In Over Her Head (Corporate Chaos Series Book 1)

by Leighann Dobbs

  Her phone pinged, and she saw a text from Sarah. She was too tired to answer.

  Marly turned over on her side and hugged the pillow. She could catch up with Sarah tomorrow—after she talked to Jasper. With a sigh, she realized that since the managers' meeting was the next day, Jasper would be busy all morning. She'd have to suffer through the whole meeting, rehashing in her head over and over again how she was going to tell him.

  Was nothing easy?

  27

  Marly squirmed in her chair. The weekly managers' meeting was getting uglier by the minute. Edward was even here, which meant things must be really bad. He rarely attended in-house meetings anymore and usually stuck to the board meetings.

  Several managers had already been called on the spot, each of them acting nervous and defensive. Jasper hadn't even looked in her direction once, which made Marly feel bad. Then again, his company was falling apart. He had more important things than her to think about.

  But even though Jasper had not looked at her, Veronica had been darting smug glares in her direction the whole time. What was that about?

  Marly glanced over at the obnoxious assistant. Was she gaining weight? She thought she could see a little fat roll bulging over the top of her Vera Wang skirt. It also looked as if she had a bad case of acne on her face that she had unsuccessfully tried to cover with makeup. Marly smiled to herself. Served her right.

  Marly tried to focus back on the meeting. It wasn't easy. Instead of paying attention to what everyone was saying, she kept mentally reviewing what she was going to say to Jasper later. And the constant looks from Veronica were distracting.

  "No wonder revenue is down. The last ads we ran were way off base. I have no idea who approved them, but they were a total waste of money," Bill Henderson said, taking a swipe at the advertising department.

  Veronica put a fresh cup of coffee in front of Jasper and then placed her fuchsia-nailed fingers on his arm in a possessive gesture, making sure to give Marly a pointed glance as she did.

  What was she up to?

  "I'm pretty sure everyone in this room gave that ad campaign the thumbs-up, Bill. Including you," Liz Gershon said, putting Bill in his place. She managed the ad campaigns. And she was right. Marly clearly remembered everyone in the room approving the ads.

  Jasper brushed Veronica's arm off as he shoved up from his chair, and Marly saw a look of anger pass over the assistant's face. Veronica sat down, pursing her lips and fiddling with a folder she had on the table in front of her. She flipped it open, and Marly craned her neck to see what was inside. Pictures? What could Veronica possibly have pictures of that would be relevant to the meeting? But then she flicked it closed before Marly could catch more than a glimpse.

  "Everyone, quiet down. Let's stop all the internal accusations. This is our issue, the people in this room. We need to figure out how to solve it—to lessen it at least, until the new plus line is out in stores. Until then, I've been noticing an increase in the ads that Theorim is running, alluding to some new line for the fall. Anyone have any ideas what that is about?" Jasper already sounded exhausted, and it was only ten a.m.

  Marly's gut twisted at the mention of Theorim. Was Tanner actually using the designs? Did he have those commercials in the works before, or had he just ramped up after he'd gotten the designs from Marly? She glanced around the room to see if anyone knew anything about it, but they were all silent, exchanging nervous glances or with their head down, a common sight when meetings got heated.

  At the head of the table, Veronica flicked the edge of the folder nervously.

  "No one has any idea?" Jasper turned to Liz. "Aren't you supposed to be keeping up on what is going on in the media line?"

  "I have been. I did see that he had a media blitz going. That's not unusual for this time of year. I mean, we all want to show off our new design lines, right?" Liz said.

  Jasper pursed his lips. "Right. But my gut tells me that Theorim is up to something. Hasn't anyone heard any rumors?" He surveyed the room with sharklike intensity. People mumbled and squirmed in their chairs. No one wanted to admit they didn't know what was going on with Theorim.

  Suddenly, Veronica bolted up from her chair, pulled a picture out of the folder, and held it in the air. "Why don't you ask Marly what their plans are? She knows the CEO, Tanner Durcotte. Personally, I assume, since she had dinner with him recently."

