Turbulence

by E. J. Noyes

  The muscles in Mark’s jaw jumped as he passed me another folder. He ignored my barb, barreling on with his pitch. “I estimate eighty-five percent will move their accounts to you. The breakdown is in there.”

  His ridiculous assurance that everything would be fine was almost as insulting as this ambush. I stacked the manila folder on top of his proposal and draft contract. “Tell me then, did you fuck up because you’re awful at your job, or was it literally just not giving a single fuck about the business? About us?”

  “I don’t know,” he said quietly. “A little from column A and also from column B.”

  Perfect. I pushed curls away from my face. “So what’s going to happen when I buy you out? You’re just going to ride off into the sunset and buy a villa in France and put everything we’ve done behind you?”

  “That’s really unfair, Belle.” The muscle in his jaw tensed again then relaxed. “I’d have thought a little understanding and support was well within your skillset.”

  I knew I was being a dick, but all my anger and upset was trampling over my concern for him. “I’m sorry, Mark. I guess most of my emotion is tied up in the bombshells you’ve just dropped on me.”

  “I’m sorry,” he said steadily. “But I’m doing this for you, Belle. At least this way, you still have the company’s reputation.”

  That was something, I supposed. “Be straight with me, Mark. You’re telling me it’s only one client then? Just one client who bore the brunt of your idiocy?” I crossed my legs, folding defensive arms over my breasts. “I find that incredibly hard to believe.”

  His silence told me everything.

  “How many others?” I asked, dangerously calm.

  He refused to meet my eyes. “Three. Maybe. But there’ve been no repercussions.”

  “I think repercussions is a really odd way to phrase being found negligent.” Leaning toward him, I lowered my voice. “And you’re hoping what exactly? They don’t notice that their portfolio is suddenly nowhere near projected targets and the issue just…goes away?”

  Mark rested his hands flat on the table. “Yes.”

  “Tell me then, will I be inheriting those potential lawsuits along with the rest of what you’re offerin’? Because I didn’t notice that under liabilities.”

  “I’ll take care of it,” he said flatly.

  “You’d better.” My tablet blinked with yet another notification. I gathered it, my phone and the stack of papers, then stood. “Well, as they say—I guess you’ll be hearing from my lawyer.”

  * * *

  Audrey stepped out of my elevator as I was digging in my handbag for my door keys. She approached with an exaggerated sashay, and a sultry, “Ma’am, I have a delivery of one dinner and two orgasms here for a Ms. Rhodes?”

  Keys forgotten, I leaned against the wall. “I ordered three orgasms.”

  “Oh.” She pretended to rummage through the takeout bags. “I’m very sorry, there must have been a mix up. I’ll happily supply you with credit.”

  She bent down, and I stretched to meet her halfway for a kiss. “See that you do.”

  “Count on it.” She unlocked the door for us and headed straight through to the kitchen.

  I dumped bags on the couch, shrugged out of my coat and tossed it over a chair. “I’m just going to shower.”

  Audrey set dinner down on the counter. “Do you want me to pour you a drink?”

  I was raw enough without adding booze to the mix. “No thanks. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  My clothes piled on the bathroom floor and I didn’t bother to remove my makeup before stepping into the shower. When I bent over to wash my legs, my eyes drifted closed. Just a moment, just resting them. What the hell was I going to do? It wasn’t about the money—I could easily afford to buy him out. But that would mean taking on everything by myself. Could I do it?

  I lowered myself to sit on the shower tiles, letting the water cascade over me. I didn’t feel cleaner for it. I felt tainted by what Mark had done. Above everything, I loathed myself for not being kinder to him when he needed it. The glass door swung open and the water shut off. “Iz?” Audrey crouched down and tugged my wrist. “Are you okay?”

  I glanced around through the veil of water dripping into my eyes. “Yeah?”

  “Oh, sweetie. Come on, let me help you up.” It was funny how quickly she started slipping endearments into her speech, like they’d been on the tip of her tongue for months and now she could finally unleash them.

  The added softness made already frazzled emotions crack and I had to blink to stop myself from crying. “Mmm ’kay.”

