Chapter 7
Mandy
“Which one, Ellen? I really can't make up my mind,” I said.
Ellen looked me up and down, taking in the details of the business suit I had just put on.
“I like the lines of this one better than the last one,” she said, “and the red collar pops. In a good way. I'd go with this one.”
I was hoping that she would say that. I also had a feeling this one was the one to go for; the lines complemented my curves, and the subtle shade of black really did make the collared blouse underneath pop quite nicely.
“Great, I'll take it then.”
Ellen smiled. “You're gonna look perfect for the big conference later. You'll make an amazing first impression on everyone dressed like that!”
“That's the idea,” I replied. “Dressed to impress, dressed for success. Any other clichés we can rhyme with dressed?”
We both laughed.
“I think the stars really are aligning for you,” said Ellen. “I mean, you just walked into that amazing job, and now we set aside the whole afternoon to find the right suit for you, yet this one, the third one that you try on in the very first store we walk into, it's like it was tailor made just for you!”
I had to smile. “Well, let's keep our fingers crossed that things keep going my way.”
She crossed her fingers. “Fingers crossed.”
I reached over and knocked on the wooden wall of the changing booth. “Knock on wood, too.”
“People never say that anymore,” remarked Ellen.
“I know. But it was something my dad used to say and do all the time, so I keep it alive, you know.”
She smiled sympathetically. “Aw, that's good, Mandy. I guess you still miss him a lot, huh?”
“Tons,” I said, feeling a pang of sadness nip at the inside of my throat. “Not a day goes by when I don't miss him.”
“How many years has it been now?”
“Three years, two months, and fifteen days,” I said.
The date my father had passed away would forever be tattooed on my memory, and I still remembered that day as clearly as if it had been yesterday.
It had been a warm summer's day, with a bright and cloudless sky. A breezy Sunday, and I had been relaxing at a barbecue with friends. I had seen my father earlier; he and I had met for coffee in the morning before he had headed out for a ride on his Harley with his friends.
I remember the details so clearly, so crisply; how blue the sky was, how the water sparkled in the sun, like crinkled tin foil, the rich green of the grass and the scent of roasting burgers on the grill drifting on the breeze. I even remembered what drink I was holding – a gin and tonic. I had never drunk a gin and tonic again.
My phone had rung, and when I answered that call my world was turned upside down.
“Are you Mandy Benson, daughter of Quinton Benson?” the stranger's voice on the other end of the line had asked.
“I am, yes.”
“You need to get to Mission Hospital immediately, Ms. Benson. Your father has been in an accident, a serious accident, and he doesn't have much longer to live.”
What happened after that was all a blur. I think I dropped the drink and my phone. Someone helped me, someone from the barbecue. I don't remember who. It all happened so quickly, yet it felt so surreal, so dream-like. The next thing I remember was walking into the hospital ward. He was there, broken and swollen and bloody.
“We've done all we can for him,” someone had whispered to me, maybe a doctor or a nurse, “but the damage is too severe. I'm sorry.”
His eyes had opened when I had walked in. I had rushed over to him and held his hand. He had squeezed it gently, and whispered, “Make me proud, my sweet girl. Make me proud.”
“I will, Daddy,” I had said, fighting back the tears.
And that’s when his grip on my fingers slackened, and the slow beeping of the heart rate monitor became one long beep.
And that was it; he was gone.
“Mandy?”
Ellen's voice yanked me out of the memory and anchored me back in the present.
“Sorry, I was just kinda, zoning out there,” I murmured.
“I can see that. Come on, let's go pay for this and then get a coffee or something. We have a bit of time to kill now, since we managed to luck out with the shopping.”
“Yeah, let's go,” I said, and took the suit to go pay. My mind was still half-stuck in the past. There was a decent chance it might be stuck there for some time. But for now, I had a new job to think about.
* * * * *
“It's great to see you again, Phil,” I said, shaking Phil's hand and smiling warmly.
“You look absolutely amazing!” said Phil. “I'm sure you're going to make a great impression on everyone here.”
“I hope so,” I said. “I won't lie, it's more than a little intimidating being thrown into the deep end here on my first day of the job – well, first night, if we're gonna be technical about it – and having to meet everyone all at once like this.”
“Don't worry, you'll do just fine,” he said.
“I know, I know,” I replied. “It's just hard not to have at least a few butterflies in my stomach at an event like this, when I'm the new one here. Jeez, I knew this company was big but I really didn't realize just how big it was until I got here!”
