Chapter 9
Nine
Whitney shuffled through the cabinet where she kept her change of clothes. She’d misplaced her favorite bracelet. She’d put all her wet clothes in that bag when she got caught in the storm, but it wasn’t there now. She hoped she hadn’t dropped the bracelet on the way out of the building.
She turned to see Carina and Olivia walking into her office. Carina shut the door behind them, and the look on their faces told her something was up.
“What is all this?” Whitney looked at Carina and then to Olivia, who never interrupted her work. “Is something wrong?”
“We need to talk.”
“Okay?” Whitney moved away from her computer. “You two are making me nervous. What is this about?”
Carina walked around the desk and hugged Whitney’s shoulders. “You know you are wonderful, right?”
Olivia placed a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup on her desk, and not the miniatures that she kept in her desk drawer for those super-stressed days that Whitney had now and again, but the king-size, shareable pack.
“What is this? Some kind of intervention?” Whitney laughed, but they stayed silent. “What?”
Olivia’s eyes got wide. “Sort of.”
Carina placed her hands on Whitney’s desk. “We’ve got some news.”
“Is it bad?”
“It’s about Roger.”
“Is he okay?” Whitney placed her hand on her heart. It wouldn’t be the first time she heard of someone in perfect athletic shape dying of a heart attack. Or a car accident. She was always telling him he drove too fast.
“No. He’s fine.”
“Oh? Well, good.” Her heart raced. “Don’t scare me like that. What’s the problem?”
Carina took in a breath. “We wanted you to hear from us first, so you had time to…”
Olivia stood and announced. “He’s engaged.”
Carina glared at her.
“What?” Olivia looked apologetic. “For an attorney who has a reputation for never wasting time, you are painfully dragging this out. The dramatic effect had me worried, and I already know what the news is.”
“Oh?” Whitney sat there stymied. She knew from the day he’d shared the news that he thought he’d found his person that an engagement would be coming at some point. But to hear this so soon made it feel a bit like a sucker punch.
“Are you okay?” Carina asked.
She swallowed a gulp of air and pulled herself together. “Yes. Fine. You two need to quit frowning. You’re going to get forehead wrinkles,” Whitney warned. “I told you he found his person. Didn’t you expect an engagement too?”
“I don’t know.” Carina closed her eyes for a moment. “I guess finding someone serious and getting engaged seems like a big leap to me. I thought it might bother you, but clearly it does not.”
“What bothers me,” Whitney admitted, “is having to go to these events alone, but I really am happy for Roger. I’m fine. I promise. I will admit it has me taking a look at my priorities. But that’s the extent of it.”
“We may have overreacted.” Carina got up. “I think we can go now,” she said. “You’re going to have to pardon our unnecessary interruption.”
Carina prodded Olivia to the door. “Sorry,” Olivia said as she walked out. “We’re going back to work now.”
“Wait a second, since you already interrupted me—I’ve been meaning to ask you, Olivia, how did the date between you and Josh go?”
Olivia leaned back into the office from the doorway. “Oh. It was nice.” Her face relaxed into a big smile. “Really nice. We’re going out again next weekend.”
“See. Everything works out the way it’s supposed to.” Whitney picked up her ink pen and twirled it between her fingers. “Kayaking?”
“Hiking to a waterfall.”
“Just your style. That’s great.” Whitney pushed her hair behind her ear, pulled her keyboard closer, and went back to work. But now there was a thought niggling at her. Maybe it would be a good idea to at least plan a little more time off over the next year for something more than work or yoga.
That evening,Whitney sat at her desk with her feet in her chair. A pencil held her hair in a messy bun as she worked. The automatic lights came on as someone walked through the lobby.
So much for being alone.Someone else must be playing catch-up too.
She pushed the interruption aside and refocused on the documents in front of her.
“Hellooo,” came the familiar voice.
She glanced up. “Mom? It’s late. Everything okay?”
“Fabulous!” Her mother stepped into the room wearing her signature heels too high for a woman her age and looking like a fashion model in a peach-colored, linen pantsuit with alligator accessories.
“You look nice.” Whitney noticed that the antique, white gold locket around her neck was the one Dad had given to her on their twenty-fifth anniversary. He’d apologized profusely for buying white gold instead of silver, which had tickled her that Dad even knew it was supposed to be a silver wedding anniversary. “What are you doing here?”
“I should be asking you that,” Mom said. “But it’s perfect that you are. I’m showing my new artist friend, Mr. McMahon, around.” Mom waved her fingers in a come-hither motion, beckoning the man out of the shadows. “I bought the most incredible new art for the office at the gallery the other night. He’s going to help me decide where to hang the paintings, and if I’m lucky, he’ll do something on commission for us in the future.”
