“Who’syourride or die now? Sadie?” Pink builds on her neck, and my stomach sinks. I thought I’d managed to dodge this conversation. What’s happening with Sadie is new and precious, and I don’t want to fumble it. I don’t want Jane raking over it, either.
“I have a lot of different friends at work. Des, and yes, Sadie, but …”
“You know she’s a liar, right?”
Something hot and sharp bubbles in my gut. “What do you mean?”
“She told me she went to school at CUNY, but it was very clear to me she was lying.”
A frown whips across my face. “What?”
“You remember when we used to sleep on my friend Belinda’s floor at CUNY when we visited? I talked to Sadie about CUNY, and she was so shifty and embarrassed. She didn’t know anything about the place; she didn’t even know where the classes were held.”
I can imagine Sadie fumbling through a conversation with Jane; she’s often awkward talking to people she doesn’t know. Jane’s interpretation of it makes me want to laugh. “Okay.”
“Okay? Okay? Are you so besotted with any girl that crosses your path that that’s all you’ve got to say?”
Besotted with any girl … “Sadie’s uncomfortable speaking to anyone she doesn’t know, Jane. It doesn’t mean she’s a liar.”
“God, you never believed anything I told you unless I gave you black-and-white evidence! It infuriated me when we were together.” Her face is red now, splotches forming on her cheeks.
Something hot and sharp races through my chest, my pulse exploding. “Oh, because it’s so tolerable bringing your new boyfriend into the bed your old one just left, while you toss him into the spare room like a toy you got tired of. Then you expect him to congratulate you on how nice yournew boyfriend is and say whether he’s a good replacement for you.That’ssuch a normal way to behave.”
Her mouth drops open as she stares at me.
“I might have been annoying but at least I wasn’t oblivious and mean,” I add.
She presses her hand to her face, and I stand up, hands clenched by my side.
“I’ve been trying to be polite and easy with you about this whole thing, Jane. But your behavior has been nothing short of appalling.” And I stomp out the door.
Chapter 28
James
My hands are still clenched into fists when I get to the subway station. What Jane said about Sadie and college keeps running through my head, and I’m so fucking annoyed that she decided to take a potshot at Sadie of all people. And because it’s a potential legal issue, and I’m a director of the company, I can’t ignore something like this, much as I might want to. When I get back to the apartment, I log in to Williams Security’s system to check Sadie’s resume, and, sure enough, she’s got a degree in Computing Science from CUNY. Though there’s nothing about any other qualifications. I wonder when her difficulties at school started? We verify resumes through an online service, and Cath usually emails me the staff checks and flags any issues, so I do a quick search of my inbox. But when I sift through her messages, nothing comes up about the cohort Sadie came in with. I pick up my phone and call Cath.
“James! How are things with Jane?”
“She’s broken her arm and her collarbone, and they’ve put her in a cast. So, it’s all a bit difficult, but she’s okay. I’m back at home and just catching up from here. How did the team meeting go?”
“Fine. I’ll send you a written update. One or two people need some help with some tech issues, but I’ll flag that up when I do the notes.”
“Great. I really appreciate you stepping in like that.”
“That’s why I’m your number two, James. I enjoyed it.”
“Glad to hear it. I’m planning to work here for the rest of the day. I called about something else, actually.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“When we took on the developers just after Des came back from Korea last time, did we verify their resumes?”
“Yes, why?”
“I couldn’t find your email about it, so could you just forward it on to me again?”
She goes quiet for a bit, tapping away on her keyboard. I head into the kitchen and put a pod in Des’s coffee machine. More silence and clicking. “You know, James …”