  “You’ve been in here for nearly fifteen minutes. I got worried. Well, first I thought you were enjoying the detachable showerhead by yourself and I got annoyed. Then I got worried.” She helped me stand up and passed me a towel.

  I started drying myself clumsily and she bundled my wet hair to squeeze water from it. Audrey gently pulled the towel up to dry my neck. “Have you eaten a real meal today?”

  “Not really, no.” Despite having subsisted on coffee and a handful of craisins, I wasn’t hungry.

  “Come have some dinner, then I’ll put you to bed. Hate to say it, darling, but you look like shit.”

  I smiled a tight-lipped smile and hung the towel back up. “Thanks.”

  She laughed and dropped her hands to rest on my hips. “Tired and looking like shit, you’re still sexy as hell.”

  “Don’t you forget it.” I kissed her quickly, then trudged out to my bedroom. Rummaging through a pile of clean clothes that sat on the chest at the base of my bed, I found sweatpants and a long-sleeved tee. Audrey was right behind me, so that when I turned around I almost bumped into her. She opened her arms, and I stepped gratefully into her embrace and buried my face in her neck.

  Audrey’s hand stroked my back lightly. “Seriously, Iz, what’s up?”

  “I’ve had a really really bad day,” I mumbled against her skin. The sound of the intercom put a halt to finishing my explanation. “Hang on.” Wearily I crossed to the station on the wall beside the bathroom, and stabbed the button with a forefinger. “Yes?”

  Carl’s soft voice filled my bedroom. “Ms. Rhodes, I’m sorry to bother you but Mr. Hall is here asking to see you. He’s…insistent.”

  I rested my forehead on the wall. “You can send him up.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Given I’d spent the rest of the day avoiding Mark while I spoke to my lawyer and read through those folders, his arrival at my place wasn’t surprising. It was also spectacularly bad timing. I needed some time away from him, to talk to Audrey about my day. I needed to rant and cry and then have her hold me while I fell asleep a tearstained, lip-quivery mess.

  Audrey followed me down the stairs, then stopped by the kitchen table while I opened the door and waved Mark in with a flat, “Hi.”

  “Hey.” Mark looked past me and his mouth dropped. He recovered quickly but his surprise and alarm were unmistakable. “Hello, Captain Graham.”

  “Audrey,” I corrected automatically, looking to her.

  The expression on her face was fleeting but I knew immediately what it was. Anguish. Accusation. Betrayal. I had no frame of reference for any of it until I recalled that I was supposed to tell Mark about Audrey and me this morning. Before he’d dropped a bombshell on me, that is. I’d promised Audrey I would do something that was clearly important to her, and meant it, but hadn’t followed through. She couldn’t know the reason why. All she would see was that I’d broken a promise.

  A smile slid over the hurt and she raised a hand in greeting. “Hello, Mark.” Not Mr. Hall. I took that as a screw you aimed at me, reminding me that if I’d done what I said I would she would have called him by his first name.

  When I looked to her, trying to get her attention, she pointedly avoided my gaze. I gave up. Rubbing my dry eyes, I asked wearily, “Why are you here, Mark?”

  “I need to talk to you.”

  Audrey took a step b
ackward. “I might go.”

  I reached for her, my fingers just brushing her arm. “Please don’t. Stay and eat your dinner, honey. We shouldn’t be long.” I stretched up to kiss her cheek and she tensed. When I pulled away she caught my eye but there was no emotion in hers. Just…resignation as she nodded. I squeezed her hand, nabbed a sweater from the back of the couch and gestured Mark toward the doors leading out to my balcony.

  The sweater I’d grabbed was Audrey’s and the sleeves hung over my hands as I slipped into the hoodie. I zipped it and tugged the balcony doors closed behind me. Mark had five minutes to say whatever he needed to before I booted him out. There was nothing so important that it couldn’t wait until the morning, and the fact he’d chosen to invade my private space made me even more annoyed. If that was even possible. The moment I closed the door, the electric whine of the Venetian blinds sounded as they began to lower.

