Thirty
Annalise
"Annalise," Max said sternly, "if you're willing to state clearly that Nina didn't create any false documents and that she wasn't aware of the deception, it would help clear up her role in all of this. We could think about additional training for HR on document verification to prevent this from happening again, but I don't think this mistake should end Nina's career here."
Veronica considered this, then nodded slightly. "So you're suggesting additional training for Nina instead of termination?"
"Yes. Exactly. Her record is otherwise flawless, and I'd hate to lose a reliable team member over a single, isolated incident—especially when the primary responsibility falls on Annalise's shoulders."
And now I was truly getting spanked here. But at the same time, I was immensely relieved that Nina would be spared and not even get a reprimand.
"Okay. Nina, you can leave now. We'll work on a training session for next week."
"Thank you, Nina," Max said from the speaker. "From now on, I'd like to be the only one who goes undercover at any of my companies."
It was a much-needed moment of levity that made Nina laugh a little as she shot me a relieved look.
"Thank you," she mouthed, touching my shoulder as she walked past and exited the office.
The air in the room turned even more stifling as the door closed behind her with a soft thud—a sound that stood in stark contrast to the chaos raging in my head and heart.
Veronica pursed her lips as she considered me. "So, Annalise, you're willing to take full responsibility for the deception and state that Nina wasn't involved in any fraudulent documentation?"
"I am. I take full responsibility."
"I'm afraid we have no choice then, correct, Mr. Sterling?" she verified.
I knew it was coming, but that didn't stop my heart from pounding out of my chest.
"That's correct," he said, his voice formal and professional, not at all the man I'd known before. "We have no choice but to fire you, Annalise."
The way that hurt, it was nearly impossible to describe.It was like the floor had dropped from beneath me, a hollow ache taking over my chest. The man I'd grown to care for, the job I'd poured myself into—all of it gone with a single, cold sentence.
At the same time, anger flooded me, painting my sight red. If Max was in front of me, I'd kick him in the nuts. Then do it again.
But he wasn't. Only Veronica with a detached expression.
"We do need to think about the Venus project, however," she said. "Venus specifically wants to work with you, and I propose we make an exception for Venus' project only, with certain conditions of course."
"Right. That's a good idea," Max agreed, sounding distracted, like he had better things to do while completely tearing apart my life.
Veronica leaned back, folding her hands neatly on her desk. "We'll slowly transition your other authors over during the next few weeks, to make it as seamless as possible for everyone. And you'll work strictly from home—no coming into the office, no company events, no direct involvement with any clients except Venus."
"And of course, we'llprovide compensation for the rest of the project," Max fucking asshole Sterling added. "In line with your current rate. And once it's complete, your contract will end, and all ties with the company will be severed permanently."
Glaring at the phone, I wished he could see me.
"Annalise?" Veronica interrupted my pointless glare. "What are your thoughts on this?"
I hated it. But what else could I do? I did deserve it after all, and it would save Nina, plus keep me on the Venus project that I was now passionate about.
Truthfully, I didn't care a whit about the compensation, and I fought the impulse to tell them to take their money and shove it, because I didn't keep a dime of it anyway. Every paycheck I'd ever received from Insight I'd donated to an arts literacy program for underprivileged kids. It wasn't their business, though, and more money for the program was always welcome, so I decided to keep my mouth shut.
"I think it's fair," I said, forcing my voice to be steady.
Veronica nodded. "You can clear out your desk now, and starting next week, you'll work remotely. I'll call you Monday morning to iron out the particulars."
"Okay. Thank you."
Clearly, I'd been dismissed, so I got up and walked out with as much dignity as I could muster, even though my heart had splintered into pieces.
I'd never felt so terrible or been so upset. And I wasn't even that mad at them for firing me. I was more mad at myself than anything else. I hated myself. I hated my life. I hated everything. I'd done all of this for absolutely nothing. All that work for naught.
Mona, who must have been waiting for me, came rushing over to my side as soon as I arrived at my desk.
"I got fired," I said in a low voice.
She let out a gasp. "Veronica fired you?"
"Max did," I hissed.
Another shocked gasp as her expression paled. "But... but..." she sputtered.
"Well, I guess I'm only kind of fired. I get to work from home on Venus' book. But that's it. And once that's done, I'm fully fired."
I grabbed an empty box from a nearby desk and began to fill it. Quickly. The last thing I wanted to do was linger here and face questions, not that anyone was really left on a Friday evening, but still.
