by S M Mala
It wasn’t going to be a pleasant meeting and she was grateful she had Samina.
As soon as the door opened, she noticed Alice smile then turn serious.
‘This is Samina Shah, she works for your company in a roundabout way,’ Sylvie said, with her masking smile as Samina stepped forward and shook the woman’s hand then the man’s.
‘I saw you at the party a few weeks ago,’ Alice replied politely as Sylvie glared at their lawyer. ‘This is Henry.’
‘I know,’ said Sylvie stepping forward. ‘I’d shake your hand, the pair of you, but if I remember last time, you were trying to shaft me on behalf of Freya.’
Alice looked agitated as Sylvie turned around and sat at the table, Samina sitting next to her.
‘Who Freya?’ asked Samina.
‘I’ll tell you later,’ she whispered, seeing the pained faces of Alice and Henry.
‘That was a long time ago,’ Henry said gently. ‘And many things have changed since then.’
‘It’s four years ago this August and it still seems like yesterday,’ she replied as Samina sat forward.
‘Your husband?’ Samina asked. ‘They do something bad?’
‘They were one of a few who tried,’ Sylvie replied quietly, knowing not to get angry so she smiled brightly. ‘What is it you need to speak to me about… privately?’
‘Did anyone offer you a drink?’ Alice asked and Sylvie could see she looked more concerned than confrontational.
‘Yes they did. What is it you want Alice?’
‘I-,’ Alice began but something seemed to have got caught in her throat. ‘I know how this is going to sound but please don’t get angry.’
Immediately Sylvie’s back was up.
‘You own forty per cent of a company we don’t want and, because of certain oversights, I can’t force you out of that agreement. I know you don’t want to sell the company, especially to me, but I do want to sell my share,’ she said and Sylvie knew what was coming next. ‘Do you have the capital to buy out the remaining sixty per cent?’
She didn’t know where the laugh came from but it had risen to her throat before she could close her mouth.
‘You asked me that many years ago about the money Rupert borrowed from his mother and you knew the answer then, so why play all these games?’ she replied and noticed Samina had pulled her lips very tightly together.
‘Will you sell it back to us, at a reasonable rate?’
‘No.’
‘Then I will have to consider selling our share to someone else. In your agreement it says it can be done with the other person’s permission,’ Alice continued and Sylvie watched her wring her hands for a moment.
‘And if I don’t give permission?’
‘It will take seconds for the company to close down and go into administration, quite simply. There’s a chance you won’t make any money or have anything of worth,’ Henry added in his officious tone. ‘If we find someone to take over sixty per cent of the company then at least you might have a future. We were thinking of something in the same field.’
‘Sex,’ Samina said quickly. ‘You want to sell company to sex company?’
‘And Piers has agreed?’ Sylvie gulped feeling betrayed.
‘My son nearly got arrested based on an incident on your premises. You or your friends aren’t willing to tell me what happened and luckily, Stephen didn’t want to take it further. Obviously we had to settle this,’ Alice said in an annoyed manner.
She closed her eyes for a moment and smiled, not really caring what Alice had to say as she was in a ‘no win’ situation and knew she had no financial help from any corner.
‘And we have to pay for Stephen’s gardening leave too, when you didn’t even discuss it with me?’ Sylvie replied, feeling her voice getting harsher. ‘Fine! For any of this to start you make sure your company pays me back the money I lent it as well as assuring me Stephen Seas doesn’t come back to work with us. If Piers agrees, like you say he does, then he can keep away too.’
‘Sylvie! What money?’ Alice asked, seeming confused. ‘I don’t want to upset you.’
‘You want to break us, that what you want to do!’ Samina said, then got hold of her bag and reached in.
Looking at the two people across the other side of the table, Sylvie noticed the horror on their faces when Samina pulled out all the best-selling products, throwing them in the middle.
