I wasn’t quite ready to lose the outfit just yet. I straightened the corset and tugged up the stockings. It looked a little silly, with my bits bare, but the ripped panties were dead at my feet.
Without feeling the least bit silly, I went into the kitchen to make a cup of coffee. As I moved to the fridge, I came face to face with the jeans. They looked stupid, duct taped to my otherwise pretty wall. The gooeyness of the tape was probably ruining the paint.
As the coffee brewed, I picked at the edges with my fingers, worried that the paint would come off with it if I treated it like a Band-Aid.
It took a while, but I sipped my coffee and kept working away at it until the jeans were freed. I held them up in front of me. Denim. Nowhere near as hot as satin corsets. I put them on the counter and made some breakfast.
I set the bowl of cereal and cup of coffee on the table. At first I went to sit in my usual seat, but decided it would be more fun to sit in Jay’s seat. To have my bare pussy against the fabric that had touched him.
I crunched the Special K between my teeth. From this seat, I could see the kitchen. Jay must have sat here, eating with me while trying to keep a straight face at the constant sight of the jeans on the wall.
I put down my spoon, strode into the kitchen and tossed the jeans in the trash. Good riddance.
There was still plenty of time before I had to leave for work. I sat around in my corset a little longer before realizing it was mine. That I could come home from work and put it on again. I removed the stockings and unzipped it.
Once off, I examined it a little more. The label said Agent Provocateur. I’d never heard of them. My fingers skimmed over the label, and along the perfect stitching. Somehow I didn’t think this had been made in a sweatshop.
I couldn’t resist. I knew it was rude when someone gives you a gift, but I had to know. I Googled ‘Agent Provocateur.’ Maybe I would buy another one to surprise him.
Even their website was beautiful, and sexy. Sexy like I wanted Jay back right now. I clicked around until I found my corset. I choked on my coffee.
That couldn’t be right.
The corset was two thousand bucks. Easily more than the cost of Jay’s new car. My brow furrowed in confusion. This couldn’t be right. I found the panties, the panties I’d barely worn before he ripped them off me. Ruined. And they’d cost over three hundred dollars. For almost no fabric. How was that even possible?
It didn’t make any sense. How did Jay have this? Did he steal it? No, that sounded silly. But what possible explanation was there? It was true he always dressed nicely, in expensive-looking stuff, and he wore a flashy watch. But he once said he had all these nice things from before he lost his job.
Now he drove around in a cheap old banger that I was surprised even runs. That made sense to me. That explained the contradiction. Even quail eggs and Champagne fit in. It was possible he had that Champagne sitting around his house. That he never had a reason to drink it until our picnic in the park. And quail eggs. Well, I had no idea what they cost, but they were so tiny it couldn’t be that much. Maybe he was trying to impress me.
But this lingerie. What were the chances he had a brand-new set sitting around, unused, in his home that happened to be my size? None. And what are the chances his last job paid enough money to blow almost three grand on a skimpy outfit? No one had that kind of money. Except maybe movie stars.
The questions kept churning around in my mind as I showered and dressed. I tried to push them down. To not have them hanging over my first full day in my new role. The closer I got to my office, the quieter the questions became.
As I stepped into the elevator of my building I laughed. Not only would I never see Calvin again, I didn’t have to think about my bills. I grinned wide and punched the air. It was a good thing no one else was in the elevator with me, or they would have freaked.
Chapter 27
I’d arrived before Sam. I went straight into Calvin’s office. My office. The cleaners had been thorough, everything was sterilized and ready for a new inhabitant. They’d boxed any leftover paperwork. I’d have to go through them later to decide what, if anything, I needed to keep. Lord knows I wasn’t keeping anything that even hinted at the prior existence of the WeeksEnd report.
After I’d finished my inspection of my new workspace, I headed back to my old desk to pack. Sam still wasn’t in. I checked the time, she wouldn’t be here for at least another ten minutes.
I hoped she felt comfortable with me being her new boss. After all, she had been with the company a lot longer than I had. And we’d become such close friends that I hope it didn’t feel too awkward for her. Or worse, that she resented me for getting the position instead of her. Perhaps I should talk to her about it? I didn’t know.
Someone had left an empty box on my old desk. I dropped it on the floor, sat in my old chair and opened my old desk drawers. I put the recycling bin beside the empty box. Might as well clear out the files I didn’t need now.
I started in the bottom drawer and was about halfway through it when I heard Sam’s telltale heavy footsteps.
“Good morning, boss.” I stood up at the sound of her voice.
“Morning!” I hugged her.
We chatted for a few minutes. I was confident Sam was happy, and it relaxed me. I guess she figured never having to see Calvin again made up for not getting the promotion.
I sat back in my chair and returned to my task of sorting through the files. Weird, the files at the back were all jumbled up. Like a good accountant, I was always careful to keep things organized.
After sorting through a few more papers I realized the file of damning emails I kept on Calvin was missing. I riffled through the entire drawer and box again looking for it. Strange. I know it had been there. I had it in my hands ready to hand in so many times in the past few weeks.
