded into painful brokenness.
“Angel… what happened?”
“Kayla’s entitled?—”
“No, Angel.” Hope squeezed her arm lightly. “What happened with you?”
Angelica sighed heavily, her face dropping as that sadness swept through her again. She looked like she was nearly in tears, but managing to somehow hold them back. She leaned back in her chair, her shoulders rounded.
“My father and I have never gotten along, not since Christian was born.”
Angelica had shared that with her before, but rather than interrupting to point that out, Hope stayed quiet. Angelica was someone who needed time to share, and Hope had to give that to her.
“I was second best to the son they wanted—I was the daughter they didn’t.” Angelica swallowed, her throat tightening before it released as her voice was coated thick with emotion. “I will never be good enough for him, no matter who I am or what I do, and I’ve accepted that.”
Hope’s heart shattered. This week was just a reminder of all of that, wasn’t it? A way to put Angelica’s weaknesses as she saw them on display for the world instead of shoring her up assomeone who could do such a damn good job of taking care of others.
“I never thought you would feel the same.”
“Angel…” Hope reached up, brushing the backs of her fingers against Angelica’s cheek, as if following the tracks of the tears that Angelica refused to shed. “I’m not opposing you. Not at all.”
But she wasn’t sure that her words had made a dent in Angelica’s wounded soul, not today. She might never be able to hear those words. Hope wanted to lean in and kiss her, she wanted to comfort her and tell her everything would be all right, but she couldn’t.
“Kayla has everything she could ever need. And all she does is take advantage of that.” Angelica’s lips thinned tightly. “And they let her walk all over them.”