‘We make money, we do well. You know she not find money to buy. If we all had money, we put in but even I, with my houses, not afford to help. What we give is people pleasure! Sex pleasure!’ Samina said in a loud voice. ‘You people all flash and shiny. You not want this up your anal hole?’ She was holding the door handled shaped butt plug. ‘It good and at your age it help to get stimulation for buttock muscle.’
Sylvie started to laugh at the shocked faces.
‘If you find any buyers I have to meet with them, tell them what I want. And if I find someone, then don’t piss around so I lose a valuable new partnership. The bottom line is no one loses their jobs,’ said Sylvie as Samina walked to Henry and waved a package in his face. ‘Are we agreed?’
‘She not want you to shaft her,’ added Samina looking at Henry. ‘But I leave with you because you a man that need shaft.’
Again, Sylvie started to laugh as she grabbed her bag and the mad woman trying to promote the products of ‘Good Vibration’, before realising Alice was trying hard not to smile.
Fifty two
He stopped when he heard the sound.
Sylvie’s laugh was ricocheting around the floor and he thought he was going mad.
Then he heard more laughter.
‘Take, take for free! Make happy! You all look like you need sex relief!’
He stepped out of the office and saw Samina, in a bright coloured suit, literally throwing things at the people.
‘Enjoy! Free for all!’ she continued to shout before spotting Finlay. ‘You traitor Finlay Chambers. Traitor to us!’
Just as he was about to reply he spotted Sylvie, who was following her down towards the lift, and saw her stop when she noticed him.
Something jolted his insides and he thought he was dreaming.
‘Sylvie!’ his mother shouted out.
‘I’ve said what I’ve got to say,’ the gorgeous woman replied, before standing up straight and walking towards him. She held out her hand as he shook it. ‘Good to see you again Finlay, hope all’s well with your wife and child. Congratulations!’
‘Yes,’ he mumbled looking into her dark eyes and realised he wanted to grab her in his arms.
The feeling of love and lust was literally over whelming him.
He felt numb.
‘Your mother wants to sell your company’s share, knowing I can’t buy it out, so we’ve had a heart to heart. I think it’s best your company keeps away from us as I don’t want them to use…’ she pondered for a moment. ‘…subterfuge, that’s your word isn’t it? Then sell us down the ….’
‘Fanny,’ added Samina. ‘Or up the anal!’
Sylvie started to laugh again as he stared at her for a moment, then she stopped and looked at him, the way she did when they were alone before noticing the sad expression in her eyes as she forced out a brighter smile.
He wanted to say something but realised he couldn’t.
‘Good to see you again. I’m happy it all worked out well for you. I told you you’d get your perfect life back and you did,’ she whispered, before walking towards the lift and disappearing with Samina.
‘Are you listening?’ his mother asked him as he shook out of his trail of thought, not knowing what had hit him. ‘Finlay?’
‘Why didn’t you say she was coming in?’ he asked, walking into his office and looking out of the window, knowing he’d be able to see her leave the building while feeling a deep twist in his heart.
‘Oh god Finlay, I told her Piers agreed with me selling his share and she… well she said he can’t go into the building, she w
ants her money back and Stephen’s services are no longer required!’
‘If Piers agreed then-.’
‘He didn’t. I was just hoping she’d realise we need to get rid of our shares and what money does he owe? What’s going on and …’
Finlay wasn’t listening.
He was looking at her walking out of the building, laughing with Samina before disappearing round the corner. All he wanted to do was follow her and talk, get some reassurance she still loved him, then he realised his mother was standing next to him. Doing a double take he smiled.
‘Finlay Chambers I know that look so well,’ he heard his mother say.
‘What are you talking about?’ he shrugged. ‘And who said you could make that decision? Not a few weeks ago you told me I had to sort it and what good is that if you’re doing things behind my back!’
Finlay realised from his mother’s startled expression he had raised his voice louder than even he realised.