Where was it? Had someone been through my papers? No one knew about it here at the office. It must have been Calvin. I bet he went through my stuff when I wasn’t at work and found it. He must have known he was on the verge of being fired and got rid of any damning evidence.
The idea that he had been through my stuff, riffled through my tampons and Snicker bar stash, made me uneasy.
I sorted through the rest of my stuff and picked up the box.
“I’m outta here,” I said to Sam and laughed.
“Enjoy your ivory tower.”
“I’ll try to remember you.”
“Try not to forget who you really are.”
I blew a raspberry at her and walked the three paces to my office. Was spending the morning organizing my stuff a good use of my time? What would Richard make of it? Already we were a body down. Although that body was Calvin, and I’d never been convinced he actually did any work anyway.
I shut my office door and sat at my desk, enjoying my new digs. My cell phone rang, startling me from my thoughts.
“Hey, executive lady,” Jenny said.
“Hey, guess what?”
“You’re the boss?”
I rolled my eyes. “Aside from that.”
“I hate guessing games, just tell me.”
I told her how Jay had been waiting at my condo. And about the lingerie gift. And most important of all, how Jay had spent the night in my bed. I left out the mirror bit though.
“Did you two have breakfast together?”
“Couldn’t. He was gone when I woke up.”
“That’s weird.”
I hesitated, unsure if I should tell her. “I looked up that lingerie online. It cost nearly three grand.”
I had to hold the phone away from my ear while Jenny screamed.
“Are you done yelling?”
“Yes. But…” I held the phone out again. I knew I shouldn’t have told her.
“Sorry, I have to go, talk to you later.”
“Whatever, I am so calling Sam right now.”
“Uh-huh.” I hung up.
I tried to concentrate on work. For almost two hours, I jot
ted down every idea I’d ever had, what I considered was missing from the current reporting process, and outlined how I envisioned the reports should look. It would be difficult to transition over, but I was certain management could make better business decisions with my ideas.
I sent Richard an email, requesting some time to sit down with him to discuss everything. With any luck I’d get the green light to hire another analyst to replace me as well.
I was about to grab Sam and go for lunch when my phone beeped.
Am going to have to lie low for a bit. Hope you’re enjoying being the boss. J
I didn’t understand what he meant. Lie low?
What do you mean?
I mean we can’t meet up for a while. Sorry. J
???
I kept the phone in my hand, but no response came. Was he a criminal? That might explain the combination of unemployment and money to blow. I felt like whenever I was with him I could see right into his soul. And I didn’t see anything criminal in it. A bit naughty maybe, but not sinister.
I needed to get this thought straight in my head before I saw Jenny. She was already freaked enough about him. What’s she going to say about this latest development?
Sam appeared at my door. “Ready for lunch?”
“Yes, I was just coming to get you.”
As we walked to the lunchroom, I churned Jay’s messages in my head. Nothing made any sense. Something didn’t add up. I debated whether to share the issue with Sam, but work didn’t seem like a private enough place for such a crazy, bizarre, possibly overblown scenario.
There had still been no response from Jay, and an uneasy weight had settled in my belly. It hampered my ability to concentrate on my work.
“You go ahead and get us a table, I’ll be there in a sec,” I said to Sam.
I pulled out my phone. My finger hovered over the call button before I mustered the courage to press it. As it connected, I wondered why I was so nervous to phone my own boyfriend.
It rang three or four times then went to voicemail. I waited a few minutes and tried again, but the same thing happened. He couldn’t be on the phone, or it would have gone straight to voicemail. Was he hitting the reject call button on me?
What’s going on?
I couldn’t let it drop. It was too odd. The low battery warning on my phone came on. In the excitement of last night’s celebrations I had forgotten to charge my phone.
After lunch, back in my office, I picked up my desk phone and punched in Jay’s number.
“Yes?”
“Jay,” I said, my voice full of relief.
“Sorry, I can’t talk now. Something’s happening and I need you not to phone or text this number. Not from your cell phone, not from your work extension.”
“What is going on, Jay?”
“I’ll explain. Please, trust me.”
“I’m all ears.”
His voice softened. “I know this must seem so strange. Something is happening right now and I need to cut off all contact with you until I sort it out. This has nothing to do with my feelings for you. I want nothing more than to be in your bed again tonight.”
“I don’t understand,” I said, twisting the phone cord in my fingers.
“I have to go. Wait for me to contact you.”
The phone went dead, and I stared at the receiver in my hand. Numb.
Chapter 28
I hadn’t heard from Jay all week. Nothing since the phone call when he told me not to contact him. I’d barely slept, trying to sort out the situation in my head. I could hardly tell Jenny and Sam the entire story. It was too predictable a conversation, and I didn’t need their stresses on top of my own.
Instead of our usual Friday after work-drink, Sam and I met Jenny, Marla and a few other friends at a different bar. A swankier, more upscale affair with a sleek high gloss bar serving overpriced cocktails. But a girl doesn’t turn thirty every day, and we wanted to start the weekend of festivities off right.
“How are you going to get through the entire weekend without seeing Jay?” Sam asked.
