Chapter Ten
Matthias raised his head sharply when Chris walked into his office without knocking on the closed door. Usually, Matthias didn’t mind his business partner and friend stopping by but he was in no mood to be disturbed today. It was hard enough for him to concentrate without distractions. “Heard of knocking?” he asked, not bothering to hide the irritation from his voice.
Chris seemed unperturbed and took a seat in front of Matthias’s desk. “What’s got you in a funk, my friend? You’ve been cranky all week, snapping at everyone. You even made Tiffany cry. She told me that she’s not coming to your office again until you take the stick out of your ass. What’s got her so upset?”
“Just because you’re fucking my assistant, it doesn’t mean you get to walk into my office uninvited to play Knight in Shining Armor.”
“Whoa! Hold up dude, Tiffany is my girlfriend. She’s not just someone I’m fucking and I swear to God if you say another derogatory word about her, I’ll kick your ass.”
Matthias was unimpressed with Chris’s rant. “So pointing out the fact that you two are fucking is derogatory? Duly noted. So you can either tell me what you want or you can see yourself out of my office.”
Chris turned bright red. “What the fuck has gotten into you? You’ve been a major asshole for the past week. I try to stay out of your personal issues but your foul mood is starting to affect productivity in the office. Our staff has been walking on eggshells. Tiffany is a nervous wreck because you keep snapping at her. And at the presentation, you sent a little old lady away in tears.”
“The idea was stupid and I honestly don’t know how it got so far up the chain. The associate who brought that shit to me is lucky they still have a job. Fashion for fucking cats?”
“It was called Kitty Kat Kouture, and she was going for the cat lady market,” Chris pointed out.
“Right, and maybe if she would have given it some thought, you would have realized the acronym of her business would have been KKK. Not something I’m looking to invest in.”
“Maybe not, but you didn’t have to eviscerate her idea the way you did. You could have let the old lady down gently.”
Matthias leaned back in his chair with a heavy sigh, annoyed with this conversation. “As I’ve already said, if you’ve come in here just to scold me, it’s been duly noted. I’ll try to be more cognizant of people’s feelings. Thanks for the talk. If that will be all, I’ve got a ton of work.”
“What the hell happened to you man?” Chris spoke the words softly but the concern was evident in his tone.
“Nothing.”
“Something is, or else you wouldn’t be acting like such a douche. This isn’t like you. I’m not coming to you as your business partner, I’m coming to you as a friend. You haven’t been yourself in a long time and I’m not just talking about in the last week. In the last few years, your personality changed. You started working 18-hour days and pushing yourself to the point of exhaustion.
“There were days when I’d come to the office and find you in the same clothes you’d worn the day before because you’d never left. At first, I selfishly didn’t say anything because the business took off like a rocket ship. You singlehandedly made us a million dollar corporation within a year. That’s no easy feat. But then I had to force you to take some time off and while you did, I noticed you didn’t smile like you used to. You were always tense. Every time I would ask if everything was all right, you said everything is okay. I backed off and eventually, you mellowed out. And then I saw a side of you I haven’t seen since college: the womanizer. I couldn’t keep up with all the different women you were seeing from week to week. But now this new personality has emerged: the asshole, and I gotta say it’s my least favorite side of you.
Matthias, I’m bringing this up now because I miss my friend. It’s obvious something is going on with you and I’m guessing it has something to do with Esther.”
Matthias clenched his fists. It was something he’d refused to talk about when Esther had left with her husband. It had devastated him because, at the time, he’d believed she’d been playing with his heart the entire time. Perhaps he hadn’t dealt with his hurt and anger in a healthy way, but hearing Chris vocalize how it had affected the people surrounding him made Matthias feel like crap. He rested his head on his fists. “I’ve been a real jackass.”
“I won’t argue with you on that.”
“She broke me, man. I didn’t know how to handle it. Looking back maybe I wasn’t quite ready to be in a relationship. Honestly, I was still smarting from the way my marriage ended and mourning my mother’s death. I don’t think I ever properly got over those two events before I entered into a relationship with Esther.” He raised his head and raked his fingers through his hair. “Don’t get me wrong, I know I was in love with her. I’d never felt that way about anyone, not even Shin-hye. But when it was over between Esther and me, I think something imploded inside of me. All those events shut me down emotionally.”
“Damn, maybe I should have been a little more sensitive to your plight,” Chris offered.