  The room was so quiet that you could have heard a pin drop.

  Every head in the room turned to look at Marly, but the only person's face she saw was Jasper's.

  He looked as though he had just been kicked in the stomach.

  28

  Jasper sat speechless at the head of the conference room table. What the hell had just happened? He motioned for everyone to leave, including Marly. They eagerly scurried out, each one eyeing the picture that Veronica now held clutched in her hands as if it were a trophy.

  Veronica remained in her seat, as did Edward, who had attended the meeting out of concern over the declining sales. Jasper knew Edward must be eating this up.

  "Jasper, I'm sorry, but I had to say something. She can't be trusted, for obvious reasons." Veronica was standing up now, in a new short Chanel jacket and skintight Vera Wang pencil skirt. Why did she look so smug?

  "Understood," Jasper said sharply.

  Veronica had had it in for Marly from the beginning. Was she making this up to sabotage Marly? But pictures didn't lie.

  "And look." Veronica put the picture on the table and pointed. "I didn't get a good picture of it, but it looked like Durcotte handed her a check. Why would he be giving her a check?"

  Veronica's words were like ice to Jasper's heart. He needed time to think. He couldn't imagine why Marly would be meeting with Durcotte. Or why he would be giving her a check. Maybe it was all just an innocent lunch. Maybe Marly sold him something on Craigslist. They could be friends or know someone in common… but hadn't Marly told him that she had no idea who Tanner Durcotte was?

  "I think she isn't the right fit around here anymore," Veronica continued in a stern tone that implied she was irritated that Jasper hadn't fired Marly on the spot.

  "Veronica, stick to making coffee and managing my calendar. I will worry about the business." Jasper stood up and left the room, slamming the door behind him.

  Veronica flinched when the door slammed, and then flicked her eyes over to Edward. He had remained silent the entire time, and Veronica would love to know what he was thinking. Hopefully, something along the lines of how she would be much more suitable for his son than that fatty, Marly.

  Edward stood up, adjusting the buttons on his suit and running his fingers down his tie.

  "I don't want that woman stepping foot in this building again. My son may have a soft spot for her, but I do not. And especially not when the new fall ads hit the newsstand any minute now."

  Finally! This was Veronica's opportunity to get rid of Marly West once and for all.

  "I couldn't agree with you more, Mr. Kenney. I'd be happy to pack her items up and will have all of her computer access here terminated and key access cut," she replied, trying not to show her enthusiasm.

  Marly gulped in the steamy city air. She had felt faint when Veronica dropped the bomb about her and Tanner in the meeting. When Jasper had signaled for them to leave, she'd fled the building, too embarrassed to face any of her co-workers, and especially not Jasper.

  But now that she'd made it around the block, she realized she couldn't just walk out. She had to go back in and explain herself. Jasper would probably hate her, but she couldn't leave things like this.

  She'd made a mess of everything. She couldn't get the money to save her mother's life. She was going to lose the townhouse, and she'd ruined any relationship there was with Jasper. Oh, and she was sure to get fired from her job.

  But the part that hurt the worst was losing Jasper's trust. Having him think she'd screwed him over. She had to see him to explain everything. At the very least, he might not be
so hurt by her actions if he knew it was all for her mother.

  "Excuse me." Veronica's snotty voice clanged through the lobby, stopping Marly as soon as she entered.

  Veronica stood in the middle of the vast space flanked by security guards and holding a big cardboard box. A silver-framed photo of Marly's mother stuck out of the top. The box was full of Marly's stuff!

  "Your employment here has been terminated, effective immediately," Veronica said in a chipper singsong voice. "Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out!"

  And with that, she shoved the box into Marly's hands, turned, and walked away, leaving Marly with the two security guards.

  Marly stood there in stunned silence for a few heartbeats then turned and walked toward the door. To add to her mortification, the security guards kept pace on either side of her. She kept her eyes down. She could feel people staring at her as the crowd parted, forming a pathway to the doorway.