  The slats moved, tilted downward so that if I looked in, I could see Audrey but she wouldn’t be able to see us. Even upset with me, she was giving us privacy, but making sure I knew she was still there. I hugged myself, tucking my fingers into my armpits. “What do you want, Mark?”

  “I thought we could talk.”

  “Talk? I don’t even know what to say. You fucking ambushed me in there today. You gave me no warning, no time to prepare anything. I have never felt more insulted in my life.”

  “Speaking of ambushed.” He gestured inside. “How long has that been happening?” He pulled a packet of cigarettes from inside his coat and held them up.

  I waved to indicate I didn’t care if he smoked. “Don’t you dare turn this around.” Despite the hoodie, I shuddered. “You know I honestly don’t even know what to say to you. And I can’t figure out what I’m most upset about.” Partly what he’d done, but also the fact that I’d suspected something was off and hadn’t realized what or how serious it was.

  Mark lit his cigarette and reached for the ashtray I kept on the balcony. “I’m doing this to protect you, Belle.”

  “Protectin’ me would have been to not fuck up in the first place. Or to tell me sooner, before it got out of hand. To let me know what was happening for you. To let me help you. We’re partners.” I ran a hand through my hair. “This is…a fucking disaster. How many clients do you think will stay once word of this gets out? Hmmm? You say the company’s protected but I’m involved in this because my name is forever tied to yours. And if you can’t handle accounts then surely little ol’ Isabelle Rhodes can’t.”

  “It won’t get out. I told you that part of David accepting my very generous settlement is that he’s signing a non-disclosure clause. He can’t tell anyone about it. And there’s a caveat that he can’t come after the company.”

  “Oh right, silly me. How could I forget?” I tapped my forehead. “Tom’s excellent contracts. So you’re just going to disappear into the sunset and everyone will let it slide?”

  “More or less, yes,” he said, calmly drawing on his cigarette.

  “You idiot. Nothing is secret in this city, Mark.” I jabbed a forefinger at him. “You’ve screwed me and deep down I think you fucking know it. I’ll be purchasing forty-seven percent of nothing.”

  “I’m sorry, I really am. Like I said, things…got out of hand before I could figure out how to fix it.” His voice wavered. “I’ve just been treading water for so long, and after that thing with the auditor and David Oldham, I realized that I can’t do this anymore, Belle. I have to get out or it might actually drown me one day.”

  I leaned back against the railing, looking through the blinds. Audrey was on the phone, striding back and forth through my lounge room. “Fine.” I deflated, suddenly too tired to hang onto my anger. What was the point? It wasn’t like it was going to help me. “I’m sorry too, for not being more understanding. And I should have told you about Audrey and me.”

  “Yeah well, looks like we’ve both been hiding things,” he said carefully. “Why didn’t you say anything about her before?”

  “Because of the way you looked at her when you saw her here tonight.” I inhaled a lungful of cool early November air and pulled the hood over my head, shoving loose bits of hair away from my face. “You’re everywhere, and I just wanted something that was all mine for once. Just for a little while.”

  “I suppose I can understand that.” He spared me a smile that seemed genuine enough. “I’m pleased for you, but I admit, I’m still trying to wrap my head around it. I believe you said something like ‘I don’t plan on doing it again, Mark.’ How long did that last?”

  “About a week.”

  His grunt was amused rather than annoyed. “I hope you know what you’re doing, Belle.”

  “Me too.” A pang of uneasiness settled in my belly. “I’m in love with her, Mark and I haven’t told her yet. And I can tell she’s mad at me now.”

  “She is? Doesn’t seem like it.” He carefully ashed his cigarette.

  “I was supposed to tell you about us. I was going to, that’s why I came into your office this morning and then the day just…got away.” I turned to him. “Look, I’m sorry for being a bitch but you threw a whole bunch of stuff at me and it was a pretty damned big bombshell.”

  “I know. Maybe I could have done it differently.” He smiled briefly. “Seemed like the best way to approach it.”

  “Mmm. Look, we can talk about it tomorrow, okay? But I really need to go in there and talk to her. I have to explain what’s going on.”

