As soon as I sorted, it became obvious. Two employees stood out at the top.
Simon shook his head. “I show them as active in your HR system.”
I quickly pulled up my company email roster. “Yet they don’t have email, nor are they in the employee directory.”
“Who would have access to this?” George queried.
“Jeff, but he’d need some help from HR.” Like the girl he was sleeping with. “My guess is these two employees are recent new hires, showing up for the first time within the last few months.”
Looking at his computer, Simon nodded.
“Then I’d check with Courtney,” I suggested.
“Let’s call them both in,” George decided.
“If we did that on a Saturday, they’d be suspicious,” I pointed out. “Probably better to follow the money, check out the bank accounts and the cashing of the checks. Let me work with Lyle here to get him everything he needs from the system. Then we’ll document it all.”
Everyone seemed to be in agreement with this approach. I worked with Lyle over the next couple of hours to document all of the details, getting sicker to my stomach by the minute. Turned out over the last six months, two fictitious employees had been pulling a salary. Courtney had entered in their details and Jeff had processed their paychecks. It was the perfect fraud if anyone were comparing the HR system to payroll. But where it had fault was when Russ had originally requested a listing of all employee compensation. Jeff had provided the raw spreadsheet, the one I’d signed off on. Then when Lyle had gone back to ask, Jeff must’ve gotten nervous and deleted those two people from the spreadsheet. He’d spread out their payroll amounts to others so as not to change the total.
George hung around for a while, but when he realized we had everything we needed, he took off. Tom came back but remained quiet, merely spectating while Lyle and I went on a roll with all of the details. Finally, after giving them everything, I stood up. I was hungry and ready to get home. I avoided acknowledging Simon until he came to his feet and spoke.
“I’ll see you out.”
We walked in silence until we were in the elevator.
“Thank you for coming in today.”
I couldn’t contain my sarcasm or temper. “Yes, well, thankfully George thought I could be helpful rather than a suspect for theft.”
He sighed. “I know you’re angry.”
“Yes. I am. But mostly, I’m hurt. Not only did you leave last night in the middle of dinner—evidently thinking I could be stealing—but I find out from Tom that you’re traveling to London on Wednesday?”
I waited a breath for him to tell me I’d misunderstood. That Tom had meant the royal we, but instead, he started with excuses.
“I heard about London for the first time this morning. I haven’t had a chance to talk to Phillip to remind him I’m on holiday. As for Friday, you have to believe I never for a moment thought you were stealing. I left so I could keep Tom from going down that idiotic path. You believe that, right?”
I swallowed hard, trying to think of it logically despite my emotions threatening to intervene. “Yes. I believe it. But does that mean you’ll turn down London? Tell your boss no if he insists you go?”
He hesitated. In that beat, I knew he wouldn’t. “My intention is to speak Phillip, but he may not understand.”
“He’s not the only one.”
“Peyton, please. I acknowledge I haven’t exactly had the best track record, but I promise—”
I cut him off. “Don’t. Don’t make promises you and I both know you may not be able to keep. It’s not fair to me, but it’s also not fair to you. You think I didn’t see how stressed out you were last night once you received the call? That I wasn’t aware it was the reason you excused yourself to the restroom? It’s the classic move. One my dad perfected over the years.” I stopped trying to rein in my unresolved feelings over my father putting work first.
Simon’s blue eyes locked on mine. “There are many things last night I wish I could’ve told you.” He cursed under his breath and then appeared resigned. “It was an impossible choice. And I thought you understood I wouldn’t have left if I didn’t have to.”
The elevator doors opened, and he walked me all the way to my car before I spoke again. “I lied about understanding. Not only to you, but to myself.”
“What if George had called you last night with the same request you got this morning? Could you definitively say you would’ve told him you couldn’t come? We all have to make some sacrifices from time to time. I need a little leeway here. That’s all I’m asking for.”
I hadn’t expected the flipped argument, and it made sense. When George called this morning, I had instantly made work a priority. But I had my limits. “You’re right. I would’ve come, and I did, but what about our vacation next week? I never would sacrifice that for work. And I think we both know you’re not going to tell Phillip no.”
“Is this about me not being able to apologize?”
It dawned on me that while it was bothersome he had trouble expressing an apology, that wasn’t the crux of the problem. The fact he thought that was the issue made it clear he wasn’t focusing on the right thing.
“No. It’s about you not being able to commit to anything outside of your job. Of course it’s tough when you won’t say you’re sorry for something, but that inability isn’t the real problem.”
He swallowed hard, rocking on his heels and looking defeated. “I need more time to work this out.”
“Simon, I know you’re trying, I do. But at some point, I believe this will eventually make us both miserable. We had a good few weeks. Let’s just leave it at that.”
“You don’t mean that.”
Sadness overwhelmed me. “You and I both knew this would be a long shot when it came to lasting. We’re so opposite.” I didn’t want to be this person putting him in an impossible situation of having to choose. Neither did he want to be made to feel bad for doing his job. Perhaps it was simply a case of incompatibility.
“I’ve never felt this way about a woman before. Ever. Give me a chance.”
