“Standard procedure?” Minji’s voice is deadly quiet. “There’s nothing standard about the Cayman shell corporations Mr. Thornton created. You missed three of them.Three.” She holds up her fingers for emphasis.
“I would have found them eventually.” William lets out a deep breath.
“Eventually doesn’t cut it when assets could’ve been liquidated daily.” Minji slides a folder across the table. “I’ve drafted a motion to freeze everything until we get full disclosure.”
I scribble in my notebook, not actual notes about the case but observations about Minji. The way her eyes flash with annoyance as she speaks to him. How she taps her index finger twice before delivering a particularly devastating point. The almost subtle victorious curve of her lips when she knows she’s got the upper hand. Good to know the fiery side of her from college hasn’t changed.
For forty minutes, Minji dissects the case strategy while William shrinks in his chair. The paralegals’ fingers blur across their keyboards, capturing every syllable. I doodle what might be the outline of a new character in the margins of my legal pad, nodding sagely whenever phrases like ‘discovery protocol’ or ‘fiduciary obligation’ float across the table. The thought of doing this daily—swimming in a sea of technicalities and loopholes—makes my creative soul wither.
When Minji finally releases us from legal purgatory, I fumble with my notebook and pen, stretching the process of packing up. Just as I’m about to make my move, I catch William hovering near her chair. Shit. His body language screams, ‘I need a private word.’
“Can I speak to you in private?” he asks her.
“I can leave, if need be,” I offer. I can always catch up with her later.
“That won’t be necessary,” Minji says. “Whatever you need to say can be handled via email.”
“This requires a face-to-face conversation, Minji.”
“Schedule it with my assistant,” she replies.“I’m booked solid, and as you are aware, the company photoshoot is today. So please reach out to Eliza.”
“Do you have to always be a bitch?” William sighs. “You know when we were dating, you were never this uptight. Are you not getting fucked regularly?” he whispers, leaning in close enough that the words were meant only for her to hear, but I hear him. I stand instantly, my chair scraping loudly against the floor. Minji’s expression doesn’t change, but I catch the slight tightening around her eyes, the straightening of her spine.
“That’s enough.” I’m not the confrontational type, but when it comes to Minji, I will always be ready to throw down. “You need to leave.”
“This doesn’t concern you. Why don’t you go back to your little romance fantasies, writer boy? This is between Minji and me.”
Any man calling another grown ass man a boy is disrespectful, and I will not tolerate disrespect. I move quickly towards him, and Minji blocks my path, placing her hand on my chest. “Look at me,” she repeats it once more. Reluctantly, my eyes go from William’s to hers. “I got it. No worries here.” She gives me a small smile, and I let out a deep breath.
That bastard is lucky. Minji saved him.
“Mr. Wilson,” she says, turning around to face him. “Your comment towards me was inappropriate, and it’s sexual harassment. If you’d like to continue working at this firm, I suggest you leave now. This is my last time giving you grace. Next time, I’ll be speaking with HR and Caleb about this incident and the one prior.”
William’s face flushed an ugly red. “You wouldn’t?—”
“I absolutely would.” She cuts him off. “And we both know Caleb takes these matters seriously, especially after the Hong settlement last year.”
The mention of whatever the Hong settlement is makes William pale visibly. He snatches up his leather portfolio and stalks toward the door, slamming it shut behind him. Minji exhales slowly, her shoulders dropping just a fraction.
“I’m sorry about that.” She turns around to face me. “William is…”
“A dickhead?”
“I was going to say unprofessional, but your assessment works too.”
I step closer, careful not to invade her space, but I want to be near her. “Were you two really…”
“Unfortunately,” she admits. “Four and a half years of dating.”
“Four years?” I struggle to keep the surprise from my voice. “I wouldn’t have pictured you with someone like him. I don’t know why I thought your type was someone more… I don’t know, manly?”
Minji gathers her papers, avoiding my gaze. “Yeah, well, I believed in that silly thing called love and happy endings at one point in time.” Her voice tightens on the last words. I want to ask her more about William, about what happened, but I remember the boundaries. Her personal life is off-limits.
Instead I say, “For what it’s worth, you handled that with impressive restraint. I was ready to punch the shit out of him.”
“I know. I saw it all over your face, and I’m happy you didn’t. You would have been escorted out of here and not allowed back on the premises, and I’m sure William would press charges.” Her phone pings, and she glances at the screen and sighs. I hope whatever is on her phone can wait. We’re finally talking to each other after three days.
“It’s almost my turn for the company’s calendar shoot.” She sighs. “I need to go.”
