His smile was all polish. “They’ll make sure you’re properly dressed.”
Chad’s face lit up like Christmas morning. “You—really?”
“Of course.” Liam adjusted his cuffs. “I know you have nothing appropriate to wear.”
April thought, not without cruelty, that Chad was a Sterling the way an outlet mall suit was designer. Same name on the label, but marked final sale for a reason everyone could see and no one mentioned at family dinners.
Arthur’s clipboard clicked. “November 8th,” he rumbled from the doorway. “Subscription charges. Netflix. Hulu. Disney Plus. HBO Max. Submitted as ‘market research.’ Please provide documentation on how these relate to marketing strategy.”
Chad's smile faltered. "That's—those are—"
"I'll wait," Arthur said.
Liam turned back to April. “I’ve arranged a fitting for you as well.” He held out his hand. “Shall we? I have a car waiting.”
April tracked the room in quick snapshots: the invitation in her pocket. The flowers bright and defiant on her desk. Chad behind the glass, drowning in his own reflection.
April pushed herself up from her desk. "Let's go."
Liam offered his arm. She took it, and his hand settled over hers with proprietary confidence guaranteed to become office gossip before the elevator doors even closed.
Brenda stepped into their path. Her eyes flicked to Liam's arm, to April's hand resting on it, to the ring catching the light, then snapped back to April with a twisted mouth.
"Wow. That was fast. Guess you didn't need Chad after all." Her voice was crisp with HR authority and something bruised underneath.
April didn't slow. “I didn’t do anything to you, Brenda.”
Brenda’s nostrils flared. “You humiliated me. Everyone’s looking at me. They’re already talking.”
The facts had already sorted themselves: Brenda touched Chad. Brenda got rejected. The office turned it into data within minutes. Slack moved fast.
April didn’t raise her voice. “No,” she said. “You did this. People saw you.”
Liam guided April forward, and the elevator doors slid shut with expensive silence.
Behind them, Chad stood at his desk, staring at the space where his salvation had just walked away with his ex-girlfriend.
Arthur flipped another page on his clipboard.
“December 2nd,” he said. “Coffee. Again.”
Chad tried to speak. “Wait—”
But he was already trapped. Stuck at his desk with his kale and his cursed email signature, watching her leave.
Arthur’s gaze landed on him like a stamp:DENIED.
SEVEN
Wardrobe Adjustments
Liam
The air car was waiting. The driver opened the door and Liam gestured for April to enter first. She touched the leather once before she sat, fingertips checking whether it was real.
Liam slid in beside her, the door closed, and the driver pulled away.
She held herself with her spine almost straight, hands folded a little too neatly in her lap, ankles crossed. He'd been paying attention for three years. He knew what her shoulders looked like when she was braced.
