Chapter 1
1
Ten Years Later
“ W e’re sorry, Essie,” Laurence says with no apology in his tone. “Adrian was the better candidate.”
“Better candidate?” I throw out my arms. “He’s been here for two months . I’ve busted my ass for this firm for three years . One of those without pay.”
For six months, my bosses at Adaway and Williams at Law led me to believe I’d score the junior partner position at their law firm. Today, they told me they’d chosen someone else.
Who did they choose?
A man who completely obliterated my heart.
First my heart.
Now my promotion.
What else does he want?
A freaking kidney?
Charles, his partner, fakes a smile. “Another position will open next year.”
I force back tears and follow my bosses out of the boardroom. They don’t say another word as they move to their shiny offices, and I head back to my sorry excuse for a cubicle .
Angel, my cubicle neighbor, pokes his head over my partition. “Did you get it?”
I shake my head.
“Sorry, girl. I bet Adrian did. You didn’t stand a chance after he gave them World Series tickets.”
I stop myself from sitting. “I’m sorry? World Series tickets?”
He nods. “They were box seats too.”
Oh, hell no .
I stand from my chair and head straight to the corner office that should be mine. Angel and my other coworkers follow me.
It’s one thing to earn a promotion, but to buy one ?
That’s the ultimate smack in the face.
When I reach the doorway, I find him sitting behind the desk.
Adrian Castillo.
The certified thorn in my side.
A man who’s made me experience every emotion in the world.
Happiness, then love, and then heartbreak.
Our lives once secretly revolved around each other’s.
But now, we act like two people who hate each other. No one knows our history, nor will they ever.
Starting today, he’ll also be my boss.
A pang forms in my chest.
Don’t do it, Essie.
Don’t freaking do it .
Unfortunately, I do it.
Adrian stares at me from across the room when I burst inside his office without knocking. A smirk spreads along his gorgeous tan face in slow motion.
He looks so much the same yet different than he did years ago in college.
Manlier.
Instead of baggy, wrinkled sweatshirts, he’s wearing a black suit with a black tie. His cuff links are new and expensive. The green hue in his eyes is more pronounced now that he’s swapped his black-rimmed glasses for contacts. His dark hair is shorter and not as wild as it once was. I hate how tamed it is now. He used to run his fingers through the thick strands while concentrating on a problem he couldn’t figure out.
I like that he’s not the same man I fell in love with.
But I hate that there are still traces of him there.
Since he joined the firm, I’ve done everything to avoid him: take the stairs—my glutes will thank him for that—come into work early, and leave later.
“You bribed them?” I cross my arms and stand in front of his desk.
His smirk stays as he scratches his cheek. “What are you talking about?”
“You gave the partners baseball tickets in exchange for my promotion .”
He shrugs. “Gifting tickets to your bosses isn’t illegal. You’re an attorney. You should know that.”
“Yes, but some might consider it unethical.”
“Who’s some?” He points at me. “ You ?”
“ Me and …” I peer at the doorway, where my coworkers stand, and wait for backup.
They give me nothing.
I throw my arms out toward them.
Sorry , Angel mouths as he straightens his tie.
Everyone else stares at the floor while slowly backing away.
There’s seriously no coworker loyalty in this place .
Their stepping away makes more sense when Laurence and Charles charge into the office.
Laurence’s gaze drifts from me to Adrian. “What’s going on here?”
For what seems like the first time since I was hired here, I finally find my voice with them.
Finally decide to stick up for myself.
“You’re sellouts.” I signal to them. “I’ll be sure to let everyone know all it takes for a promotion around here are sports tickets.” I stand on my tiptoes to see the people behind them. “You hear that? Start saving up the little salary they give us to buy Super Bowl tickets!”
Laurence’s pudgy face reddens as he shuffles farther into the room. “That’s slander, young lady.”
“Slander?” I huff, grabbing a globe from Adrian’s desk and playing with it in my hands. “Let’s talk about slander then, shall we?”
Adrian reclines in his chair, enjoying every minute of my breakdown.
I point at Laurence with the globe. “Is it slander to tell everyone your mistress is your son’s ex-fiancée?” I talk over Laurence as he attempts to cut me off. “Or that she had your baby two months ago, and your family has no idea? In fact, she attended you and your wife’s vow renewal last summer.”
Laurence balls up his fist as sweat builds along his forehead. “Essie, this is out of line.”
I turn my attention to the next man on my shit list. “And, Charles?—”
“Essie”—Charles’s voice rattles—“this isn’t?—”
I interrupt him. “Charles is on probation for six months because he used a client’s money for personal expenses. Boy, does the man love to fly on private jets and eat expensive sushi.”
I glance at Adrian. “And you .”
Adrian straightens in his chair, making a you have the floor gesture. “Take your best shot, Esmeralda.”
I wince at him using my full name. “Adrian …” There’s a pause, and my stomach tightens when his eyes level on mine. “You know what you did.”
While I’d love to put him on blast, doing so would also put me on blast. I’m already doing enough damage to my reputation as it is. From the way Laurence is glaring at me, I’m certain it’s almost escort Essie out of the building time .
“What did he do?” Angel asks, poking his head through the doorway.
Oh, now, he wants to have a voice?
“Yes, Essie,” Adrian says, folding his hands together and resting them along the back of his head, “what did I do?”
“That’s enough,” Laurence yells, spit flying from his lips. “Essie, clear out your desk. You’re fired.”
“And good luck ever finding a job in law again,” Charles adds, shoving his glasses up his narrow nose. “We will let everyone know of your behavior.”
I refuse to look at Adrian, but if I had my guess, he’s smiling pretty from his new office chair. It’s one of those pricey ergonomic ones.
“Yeah, well … I quit,” I tell them.
A little delayed and not as climactic as I hoped, but at least I said the words.
Without waiting for a reply, I storm out of Adrian’s office.
“You should’ve quit before the firing,” Angel says, following me on my return to my cubicle.
I blow out an upward breath. “I just had to make sure I said it.”
He chuckles. “You said that and more.”
Unfortunately, I didn’t think about the walk of shame post-firing. I want to shrivel up and melt into the floor as everyone stares at me while I pack my cubicle. Charles stands in the corner, arms crossed, waiting to interfere in case I get in the mood to spill more company secrets.
I say goodbye to my old coworkers and leave, carrying a single cardboard box with random belongings. All I have to show for my hard work here.
A box, a scene, and unemployment.
Adrian doesn’t bother telling me goodbye—thank God.
The muggy spring weather smacks me in the face as I walk outside. When I drop the box into my car’s passenger seat, it slips off the edge. The urge to scream bites at my throat as I watch the items tumble onto the floorboard. As soon as I’m inside my car, I burst into tears.