“Isn’t marriage the most serious commitment?” I argue.
“Not if it’s fake.” He shakes his head.
Not if I get my way.
Roxy’s tablet rings with an incoming video call, and she patches Declan through. Setting the screen on my desk, she angles it so Declan can see us all.
“I hear congratulations are in order,” Declan says dryly.
“You heard about Vireon already?” I try to move on from the Cora topic.
“What’s with Vireon? I’m talking about your marriage. Just don’t fuck it up; my wife is fond of Cora.” Declan signs some papers before he looks at the camera.
“All our wives are fond of Cora,” Corm points out, giving me that we-will-keep-an-eye-on-you look.
“Thank you for the vote of confidence. I’m not going to fuck it up.” I shake my head, annoyance rumbling through me.
As soon as I say the words, my own mind challenges the conviction. I’m going to fuck it up, am I not?
I don’t have a frame of reference for a successful relationship. All my relationships with women were chronically short-term by choice.
My professional relationships are based on negotiations, transactions, a dose of manipulation, and endless networking. I’m pretty sure that is not a solid foundation for a romantic relationship.
The situation with my family is still at sub-zero level. Come to think of it, the people in this room are my only friends, but even with them I’m bound by business.
My honeymoon bliss evaporates at the realization.
“What’s on the agenda, Roxy?” Corm asks.
We spend an hour discussing business, and for the first time in… forever… I can’t wait for it to be over. My usual enthusiasm took a day off.
Between Declan’s foreboding warning—not so welcome—and Cora’s sexting—very welcome—I’m on the edge.
Corm finally adjourns the meeting, and mycolleagues leave. I glance at the fifty emails I received in the last hour, quickly assessing if any of them are urgent enough.
Before Cora, I would have tackled them all before leaving.
Today, I couldn’t care less.
“Did you blackmail her?” Roxy startles me.
“Fuck. I didn’t know you were still here.” I stand up, snatching my jacket from the backrest, the chair swirling.
I put it on, adjusting my cuffs. “What are you talking about, Ro?”
“Answer the question.” Her not scolding me for calling her Ro means she won’t let go of this conversation.
“Of course, I didn’t.” I grab my phone and walk to the door, opening it.
The office hum fills the air immediately, stopping her from further investigation.
“If you used that file to manipulate the woman in any way, I will feed your balls to a stray dog on the street,” she warns.
“In that case, I suggest you find a better strategy to deal with hungry dogs. If you don’t have any otherwork-related, questions, I have to go now.”
“I’m just wondering why a woman who didn’t want to have anything to do with you would marry yousuddenly.” Roxy somehow keeps up, despite my long strides.
I hit the elevator button. “I wore her down the old-fashioned way.” I flip my palms upward, shrugging. “What’s not to love here?”
