“Aubrey identified inconsistencies. She brought them to me, I reviewed them. Then we acted. End of story,” she tells Spencer, somehow keeping from reaching across the table and slapping him silly.
Victor exhales heavily. “And you excluded me.”
“No. You were spared an unnecessary interruption for something that we handled perfectly on our own.”
“Still, that paints the image that the firm allows associates to act independently with sensitive matters,” Spencer says, leaning forward.
My voice snaps through the room before I can hold myself back. “The only associate here isyou. And I don’t remember you getting the authority to speak down to a woman so far above your pay grade.”
Rowena clears her throat, and I close my mouth, feeling hot. The curling of Spencer’s fingers on the table pisses me off even more. The watch on his wrist is far too rich for his blood, which means it must have been a gift from the same man who called this meeting just to reprimand me over nothing.
I’d say I was surprised to see a man in power making a show of whipping his dick around in the faces of the two successful women, but I’d be lying.
Victor’s dark eyes focus on me. I meet them, refusing to bend the knee. “Did you believe without a doubt that disclosure was being withheld?”
“Yes,” I answer instantly.
“You’re that confident?”
“If I wasn’t, I wouldn’t have moved forward.”
Silence falls heavily over us. It stretches and stretches as Victor stares at me for longer than I’m comfortable with. While he may be handsome for a near fifty-year-old, he’s so not my type. Even if he is absolutely loaded and very successful.
With each beat that passes and his eyes remain on me, trying to peel back the skin from my face, I actually fidget. My neck prickles with unease as I uncross my legs beneath the table, only to cross them again. I grit my teeth when I lose the unwritten battle I’ve been tossed into.
Finally, he nods and glances away from me to Rowena. “I don’t object to the protection of our clients. It’s the process I’m unimpressed by.”
“Then we can revisit communication protocols at a later date. But I’m not going to punish ajunior partnerfor acting when client assets were at risk.”
My phone vibrates on the polished table. I glance down and read the name.
“I need to take this,” I announce shakily, pushing to my feet.
Rowena nods once. “Go.”
Spencer’s weasel eyes follow me as I rush from the room with the reminder that I chose the right person to guide me through my career. While Rowena would never throw me or anyone she views as important to her under the bus, she didn’t need to protect me so fiercely.
She did that because she believes in me, and that means more than I’ll ever be able to tell her.
“Are you okay? Come in,”I say, fighting to keep my voice steady as I usher Lydia and Nathan into my office an hour after receiving the phone call from the supervision centre.
Lydia’s shaking when she uses the hand on the back of her nephew’s head to guide him over to the couch. Her eyes are swollen and red, with fresh tears still running down the tracks on her cheeks. The boy doesn’t even look at me as he tightens his hold on his backpack and looks around the room, taking it in. His discomfort is obvious, just like his unease with being here after what happened earlier.
I close the blinds to keep some distance between us, giving them some more room to breathe and get as comfortable as possible.
“I’m sorry to show up here. I could have . . . we could have just gone home, but I didn’t know if he’d be there,” she whispers, wiping her eyes.
“Don’t apologize. Just take a seat, and we can talk. Here.” I take the box of Kleenex from the shelf by the door and offer it to her. My phone buzzes on my desk for the third time, and I ignore it again, hating that I know it’s Finn asking where I am. “I’ve already spoken with the supervisor and been informed on what happened.”
She takes a tissue and dabs her cheeks, sniffling. I perch on the edge of the coffee table in front of them and lean over my knees, trying not to reveal how antsy I am. Adrenaline pumps through me at too fast a pace for me to reject it. I’m already thinking of every next step that needs to be taken.
“He hasn’t ever shown up to a visitation like that. Not so angry. So incoherent. I knew he was drunk the moment I heard his voice in the hall, but to see him like that, Aubrey. It was so terrifying,” she explains while wrapping an arm around Nathan and pulling him flush to her side.
“I’m sorry, Lydia. I can’t imagine how scary that was.” Looking at a closed-off Nathan, I chew the inside of my lip before standing and opening the top drawer in my desk. Once I’ve grabbed what I need, I return to my previous spot. “Which do you like best, Nathan? Personally, I’m a Smarties fan, but there’s something about Reese’s Pieces that wins me over.”
He blinks at the two chocolate options I’m holding out before saying, “I like Reese’s more, too.”
I smile and offer him the orange-and-yellow pouch. Once he’s taken it, I set the Smarties down beside me and focus on Lydia. The watery, grateful smile on her face relaxes me a smidge. The water bottles I’ve taken out of the mini-fridge are handed over next.