Matthias shook his head. “No, man. This is exactly what I needed to hear. I need to do better, particularly to the people who are helping to make this business a success. I’ll apologize to Tiffany when I see her again. She’s actually taken my bad mood like a good sport. I suppose even she has her breaking point.”
“She’ll be fine. She was just blowing off some steam and really, she didn’t want to say anything to me at all. I pretty much forced it out of her. She doesn’t want you to think that she’ll run to me for every little problem the two of you have just because we’re dating. She really likes her job here.”
“And she does a good job. I doubt I’d get through the day without her.”
Chris smiled. “Me too.”
“Do you think she’s the one?”
“It’s nearly been a year. My family likes her and her dad seems to have come around since I’m dating his only daughter,” he chuckled. “So yeah, I think she’s the one.”
“Well I’m happy for you two, just give me a heads-up before you propose, just in case I lose my assistant, I want to have enough time to replace her.”
“You don’t have to worry on that front. She’s very determined to keep working, at least until she starts a family according to her. I don’t think she wants to be an assistant forever, though.”
“Well, she has a good head on her shoulders so I don’t see why we can’t eventually come up with a development plan for her career so that she can be an associate with her own accounts.”
“Sounds great. Uh…” Chris took a deep breath as he furrowed her brows. “Look, I’m glad you were able to get that off your chest about what you’ve been going through but I get the feeling that there’s something you’re leaving out.”
Matthias had hoped that they’d moved off that topic but apparently, his friend wasn’t ready to move on. “Well, I suppose I’ve been acting like a shithead lately because apparently, Esther is back in town and she’s no longer married.”
“Oh? So she finally got a divorce?”
“I’m not sure about that but uh, her husband died. When I spoke with Fiona, she didn’t go into any detail so I’m not sure it happened. All I know is he’s gone and she’s free.”
“And how do you feel about that?”
“Obviously I’ve never gotten over her. But I keep asking myself if I ever really knew her at all since she hid so much from me. Now, I may not get the chance to deal with these unresolved issues because Fiona told me it was best that I stay out of Esther’s way because she’s changed. I don’t know if I can ever truly move on unless I get that closure our relationship deserved.”
“Do you want to hear what I think?”
Matthias sighed in resignation. “I have a feeling you’re going to tell me whether I want to hear it or not.”
Chris smirked. “You got that right. “Look, the couple of times I met Esther, she seemed like a very sweet woman. When I saw you two together it was clear there was a love connection. You only had eyes for her and she for you. I’ve never seen you act the way with any other woman the way you did with her so, it’s easy to understand why you were so broken when she left. You were so happy with her and whenever I would look at you with Esther, I’d think to myself that if any two people were made for each other it was you guys. I’m new at this love thing myself but it’s an imperfect emotion. It’s not always that easy flowery shit you see in the movies. If it’s real, it's worth fighting for. So maybe the circumstances weren’t right back then and they are now. But you won’t find out for sure if you don’t find her, and if she doesn’t want to talk to you, then make her.”
Matthias couldn’t really argue with anything Chris had said. It was true that he still harbored feelings for Esther, which is why he’d been a mess these past few years. Regardless of what happened between them, he had to see her and then they would go from there whether it was together or on their own separate paths. “When did you get so wise?”
“I watch a lot of talk shows.”
Matthias couldn’t help but grin, his first genuine smile in a long time. Now more than ever he was determined to see Esther, and he refused to be turned away.
~~~~~~~
Esther walked with a spring in her step. Everything was falling into place. She had in her hand a copy of the signed lease to her new apartment she’d be moving into at the end of the month. She didn’t expect to find a place so soon, but she was happy that she’d have her own space. She and Fiona got on so well, but she didn’t want to be a continued burden to her friend. It didn’t help that she still experienced the occasional night terror. Last night had been a particularly bad one. She had a dream about the night with Mike. Fiona had run into her room with a baseball bat because she had been certain Esther was being attacked. It had taken Esther an hour for her friend, who’d hovered over her with concern to go back to bed. There was also the fact that Esther had come to value her solitude. Growing up and then jumping into a relationship with Mike, she’d never learned to be by herself and she liked coming home and from a hard day’s work, yanking her bra off and tossing it on the floor. When she lived alone, she could drink out of the carton without worrying about spreading her germs and she could walk around naked if she wanted to.
Esther glanced at her cell phone to check the time. She had a meeting with a business consultant later that day but that wasn’t for another few hours. That gave her plenty of time to pick up lunch somewhere. She eventually settled on a popular sandwich shop downtown. That way she could pick up something to go and eat her food in the park and feed the ducks any leftovers.
