by A. E. Radley
“I’m not surprised. You’ve not even been open three days and already word of your pricing structure is out. But, tell me, Marcus, how on earth are you making any money?” Seb already knew the answer, but it didn’t hurt to give Marcus his moment in the sun. Let the little upstart think he was telling him something he hadn’t already worked out for himself.
“Volume.” Marcus slammed the files back down onto the desk. “If we generate enough business and take on enough retainer-based clients, we can get by.”
Seb pursed his lips. It was almost too easy. He waited for Marcus to react.
Marcus rolled his eyes. “Go on, out with it.”
“It’s none of my business, but are you sure you’re not allowing this agenda with Olivia to cloud your judgement? With the margins being so thin, you’re playing a risky game. I’d hate to see you lose everything because you focused more on toppling Applewood than building a sustainable business.”
Marcus inclined his head. “I appreciate your concern. I really do. But I know what I’m doing and I won’t allow my desire to see Olivia crushed get in my way. Besides, what seemed like a gamble is already paying off. We’re even making headway into taking over some of the bigger London accounts.”
“That’s great news.” Seb smiled. Having suitably appeared to be looking out for Marcus’s well-being, it was time to get to the real point of his visit. “And thank you for agreeing to help me with my little problem too.”
“Not a problem. We’re expanding rapidly, and we need the new staff. What’s her name again?”
“Emily White.”
“And, remind me, she’s your…?”
“The mother of my grandson. And a damned nuisance.” Seb bristled. Ever since his son had met the woman, she’d been nothing but trouble. He had finally been getting through to Joe, convincing him to get a real job and leave the foolish notion of a career in music behind. And then Emily had come along, and her influence had Joe on a crash course towards failure. No real job, no prospects, and an unwanted child.
In the back of his mind, he had always known—and hoped—that he would get the opportunity to revisit the battle with Emily. She was an unfit mother; it was as clear as day. And this time he would win. With a little help from Marcus.
“She was a stewardess with Crown, probably about to be laid off after that crash. It seemed like a good opportunity to… how shall I put it? Keep an eye on her.” He winked.
Marcus chuckled. “God bless Crown.”
Seb frowned questioningly.
“Olivia was on that flight. Broken leg, I believe. Either way, it’s kept her occupied.”
“Crown’s misfortune seems to be serving us both.”
“Indeed it is. See? Everything is coming together nicely.” Marcus grinned. “Well, I’ll put Miss White on reception for corporate finance. Should keep her occupied. I’ll have HR call her for a brief interview, just to dot the i’s and cross the t’s.”
“I do appreciate it. We need to seem willing while we build a proper case against her. We want custody of the boy.”
“Hmm, so you mentioned. Aren’t you a little old for that?” Marcus joked.
Seb swallowed down his reply. He needed Marcus’ help, and he wasn’t about to let years of relationship-building go to waste.
“It’s Irene. She wants to be a part of his life. But that will never happen as long as Emily has her way. Joe poisoned the girl against us. The boy is five, and time is running out if we’re to get him away from her before she does the same to him.”
It was partially true. It was certainly Irene’s truth. For Seb, it was about settling old scores. Emily had made a fool of him during the first custody battle. Everyone was aware of his very public loss of the case. Now, he would take everything away from her that she held dear, just like she’d done to him.
“Well, I’ll help in any way I can.”
“It should be fairly simple. We help her to get this job, and with the goodwill that brings, she will allow us to see Henry. Then we can insist on seeing him more, and when she pushes back, we’ll produce our ace.”
“Which is?” Marcus asked.
“Debt. She’s dirt poor and up to her eyeballs in the stuff. Lives in a house with some friends, no contract, no savings, just debt. She can’t even afford her minimum payments.”
“That’s no environment to raise a child.”
“Precisely,” Seb agreed. “It’ll be best for everyone when we take him. Of course it’ll be hard on the girl at first, but in a few months she’ll realise it was the best thing that could’ve happened to her.”
