Chapter 18 ~ Carter ~
T he big day was the day after tomorrow. The day after tomorrow, Cameron would get married, and Isabella would play the role of my fiancée in front of my family. What would my grandmother say to her?
Would Isabella appear believable?
Would our engagement seem credible?
The dress rehearsal at the charity event in the Waldorf Astoria was... well, it wasn't really a dress rehearsal. As wonderful and satisfying as the evening had ended, we hadn't actually practiced appearing together as an engaged couple.
At first, I hadn't given this matter much thought, but as the wedding drew closer, it began to dominate my mind. When I had made the offer to Isabella, I hadn't wasted a thought on whether we might not appear credible.
Don't worry, Carter. It'll be fine. Everything has gone well so far.
Indeed, everything had gone well. The attraction between us was real. So why shouldn't we appear credible? What could go wrong? If anything threatened to get out of control, I would simply kiss Isabella. Then, at most, I might lose control myself. I grinned at this thought. Something like that would really throw Cameron's carefully planned wedding into disarray...
What was Isabella going to wear, anyway?
Surely it couldn't hurt to at least find that out. I opened WhatsApp and typed a few short lines.
Need to discuss something with you about the wedding. In my office in an hour?
Isabella responded immediately.
See you later. Looking forward to it.
She added a small heart.
Women.
Why they had to get so emotional over the smallest message would forever remain a mystery to me. I didn't use hearts. Never had.
A knock on the office door interrupted my thoughts. Good.
What have you been thinking about lately, Carter? It's really time for this wedding to be over so you can focus on the important things in life again. The ones that matter. Your goals.
Francis poked his head through the door.
"Mr. Jenkins, I have news from Mr. Jordan and Mr. Winkle."
"Ah, yes? What did they say?" Mr. Jordan and Mr. Winkle, together with Donovan Hayden Ellesmere, formed the board of directors of the Elecar Corporation . I had tasked Francis with inviting both of them to a meeting with me. This would give me the opportunity to make it clear to these gentlemen once again how superior my product, the product of Carco Batteries , was to anything Cameron was producing.
And after that, hopefully, the gentlemen would realize that their chairman was making decisions based solely on personal interests and not considering the well-being of his company at all.
"They weren't particularly talkative," Francis explained now. "But in the end, they agreed to a meeting. In a week."
I clenched my fist in my pocket.
Yes!
That was all I had wanted.
"Well done," I said to Francis.
He looked pleased with the praise but still didn't seem entirely happy. "Is there something else?" I wanted to know.
"They said that the matter... well, that it was Donovan Hayden Ellesmere's personal business. I'm not quite sure, but I think I heard that they were in favor of awarding Carco Batteries the contract for the test vehicles, but then couldn't assert themselves."
That was indeed not particularly good news. If Donovan's colleagues hadn't been able to make themselves heard so far and were being steamrolled by Donovan, then that would continue to be the case in the future.
What else could I do?
Cameron absolutely could not get the contract. And Donovan Hayden Ellesmere didn't deserve to succeed with his game so easily either. Did he think the world belonged to him? And me along with it?
The vein at my temple began to pulse. Not a good sign.
I clenched my fists again.
Think, Carter, think. What's the smartest way to proceed to push through your interests?
"Do you need anything else, Mr. Jenkins?" Francis's voice pulled me from my thoughts.
"Not at the moment, thank you," I replied distractedly. "But I might need you again shortly." I still didn't have the slightest idea of how to bring Donovan to his knees. Sure, there was still the meeting with Abigail that I had promised Donovan. But I had no illusions about that. I wouldn't give Abigail what she wanted, and therefore Donovan wouldn't give me what I wanted either.
I had to find another way.
"I need some peace to think," I announced. Francis nodded. He knew what that meant: I didn't want to be disturbed. No visitors. No calls. Nothing. No one.
"Very well, Mr. Jenkins," he murmured and opened the office door.
"Carter!!!" Francis hadn't even left the office when the first disturbance already stormed through the door, greeting me in a volume that was more reminiscent of a ship's horn than a human voice. I winced painfully. How had I ever been able to tolerate that voice?
"Abigail," I replied, sounding as unenthusiastic as I actually was.
"I'm so happy to see you again," Abigail now squealed.
Francis stood waiting at the door, looking at me questioningly. A truly good man. He would escort Abigail out of the office if I gave him that instruction. I briefly considered how to proceed. As delighted as Abigail was to see me again, I was equally undelighted. I had wanted to postpone the meeting with her. Now she had thrown a wrench in my plans.
I growled.
Now I had no choice but to talk to Abigail. If I asked Francis to escort Abigail out, she would interpret it as being kicked out and cry to her father. That wouldn't improve my chances of getting the contract. If I talked to Abigail instead... I could even claim to Donovan that I had met with Abigail earlier than planned. Though it was on her initiative, but still.
Talking to Abigail now would be like getting a root canal at the dentist. Extremely unpleasant in the short term, but hopefully crowned with success in the long run.
I nodded briefly to Francis.
"Abigail. What a surprise," I now greeted my ex. That wasn't even a lie. I was surprised. In all the time since the breakup, Abigail and I hadn't seen each other once. So why was she coming here now?
"Dad told me the good news, Carter."
What was she talking about?
"I'm so happy," she squealed and clapped her hands. I almost expected her to start spinning in circles. But thankfully, that wasn't the case. I eyed Abigail suspiciously. Outbursts of joy were rare for her and never boded well. The last time she had been happy in my presence was when it was announced that there had been a production error with the birth control pill she was taking, making it less effective than intended. That memory sent chills down my spine. If I had brought children into the world with this woman! Unthinkable!