  Exiting the building in front of everyone with her personal effects in a box was humiliating. But what was worse was the fact that Jasper didn't even have the guts to fire her himself. Tears burned her eyes. It was just as well she was getting fired. She must have meant nothing to Jasper, because if she had, wouldn't he have at least given her a chance to explain?

  29

  Jasper paced back and forth in his office. He was angry and confused. What had happened in the meeting made no sense to him at all. He buzzed for Veronica. She was barely in the doorway when he started shooting questions at her.

  "How did you happen to see Tanner and Marly together and take pictures without them noticing? Where did this happen? What was her emergency about the other day?" he asked in a rapid-fire manner.

  "I, uh, I saw them at Café Lazure on my lunch hour. The emergency was most likely a lie so she could avoid explaining about Tanner, I'm sure."

  Jasper stared at Veronica. She looked nervous. What an odd coincidence that she just "happened" to see Marly in the café. Better to find out Marly's side before he jumped to any conclusions.

  "Have Marly come up here, now," Jasper said.

  "That's… ah… that's kind of difficult to do, as she was fired. Your father told me to take care of it. She left about ten minutes ago."

  "What? Why would you do that? When is everyone around here going to realize that I'm in charge?" Jasper's voice rose so loud that it caused Sarah to peek in his door. Her eyes were large as they flicked from Jasper to Veronica.

  "Jasper, please. Marly was meeting with your number-one competitor, and let's face it, it isn't as if she didn't know who he was! Your father is trying to protect the company by firing her," Veronica said.

  Sarah stepped into the office, her brows drawn together. "Wait. Marly was fired?"

  Veronica turned to her. "Yes, your little friend was fraternizing with the enemy."

  "The enemy?" Sarah raised her brows at Jasper.

  "Tanner Durcotte, from Theorim." Veronica's quick answers irked Jasper. She should be minding her own business, not throwing Marly under the bus.

  "I don't think it's a good idea to jump to conclusions about that, Veronica. And I don't think that you need to be the one spreading that around the company," Jasper said.

  "Well, I was in the meeting and—"

  "Enough," Jasper cut her off. He made a mental note to see if he could transfer her to another department. She clearly had attitude issues. Edward would probably just have fired someone if they showed this kind of disrespect, but Jasper wasn't going to do what Edward would do. Not anymore.

  "Jasper, can I speak to you alone, please?" Sarah asked, squeezing her way through the doorway as Veronica tried to block her.

  "Sarah, now is not a good time," Jasper said.

  "It's about Marly. You need to hear this." Sarah glanced at Veronica, who seemed eager to hear it too.

  "Fine. Veronica, you can go back to work," Jasper said. Sarah and Marly had become friends—maybe she knew something that would prove Veronica was wrong about the meeting.

  "Jasper, Marly did have a meeting with Tanner Durcotte. Her mother has terminal cancer. The procedure she needs that the doctors feel will cure this isn't approved in the United States yet, so insurance won't cover it. It's a hundred thousand dollars. Tanner told Marly he would give her the money in exchange for the drawings. Draconia's fall line. Marly tormented herself over doing it. She didn't want to betray you. She had to do it for her mother. What she ended up giving him were altered drawings. She couldn't go through with the real thing," Sarah blurted the words out so fast Jasper wasn't sure he heard her correctly.

  He sat down in his chair and turned it so he was facing the window. He remained quiet for a long time. "So Marly sold designs to him."

  "Yes. No. Well, not really. The designs were fakes. They wouldn't help his company at all. He just thought they would. And she had a good reason. You could see why she would do anything to help her mother," Sarah said. "I know you two hit it off. She didn't want to hurt you."

  "Why didn't she tell me all this herself?" Jasper asked, his head spinning.

  "Really, Jasper? You would have thought she was just after your money. But she was going to tell you. I guess Veronica got to you first."