“Dunno.” I should have said it’s a good thing it’s your party weekend, or I’d be stewing myself into a tizzy over Jay’s radio silence.
“I can’t get over the lingerie,” Jenny said.
“What lingerie? I never heard anything about any lingerie,” Sam said.
“She didn’t tell you?” Jenny looked to me and back to Sam. “He waited for her at her condo, then handed her a package with a sexy outfit in it and told her to put it on.”
“What?” Sam’s eyes were wide and her mouth hung open.
“And get this, it cost three grand!”
I looked away, searching all the faces in the room looking for some salvation. They were saying stuff at me, but I pretended I couldn’t hear them over the music.
“Abbie!” they shouted in unison.
“Shut up and drink, old lady.” Smiling, I raised my glass to them and took a gulp of my gin and tonic.
We giggled and carried on drinking until it was time to go for dinner. Four of us, Jenny, Sam, Marla and I, went for a meal.
* * *
The restaurant, like the bar, was more upscale than anywhere we’d normally go. The three of us had decided to treat Jenny. She was the first of our group to turn thirty, and we were trying to ease the transition for her.
We were all feeling pretty good after the earlier drinks and ordered an overpriced bottle of sparkling wine.
“Cheers,” Marla said, holding her glass aloft.
“Thanks for this incredible meal, girls,” Jenny said.
I’d been lucky. They had stopped quizzing me about Jay since leaving the bar. The waiter brought us our desserts, crème brûlée heaven all around.
“So, Abbie,” Jenny said as she dropped her spoon. I braced myself and took another drink of wine.
“Yes.”
“I’m worried about you.”
“No, we’re worried about you,” Sam said.
“Why on earth would you be worried?” I asked.
“Because,” she halted, looking for the words she was either too drunk or not drunk enough to find.
“You two are getting so serious so fast, but you don’t seem to know anything about him,” Sam said, taking over from Jenny.
“That’s not true,” I said.
“It is. What do you even know about him?” Jenny asked.
“Lots. I know lots about him, about his character and his lovingness.”
“Okay, I’ll be the recruitment specialist interviewer here. What’s Jay’s home like?” Marla said.
“I haven’t been to his home yet.”
“No? Why not?”
“I don’t know. I live so centrally, it’s convenient.”
“So he doesn’t live centrally?” Sam asked.
I remained quiet.
“Where does he live?” Marla asked.
“In the burbs…”
“Oh my God, you don’t even know where he lives!” Jenny said.
“You know what? It doesn’t even matter,” I said, dropping my fork on the table.
“Maybe he lives in his car,” Sam said.
“What else don’t you know about him?” Marla asked.
“That’s a silly question, how does she know what she doesn’t know?” Sam said, giggling.
“What’s he look like?” Marla asked.
“Sam’s seen him,” I said.
“He looks respectable, plus he’s gorgeous,” Sam said.
“He’s more than gorgeous,” I said, picturing his face at the front of my mind.
“Okay, yes, more than cute,” Sam said.
“Let’s see a photo,” Marla said.
“I don’t really have one.” I struggled to get the words out of my mouth.
“Abbie,” Jenny said with concern.
“Wait, I do have one.” I wrestled my phone from my purse and flicked onto the photos. I held my phone out over the table for the three to look at. In unison, they
each grabbed for the phone to get a closer look.
“His eyes are closed,” Marla said.
“Is he asleep?” Sam asked, her brow furrowed.
“Yeah, it’s a pic of his first sleepover at my place.”
Jenny wrenched the phone from my hand, “Let me see.” Her fingers spread across the screen, zooming in on his sleeping face.
“He’s got brown eyes,” I said.
“Man, you definitely have a type. This guy is just a hotter version of Matt,” Jenny said.
“He is?” I said surprised.
“Look at his jawline and nose, but his lips are fuller. Except somehow it works so much better on him. Damn, look at the muscles in his shoulders,” Jenny said.
“He’s even better standing up with his eyes open,” Sam said.
“Hubba-hubba,” Marla said, and we all laughed.
We left the restaurant and headed back to our usual Friday night bar since they turn into a dance club at ten and played the best music around. We knew it would be a late one due to the importance of the occasion. Jenny had arranged ahead of time to stay at my central condo. We’d all chipped in and given her a spa day package and she had an early appointment in the morning.
Jenny and I said good night to Sam and Marla and got back to my condo just before two. It took me a few times to get the key in the lock thanks to all the booze. When I finally managed to click open the door, we skidded through the entrance and collapsed on the bed.
* * *
Jenny was still asleep, her mouth hanging open and drooling, when I woke up. With a pounding head, I staggered to the kitchen for some coffee. While I waited for it to brew I noticed a silver envelope on the floor in the entrance way. The building didn’t allow junk mail to be put directly through doors but sometimes the odd person would sneak through and spam the residents with flyers.
I picked up the envelope and noticed my name printed across the front. It immediately put me on alert. For what, I didn’t know, but this wasn’t normal. I sliced it open with my thumbnail and pulled out the paper inside. Only it wasn’t paper, it was a rectangle of heavy card that resembled a wedding invitation.
Billionaire's Secret: The Complete Series Page 9