I shuddered.
I had to put a stop to Abigail's outburst of joy immediately. Who knows what direction this conversation might take otherwise.
"You're glad I got engaged?" I asked, frowning. Then I smiled. "That, in turn, makes me happy, Abigail. I thought it wouldn't bother you. It's been a while since we broke up, and each of us has the right to find new happiness. I hope you find someone who makes you happy, just as is now the case for me. I'm happier than I've ever been and than I ever thought possible."
That's true, Carter. That's really true. You just said it, but it's true. With Isabella, you're happier than you've ever been.
What did that mean?
I furrowed my brow and pushed the thought aside for now. I'd deal with that later. Now I had to deal with Abigail first. That had never been as easy as one might think, even in the past.
Abigail looked at me with big round eyes. With those pale blue eyes that lacked any real expression. And which were now filling with water. On top of that, her lower lip began to tremble dangerously.
"Wwww.... What?" she blurted out, barely suppressing a sob. "Happier than with me?"
I sighed.
Abigail pulled a tissue from her oversized, slightly worn handbag and blew her nose loudly. Afterwards, she unfolded the tissue and examined the result of her efforts. I shuddered. Had she done that when we were still together? Probably not. I would certainly remember that.
"Dad told me you want to reconsider everything."
I looked at her questioningly.
"You know, about us. Carter, I was so happy. We're such a great couple. Everyone who knew us says so."
I frowned. "Abigail, who really knew us? Your parents. My parents. Parents always think their children have a great partner and make a great couple with the other person. Those aren't objective statements."
"Why do you always have to be so cruel?"
"That's not cruel, it's the truth."
"I had hoped you'd give up your womanizing ways over time. I tried so hard to train you back then. I tolerated all your escapades. And as thanks for that..." Abigail broke off the sentence and pulled another tissue from her ugly handbag. Thankfully, an unused one.
I stood up. Until now, I had been sitting in my chair, listening to Abigail more or less bored. But now that was over.
"You haven't changed a bit!" I looked at Abigail emphatically and slightly furrowed my brows. Abigail blew her nose again. This time, thankfully, she put the tissue away without looking into it.
"What do you mean? It's good if I stay the way I am." Abigail looked at me with big eyes. "If I had changed, I wouldn't be the woman you wanted so badly that you were willing to anger your brother for it."
"Don't change the subject now! Even back then, you saw affairs and cheating everywhere. It was really unbearable!"
I certainly wasn't someone who let a good opportunity pass by. But only when I wasn't in a committed relationship. I had my principles and I stuck to them. That's why I had never cheated on Abigail, no matter how much she got on my nerves. The fact that I had made a date with another woman half an hour after our breakup was something else and didn't contradict my principles at all.
"Now you're lying through your teeth again!" Abigail stared at me indignantly. "I collected evidence of your infidelity back then."
"What evidence? You ambushed me when I wanted to go to the movies with three old classmates and their wives and accused me of arranging a group sex meetup!" This accusation had been the straw that broke the camel's back. I had broken up with Abigail that very evening.
"You didn't take me with you!" Abigail sounded like a little child.
"Because I wanted to have some peace from your constant nagging for once!"
"Don't... don't be so mean." Abigail's voice trembled again.
I sighed deeply. Should I just throw Abigail out?
No.
I would make one more attempt to talk to her reasonably.
"Look, Abigail, we had a good time. But it was limited. We weren't meant for each other, at least not for eternity. Instead of arguing now about who was right back then and who wasn't, we should draw a line under it. Emotionally too. That way we can remember the good things and... well, life goes on." I raised my hands and shrugged.
"That's easy for you to say. You were probably in bed with a different woman every night. You didn't care how I was doing." The last sentence was true. Why should I have cared about how Abigail was doing? That was the point of a breakup. From now on, everyone only looked after themselves.
Abigail pulled out a third tissue, blew her nose, and stuffed it back into her pocket. That must be a real germ factory. The thought made me grimace.
"I can see it. You don't want me anymore." She looked at me defiantly.
"That's right," I replied tersely. Now was not the time to let sentimentality creep in or be nice. Abigail had finally grasped the situation for the first time in this conversation.
"You'll regret this," Abigail hissed now. "Dad has influence. A lot of influence. He knows many people. More than you think." Abigail's blue eyes still looked pale and expressionless. "I'll tell him to make sure you don't get a single job again. Not with him. Not with the competition. With no one."
"That doesn't scare me," I replied laconically.
"Dad meets a lot of people for dinner. And he'll tell everyone what you did to me. Everyone."
I shrugged. "Some might fall for your lies. Others won't."
"Your company will go bankrupt!"
"I have more than enough money." That was true, but at the prospect of Abigail being able to hinder my future professional success so significantly, I clenched my teeth. My jaw bones creaked. The vein at my temple throbbed unpleasantly. I had more than enough money, but I didn't want to be seen as a loser. As someone whose company had gone down the drain.
"You'll see!" Abigail was slowly running out of threats.
And I was running out of patience.
"I've really listened to your crap long enough, Abigail! Get out of here!" With these words, I walked around my desk, opened the door, and stood next to it with my arms crossed.
"Hurry up!"
"You'll regret this," Abigail hissed as she rushed past me.
And stopped.
I turned around.
In the doorway, Abigail and Isabella stood face to face.