‘I promised them they’d keep their jobs until the end of December and we should stick with that agreement. They’re not the ones losing money, they’re making it and… well… they have their hearts in the right place,’ he said, letting out a sigh before seeing people walk by laughing with condoms and gadgets in their hands. ‘They bring people joy.’
‘Or is it someone in the company brings you joy?’ she questioned suspiciously. ‘Okay, Finlay, I’ll lay it on the line. ‘Le Font’ or ‘Good Vibration’, one of them has to go, you decide which one. You have until the end of August to sort it out or I will do what I have to do, regardless of what you or anyone thinks.’
‘That’s unfair as we can keep both if-.’
‘Frankly,’ she said, staring hard at him. ‘I’m not sure either one is good for the business or you.’
Fifty three
As soon as she turned the corner, Sylvie broke down in tears, holding herself up against the wall, as Samina stood there and watched in horror.
‘I’m sorry,’ she mumbled, searching for a tissue to find Samina had a wad held under her nose. ‘I have to sort out the business and Piers has agreed to get rid of his share. He didn’t say a word when I spoke to him yesterday. I feel so let down.’
‘Give me phone now!’ Samina demanded as Sylvie handed it over and tried to compose herself.
‘What are you doing?’
‘Wait!’ the woman said, holding her finger up. ‘Piers! It not Sylvie it Samina! You let us down and Sylvie cry, ugly face, because you agree to sell your share!’
Sylvie was trying not to choke, realising what was happening.
‘You a bad man! You hear me!’ shouted Samina.
‘Give me the phone,’ she said, gulping back her next surge of weeping.
‘You not agree?’ Samina said quietly. ‘You not know what I talking about? You have alka seltzer that why you not remember?’
‘Alka seltzer?’
‘Yes, when people forget,’ she replied, turning up her nose.
‘Amnesia? Dementia?’ Sylvie laughed through her tears and put her hand out. ‘Let me speak to him.’
‘Sylvie, what’s going on?’ Piers asked and she could hear he was confused. ‘I never agreed to sell the shares.’
‘Your wife told me you agreed and that I either have to buy you out or find someone else to take over your-.’ She burst into tears, unable to speak.
‘Sylvie? Do you think I’d really do that to you?’
‘Give me!’ snapped Samina grabbing the phone out of her hand. ‘She cry ugly face again and you Piers Caplin better not upset her. It bad enough she look so ugly!’ She hung up. ‘Tea!’ Samina shouted as she dragged Sylvie down the road.
She couldn’t stop crying as his face kept coming into her head and her heartbreak seemed more pronounced.
He looked happy.
He looked beautiful.
Sylvie felt she shouldn’t have been in the building, spoiling his perfect professional surroundings and worst of all, made her realise he didn’t want her.
But it just confirmed she still wanted him.
‘No brainer,’ she mumbled to herself, as Samina came back to the table with two cups of tea as they sat in a coffee house.
‘They say they had chai latte but it powder. Not proper whole spice. I said ‘no thank you, I want breakfast English, none of your foreign muck!’ gasped Samina, sitting next to her and pushing the cup forward. ‘Not worry Sylvie, we find money, we do something.’
‘I don’t even know the value of the company,’ she blubbed and held the tissues in front of her eyes. ‘I don’t know where to start.’
‘It shock.’
‘It is a bit of a shock considering it’s May and-.’
‘Seeing Finlay. It shock,’ she said and let out a sigh.
Sylvie looked up at her and burst into tears again, this time she tried to silently sob into her hands but kept taking gulps of air.
‘You sound like lung collapse,’ whispered Samina. ‘They think you have fit!’
‘I’m so unhappy,’ she said, feeling sick in her gut when she said it. ‘Everything is awful.’
‘Your face awful with cry again and again. You look like you have heart attack.’
‘My heart’s being attacked,’ she gasped again before holding onto her tears. ‘What was I thinking?’
‘What you thinking?’
For a moment she knew what she was thinking.
About Finlay.