  His mouth thinned. “Is that wise? Given she’s an employee.”

  I couldn’t help glaring at him. “First and foremost, she’s my girlfriend, Mark. I’m not going to hide this from her. And this whole fucking sale issue is why she thinks I’ve broken a promise.”

  The Venetians began to slide up and I could see Audrey’s legs, then her torso appear. I moved away from him and to the doors. She stared through the glass at us, and it was clear from her face that something had happened. I opened the door and pulled it mostly closed behind myself. “What’s going on?”

  She held up her phone, already moving toward the front door with her keys in hand. “My mom is sick. I have to go.”

  With quick steps, I followed her. “Shit. What’s wrong with her? Is she all right?”

  Audrey raised her hands, mouth quivering. “I’m not sure, they’re still running tests. Sounds like pneumonia with complications.” She snatched her jacket from the hook and shrugged into it.

  “Oh, honey, I’m sorry. What can I do?”

  Audrey lifted pleading eyes to mine. “Iz, I need your help.”

  The question burst from my mouth without thought. “How much?”

  When Audrey’s usually open, smiling face closed over I realized right away what I’d just implied. She looked disgusted, and I wanted to step back, away from the loathing expression. Her mouth twisted, opening and closing as though she was trying to get words out. Eventually, she succeeded. “You thought I was going to ask you for money.” I’d never seen her look this way before, never heard her sound so flat.

  “Well…if you need some, yeah?” It had been a genuine offer, the same way I’d have offered anyone who I cared about.

  She folded her arms over her breasts, jaw tight with tension. “I was going to ask you to come to Minnesota with me for a few days. I wanted you to be with me while I try to deal with this. Maybe meet my mom in case—” She cleared her throat.

  I caught the past tense immediately. Was. Wanted. Fuck. Frantically, I tried to backpedal. “Wait, Audrey please. I didn’t mean it like that. Come on.”

  Audrey stuffed both hands deep into her pockets, shoulders rigid. “No, Iz. You did mean it. You said it yourself. ‘How much?’ I know you’ve had some issues with that sort of thing, but I didn’t…” She took a shaky breath. “I can’t believe you’d think that of me. I’ve never asked, would never ask, and it’s really hurtful that’s the first thing you thought of.”

  When I stepped closer, she stepped back and I felt the pullin
g away as deeply as if she’d struck me. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. “I’m sorry, please believe me.”

  “I’m sure you are,” she said, each syllable clipped. She glanced at the doors leading to my balcony. “I thought you were going to tell him,” she said tightly. “Clearly this doesn’t mean as much to you as I thought it did.”

  Ouch. I stepped closer again and this time she held her ground. “Audrey, I tried, all right? You have no idea what the fuck happened today. I tried,” I repeated forcefully. This was so strange and I didn’t know how to argue with her. My natural instinct to be defensive wouldn’t work with her, and I couldn’t find the path to resolving this.

  She backed away, holding up a hand to stop me. “Please don’t, I can’t right now and I really have to go. There’re things I need to organize.” She shouldered her bag, turned around and walked to the front door. Mark emerged from the balcony, closing the door behind him. I startled at the interruption.

  By the time I’d looked back to the front door, it was closed. And she was gone. I ran after her, punching the elevator button but it was too late. Standing dumbfounded in front of the closed doors, I engaged in a round of mental flagellation for being such a shitty person. She’d basically just told me her mama might be dying and I’d steamrolled her with excuses about my awful day.

  Mark started to speak the moment I stepped back inside and I cut him off with a terse, “Shut it.”

  I snatched up my phone and stalked down the hall to the great room for a little privacy. The call rang to her voice mail. She’d be on her bike, speeding to wherever. I guessed she’d fly herself, quicker than booking flights. Fresh fear grabbed me like a vice. She’d be in control of a motorcycle and a plane when she was upset. Shit. Don’t drive angry. Don’t fly angry.

  Anything else you’d like to throw at me, Universe? Actually, don’t answer that.

  I started pacing. “Audrey, it’s me. I need to talk to you and explain. I’m sorry. Call me. Please call me.”