Before I opened the tube and brushed my teeth, I checked my underwear drawer, just to be sure my favorite boxers weren’t missing after all.
Chapter Twenty-Four
From the moment Stewart walked into the office, I all but knew it was a lost cause. I stood from my desk, where I’d been trying to look busy, and rushed out of my office, meeting him at his door.
He wouldn’t meet my eyes at first, his expression stern. When he opened his door, he pushed it forward. “Have a seat.”
I did as I was told, sitting down in one of the black leather chairs in front of his desk. He took off his jacket, hanging it on the back of his chair and dusting off his sleeves before sitting down. It was once he was seated that he met my eye for the first time.
“I think we both know why we’re here.”
“Sir, if you’ll just let me explain—”
“Explain what, Gates? Explain why you invited your friend to a very important dinner party for one of our biggest clients? Completely ignoring the fact that friends and family aren’t allowed at the functions in the first place. Would you like to explain how you let him get so drunk that he told our best client, to her face, that you’d called her a bitch? Or maybe you’d like to explain why you felt like you should express that opinion about our best client to your friend in the first place.” I flinched with every word he said, my shoulders slouching more and more.
“He wasn’t supposed to be there. And I hadn’t said that. Elias had had too much to drink. I was dealing with trying to make sure everything ran smoothly. I thought he’d already left, but…” I stopped, taking a deep breath. “Bringing him was a mistake. He wasn’t invited, and he overstepped.”
“Was he also not invited to the office a few nights before when you stole company property?”
“I…what?”
“The absolute lack of regard for company policies and rules—” Spittle formed in the corner of his mouth as his voice raised. “And to be so careless when we’d just had an attempted security breach, to bring people here, to steal property—”
“The CDs?” I asked, finally understanding what he was talking about. “I didn’t mean to—”
“What didn’t you mean to do, exactly? Because from the way it looked on the security tapes, you certainly didn’t seem to have any reservations.”
“They were old CDs from promos that wouldn’t have been used anyway—”
He slammed his fist on top of the desk. “They weren’t yours to take, is the entire point. Whether or not you thought they’d get used. They were given to the company, not to you.” He took a deep breath, running his hands through his wild, gray hair. “Now, I was willing to overlook it, to let you explain yourself because you’ve been nothing if not loyal to this company, but after last night’s events, I simply cannot overlook your actions any longer. I’ll save you the embarrassment of having you clean out your things on Monday by staying for an hour until you can remove everything from your office today.”
“Please, sir, you don’t understand—”
“I understand plenty,” he said. “And what I understand is that you’ve deliberately broken the rules twice now. Three times if we count the fact that you told your friend about our security issues in the first place. I was willing to let that slide because he offered his services for free, but I cannot and will not overlook anything else. Now, Layla has agreed to stay with the agency, but in order to make that happen, we have to let you go.”
“Isn’t there anything I can do to change your mind? I’ve done everything right by this company. You know how much it means to me. I’m so sorry. It was a mistake.”
“Until these past few days, I thought I did know how much this all meant to you, yes. But now, you’ve proven me wrong. I’m sorry, Wes. My mind is made up. I need you to clean out your office quickly. I haven’t been home in over twenty-four hours, and I’m exhausted.” His expression softened. “If you go quietly, I’ll give you a good reference wherever you apply next.”
“I’ll be starting over,” I argued softly, no power to my words.
“It’s the best I can do.” He stood at that point, a hand held out as a gesture to let me know it was time to go. “If I were you, I’d take the offer and leave, before I change my mind.”
I swallowed, my throat dry, chest tight. There was nothing left to do. Nothing to say that would change his mind. I stood, looking down at the carpeted floor for what would be the last time as I made my way across the small office and toward my own.
I’d lost everything in the blink of an eye.
How had things gone so wrong so quickly?
Chapter Twenty-Five
My entire life at the Noel DeMarcum Agency could be condensed into two cardboard boxes. Pictures, autographs—the ones made out to me, at least. I wasn’t going to be accused of stealing again—and other personal effects. A mug, a jacket, an extra tie, two bags of tea, and a change of shoes.
I walked out of the office, leaving my keys and badge on the lateral filing cabinet next to my door without a word to my former boss. There was nothing left to say. Nothing that could be done.
As I loaded the boxes into the back seat of my car, I was hit with the sorrow-filled realization that all I wanted to do was call Addy and tell her what had happened. I wanted her to comfort me, to love me through it, but it wouldn’t happen.
The truth was, I’d chosen my work over my wife, and in the end, they’d