Whitney swallowed back the sarcasm that begged to tumble from her lips. Mom had been buying art her whole life. The last thing she needed was help with where to hang a painting. She was an expert decorator. Was she having a midlife crisis? Maybe it was a good thing everyone had cleared out early tonight, or else folks might talk.
“Allow me to introduce you.” Mom pivoted elegantly and waved the man into Whitney’s office.
He stepped into the doorway, looking a little uncomfortable. Wearing blue jeans, boots, and a rather nice suit jacket, his longish hair screamed free-spirited surfer more than artist to her. Well-groomed stubble added to his eclectic look, and for a hot second, she was almost a little jealous that Mom was spending time with him instead of her.
He smiled apologetically. “Sorry to interrupt your work.”
“No worries,” she said, unable to pull her gaze from his.
“Your father and I were at the gallery,” Mom shared, “and I fell in love with his work. Wasn’t it my good fortune that Travis informed us they were having a special showing of his work last week? We went back and Travis introduced us. Whitney, his work is amazing. You are going to love it.”
Whitney somehow doubted that, because her tastes were so different from her mother’s, but she pasted a grin on her face and nodded. “How nice.” She smiled in his direction. “What kind of art? Do you… paint? Sculpt?” With Mom, it was anyone’s guess.
But Whitney found herself becoming a fan the longer she connected with Matthew McMahon’s green eyes.
He could do macramé planters, and she’d allow one to be hung in her office tonight. Is he wearing contacts? Has to be.
“I paint. Large pieces mostly. Landscapes. Skylines.”
He seemed humble as he spoke, unlike artists she’d met before with egos bigger than their paintings.
“Murals too,” her mother interjected. “He might need some legal counsel on that, though. I don’t know.” She waved a hand in front of her. “I’m speaking out of turn. Not my story to tell. Just a little thing during the gallery showing the other night.” She looked at him and shrugged. “If you do, my daughter is an amazing attorney.”
He looked uncomfortable again. “I don’t think I’ll need an attorney.”
“That’s good because I’m a divorce attorney, so unless there is a marriage in trouble or someone is divorcing your art, I’m probably not the attorney for the job. I could, however, refer you,” she said politely.
He shook his head. “No marriage, rocky or otherwise. People divorcing my art? Also unlikely.”
“So murals? Like on the side of buildings?” Whitney wondered if this was the guy Carina had gone on and on about. He was definitely good-looking. She couldn’t imagine him undressed to the bare chest, but he looked fit. She swallowed, wishing her thoughts weren’t suddenly sliding out of work mode.
“It’s actually a long story, and nothing to do with the paintings your folks purchased.”
“Right. Well, you can’t hang a building in a gallery,” she teased.
“Would be a challenge for sure.” His smile was genuine, but then he paused. “Have we met?” His eyes narrowed with certainty.
“No. Don’t think so.” She would’ve remembered him. “You’re not thinking to do a mural here at Barron, Winters Wall, are you?”
“Doubtful. The architecture of this building is too beautiful to disturb.” But his eyes didn’t drift to the moldings or original marble floors. They stayed right on her.
“I agree,” Whitney said. “My mother has oodles of ideas.”
Mom stepped further into Whitney’s office. “Maybe we could do a mural in here. Your office could use some updating.” She turned to Matthew. “I’ve offered to redecorate it for her several times, but she always turns me down.”
“I’m happy with it the way it is.”
She edged closer to the artist. “Please tell her a little color and some art might really increase productivity.”
“No,” Whitney blurted. “No, thank you.” She glanced over at Matthew. “No offense. I just… kind of like things simple. Please don’t.” She had work to do. This little dog and pony show had gone on long enough.
“Think I’ll stay out of this,” Matthew said.
Her mom chimed in. “Get back to your simple little space, then. Matthew, I definitely want to use one of the new paintings in the area out here.” She pointed out in the reception area. “I added the coffered ceiling over there to make it more cozy last year.”
“It’s very nice.”
Mom took a step out of the office, and Matthew followed. “Lobbies and a place to wait comfortably for your appointment… incredibly important. It’s the first impression every client has of our firm, and I think one of your paintings would be perfect there.”
Whitney waved her fingers before he drifted out of sight. “It was nice to meet you.”
“You too.” He gave her a chin nod. “Maybe I’ll see you around town.”
