Nothing comes. The sea of stunned and accusatory faces in front of me blurs into one giant look of accusation and heat suddenly blooms down my back. A rush of goosebumps follows down my arms and legs as my gut tightens and for a single second, I fear I’m about to throw up.
“It’s true!” Jimmy’s suddenly on his feet and pointing a finger directly at me. “I knew from the get-go that she was up to no good. Sneaking around thinking I wouldn’t notice and the moment she falls into bed with him, all he can talk about is howwonderful the website is! I won’t let this fly,” he yells. “Not for a second, I won’t stand for this!”
As loud as he’s yelling, he cuts himself off when Elijah whips around to glare at him and what little confidence Jimmy has immediately melts into a rough cough as he looks away.
Tears sting behind my eyes and my chest tightens, each breath tearing out of me like I’m drowning from a lack of air. Try as I might, nothing works. I can’t speak. I can’t move. I can’t think beyond the utter hurt that radiates in my heart from Victoria.
I thought she was my friend.
I’ve always had her back.
Now she stands in front of me, panting, with nothing but disdain in her eyes. Does she really think I’d sleep with Elijah just to save my job?
“Victoria—” I gasp, but suddenly, Elijah is right in front of me. He grabs me from my seat and hauls me upward in a firm but gentle move and drags me out into the hall.
“Elijah, wait!” I gasp, pulling back against him, but his grip is unrelenting. I blink and tears roll down my cheeks as Elijah strides all the way toward his office.
He opens the door and ushers me inside, finally releasing me, and our eyes meet. “Stay here,” he orders. Then he’s gone and the door closes softly behind him.
A soft sob rises in my throat and I try to smother it with my hands but it still escapes, a pathetic sound in the cold silence of his office.
What am I going to do?
Our relationship, as complicated as it is, isn’t a secret anymore. Those two words Elijah said are the only words he’s spoken to me since hurrying from my home. If he expects me to just sit here and wait while he spins whatever tale he needs to in order to save his own skin, then he’s got another thing coming. Except when the door handle is against my palm, I can’t turn it. Going back out there to see everyone looking at me makes my stomach recoil, and I can’t do it.
I should, but I can’t.
Eventually, I stumble away from the door and hastily wipe away the stray tears that keep escaping down my cheeks. I’m refusing to cry but I feel it, hot and heavy in my chest like a ball of static just waiting to erupt. Victoria’s betrayal hurts. Elijah’s silence hurts. As I walk around his office, I contemplate destroying the place in a final act of defiance before I’m fired.
Fuck his fancy desk and countless heaps of paperwork, or his computer on loan from one of the offices downstairs. Fuck his water jug and fancy, pretentious crystal glasses that sparkle on a tray near the window overlooking the city.
He’ll be fine. Men like Elijah are always fine.
But as tempting as it is, I end up sinking down onto the couch and cradling my head in my hands. No matter what happens, the stain of Victoria’s accusation is never going to leave. Even if, by some miracle, I get to keep my job, no one will think of me the same way ever again. Maybe I should quit and retain some dignity.
As the silence drags on, the tears come and no matter how much I sniffle or wipe my eyes, they keep pouring. One sob leads to another, which snowballs into another and another as my soulseeks permission to let loose. I refuse with all the strength I have and fish my phone out of my pocket to distract myself.
A text from Stacey lights up the screen. It was sent ten minutes ago with a request for drinks this weekend to celebrate how good Nick’s party was. I stare at the text until my eyes blur, then I hit call.
“Hello?” Stacey’s happy tones flood my ear and weaken my resolve to not break down.
“Hi. I’m sorry to bother you at work.”
“Don’t sweat it. I wouldn’t have answered if I were busy. You good? You sound a little… not great.”
“I’m sorry,” I whisper as a hiccup of a sob rushes past my lips.
“Calliope, what’s happened?” There’s such concern in her voice that I almost crumble right there and then.
“It’s awful. You know how Elijah left yesterday? I hadn’t heard anything and I was really nervous about maybe seeing him today. Turns out he’d called a meeting to talk about the future of the company and he was saying all this stuff about changes and closures. I think he’s trying to fire me, maybe out of revenge for Nick or something, I don’t know.”
“What a dick!” Stacey gasps. “That can’t be legal!”
“I don’t know. I don’t know what’s going on. And then Victoria… I thought she had my back.”
“Victoria?”
“The one I was telling you about from the stores? The one I thought I was pretty close to?”
