I can't hold my giggle back. "So we all need to go celebrate?"
"Yes, after you, dear." Jennings puts his hand out directing me into the car.
I turn and look at the empire we built from the ground up, and I'm surprised that I don't feel any regrets. I lift my chin up. I did everything I could. I look at Jennings and Edward, their grins matching my own.
"Let's go, gentlemen.” I step into the limousine first.
The driver pulls away and I keep my head facing forward.
Never look back, Charlotte.
Two
Checking the world clock on my phone, I see it's midnight in London. I had refrained from telling her that today was the day. She would want to run to my side and, well, her job doesn't just let her leave on a whim. I open our iMessage chat and ponder for a few seconds before I send her a text.
Me: You awake?
I hit send and stare at the screen. In true Louise fashion, it takes only a few seconds before I see the message go to ‘read’ and the little pop up tells me that she’s typing. Then a full minute passes before her reply comes through.
Louise: Yes.
Me: It took you a whole minute to type yes?
Another minute goes by as she types.
Louise: Apparently. She also sends the eye roll emoji.
Me: Sausage finger typing?
I sit back with a grin. Even with significant news like this, I can't resist the temptation to tease her. It’s the little things in life I enjoy.
Louise: Bitch! She says a minute later.
I snicker and decide to stop playing with her. I look around the living room at all the packed boxes. Most of it is going into storage, since I don't have another place just yet, but I’m taking everything I need for the short-term. I hit the FaceTime option on my phone and wait for the three rings before she picks it up.
“Hello?" Her proper, sing-song British accent always makes me smile.
“Hi. Did the phone drop on your face?” I squint my eyes trying to see if that’s a shadow I see, or a red spot on her forehead.
"Yes, I was scrolling Tumblr and you scared me. What's going on? You didn't warn me you were going to call. I look wretched." She tries to smooth out the frizzes sticking up on her hair.
“Oh shut your mouth. You always look beautiful,” I tell her, taking a sip from my glass of wine as she rolls her eyes.
“So is everything okay? You hardly ever call.” She sits up in bed bringing the phone closer to her face.
I smile into the phone. I can see from the corner picture how happy I look.
“Spill!” she demands, her eyes like saucers.
“I’m free.” I grin even wider, if that’s even possible. My face feels like it’s going to break.
“I know.” Her face falls with disappointment and she rolls her eyes again. “You got divorced years ago.”
“No, I mean the paperwork was signed this morning.” I pause and watch her, waiting for my words to make sense.
“Wait, what? I thought that there wasn’t a date yet, that you kept pushing it off for more?”
“I may have fibbed just a teeny tiny bit.” I pinch my forefinger and thumb together giving her the visual.
“You did this on purpose so that I wouldn't worry." She frowns at me.
I shrug, not feeling one ounce of guilt. It was for my sanity more than hers. “It was better this way.”
“Jesus, Charlotte, we didn’t make any plans.” She flips the covers off her and jumps out of bed.
“What kind of plans?” I am a horrible friend, because I think this is all very funny.
"What are you going to do?” she asks dramatically. “I mean, I know you’re going to be set for money, but you need to work or you’ll go insane.”
“I’ll drive you insane you mean?” I cackle. She gives me a look that says ‘yes, exactly that’. “Slow down, Louise. We have time,” I tell her, getting a kick out of her reaction. Anyone would think we were married, but no, what we have is better than marriage. She is my best friend in the whole world. She just gets me.
“When is your last day in the office?” she asks, her wheels visibly turning as she starts to make emergency plans in her mind that she will never need to put in place.
“It was today,” I tell her slowly for effect.
“What?” Her eyes bug out. This is almost as fun as making Henry squirm.
“Did you find another job already? Damn it, Charlotte, we need to sort your shit out.”
"I might have found a job. I have an interview in three days."
I see her visibly relax. “Oh thank goodness.”
One of the good things about living so far away is she doesn't know everything that I do.
“Aren’t you going to ask me where?” I truly am a horrible person, I know my words prod her like a hot poker.
"If it's not here, it doesn't really matter, does it?" she sulks.
“Well…” I tease.
"Shut the front door! You’re not serious?” Her voice rises.
I reach over and pick up my second surprise and say nothing as I hold it up for the camera. I hold it steady so she can really get a good look at the color and lettering.
“A British passport? Oh my God! Are you freaking kidding me?” she screams.
“You’re going to wake your neighbors,” I scold.
"I don't care, the wankers were up all night last night having a party. So…this is actually happening? You aren't playing with me?" She paces her bedroom as she peppers off the questions.
I look out across my living room and see all the boxes, stacked and labeled, containing my belongings. Everything I own, all packed up neatly. The excitement of this new adventure gives me little butterflies in my belly.
I turn my phone around. “I don’t know. Does that seem real?”
“Oh shit,” she gasps.
I flip the phone back to me. “I’m coming, Louise.”
“When are you coming to me?” She goes to clap excitedly and forgets she is holding her phone and drops it onto the carpet.
