Queen B stared at me, her mouth twitching at the corners. Myconfidence shriveled at her smugness, like a penis suddenly dunked into an icy ocean. What was about to go down?
“Sit, please.” His father wasn’t bothering with pleasantries, and there weren’t any donuts or other refreshments—disappointing. This was definitely not a fun get-together that was going to take too long.
Curtis pulled my chair out for me. I took the opportunity to give him an encouraging smile that hopefully saidI believe in you, and I’m here. You got this. His face relaxed as he gave me a small smile. By the time we were both seated, his expression had locked back into DEFCON lets-get-the-fuck-on-with-this-bullshit. Looked like he was done giving his father grace. It was about time.
“So, another bad decision that reflects poorly on our company.” Curtis’s father got straight to it, the wrinkles in his frown of disappointment deeper than the Mariana Trench. “Not only have you courted more gossip and shame than the Knight family has ever had the misfortune to suffer, but you do it with someone who is beneath you in every way. Your secretary, Curtis? Could you be less original?”Secretary?! Okay, so I couldn’t argue with the “beneath him” when it came to our bank accounts, but I was a good person, dammit. I was good like he was good. We were equals in good. That should count. People like Knight Senior and my mother shouldn’t be allowed to have opinions because their opinions sucked. And I wasn’t going to spiral into my own shame and littleness, which often happened when my mother’s voice overtook reason.
Queen B’s smirk expanded, and she nodded. I didn’t want to give them the pleasure of seeing how hard Knight Senior’s insults hit and how annoying Queen B was as his yes-woman, so I imagined her turning into a fly and me smashing her with a flyswatter.
Curtis’s CEO mask melted off, and his chest expanded. His eyes flamed with anger. All he needed to become a phoenix was aset of burning wings. I resisted the urge to check for ash beneath his chair. “How dare you speak about Faith like that! How dare you speak to me like that! I’m the CEO of this company. It’s about time you showed me and the woman I care about respect. She’s standing by me when other people”—he stared at his father before throwing a disdainful side-eye at Queen B—“who should have my back, don’t.”
Be still my beating heart. I knew he liked me, but hearing him say he cared about me… and in front of his father. He was sticking up for me, something no one, absolutely no one but my best friend had ever done. I’d known him for such a short time, but he already outranked my mother on the list of who I could rely on, who I could trust not to hurt me.
Queen B’s face might only be capable of displaying as much emotion as a potato, but her eyes glinted angrily. If she was unhappy about how Curtis felt toward her, she should’ve thought about that before betraying him. If only we had concrete proof. I had no idea if Curtis had asked anyone to look through her computer yet, but even if he had, I had to assume they hadn’t gotten back to him with the results, or he would’ve told me.
Knight Senior’s jaw muscles bunched like a panther about to strike. Why did I feel like I was the deer when he was staring at his son? And why was Queen B smirking all of a sudden?
The hairs on my nape sprung up, and I shivered. Something was… off; I’d bet my holey Docs on it.
Curtis’s father bared his teeth. “Ah, son, while I didn’t think you were ready to run this company, I didn’t take you for a fool.” His gaze cut across the table, skewering me. There was so much disdain in it, I was surprised I hadn’t withered like a deflated balloon and slid under the table. It was hard to hold my nerve, but I’d do it for Curtis. With unflinching resolve, I stared back at Knight Senior and pretended he was wearing a bright pinkmuumuu with “I’m a dickhead” written on it in huge, neon-green lettering. He looked back at his son. “Until now.”
I’d almost forgotten about the suited man. He opened the folder in front of him and pulled out three A4 photographs. Queen B smiled and picked one up, holding it so we couldn’t see what the image was. She perused it then made tutting noises. “Darling Curt, you should know that your father and I have your back in all things. I’m here if you need a shoulder to cry on.” She looked at him and batted her eyelashes. Argh, spare me. I didn’t know what her angle was, but she came across as desperate. Her bony shoulder would be the last place I’d want to cry on. You could lose an eye. If I didn’t know what a bitch she was, I’d feel sorry for her. Pa-thet-ic.