CHAPTER 9
Emily hung up the phone and looked at Lucy. “I got the job. Trial period of one week, and I start tomorrow.”
“Shouldn’t you be jumping for joy?” Lucy asked with a smile.
“I feel as if I should, but this all seems so weird. I suppose I’ll feel better when I’m there, when it all starts to feel a bit more real. I kind of feel as if I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop.”
“I understand, but maybe Seb and Irene really are trying to help?”
Emily looked at Lucy with a raised eyebrow. “Suddenly, after all this time, they want to help? I don’t know.”
“Well, I’m naturally optimistic, so I think it’s a good thing and something to celebrate.” Lucy’s smile brightened.
Emily chuckled. “Well, I’m naturally a pessimist, and I’m reserving judgement.”
Henry walked into the room with Tiny tucked under his arm and looked at Emily suspiciously. He brought Tiny’s head up to his ear and listened intently.
“Mommy, Tiny wants to know if you’re sure you’re staying home all day?”
“Tiny is doing a lot of talking lately,” Emily pointed out.
Henry shrugged and looked at her silently.
“I promise I’m staying home all day,” Emily confirmed. “How about we do some drawing together?”
Henry raised Tiny back up to his ear and quickly shook his head. “No, Tiny doesn’t want to draw.”
“What about you? Do you want to draw?” Emily asked.
Henry shook his head.
“Okay, how about we go to the park?”
For a moment he looked interested, but then he listened to Tiny again.
“No, Tiny wants to go and do a jigsaw,” Henry told her.
“Can I play too?” Emily asked.
Henry shook Tiny’s head and then turned around and left the room.
Emily let out a sigh and turned to Lucy. “This is getting out of hand. More and more of the time he only speaks through Tiny.”
“Something must be bothering him,” Lucy agreed. “I just wish he’d talk to us.”
“I’m sure he’s picked up on the changes at Crown. My suddenly being home, and Tom flying out on a different day.” Emily shook her head. “I did some research online; I know some kids go through phases where they use a toy as a voice. And Henry did that for a while before, but…”
“It’s quickly becoming the norm,” Lucy agreed.
“I’ll go and talk to him, see if I can get through. Wish me luck.”
* * *
Emily opened her bedroom door to see Henry curled up on the bed they shared, whispering to Tiny.
“Hey, Henry.”
He looked up at her with a confused expression. She sat down on the mattress beside him.
“Henry, I wanted to talk to Tiny about some things. Is that okay?”
He clutched Tiny even closer to his chest. “Like what?”
“Nothing bad,” Emily reassured him. “I just think that Tiny might be a bit upset about things, and I want to make sure he’s okay. I want to make sure he’s happy.”
Henry slowly nodded his head. He remained lying down but held Tiny as if he was sitting up and listening to her.
“Hi, how are you, Tiny?” Emily asked the cuddly toy.
Henry leaned Tiny towards him and listened intently for a long period. “He says he’s fine.”
She tilted her head. “Really? Because I think there might be something wrong. Maybe you could ask him again?”
Henry pulled Tiny in close for a few seconds and then nodded his head. “He says he wants to go back to London and stay with Olivia.”
Emily closed her eyes for a moment to steady herself. She had been worried his behaviour was related to missing Olivia and silently cursed herself. In her heart, she’d known that getting closer to Olivia would end in heartache for all involved.
She’d been especially careful with who she dated since her last breakup. Henry had taken the sudden absence of her ex very hard, and Emily didn’t want to put him through that pain ever again. But then there was Olivia and the very stressful and unique set of circumstances that continued to push them together.
Olivia had been their white knight, saving them from Emily’s poor planning and financial mismanagement with the offer of a hotel room and no expectations of repayment. Olivia had charmed both of them with her generosity, kindness, and unexpected humour.