It would be easy to ignore the place in my gut that told me he’d try, and I’d let him. But I couldn’t. Because I didn’t want to be the woman who asked him to change and then became disappointed when he didn’t. I couldn’t become my mother.
My voice was thick with emotion. “I don’t think I can do this—” I motioned between us. “—anymore. I don’t know how this can possibly work.” There was no bigger truth than this statement.
He cupped my face and gave me a sad kiss. “Then I’ll have to figure out a way to show you.”
CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR
Simon
I refused to give up. That was my first thought as I watched Peyton pull out of the car park. She’d been right in saying I’d been making promises I couldn’t keep. London was a perfect example of that. Phillip hadn’t so much as considered I’d asked to take next week off. Instead, he’d simply scheduled the next deal and arranged for us to fly out on Wednesday. He’d ignored my requested holiday completely.
I’d set myself up to fail in this process of balancing the job and a relationship because I hadn’t taken the time to make any modifications outside of my mindset. But that was about to change.
After updating Phillip about what we’d discovered regarding the payroll anomalies, I drove back to my apartment. We would have the deal finalized by Monday. In my conversation with Phillip, I’d told him I’d be flying to New York to meet with him on Tuesday. I wasn’t sure what I’d say, nor could I predict how he’d react. But if I had a shot at changing my priorities, it had to start there, with setting boundaries.
I stayed in my car, deep in thought until a knock came on my window. It was Emma. Grabbing my bag, I stepped out of the car.
“You’re not going over to Peyton’s?”
I shook my head. “She’s upset. Justifiably so. As far as she’s concerned, I left her sister’s house in the midd
le of dinner and thought she was a thief. Maybe worse than that, she found out from Tom that I’m due to go to London on Wednesday, thereby ruining our holiday plans.”
“So you’re just giving up on her?”
“No. But I need to figure out a way to show her I can balance work and personal. How I can make her the priority. I don’t know if it’ll be enough, though.”
At the end of the day, I wasn’t sure how tolerant and flexible she could be, especially given her history with her father. I certainly wanted to shift my priorities, but I couldn’t guarantee there wouldn’t be more emergencies. Nobody could.
“What will you do?”
“After I confront Jeff and his little girlfriend and fire them both on Monday, I’ll fly to New York. I have a meeting with Phillip on Tuesday morning.”
Her shock was evident. “About what? Please tell me you’re not thinking of quitting your job?”
“I’m not sure yet. You know how Phillip can be. He may demand all or nothing.” Ultimately, I didn’t want to quit my job, but I certainly couldn’t spend ten months on the road and expect to foster a new relationship, either. I needed a new arrangement.
“Look, I’m the first to say I hope you can work your relationship out, but I don’t think she’d want you to quit altogether. And I don’t want to see you ultimately resent her for something she didn’t even ask for.”
Maybe if Peyton had demanded it, I might have felt trapped by such an ultimatum. But because she hadn’t, I could honestly consider quitting if Phillip couldn’t respect my boundaries. I wanted more. And this felt right. “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that. Can you arrange the flight?”
She hesitated but then nodded. “Yeah. All right. I’ll book it.”
***
On Monday morning, I met Jeff in his office. George accompanied me, insisting he wanted to be there in his last act as owner. The director of payroll was an arsehole, but he wasn’t stupid. When we accused him, he gave up nothing with the exception of attitude and indignation.
His little girlfriend, Courtney, however, was a different story. Upon being told she might go to jail for a man who wasn’t about to have her back, she rolled like a log, giving up Jeff in a heartbeat. She’d been nothing but tears and apologies. George had been affected, but I hadn’t felt any empathy. No matter how much she cried, she’d stolen almost fifty thousand dollars.
Both she and Jeff got walked out by security. I’d leave it to Phillip whether he chose to prosecute.
I went upstairs to our offices, wondering if Peyton had come in today, but keeping myself from checking.
Emma was busy packing up files into boxes. “How did it go?”
“Guilty. Both have been walked out. IT is revoking all access. My flight all set?”
She sighed. “Yes. You leaving from here?”
“Yes.”
“Have you talked to Peyton?”
“No. Better I speak with her after I meet with Phillip and figure out what I can do about London. With any luck, I’ll be back here on a plane tomorrow afternoon.”
“Maybe the London deal will fall through.”
One could hope.
CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE
Peyton
I woke up Monday not wanting to get out of bed, but doing so to at least let Cooper out and feed him. Since I’d already arranged to take this week off for vacation, I decided to stay home. George had told me Simon would handle the interrogation of Jeff and they’d update me once he was terminated. Probably for the best. I doubted my presence would bring about a confession from the guy.
After my sister dropped the girls off for school, she came over with coffee and bagels to find me on my couch watching a Law & Order marathon. Funny how watching murder investigations seemed to numb me for a while.
I confided everything, including the part about Simon working on behalf of his company to buy mine and his attempt to build a relationship despite his work habits. I waited for her blunt words. Instead, she engulfed me in a hug; the type of comforting embrace only a loved one could give.
“I’m sorry, Peyton.”