Her breath caught, and then he was gone. She couldn’t help but listen to them talking in the lobby.
She pressed her lips together and giggled. That smile, and the dimple in his right cheek. She longed to see if there was a matching one on the other side. And did his eyes actually twinkle? The only man she’d ever pictured as having twinkling eyes was Santa.
She forced herself to get back to work, ignoring the ongoing conversation echoing through the walls. Mom shared the history as if she were the docent for the building.
While other law firms gobbled up floors of the tallest buildings in Richmond, Daddy appreciated the legacy upon which this law firm was built. Despite being only four stories, the building’s palazzo-style architecture still drew attention. The single word BANK was etched into the stone across the front of the symmetrical, cornice-style architecture that had neat rows of windows on each level.
Tucked between restaurants, pubs, and boutiques, this building was now overshadowed by a new, dark-glass skyscraper that folks affectionately referred to as the Darth Vader building, not to be confused with the one in Seattle that was much taller but lacked the personality of this one.
At one time in the history of the building Barron, Winters Wall called home, back in the day when it was only Barron’s, the first floor opened to the third, the second only housing a row of small offices along the perimeter with a walkway and banister overlooking the lobby. Grand chandeliers once hung from the center. She’d seen pictures of them. As the firm grew, they’d closed in the second floor to create additional office space. But still, the classic details of the building remained.
Whitney picked up her coffee to take a sip, but the cold liquid hit her lips and she sputtered.
She pushed it to the side and powered through her notes, checking off every one of her to-do items. A good day, after all. She stood and stretched, letting her arms reach for imaginary stars, slowly twisting and lifting her rib cage. She really should sit with better posture.
While she stretched, she opened a browser and typed in MATTHEW MCMAHON.
A long list of entries filled her screen, along with pictures of his paintings. She scanned the articles. One talked about how he mentored high school students. That was kind of nice. Giving back and all.
She glanced at her diploma in the frame her uncle had handcrafted for her, as well as a picture of her with Carina on graduation day, with their tassels hanging to the side. Next to it, a picture from Carina and William’s wedding a year after that. It had been a quiet yet elegant ceremony on the beach in Antigua. Whitney suspected they chose a destination wedding to avoid conflict with their moms. Carina’s very outspoken mother and their mom would have clashed over everything. In a brilliant move, William and Carina left the ceremony and celebration completely in the hands of the resort, and it had been a zero drama day, start to finish.
Come to think of it, a destination wedding would be the way she’d go if she were ever to take the plunge. Show up and let someone else do all the planning. That had appeal; besides, she and Mom had almost come to blows the last time they planned the office Christmas party together. Whitney had vowed then that she’d never work with Mom on a project, and wasn’t a wedding pretty much a super-big project?
The way things were going, Whitney didn’t need to worry about a wedding anytime soon. At least now that William and Carina had Chloe, Whitney got to play aunt in her spare time, and that had quieted her ticking biological clock… at least for now.
Whitney gathered her things to leave. As she walked past the lobby, Mom and Matthew stood talking in the waiting area. Mom’s back was to her, but Matthew’s eyes caught hers. The slightest lift of his brow confirmed he’d seen her or had that been wishful thinking on her part?
One week later,Olivia was interviewing candidates for the new position, which was wreaking havoc on the rest of their schedule. It was a good thing they were all still going to yoga, because Whitney was putting those well-practiced cleansing breaths to good work lately.
With Olivia occupied with interviews, which Whitney detested doing, she put on her tennis shoes and walked six blocks to the post office to send out the divorce papers that had arrived today. It had been a long time since she’d done that. She needed to integrate this back into her routine now and again. Everything should not come down to billable hours. Health and mind-clearing breaks had to be worth something too.
When she got back to her desk, Olivia popped in. “Thanks for taking that stuff to the post office. I would’ve done it.”
“I know. It was a nice walk. I needed the break.”
“Um. I need to talk to you.” Olivia shifted her weight from side to side. “Do you have some time? Like now?”
“Sure.” Olivia wasn’t usually so fidgety. She wondered what had her tied in knots.
“Wait right here. I need to get something. I’ll be back in a minute.” She backed out of Whitney’s office.
Olivia never acted frazzled like that, and that sent red flags snapping in Whitney’s mind.
She busied herself with the latest paperwork that had been dropped into her inbox while she was out. She separated the work from the junk, and then put the business periodicals on her stack of to-be-read.
Olivia and Carina walked into her office and closed the door, and Carina made a beeline for Whitney’s desk. “We have a problem.”
