She won’t even look at me. She just shakes her head and stands up. “Drop the lies Callie,” she says as she storms out.
I sit alone in the silence, my mind reeling. It all makes sense all of a sudden. Matt’s quiet arrogance when he first started, how he always seemed to have more money than the rest of us put together. How he got away with speaking to Marco the way he did.
And the card he showed Marco. It wasn’t a bribe. He was showing him his true identity. That’s why Marco agreed to leave without a fuss. He knew Matt knew what he was up to and he chose to leave while he still could.
It explains why I got promoted as well. I might not have known I was fucking the boss, but I was. And a couple of days after me telling Matt I was paying my way through college with this job, a promotion and a pay rise lands in my lap.
How could I have been so naïve? How could I not have seen it?
I was so caught up in the romance, in Matt, that I missed all of the signs. It also explains why Stewart was nice to me. He thinks I’m the owner’s girlfriend. And it explains why he didn’t feel the need to tell me any of this when he has told all of the other staff. He assumed I would know.
I can feel tears prickling my eyes again. I have fallen for Matt, far deeper than I care to admit. And the whole thing has been nothing but a game to him. A ruse. He was using me, getting close to me, hoping I knew something. That’s why he never told me anything about himself. That’s why he never took me to his apartment. He didn’t want me to know who he really was. Because then it would have been game over. Did he suspect me? Was he trying to catch me by taking me to expensive places to see if I had the money to pay for that kind of shit?
A single tear runs down my face as the truth comes crashing down around me. Matt used me. And now, he’s found out who was ripping him off and he’s gone, leaving me behind — without so much as a goodbye and thanks for all the sex.
I stand up abruptly, almost knocking my chair over. I have put up with so much shit working here because I need the money, but I don’t need it enough to stay here now. Not after this. I can’t work somewhere where everyone is gossiping about me, about the girl who slept her way up the ladder.
I grab my jacket and my handbag then go to Stewart’s office. I don’t bother to knock.
Stewart looks annoyed when he glances up, but his expression turns to concern when he sees me.
It’s then, I realize tears are running down my face. I wipe them away angrily. “I quit,” I say and then I turn around.
Stewart jumps to his feet. “Callie, wait. What’s going on? What happened?” he asks.
“I just found out the last few weeks of my life have been a lie. And I can’t stay working here. Did Matt tell you to be nice to me?”
“Who the hell is Matt?” Stewart asks.
“The owner,” I say, surprised that he doesn’t seem to know what I mean.
“I’ve never met the owner. My interview was carried out by Janine at HR and all of my paperwork and checks have gone through her. Callie, please sit down and let’s try and work this out,” he pleads.
Ok, I was wrong about Stewart. He was nice to me because it’s his style to be nice to his employees obviously. But it doesn’t change anything else. It doesn’t make me feel any less betrayed. I feel used, dirty, and being here is going to be a constant reminder for me. I shake my head. “I’m sorry to leave you in the lurch like this, but I can’t stay. This is beyond the point where it can be worked out. Sasha has worked here as long as I have. She can step up and be shift supervisor.”
I walk away before he can say anything else. I am just about managing to bite back the tears now, and if he says anything nice to me, I’m afraid it’ll be like a flood gate opening, and I want to walk out of here with my head held high, with what little dignity I have left still intact.
I decide to leave through the dining room. I want them all to see me, to see they haven’t broken me. Maybe to even realize they judged me with no idea what was actually going on. Because if they feel betrayed, it’s not even close to how I feel.
“Callie? Where are you going?” Sasha asks as I step into the dining room.
“I’ve quit… I had no idea Matt was the owner and trust me, I feel more betrayed than anyone here. But you know what Sash? A stranger betrayed you. And yes, me as well, because clearly I never knew the real Matt. But that’s not what hurts. What hurts is knowing everyone here, people who I thought of as friends, all assumed I would go behind their backs this way, and not one person, not even you, thought to come to me about it.”
“Callie, wait…” Sasha says as I walk away,
“There’s nothing to wait for.” I ignore her calling my name as I walk to the door. I pull it open and step out into the night. I wait until I’m out of sight of the restaurant before I let the tears fall once more.
Matt has well and truly played me for a fool. I actually believed him when he told me he cared about me. That I was his. I have to give him his dues. He faked being into