I laugh hard. “My flight leaves tomorrow night.” I hold the phone away from my face in anticipation of her scream.
“Oh my God!” She yells so loud into the phone there is a static sound that comes from the speaker.
“Calm down, Louise.”
“I have to straighten up. I’m going to be up all night cleaning,” she whines.
“Don’t bother. I can help you.”
“I don’t know if I can get Wednesday off.” Her eyes go wide at the thought.
“I’m not worried about that. I can just order a car when I get there.”
“I will get it off, even if I have to call in sick.” She presses her lips in a tight line and has a stubborn tilt to her head.
“I have the shipping company coming tomorrow morning to pick up most of my things. I’ll be putting it in storage there.”
“You have everything set, don’t you?” she asks, shocked.
“I do. Aren’t you proud of me?” Seeing her face right now makes me so happy that in just a couple of days time we will be sitting across from each other.
“I want to wring your neck and then hug you.”
“I will allow you one hug.” I nod firmly and give her a sly smile.
“I’ll give you as many hugs as I damn well please.” She yawns.
“What time do you have to be at work tomorrow?”
“Eight.” She covers her mouth as she yawns again.
“Go to bed. I just couldn’t wait until morning to tell you.”
“Okay, I will talk to you before you get on the plane. I still can’t believe you will be here this week.”
“For good! I’ll be living there, just like we always wanted. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“Bye, love you.” She blows kisses into the phone.
I roll my eyes, laughing and end the call.
The doorbell to my condo rings, making me jump. I automatically look over at where my clock u
sed to hang and find only bare wall. Instead, I pick my phone back up and see that it's seven thirty pm. The doorbell rings again, a couple more times in fact. Ugh, who does that? Teenagers maybe?
“I’m coming, hold your horses,” I yell as I walk to the door.
I swing it open and groan, wishing I had looked through the peephole first.
“Hello, Henry, to what do I owe this pleasure?” My sarcastic tone falls on deaf ears. I stand at the door, blocking his entry.
“I wanted to talk to you.” His eyes dart from side to side.
“About what?”
“Aren’t you going to invite me in?” He tries to look over my shoulder and I stop fighting the urge to keep him in the dark. He’s going to find out some time.
Sighing I walk back into the living room, leaving the door open for him to follow. “Make it quick.”
“Why is everything packed up?” He looks around as he steps into the foyer. “Are you going somewhere?”
“You always were astute, Henry,” I deadpan. “I’m moving, now what’s up? I have a bunch of things I need to take care of.” I barely contain the need to tap my foot in annoyance.
“I want you to come back.” He shuffles his feet and can’t look me in the eye.
I can’t stop the mirthless laugh that bursts forth.
“I need you, Charlotte,” he pleads, running a hand through his hair, his weariness showing in the lines etched on his face.
“You only think you need me, Henry. You couldn’t wait for me to sell. Why are you even here?” I cross my arms, waiting to hear what fresh nonsense spills out of his mouth.
“I only wanted to own the company outright, because…” He rests a hand on the back of his neck looking up.
“Because the new, improved Mrs. Cole was having a hissy fit about you being business partners with the ex, right? It’s okay, Henry, everyone knows what’s going on here. You don’t need to pretend anymore. I wasn’t going to bow out to placate a spoiled child, you knew that. I sold because the time is right for me to move on.”
“But the company needs you.” He sounds desperate. More so than I had envisaged. It has only been hours, surely he hasn’t fucked it all up already.
“You knew I was going, we agreed,” I remind him.
“We agreed you would see out your projects,” he snaps.
“And what difference would a couple more weeks really make to you, Henry? You got what you wanted, you’ll have to step up and make it work on your own eventually, why delay the inevitable?”
Henry hangs his head. “I was hoping, once the deal was done and the animosity was put aside, I’d be able to convince you to stay on. I’d pay you double if I had to, I just need you to stay.”
I almost feel sorry for him. He has fucked himself and he is just starting to realize it.
“I’m sorry, you made your choice when you let your wife start making the calls from behind the scenes. I can’t be a part of that. It’s your company now and there is no place for me there.”
“Charlotte, you’re what makes everything run smoothly. It’s all falling apart now.” He starts pacing.
“What did you expect? Do you think the staff don’t know how bad you fucked me in the deal?” I feel no guilt, he got exactly what he wanted.
"You weren't supposed to disclose anything about the deal. You signed a nondisclosure agreement." His voice starts to rise as he stops his pacing to glare at me.
This makes me laugh. “It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure it out. They see how poorly you treated me. The business was my baby—not yours—and you didn’t care.”
“That’s not true.”
“Come on now, Henry, we’ve been at this ever since you remarried. For years I’ve been willing to sell you my half at market value, but you…or probably that little brat you call a wife…didn’t think I deserved what it was worth. No, you thought you could ruin office morale, undermine my integrity with the big clients and run my baby into the ground. Then when it was all only barely holding together, undercut me and take everything for far less than is fair,” I scoff. “You are more naive than I thought if you think no one at the company noticed.”