Everything had been going so well. Emily had managed to ignore the niggling feeling of doubt that haunted her, right up until the flight home. When Olivia had freaked out at the change in seating arrangements. During two tense standoffs on board, Emily had been convinced that Olivia would do or say something to reveal their relationship and put her job at risk. Even all this time later, she shuddered at the memory of Iris catching them talking in the galley when Olivia should have been in her seat.
Olivia had seemed unconcerned about Emily’s employment, and in her eyes, the only safe place for Henry was the first-class seat she’d booked for him. She refused to see that Henry was perfectly fine in the economy section being watched by a colleague.
It was an insight into her worst fears. The miscommunications she’d had with Olivia before had been nothing compared to that flight. She’d had to end it. Henry had taken it hard, as she’d known he would. But she comforted herself in the knowledge that the longer she’d allowed the doomed relationship to go on, the more distraught Henry would’ve been. At least she’d nipped it in the bud quickly.
“Tiny really liked Olivia, huh?” she asked carefully.
He nodded. “Tiny and Olivia are best friends, and he misses her.”
“I see.” Emily considered the conversation for a moment. “The thing is, Tiny, Olivia is really busy with work. And that means that she doesn’t have a lot of time to spend with anyone, not even her best friend. But I know that she still loves you very much.”
“It’s not fair!” He sat up. “You get to see her all the time!”
“Me?” Emily shook her head. “No. Henry, I’ve not seen Olivia since we all flew home together.”
“Liar!” Henry shouted. “You see her at work all the time.”
“Henry, I promise you that I haven’t seen or spoken to Olivia since then.”
Henry pulled Tiny into his arms and rolled over, showing his back to her.
She placed her hand on his back softly. “I’m sorry you miss her.”
“I don’t,” he mumbled. “Tiny does.”
“Well.” Emily took a deep breath. “I miss her too.”
Henry turned his head and regarded her with suspicious eyes. “You do?”
“Yes, of course. Olivia is a very nice lady and she did a lot for us. But sometimes people go away and we have to remember the good times we had with them rather than be sad about not seeing them.”
“But why can’t we see her?”
“Because sometimes life doesn’t work out the way we want it to.”
“That’s not an answer,” Henry grumbled. “Tiny hates you.”
Emily bit her lip and closed her eyes for a moment. Logically, she knew that Henry was at an age where he was starting to lash out. She also knew she’d done the right thing to protect him, even if he was too young to understand that. But logic didn’t stop the pain of his words, even if he didn’t really mean them. “I’m sorry Tiny feels that way, because I love Tiny. Very much.”
Henry remained still, and she knew there was nothing else to be said, so she stood up and quietly left the room. She walked downstairs to the kitchen, where Lucy was filling the dishwasher.
“How did it go?”
Emily released the sob she’d been holding in and Lucy quickly pulled her into a hug.
“Oh, Em, it’s okay.”
“He says he hates me; I know he doesn’t mean it, but it still hurts.”
“He doesn’t know what it means,” Lucy reassured her.
“I never should have gotten involved with Olivia. This wouldn’t have happened if I’d just kept my distance. I knew it couldn’t work, and I knew that Henry was getting too close to her.”
“You did what you had to do. Don’t worry. Henry’ll get over this.”
Emily wrapped her arms around Lucy and held her tightly. “I hope so.”
CHAPTER 10
Olivia limped into the hotel suite sitting room. Her right arm lay loosely in a sling, and her left arm leaned heavily on a crutch as she attempted to look as though she was not in pain.
“You’re up.” Simon stood up from the sofa, ready to spring into action in case she fell.
“I’m not spending another minute in that room,” Olivia grouched. “It’s Tuesday morning.”
“It is,” he agreed.
She turned away from him and made her way into the kitchen. Simon followed.
“Where did Monday go?” she asked.
“Well.” Simon gently guided her into a dining room chair. “You spent most of Sunday talking about, well, everything. You were so exhausted you slept through all of Monday, aside from when I brought you meals.”