The small moments when she thought he liked her more, when she had hoped he’d felt something deeper, even love.
‘I’m thinking I’m a silly old fool,’ she said, before masking her hurt and sipping her tea.
‘Fool,’ Samina said, staring at her. ‘Fool for loving man who married and wife carrying child. Fool for sleeping with man. Fool for thinking man will leave family. Fool for not seeing Finlay think he a fool for being good man. Fool.’ Sipping her tea she nodded in agreement with Sylvie. ‘And you fool for not seeing he fool in love with you and you big fool in love with him.’
All night she felt awful, realising the man would never belong to her. She was restless the following morning, knowing she had to get in early and start thinking hard about all her options.
One option she was not willing to do was risk her home. That had been taken from her before, so the aim was to find likeminded companies who would be willing to become a partner.
As she kissed her mother and child goodbye, she unhappily walked through Chiswick Park which was basking in the early morning sunshine, not knowing anything about finding another business to work with and wondering what her chances were of getting another job. Her CV hadn’t been touched in ages and she needed to start thinking positive, before thinking if Alice would buy her out for a decent price and she could be done with all of it.
Then she snapped out of it, realising that’s exactly what they’d want her to do plus she knew that company would try and screw her over.
Once she got into work, she slumped into her seat, feeling the warm sun through the windows. Again she thought of him, the way he looked, his hair longer and wavier, the light tan making him look more beautiful. How polite she was when all she wanted was to fling her arms around him and cry into his chest.
She put her face in her hands and didn’t know where to start her day, feeling the pin prick of tears hit her eyes as she tried to swallow them away.
Footsteps were slowly coming up the stairs and she wondered if one of the guys had come in early to deal with the mounting deliveries. Something touched her hand, as she startled.
It was Finlay.
Sylvie couldn’t sa.y anything as he half smiled, before bending down to look at her, straight in the eye.
He didn’t say anything for a moment and she couldn’t speak.
It felt like something heavy was resting on her chest. Then he slipped his hand around hers and made her stand up before reaching to her desk. He tried to open the drawer, which was locked.
He glanced back as she realised
he wanted the key card. Sylvie opened the drawer and he took the wallet.
‘We need to talk. I forgot to tell you something,’ he said quietly as she knew it was going to be another bloody blow to her heart.
‘Please don’t tell me anything else,’ she pleaded. ‘Just go.’
Then he picked up her bags, handed them to her and walked out of the office, down the stairs and out of the building, locking up as they left, still gently holding on to her hand. Sylvie looked at him, in his jeans and t-shirt, hair all ruffled acting as if nothing had happened since he told her he’d prefer to be with his wife and child, hence breaking her heart.
‘What are you doing?’ she asked as he glanced at her for a moment then double locked the door before turning to face her.
Finlay smiled.
It was the tired smile, the one he’d have after they’d made love.
Sylvie realised if he knew half of what she felt, he wouldn’t be there, torturing her.
‘Please Finlay don’t do this to me.’
He gently pulled her arm and walked down the road, waited patiently to cross over the roundabout and towards the hotel. After months of not being inside the place, she held her head down as he walked her up the flight of stairs and then stopped at 103.
Finlay took her hand and put the key card towards the reader before touching her shoulder.
‘It’s up to you but this might help. I’m not with Juliette. I’ve left her,’ he said, as she held on to her breath, unable to speak. ‘Let’s do this together as I want you to go in. You have to go in.’
His hand was wrapped around hers and they touched the card against the door. The green light flashed as he walked in, holding it open with his back to her. Stepping in slowly, he let go of the door and they stood there for a few moments before he turned and lunged for her lips, pushing her up against the wall as she searched his mouth then felt his tongue touch hers.
Everything inside her body was in turmoil and lust. She was overwhelmed by her need to touch him and her desire for him to touch her.
It was going very fast and Finlay had managed to push her up the wall and wrap his arms around her body, all the time kissing her.