  Jasper's gaze fell on the picture of his mother. Would he have done the same thing if he were in Marly's shoes? Damn right, he would have. But he might not have even been as considerate as Marly. She'd found a way to get the money without hurting Draconia. He might have just sold the designs, he'd have been so desperate to save his mom.

  He shot up out of the chair. "Thanks, Sarah. I need to go and make this right."

  Jasper knew exactly where Marly would have gone after being fired. To see her mother. Because that was exactly what he would have done.

  His mind wandered back to when he was a child, and his own mother being in the hospital with breast cancer. Jasper wanted to be with her all the time, but especially when he was upset. Just sitting in the same room with her was consoling, even though she couldn't talk very much.

  He knew how Marly felt, what she was going through. He hurried through the crowds of people to the hospital, eager to see Marly so he could let her know he understood why she'd done what she'd done. For the first time in Jasper's life, he was putting someone else before him.

  30

  Marly walked slowly down the hospital corridor to her mother's room. She wasn't going to tell her anything about what had happened. She just wanted to sit with her. She had already dropped the box of her things off at home, where another foreclosure letter from the bank had been taped to the door.

  Every penny she had made went to her mom's care. Even with insurance, there were deductibles and medicines that weren't covered. It was all over now. She had no job. Tanner had screwed her on the hundred grand. She just wanted to sit in silence in her mom's room.

  Just as she got to her mother's room, she heard a familiar voice yell out, "Marly!"

  Turning, she saw Jasper hurriedly walking down the hall toward her. Her gut clenched. He was the last person she wanted to see. After all the work she'd done for him… her designs would probably save the company, and he was so spineless that he had Veronica fire her. The only good thing about it was that she didn't have to listen to him now since she no longer worked for him.

  "I gave my badge to the security guard," Marly said dryly, turning back around to go to her mother's room.

  "Marly, please. I'm not here about the badge. I'm here to talk to you about all of this. Sarah told me everything," Jasper said, following Marly.

  Marly stopped. What had Sarah told him, exactly? What did it matter? He had let her get fired. Fired! Actually, it was even worse, because Sarah must have told him about her mom, and he would now know how desperately she needed her job, and he'd fired her anyway! He had a lot of balls even coming here!

  She turned on him in a fury. "Jasper, go away. You fired me, not even having the guts to do it yourself. I know I should have explained things to you. I was trying to do it the other
day and couldn't find the words. But it's just as well. Now I see you only care about yourself. Maybe that was all you ever cared about. Maybe you just wined and dined me for my designs for the plus line. Well, you have them now, so you don't need anything more from me. Good riddance!"

  "Marly, let me explain—"

  But Marly didn't wait for him to explain. She didn't need an explanation. Jasper was just like everyone else who had screwed her over. Like the kids on the playground when she was little. Like Derek. And Tanner.

  She stormed into her mother's room and pulled the door shut. Through the small window beside the door, she could see that one of the nurses stood in the hallway, her arms crossed over her chest, and giving Jasper the side-eye. She must have overheard the argument and was blocking Jasper's way into the room. Good.

  Marly pulled the plastic chair around so the back was to the door and sat down beside her mother's bed.

  Jasper stood in the corridor, not knowing what to do. He'd never had a woman reject him before. Was he supposed to go after her? Or respect her words and leave?

  "You heard the lady. Get lost." The nurse—one of the few in this wing he'd not yet met—thrust her chin toward the hallway. "Don't make me call security. That young lady has been through enough, and she doesn't need you adding to it."

  The nurse was right. Marly didn't want him around, and if he tried to pursue it, it would only add to her troubles.

  He turned and slowly walked away, stopping in at the family room he had helped build a few years ago. He slumped down in a chair and put his head in his hands.

  "Mr. Jasper! What are you doing here?!" a little voice said. Looking up, Jasper saw Charlie. Charlie was seven years old and had a brain tumor. He was undergoing chemotherapy and had been at the hospital for two months. He was almost always there for Jasper's weekly reading, and a few times, Jasper had even gone to his room and read to him when he was too sick to get up.