Curtis squeezed my hand again. Barely contained energy vibrated from him. It was as if he was holding onto me for dear life, as if the only reason he hadn’t gotten up and walked out or told his dad where to go in the rudest way possible was because I was here. Before he could say anything, Knight Senior snatched the picture from Queen B and handed it to Curtis.
Curtis’s brow furrowed as he took the picture. “What’s this?”
I saw the image at the same time Curtis did.
Everything in my body went south. My stomach crashed to the floor, the blood draining from my face to fill in the gap where my stomach used to be.
Curtis dropped my hand and stared at the photo of Mark and I sitting together, his arm around me. We’d been at a barbecue at his friend’s house. I swallowed, met Knight Senior’s eyes, and asked, “Where did you get this?”
Queen B’s smirk—was she capable of any other expression?—gave the game away. How hadshegotten this? Mark hardly ever shared pictures of us on social media, and his friends certainly didn’t.
Knight Senior smiled. “That’s none of your concern.” His eyes found Curtis. “Just know that your girlfriend isn’t as loyal as you think.”
Curtis turned to me, his expression wary. “I’m sorry I have to ask, but when were these taken?”
“About a year ago. That’s my ex, Mark. We were at his friend’s place.” My heart thudded painfully against my ribs. I had nothing to feel guilty about where Curtis was concerned. Yes, I’d lied to get this job, but that was all it had been about. I hadn’t betrayed Curtis personally. Had I? Would Curtis hate me when he found out I’d been less than truthful about my employment history? Surely he’d let me explain?
Curtis turned back to his father. “So, what’s the big deal? I knew Faith had an ex.”
My palms sweated. They would know Curtis wouldn’t overreact to something that simple. This was about more than me lying to get this job. Where were they going with it? If Queen B’s puffed-up countenance was any indication, it was nowhere good for me.
Knight Senior looked at Queen B, then back at Curtis. “These pictures are more recent than you think.”
Queen B leaned back in her chair and folded her arms, superiority emanating from her like a cloud of expensive, nostril-hair-burning perfume. I was going to choke on it. “Did Faith tell you she worked for her ex until she was ‘supposedly’ fired from his marketing company… only recently? Did she also mention that the company is Piranha Media, one of our competitors who just happen to have poached two of our major clients? I called Piranha Media, and they wouldn’t admit to anything regarding how they acquired our clients, but Mark, her previous boss, hinted that Faith was here under his instructions. An insider I know at their company told me that Faith was being paid to do Mark’s dirty work. They’ve been expanding operations lately. Their company is growing quickly… apparently at our expense.” She peered at her manicure, admiring it while driving in the final nail. “Faith has no ethics, Curt. She’s obviously the type to sleep her way to the top. You were just a means to an end.”
Curtis’s mouth opened to speak, but nothing came out. He froze for a few seconds. When he turned to me, his expression was careful, closed, and the warmth that was usually in his eyes when he looked at me was gone.
All I could think was, what the actual fuck? The whole thing was crazy. “She’s lying. I wasn’t here except to work for Knight Advertising. All you’d have to do is call Mark and ask. He’ll tell you he didn’t send me here. It’s not like I could orchestrate meeting you and your aunt in that café, not to mention the mugger. It was dumb luck.” Okay, so almost being mugged wasn’t lucky, but the rest was.
Curtis’s chest rose with a deep breath. “Do you work for Piranha Media currently, Faith? Did you date this Mark person while he was your boss? Tell me the truth.” Why wasn’t he listening?
Ignoring the glee on Queen B’s face, I answered, “No, I don’t work for Piranha anymore. I did… before. And, yes, I dated him while he was my boss.” Shame ignited, burning my cheeks to ash. Dating my boss had been a mistake, but was it the crime they were painting it to be? They were acting as if I’d murdered someone. Maybe I should take Queen B out right now—might as well do the crime if I was going to “do the time.”
It was as if I’d flicked a switch, and the light dimmed in Curtis’s eyes. All it took was a few seconds, and it was all over. We were over. My bones ached with the truth of it. But I owed him honesty, no matter how badly it reflected on me. The sense of losing Curtis word by word sliced through me. Every syllable was death by another cut.