Olivia shook her head. “I don’t remember any of that. Where’s my phone?”
“The pain medication hit you pretty hard. But don’t let that discourage you from taking it. It will be better than the pain.”
“Having two days wiped out is better?” Olivia asked doubtfully. She looked around the room with a frown.
“Yes, trust me,” he said. “Can I get you something to eat?”
“Where’s my phone?”
“I’m charging it for you,” Simon evaded. “Toast? Cereal? How about some coffee?”
“Maybe some toast.” She regarded him suspiciously. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing.” He opened a cupboard and got a loaf of bread out. “How are you feeling? Any dizziness? The hospital said we should go back if you felt dizzy or nauseous.”
“You’re…edgy.”
He turned around, and Olivia studied him, frowning as she attempted to focus.
“Are you sure you’re not feeling dizzy?”
“Simon,” Olivia said slowly in a warning tone.
Simon lowered two pieces of bread into the toaster. He turned to lean his back against the worktop and folded his arms across his chest. “I have some work-related news, and you’re not going to like it.”
“Go on.”
“Maybe have something to eat. Get some coffee inside you first,” he suggested.
Olivia glared at him. “Don’t make me ask you again, Simon.”
He blew out a nervous breath. “Okay, we’ve lost Techtrix, Maddison’s—”
Olivia blinked. “I’m sorry, what do you mean lost? Is the database acting up again?”
Simon took a deep breath. “No, I mean lost as in they’ve left us.”
“They…they’ve terminated their agreements with us?” Olivia struggled to understand and started to adjust her crutch so she could stand up again.
“Yes.”
“Both of them?” she clarified, pushing herself up from her seat with her good hand and grabbing the crutch.
“Yes, and more.”
“More?” Olivia gave him a panicked look.
“Holder and Son, Grants, RRG, and YSA have all filed notice. And others are asking about the terms of their contracts.”
“Why? What’s happened? I don’t understand…” Olivia’s strength s
tarted to give way. Simon caught her and lowered her gently back into the chair.
“Marcus.” He knelt in front of her chair, effectively preventing her from getting up.
“Marcus?” Olivia paused. “He finally set up on his own?”
“Yes. He has established a company here in New York.”
“I…” Olivia’s voice faded as she attempted to catch up.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before.” Simon looked up at her apologetically. “You needed time to recover. Physical injuries aside, you were pretty fuzzy-headed because of the pain medication.”
The battle between Marcus and Olivia had been going on for years. Marcus had always assumed a senior partner position would be his when Olivia’s father left the firm. But Olivia had ended up being instated as managing partner despite her lack of experience, which was outweighed by her talent as a mathematician, and her public speaking skills. Not to mention her aptitude for memorising and rationalising complicated legal documents.
One thing Olivia couldn’t do, though, was understand the rules of office politics; games Marcus constantly initiated. And excelled at. It was well known at Applewood Financial that they despised each other. A huge sigh of relief had sounded throughout the offices when Marcus had left two weeks ago.
“I wish I’d realised what was happening sooner,” Simon said. “I knew something was up. People were suddenly handing in their notice, and stopped talking in the breakroom whenever they saw me come in. But I had no proof. And I never in a million years thought it would be something like this.” He sighed and shook his head. “Then, on Monday, I was woken up at four in the morning New York time. A ton of people had suddenly quit and not shown up for work over in London. When the New York office opened five hours later, it was clear that something was seriously wrong.”
Simon continued to look up at Olivia, who was still coming to terms with the news, her woozy mind taking a while to piece everything together.
“But why…how has he managed to get so many clients to leave so quickly?” she finally asked.
“He’s slashed his rates; he is literally charging half of what we charge for a set time. Word spread quickly. He’s taken most of corporate finance with him, so clients are basically getting the same work done by the same people, for half the cost.”