“Please tell me this is not about Roger again. I told y’all it’s fine.”
“It’s not that,” Carina said.
“It’s this.” Olivia carried her tablet over to the desk. “You’re trending.”
“That sounds nice.” She sat taller in her seat, smiling at the title.
“It’s not. Here.” Olivia stabbed at the screen, then turned the tablet toward the sisters-in-law.
There was some fun, upbeat music, and a few pictures of a couple kissing, followed by one in the shadows holding hands.
“What’s this got to do with me?”
“Keep watching,” Olivia encouraged her.
She didn’t much see the point but kept watching. That’s when she realized it was Kally Shore and Jim in the video. “Did she marry him without a prenup?”
“No. Worse.” Carina folded her arms. “Keep watching.”
Whitney turned her attention back to the screen.
“Here it comes,” Olivia said.
In the video, little heart bubbles danced over the couple’s heads, and then Kally cooed in front of the camera with the song “Sweetie” by Carly Ray Jepsen playing in the background. She turned to the camera and said, “I met my sweetie in my attorney’s lobby. I swear it was better than wishing on a snow globe.”
“Better than cupid,” someone shouted in the background.
Kally held the phone close to her face, whispering into the video. “I never would have found my one true love if we both hadn’t gotten divorces at the same place. Thanks to my divorce attorney for this true love and happily ever after. Thanks, Whitney!” She blew a kiss into the camera.
Then Jim pushed full-face into the screen. “You rock, too, Carina!”
“What?” Whitney felt her eyes bug out. “What is she thinking? And why is she dragging us into it?”
“Yeah. Your father is going to go ballistic if he catches wind of this.”
“It sure doesn’t align with the ‘Serious business deserves serious lawyers’ mantra. We are still trying to prove ourselves as a viable arm of the firm in family law. They’d love nothing more than for us to fail, and this would make us look unprofessional. If I fail, it’s not going to be over something like this. I’m calling Kally right now to tell her to take that video down.” Whitney picked up her phone.
“Wait. It’s not that simple.”
“Sure it is.” Whitney pretended to press the button on her phone. “Hey Kally, it’s Whitney. Your little video is adorable, but girl, you need to take that down. It’s not professional, and I can’t have you mentioning me on social media. Bam.” She dropped the imaginary mic. “Done.”
Olivia pointed to the number under the video. “Look. See that number? That’s how many people have shared the video so far.”
“Sixty-two thousand shares?” Whitney couldn’t believe it. “Why does anyone even care?”
“Who knows. People are crazy,” Carina said with a groan. “At least they didn’t mention the law firm by name.”
“This isn’t good.” Whitney picked up her phone. “Kally needs to delete it.”
“It gets worse. Others are hopping on the trend, and I’m pretty sure they aren’t even clients, but they are using all the hashtags, and one of them is the firm.”
“What is with these people?” Whitney groaned in frustration.
“Your father is right. Social media is the enemy,” Carina said.
The video continued in a part two of all things.
The happy couple had their heads tilted together, making them look like conjoined twins. Together they sang out, “Thanks to Carina and Whitney at Barron, Winters Wall Law Firm, we found our happily ever after!”
“Oh,no she didn’t,” Whitney said.
Jim chimed in, “Now we just have to set the date.”
“Think our attorneys would be our witnesses?” Kally said playfully.
“Totally. As much as we paid them for our divorces, they almost owe us.”
“Okay, I call bull on that comment.” Carina’s lips pulled into a tight line. “This is not cool. No one is going to take us seriously if they see this.”
“Sorry.” Olivia picked up the tablet. “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I knew you needed to know about this before your father found out.”
“How did you even find this?” Whitney shook her head, not even really interested in knowing how all that worked.
“It came across my feed,” Olivia said. “I follow Kally on social media.”
Whitney couldn’t even think clearly about the situation. “They didn’t say where we’re located. Is there a way to tell how many of the people who have seen that are from this area?”
Olivia shrugged. “I don’t think so, but they did use a ‘richmondva’ hashtag. So people looking up anything with that hashtag would see it. The trending hashtag is ‘CupidLawyers.’”
“Cupid? Not a word about this to anyone,” Whitney said. “I’m going to call Kally. You two can just hope some new hashtag pops up and takes the focus off us.”
Whitney dialed Kally, but the call went directly to voicemail.
Whitney tried to remain calm as Kally’s playful voice message played on until finally the beep. “Kally. It’s Whitney Winters. We have a little problem with your social media video. Can you call me at your earliest convenience? I’m sure we can come to a solution quickly if we put our heads together.”