Esther hummed to herself as she scrolled through her phone. She’d just placed her order and was waiting to be called.
“Esther?”
She stiffened. The voice sounded familiar but she couldn’t place it. With dread, she turned to see who had spoken to her. It was Chris, standing with a tall brunette.
She pasted a smile on her face so as not to appear rude. “Hi, Chris.”
He turned to his companion. “Why don’t you put our orders in Tiff, I’ll be with you shortly.”
“Sure, baby.” The brunette nodded in Esther’s direction before heading to the counter.
Chris turned back to Esther with a friendly smile. “So how have you been?”
Though they’d only met twice to her recollection, she’d always liked him. She liked the easy banter he and Matthias had shared and Chris would tell her stories about their time in college. He seemed like a nice guy, but running into him at this random eatery was the last thing she expected.
“I can’t complain, and yourself?”
“I’m doing great. Business is flourishing so that’s always a plus. So are you in the area for a visit or how long do you plan on sticking around this time?”
She couldn’t tell if that question was a jab or not because the smile remained on his face. “Uh, I’ve officially moved back to the area.”
“That’s good to hear. Will you be working at the tea shop?”
“No, actually, I’m an independent MUA and I do a lot of freelance work.”
“That sounds interesting, but pardon my ignorance, what’s an MUA?”
Esther chuckled, forgetting that not everyone knew the lingo. “Make-up artist.”
“Oh, of course. And what does that entail? I apologize if I’m being intrusive. I’m genuinely interested.”
“No worries. I don’t mind talking about it. I do a lot of private events like weddings, proms or bachelorette parties. I’ve worked on some commercials, worked a few fashion shows, and even done a small indie film. Right now I’m working on developing my own makeup line, but something like that takes some time and then I’d have to find investors.”
Chris raised a brow. “Wow, you’ve been a very busy woman. Hey, why don’t you take my card? If you’re looking for investors into your product than as you already know, that’s what Matthias and I do. We’d be happy to hear about your venture.”
And this is exactly why she didn’t want to talk to Chris in the first place. She had been certain that the dreaded name would be brought up. She politely took the card. “Thank you.” She would never use it but he didn’t have to know.
Just then her name was called. Esther breathed an inward sigh of relief. “Well, looks like my food is ready. It was nice seeing you again.”
He nodded his head. “Likewise. I’ll tell Matthias that I saw you.”
She shook her head. “Oh, you don’t have to.”
“But I’m sure he’d be pleased to hear that we spoke and that you’re doing well.”
“Somehow I doubt that. I have to go. It was nice catching up with you.”
“Likewise.” Just then the brunette returned and she held out her hand.
“I’m Tiffany, and you are?”
It seemed like some force didn’t want her to leave this shop. She gave Tiffany’s hand a quick shake. “Nice to meet you.”
“I love the wing-tipped eyes. I can never do that when I apply my makeup, at least not without looking a complete mess.”
“Well, Esther here is actually a professional MUA.”
Tiffany’s eyes lit up. “Oh, really? Do you work for anyone or are you independent?”
“I work for myself.”
“Oh, I’d love it if you could give me some tips. Can I get your phone number?”
Esther figured there was no way she was going to get out of this without looking like a complete asshole but Chris thankfully came to her rescue.
“Hon, Esther is a very busy woman. I’m sure she doesn’t have the time to give out free tips when people pay her to do exactly that.”
“Oh, I don’t mind. I give out free advice all the time. Advice is one thing, the application is another.”
“See?” Tiffany gave Chris a knowing smirk. “How do you two know each other by the way?”
‘”Through Matthias,” Chris filled in for her.
Esther looked longingly at the counter wondering if she should just risk being rude and walking away to get her food. She reached into her purse and pulled out her business card. Esther then handed it to Tiffany. “Here’s my card if you want to contact me for a free consultation. I really have to go. The lady at the counter is giving me dirty looks so I really need to go pick up my food. It was nice seeing you again, Chris. And nice meeting you, Tiffany.”
“Likewise,” Tiffany smiled. “I’ll definitely be in touch.”
That was exactly what Esther dreaded. “Looking forward to it,” she replied, not meaning a word of it.
“I’ll be seeing you, Esther,” Chris said as Esther turned to walk away. Those words almost sounded like a threat, which could only mean one thing. He intended to tell Matthias of their encounter.
Esther hurried and collected her food. She couldn’t get out of the sandwich shop fast enough. She wasn’t sure if Matthias wanted to see her or not. But either option terrified her.