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FORTY-FIVE

Kinsley

I’ve been dealing with problem after problem all week, and at this point, I’m so beyond frustrated. I’ve been locked out of my email, had more court documents turn up missing, and somehow managed to lose an entire client file. Where it went, I have no freaking clue, but I’m positive it never left my desk.

Either there’s a poltergeist in my office, or I’m losing my damn mind.

Legitimately everything I touch turns to shit, and I refuse to ask the guys for help. Eventually, I’ll figure everything out, and the less they know about my less than stellar performance, the better.

They have an entire law firm to run, several high maintenance clients to handle, and despite having sex with Brantley in his office last week, we’re all trying to keep things under wraps.

I don’t want everyone here to think the only reason I’m keeping my job is because I’m spreading my legs for the bosses. Although after the last couple days, that might be true.

After responding to a client about their new mediation date, I double check the calendar. Odd. Wyatt is in court all day, which isn’t as unusual as the fact that he’s been in court all week. I could have sworn he was in the office today, but I must have my days mixed up. Their schedules are the one thing I’m meticulous about.

“What meeting with the junior associates?” Maverick’s voice raises, and a sliver of dread dances its way down my spine. This can’t be good. “I’m meeting with a client in ten minutes. It’s right here; that meeting is tomorrow morning.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Wallace, but you don’t have a client meeting until this afternoon. I’m looking at your schedule right here.” Of course, it’s James here to point out more of my ineptitude, except in this case he’s wrong. That schedule is my baby.

I push up from my desk as Maverick pounds on his keys. “I’m looking at it right now. Mrs. Van Burren will be here any minute.”

“She confirmed her appointment with me about five minutes ago for two-thirty this afternoon. I’m not sure why our schedules are different, but someone must have rearranged yours. Perhaps an accident or gross negligence.”

Gross negligence? Is he serious?

I barrel into the office and stop short when I meet Maverick’s heated gaze. “What’s going on?”

James glances over at me, frowning at my bright yellow blouse like it has personally offended him, and scoffs. “Just cleaning up more of your mistakes. I’m sure Mr. Ellis will be quite pleased to find out he’s late for a meeting that should have been on his calendar for today.”

“Today?” That can’t be right. I’d never schedule something like that on a day Wyatt is out of the office.

Except he’s the next one to walk into the office. Casually taking a bite from an apple, he leans against the doorframe.

Shit.

“You’re not in court today?” Now I know what bated breath means. My heart’s clogging my throat, and I don’t dare move, not until I get his answer.

But as his brows come together in the universal sign of confusion, that dread is back full force, and it feels like my insides are full of lead. “I’ve been in court all week. I’m in the office all day today and tomorrow.”

Maverick clicks around the keyboard a few times before meeting my eyes with a look that sears right through me. “You have him out all day. What’s going on, Miss Rhodes?”

Miss Rhodes. Talk about a punch directly to the gut. “I…I don’t know. I don’t understand.”

“This is entirely unacceptable. We’ve fired people for a hell of a lot less.” Maverick slowly stands and leans over his desk, resting his hands on the wood. He looks ready to leap over the damn thing and strangle me. “I don’t care what you’ve got going on in your personal life, but it can’t affect what we’ve got going on here. That shit gets checked at the door. Do I make myself clear, Miss Rhodes?”

My face heats as his words hit me, each one more damning than the next. He’s not wrong. I shouldn’t let what’s going on with us affect my job performance. This is a professional place of business, and mistakes like this can’t happen.

I glance at the floor, nodding. The disappointment flashing across his face is like a knife to the gut. “Yes, sir.”

He takes a deep breath and walks around his desk, laying a friendly hand on James’s shoulder. “I’m going to need you to take notes. Please make sure there are plenty of copies of our meeting agenda and that the presentation is queued up and ready to go. Wyatt, get your brother, we’ve got a meeting with the junior associates we’re already late for. Miss Rhodes, you will sit at the back of the room and be there if and when we need you.”

I nod again, forcing myself to move, pretending his displeasure and frustration doesn’t cut me to pieces.

James snaps to attention, all too eager to clean up my mess, but I don’t stay to see him gloat. I move quickly, grabbing a few things from my office—mainly my laptop and a notebook—and head straight to the conference room.

Everyone is there, including Brianna and a few of the other secretaries from the seventeenth floor. She smiles my way, but it quickly falls from her face as she takes me in.

What happened? She mouths, glancing around the room. Are you okay?