"Oh, the next time I see Max Sterling, why, I'm going to give him a piece of my mind," she said.
Pausing to look at her, I gave her a smile. "You're a true friend, Mona. And I'll miss seeing your beautiful face every day."
At that, my throat tightened, something I hadn't expected. This job had started out as a way to prove something to myself and the world, a very selfish endeavor. But it'd evolved into way more than that, and I'd become very emotionally attached to this office and the people within it.
"Me too," she said with a sniff. "Oh, no. I don't want to cry. I have a date soon. But you know what? I'm going to cancel it. I think we should go to your place, split a bottle of wine or two, and order in some food. On you of course."
I laughed. "We'll do that soon. Believe me, I'd love to finally have you over. But no way am I letting you cancel your date. I'm fine. I really am."
I wasn't. But I was a damn good liar.
She studied my face, but I distracted her. "Stop. I'll be fine. Just help me pack up so we don't have to see Veronica again," I added, glancing in the direction of her office. "Talk about awkward."
That thought got us both moving as we tossed in favorite pens and bookmarks, my well-worn planner, a style guide, earbuds, and flash drives, plus my sad little cactus.
We hightailed it out of there, box in my hands. Nothing like announcing to all of Manhattan that I'd been fired and was currently doing the walk of shame. I'd get a car of course. As Cordelia, I'd usually walked as a decoy.
But fuck that.
Once we were downstairs, I said my goodbyes to Mona, after many reassurances and practically yelling at her to go on her date already. Propping the box against a ledge, I fished out my sunglasses, even though the sun was blocked as usual by the buildings.
I didn't want to look anyone in the eye, however, especially because the tears were threatening to come any minute now that Mona had left me alone and I didn't have to shove it all down to put on a brave face.
Box firmly in my hands, I turned, hoping to see a taxi, but a big black car pulled up instead, stopping in front of me. A door popped open, and out came Max Sterling himself, baseball hat on, shades and a hoodie, and still wearing that stupid mustache.
I might have growled at him. Or hissed. Something animalistic that told him I wasn't pleased, because he recoiled a bit before reaching for my box.
"No." I jerked it away from him. "I don't need any help from you."
"Annalise. Can you please let me take you home? Can we please talk?"
"No fucking way."
In this city of how many million, I had to run into this guy? Obviously, he'd searched me out. But come on, universe. He was the last person on earth I wanted to see right now.
Stalking forward, I moved away from him as quickly as I could toward home. But did he take the hint?
Of course not, oblivious man.
While I rushed, he walked casually beside me, taking one step for every three of mine. Stupid tall man.
"You couldn't have found a better way to handle that?" I huffed. "Do you know how humiliating that was?"
"I did it for you, babe."
"Don't babe me. And how the hell was that for my benefit?"
"Because you're better than this. You don't need that job. You don't need Insight Ink."
"That's not for you to decide."
"I get that. But if you hadn't been fired, if I'd saved you your job, what do you think would have happened? You would have stayed there indefinitely, under a different name, or under very odd circumstances, and never tried anything new, never reached for anything higher."
"But that should be my decision. Not yours."
"I really felt like I had no choice, though. After Veronica made such valid points, I thought it was a way to both propel you forward in your career and save Nina's job, which I know you wanted to do."
"You know what I still haven't heard? The word sorry. No matter your reasons, I think you still owe me a fucking apology for firing me."
He stopped, grabbing the box from me before I could resist. "You're right. Absolutely, I owe you an apology. I am truly sorry. I never meant to hurt you or upset you. I just..." He shifted the box slightly as he sighed. "I just did what I thought was best at the time. And obviously, it wasn't the right choice. And for that, I really do apologize."
"Fine. I'll think about whether I accept your apology or not. But it might be a very long time. Because I'm a total bitch who holds grudges."
He grinned at me, even though I didn't think it was the least bit funny.
"I'm dead serious," I said, stalking toward the curb as I spotted a cab and waved it down.
The driver pulled over, and I reached for my box, shoving it in the seat before I sat down and gave Max one last good glare through the open window, despite his annoying smile.
He shut the door for me and leaned in. "Let me know if I can do anything for you," he said in a soft voice. "Anything. Any time. I'm always here for you, Annalise."
I gave him a brisk nod and turned away, fighting the stupid lump in my throat at his thoughtful words and the way he'd said my name.
Maybe it was a good thing I'd be home for the foreseeable future because I was a fucking emotional mess, and I didn't know how I'd ever find my way out of it.