I sniffled, voicing the question I’d never before asked my sister. “Could you do it? What Mom did? Be with someone who might bail on dinners, miss weekends, birthdays, and holidays?”
“No. I couldn’t. But I’m not you, and you’re not her. Hell, Simon isn’t Dad. Everyone has their own boundaries or limits for what they would and wouldn’t put up with in a relationship. Their own deal breakers. I know it’s hard to hear this, but Mom loved Dad despite his work habits and the fact he was so often absent. She chose that life. Sure, we saw how disappointed she would be when he’d have to leave for work, but I don’t remember her ever asking him not to. She accepted it without complaint, to be honest, and he simply went on putting his job first a lot of the time.”
“And it got her killed.” Resentment washed up from the fourteen-year old girl who’d been so upset her mother had died because she’d just had to join my father on a work trip in order to celebrate their anniversary.
Jen shook her head sadly. “No, the plane crash killed them both. The truth of the matter was whether it had been a business trip or not, the same thing could’ve happened to them. She was happy, you know. Maybe it wasn’t ideal through our eyes. Frankly, it sucked to have a father who no-showed to our birthday parties, but you can’t put that on someone else. You can only be open and honest that those are the important things to you. Hell, Kevin was late the other night for Sara’s dance recital because he had to close for someone who went home sick. He felt guilty as hell and took her out for ice cream afterwards. Shit happens. It’s not always perfect, but we do the best we can balancing life, love, and work. It’s quality over quantity.”
She was right. “We never had either with Dad.”
“No, we didn’t. But he did love us. In his own way.”
“I was falling in love with Simon. Even though I recognized this was fast and maybe a bit crazy, I couldn’t help feeling that way.”
“I’m sorry, sis. I know this doesn’t make it any easier, but he did look sincerely upset about having to leave on Friday, and any man who brings Peppa the Pig for the girls at least made an effort.”
Had I been too hard on him? Should we have waited until this deal was done before we talked about the future? Had I been unfair in projecting my past onto him? I was struck by the realization I’d acted out of emotion and, if possible, should give him a better chance to prove himself. I should be more flexible and understanding.
I cursed, suddenly anxious to speak with him. After my sister left, giving one last hug, I got dressed. He was probably still at the office. Although I hated to talk to him there, I didn’t want to wait a moment longer.
Once at the building, I headed straight up to the eighth floor, steeling myself in case Tom was here. Thankfully, I didn’t have to deal with that asshole. The only person around was Emma, putting documents into boxes.
“Hi, there.”
“Hi, Peyton. How are you?”
I glanced around and didn’t see any sign of Simon. Maybe he wasn’t done dealing with the Jeff situation.
“I’m okay. Um, did Simon already meet with Jeff and Courtney?”
“Yep. This morning. According to him, Courtney was the one who spilled her guts. Jeff was outraged and indignant. Both were walked out and terminated by ten o’clock. All system access revoked. The deal closed shortly after. I’m packing up everything to get it mailed back to headquarters.”
I wondered if the company would press charges. If it were up to me, I would, but it was hard to tell what the new owner would wish to do. “That’s good. Is he around?”
She stopped packing and studied me. “Actually, he and Tom are both on a plane back to New York.”
I swallowed past the lump in my throat. I appeared to be too late. He was already on the way home.
“He’s there for a couple days before his next assignment in London, I take it?” I tried to keep my voice
steady with my question.
She was hesitant but then decided to share what was on her mind. “Because I care about him, I’m going to say this even at the risk of Simon killing me for it. And I adore you, especially after yesterday when you put Tom in his place. God, I wanted to give you a standing ovation. Anyhow, I digress. I like the idea of you and Simon together. He wants so badly to make this work with you, Peyton. I hope you realize how gutted he was to leave on Friday night. He wanted to tell you why, and I hope there is no doubt in your mind he left because Tom was an arse who was accusing you of stealing. But Simon didn’t believe it for a moment. Once he arrived, the first thing he did was squash that notion.”
“I do believe it. I think I was upset at the circumstance of George being the one to call me in, then finding out about the stealing accusation, and finally learning Simon was going to London.”
“This thing in London came out of the blue. And Simon was upset when Phillip brought it up. He wanted a holiday with you. He’d already booked the hotel in Austin. But Phillip isn’t used to hearing the word no, and frankly, Simon has never taken any time off. His mother’s funeral was the only exception, and even then, he only took off two days. He’s trying, but this is the week of every assignment where we’re typically consumed with work. He may need some more time to figure out the balance. That’s all I’m saying.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t appreciate that until now.” I wanted to make it work, too, but it took two people with that same idea. I couldn’t simply wait on him to do everything. I needed to have more realistic expectations. To think he could change things so drastically in such a short amount of time had been unfair. “Is he already on the plane?”
She glanced at her watch. “Afraid so. He has a meeting with Phillip in the morning.”
“About what?
“He’s talking to him about London and the future. Like I said, he’s trying.”
Hadn’t he said he wanted to show me?
“What will Phillip say?” If he was a man not used to hearing no, how would it go?
Without Apology Page 22
