Chapter 34 – Brynn
The partners in the room look as perplexed and horrified as I do.
“What exactly do you have in mind for Brynn?” Paul asks. “Keeping in mind, of course, that’s she’s an associate.”
Yes, another good question, Paul. What exactly does Clay have in mind for me?
“Brynn is going to head up my Albuquerque office,” Clay announces, in a firm and resolute manner.
“Your…?” Paul regains his composure before continuing. “You have an Albuquerque office?”
“I do not, yet,” Clay answers. “And that’s what I’m trying to rectify.”
He tells them all the same things he told me at The Argonaut— how he plans to put me in charge of his local operations while the partners here can handle his New York matters.
“But, we need Brynn here,” Paul protests. “She’s working on several very important matters.”
I don’t know if Paul is just coming up with a ploy to keep this hair-brained idea from happening or if the firm actually values me as an associate so highly. But either way, I’m grateful.
“We can share her.”
Clay offers up his compromise so quickly it makes my stomach churn. I hate how he says “share” so flippantly and with such innuendo. I can’t help but feel he’s subtly hitting on me with every word that he says.
“She can commute and work part here and part there,” Clay says, as if my schedule and my life are things that can be divided up so neatly and at his every whim.
“I’m listening,” says Paul. “How much business are we talking here? How much work would you have for Brynn to head up?”
It all comes down to money, of course. It always does.
Paul thinks the idea is ridiculous but is willing to listen because money talks. He knows that if he doesn’t let Clay at least think he’s entertaining the idea, Clay will go elsewhere. Or perhaps try to steal me out from under the firm. Which is a very good hunch to have, since Clay had said as much himself.
Now there’s an idea, I start to think. If I’m going to be working in Albuquerque I’d prefer to only work there, especially if Clay could pay me New York City money to live in Albuquerque with its much lower cost of living. I’d have an easier lifestyle and I wouldn’t have to jet set Caleb back and forth over 2,000 miles all the time.
It might help or hurt what’s going on between Steven and me—maybe he would give up trying to see Caleb if we lived in Albuquerque or maybe he would try to say I couldn’t even do it because now he supposedly wants to see Caleb more often.
But if it could work out, I’d be closer to Larson. Of course that’s a main incentive that I don’t want to admit. But it probably won’t even matter since I doubt he’ll ever want to talk to me again after today.
“Oh, I have a lot of business in Albuquerque,” Clay assures Paul. “It’s definitely well past time I had my own office there because I can’t keep up with everything by parsing things out to local attorneys. We can run the numbers soon. Brynn and me and you of course.”
“Brynn?”
Paul raises his eyebrows. Apparently he’s changing his tune about how necessary I am. I’m certainly not welcome to discuss numbers.
“Yes, Brynn,” Clay says. “I need her involved every step of the way.”
Paul looks at me suspiciously.
“Is there…?” He starts to say, but he shakes his head, apparently thinking better of it.
I know he was going to ask if there is something the firm needed to know about Clay and me. Or maybe if there is something going on between Clay and me, which is essentially the same question.
My cheeks are burning. I’m upset at Clay for making it seem like we’re involved. And upset at Paul for thinking bad of me for it. They probably assume the only reason Clay wants to give me this work is because we’re fucking. Although the only reason he’s probably doing it is because he wants to fuck me.
Now I have no idea what I’m going to do. I want to work in Albuquerque at least part-time— and it doesn’t look like I’m going to have a choice anyway, since I have to do what the partners want, and the partners will want to do what the client wants— but I don’t want to have to capitulate to Clay’s every demand. Especially not if I have any hope of things still working out with Larson.
In one day I’ve found out that I have a chance to work closer to him, but also that I have to work closely with someone he probably will rightfully despise. That I’m beginning to rightfully despise.
I sit through the rest of the meeting in silence, knowing that my fate is out of my hands. Such is life as an associate at a law firm, something I had to learn and get used to a long time ago.
As soon as the meeting is over— with a handshake promise that the firm will seriously look into Clay’s proposal and plans for getting back together tomorrow to go over numbers— I rush over to my assistant’s desk.
“Hey boss,” she says, handing me my phone. First she disconnects it from its charger. How nice of her to make sure it has a full battery. That’s so Mary-like.
"I was checking your battery life and couldn't help but notice that you had a text from a certain gentleman I believe I saw in here on Friday," Mary says.
Damn. She's great, but nosy as hell.
"Your battery life was low, so I decided to charge the phone for you. So you should have no problem contacting him now that that important meeting is over."
She grins at me.
She doesn't know I probably will have a problem contacting him because he probably wants nothing to do with me anymore. And I don't plan to tell her that because I try very hard not to mix my professional and personal life, even with someone as cool as Mary. Although Clay and his idiotic "proposal" are starting to make that goal seem very difficult to continue to achieve.
"Thanks, Mary. I appreciate you manning the fort, and my phone."
She looks eager to chat— most likely about the meeting, Clay, and Larson. And I don't blame her.
"I know it couldn't have been fun to sit out here all day with nothing to do but guard my phone like I'm a disobedient twelve year old," I start to tell her.
"Yeah, what was with that anyway?" she asks.
"But I have to run."
I look towards the conference room where some partners are trying to schmooze with Clay. I need to get out of here right away, before he stops me and tries to keep me captive even longer.
"Okay, no problem," Mary says, although the smirk on her face betrays her words. "I mean, I did get caught up on entering all your time and clearing out all your email out of your inbox. So it's not like I was completely bored."
"Just what you wanted to be doing on a sunny Sunday afternoon, right?" I ask her, as I head towards the door.
"Exactly."
"See you tomorrow and I'll catch you up on what's been going on around here," I tell her.
Or at least part of it. Clay has sworn all of us to secrecy about the exact details until everything is ironed out and the firm makes a big announcement.
"You definitely have to tell me about your juicy new love interest," she says in a loud whisper. "He's super hot."
I actually blush.
"Maybe," I reply, like a blubbering school girl.
If I'm not allowed to tell her anything about Clay and the firm's goings-on then maybe I'll throw her a bone and tell her about how great Larson is with Caleb.
That is, if Larson still wants anything to do with me.
After I'm down the elevator and out of the building, I call Larson.
There's no answer, even though I know his plane hasn't taken off yet. Google Alerts on my phone told me his flight has been slightly delayed.
"Hi Larson, it's Brynn, and I'm really sorry."
I start to explain but then I have a better idea.
"Hold on," I say, hanging up. "I'll talk to you soon."