I nod because that’s all I seem to be capable of and clutch my laptop to my chest. Later.

Maverick and Wyatt are already at the head of the table, apologizing to a few of the junior lawyers for the scheduling error. I’m such an idiot. I can’t believe I messed this up. If Maverick is this mad, Brantley is going to be pissed.

He hates being late almost as much as he hates disorder.

Speak of the devil.

I don’t need to turn around to know he’s stepped into the room directly behind me. Not only can I feel his eyes burning a hole through the back of my head, but the conversation around the table dies down. You could hear a pin drop.

This day, hell this week, couldn’t get any worse.

I’m scurrying to get out of his way, to get to my new spot in the back corner of the room, when Zach, one of the lawyers I used to work for, gets up and blocks my path.

“We miss you downstairs.” He runs a hand through his hair and gives me what I’m sure is his I’m-so-charming-I-get-anything-I-want smile, but I barely notice. “Your spot is still open if you want to come back down and slum it with the rest of us.”

“Thank you so much, Mr. Malone. I miss everyone downstairs.” He stares at me for a second, no doubt waiting for a better answer. Hell, I’m not positive I’ll have a job after today. But he’s not sitting down, so I guess I need to give him something so we don’t delay this meeting anymore. “That’s a really nice tie. It was so good to see you.”

Hopefully that’s enough. I slip around him and make my way to the back of the room.

“That is a really nice tie.” Brantley is staring at me as I lower myself into my seat and tugs on the silky fabric.

He legit reaches out and pulls on his freaking tie like he’s going to choke him on it.

Zach takes a step back, and we all watch in horror as Brantley pulls out a pair of scissors and cuts the man’s tie in half. Where the hell did he get scissors? And what is he thinking? The entire room just saw that, and there’s no way this doesn’t get twisted as it passes through the entire building.

If there was ever a good time to disappear into an alternate universe, it’s right now. I’d even take a coat closet.

Zach’s eyes widen, but he has enough self-perseverance to take the remainder of his tie from Brantley’s outstretched hand and keep his mouth shut. He sits down and forces a small smile which no one returns.

Everyone in here, including Maverick and Wyatt, is staring at Brantley like he just lost his damn mind. And maybe he has. Who the hell knows at this point.

But Brantley casually lays the scissors on the cabinet behind him and heads to the front of the room. “Does anyone else want to delay this meeting, or shall we get started?”

Silence.

Dead freaking silence.

Not even a throat clearing.

This is fine. Everything is fine. I just need to get through today, and then Colin and I have book club tonight. We’ll laugh, the girls will likely have questions I won’t answer, and everything will reset itself. Tomorrow, Colin and I have appointments with his surgeon and the hospital for pre-op. It’s all going to be fine.

Except every second that passes, the dread only gets heavier. The guys refuse to look at me or, at least, I think so. I’ve kept my head down, making sure to take an extra set of notes for no real reason. James is already on it, and I bet in ten minutes he’ll have a copy printed for each of the partners and topped with a hand tied bow. Showoff.

He did save my ass with this one, though, I’ll give him that. If he hadn’t caught the scheduling error, this could have been so much worse. At least now we know what’s on their calendar is not correct.

I don’t know how I let this happen. I really don’t.

As soon as the meeting ends, I’m up and ready to tackle this mistake when Brianna stops me.

“We’ve missed you at lunch. It’s not been the same since you moved up here.” She looks at me expectantly and bites down on her bottom lip. “Margo and I have been worried about you.”

Thanks, universe, for making me feel more like a dick than I did five minutes ago. “I’m so sorry; things have been crazy lately. I miss you guys, though.”

“It must be stressful working up here. Did you see what Mr. Ellis did to Zach?” Her voice drops, and she leans closer. “Is there something going on between you two?”

I’m not prepared for this question. In fact, as it really hits me, all I can do is laugh, and it’s borderline hysterical. I really try to rein myself in and wave her off super casually but end up chopping the air in front of us. “No, that would be insane. There’s no way. He’s my boss. That’s it. Nothing more.”

Yeah, I’m rambling, and I can’t stop. As you can imagine, it doesn’t help my case.

Brianna’s brows raise, and she tilts her head, her lips pursed as she assesses me. It’s clear she thinks I’m full of shit. “Yeah. Sure. I guess I’ll see you around.”

She turns around and heads straight for the elevator. She doesn’t look back, doesn’t even wave goodbye.

I’m a shitty friend, a terrible employee, and an awful liar.

And now I have a whole ass mess to clean up.