"That was all business. I made some bad choices.” He fumbles for excuses. “I know the firm means just as much to you. Will you please come back and work for me? I was serious, I’ll double your salary,” he says in a desperate, pleading tone.
“That’s where you are wrong. I no longer care about your business, my name isn’t tied to it anymore. I’m ready to take on a new challenge.” I watch the ugly snarl forming on his face and can’t believe I was married to him for so long.
“God damn it, Charlotte!”
"Watch your tone, Henry,” I say as calmly as possible. I know his stages of regret, they slowly turn into stages of rage.
“You have to come back.” His eyes plead.
"Sorry, I came to terms with selling my half to you. I no longer have an investment in the company." I shrug and know deep down I don’t care what happens to the company. It’s a freeing thought.
“All of the managers quit,” he blurts.
I stifle a laugh. I guessed more would follow Edward, but all of them? “I had heard rumors some would leave, did you expect any less?”
“Yes! I expected things to carry on as normal.” He starts his pacing back up, waving his hands in the air as he stumbles over his words.
“I built that team and I kept them together,” I remind him, my voice raising more than I wanted it to. “You were a fool to think they would stay, knowing how you screwed me over.”
“They didn’t even give me notice.” His nostrils flare as he tries to control his rage.
“You did nothing to make sure they stayed. You knew this day was coming for weeks and yet, you were too good to have personal conversations with them, weren’t you?” I'm getting tired of him in my space. This was also our home for many years and he feels too comfortable here. It’s starting to turn my stomach.
“I had communications out. If anyone had any questions, they were free to contact me.”
“A company wide memo? Very personal, Henry. Shows you really care.”
He clenches his jaw, and his face turns a few different shades of red as he opens his mouth and closes it again.
“Was there anything else? I have a lot to take care of before my move.”
He rushes over and grabs my upper arms, giving me a quick shake.
“You have to help me,” he begs.
“No, I don’t. Take your hands off me.” I could physically try to shake him off me but I want him to realize for himself that he is taking things too far.
As the realization dawns, he opens his hands and holds them up, looking at them like he doesn’t know how they got there. “I’m sorry. I’m just desperate.”
“You should have thought of all this before it got this far.”
“You were always the planner,” he admits with a sigh and scrubs his hand over his face.
“Yeah well, I stopped planning on your behalf a long time ago.” Thank fuck, I think to myself, never more glad he is someone else’s problem now.
“Come on, Charlotte, we were so good together,” he murmurs in what he thinks is a sexy voice.
“Stop. We don’t need this trip down memory lane. What we had died long ago.”
“How about you just stay for another month and help me repair the damage? I’ll make it worth your while and everyone else’s that chooses to come back. We could make this company great again.” His eyes look like a wounded puppy’s as he tries to bargain.
“Sorry, those little tricks with your eyes don’t work with me anymore,” I inform him.
“Where are you moving to? I can help you and we can talk about the business.”
“I am leaving New York. Time to move on to something fresh and exciting.”
“Going to Jersey? I can get a car and help.”
He gets a few points for effort, but no.
“No, I am movi
ng to be near Louise.” A huge smile spreads across my face.
“But—” He chokes then sputters. “She lives in London.”
“I am well aware of that.” My reply is sarcastic, but the truth of it makes me giddy.
“You can’t just move there. You’re an American, you’ll need a visa, a job, a sponsor!” He scoffs and crosses his arms knowing he’s made an unarguable point.
“You really never paid attention to my family did you, Henry?” I sigh.
“You were an only child.” He frowns. “Your parents were divorced, your Mom killed herself the first year we were married. What else is there?”
“My father? My heritage? Do you recall any of that?” I shake my head and watch his face as he tries to remember.
“He died when you were a child. I don’t see where this is going.” He shrugs.
“He was born in England.”
“Okay, so?”
I can't believe I married this man. I was young and oh so dumb.
“Because he was British and married to my mother when I was born, I am entitled to British citizenship. I’m an American, yes. And also, now a Brit. I got all my documentation through a week ago, but that’s enough about my business.”
“So that’s it? You won’t even think of coming back?” He runs a hand through his hair.
“Nope. Now if there isn’t anything else you need, I really need to get back to my list of things to do.”
He nods, defeated and turns toward the door, then pauses. He doesn't face me when he asks, “Will you at least talk to Edward and Jennings for me? If they changed their minds, I know others would follow.”
“No, you made your bed. This is what you wanted, remember? To call all the shots by yourself. This is your mess, you made it, you can regret it.”
His head is bowed and he doesn't turn to look at me as he lets out a long exhale. “You're my biggest regret, Charlotte,” he says softly.
“I could say the same,” I whisper.
He turns quickly, his eyes round with shock and closes the few feet between us, throwing an arm around my waist, pulling me close.
It is at that moment I realize he doesn’t see that we both meant our words in different ways. He leans in in slow motion, his face getting closer and closer to mine. Oh my God, he is going to try and kiss me! I raise a hand and put my palm to his forehead to stop his descent on my mouth.
Saorsa Page 2