“There are about a thousand people here,” said Phil. “But don't worry, I don't expect you to remember all their names just yet,” he added with a wink. “Come on, let's go in and take our seats. Ronald is about to go on stage and make his speech. Remember to act surprised when he makes his big announcement, okay?”
“I'll remember to do that,” I said.
We walked into the hall and headed over to our table, where Phil had arranged for me to sit next to him, since I didn't really know anyone else here. I followed him into the hall, which was beautifully decked out, and tried to appear as calm and confident as I possibly could, even though I was feeling more than a mere tingle of nerves.
We took our seats just as Ronald took to the stage. He made a speech about how he had started the company, how far they had come – the usual kind of stuff a CEO would say. Then the announcement came – his retirement.
I had been preparing myself to fake surprise here but it turned out that that wasn't necessary. When he said that he was handing the company over to his son, Kain Williams – the same Kain I had slept with two nights ago – surprise had hit me like a heavyweight boxer's fist to the jaw.
I couldn't believe it when Kain walked out on stage. I wanted to crawl under the table, to melt into my chair. Suddenly, it felt as if everyone around me was in on my little secret, our little secret, and that they would all be laughing soon enough when that secret was made public. I couldn't believe this. I was mortified, utterly mortified!
The MC called for everyone to applaud for the new CEO, so I put my hands together, clapping softly and unenthusiastically, and just wishing that the ground would open and swallow me up. Damn it! I should have known that all of this was too good to be true, that this seeming winning streak I had been on would come to an end.
And wow, what a spectacular end this was going to be. I felt like throwing up.
But then, another part of me, felt an altogether different sensation. It was impossible not to feel at least some attraction toward this man, and he looked mighty good in his designer suit. And for whatever reason, at this moment my attraction toward him surged.
At the same time, though, the feeling of dread and awkwardness and embarrassment was utterly overwhelming, and it soon managed to quash any thoughts of attraction. I looked up, and Kain's eyes caught mine. A look of absolute shock paled his expression as he recognized me, and I saw his eyebrows rise with surprise. He looked away quickly though and seemed to regain his composure.
The applause died out, and then the MC started to speak again. “Before I give the stage over to Kain, we have an announcement to make. We'd like to welcome our new marketing director. Mandy Benson, could you please stand up? Ladies and gentlemen, please give Mandy a warm welcome! Put your hands together! That's right Mandy, stand up, don't be shy!”
Oh, this was great. I couldn't do anything but stand up, do as the man said, and pray that people didn't notice the intense crimson blush spreading its awful heat across the entirety of my face.
I stood up, and everyone applauded, which made me feel even more awkward. Ugh. This really did seem to be going from bad to worse.
I sat down hurriedly, and then Kain stepped up to the podium and began to speak.
Well, at least now I knew why things had seemed so weirdly familiar when I had met Ronald the previous day. He was this guy's freakin' dad!
“Thank you, ladies and gentlemen,” said Kain.
Oh, boy, it was so weird hearing that voice again – that voice that had whispered hot, dirty desires into my ear two nights ago.
No, no, no! It was definitely not the right time to think about that right now!
“It is a huge honor and a privilege to be taking over from my father,” he said.
Hmm, I don't think that's exactly how you put it when you told me all those secrets the other night, Kain.
“And I aim to grow this company, to take it from strength to strength, and to take it to new heights!”
Everyone applauded enthusiastically but all I could think about right now was how he had told me he was planning to sell a sizable portion of it off to investors, and how he was thinking of letting a bunch of people go.
“Together, we're going to take this company forward,” he claimed. “Each and every one of you is a valuable part of this company, and every one of you is going to have an important part to play as we enter a new phase of business.”
I wondered if these people realized that the 'part to play' he was talking about included losing their jobs. He went on talking, and while his tone came across as sincere, all I could think about were the secrets he had told me when he was drunk.
Eventually, his speech finished, and everyone cheered and applauded wildly. I simply clapped along unenthusiastically, wearing a fake smile all the while.
A few more people spoke, and then it was time for a break.
“Come on, let's get up and mingle,” Phil suggested.
We got up and walked around. Waiters and waitresses were walking around with trays of hors d'oeuvres and drinks. I definitely needed a drink after this huge shock to the system, so I told Phil I'd find him later, and then made a beeline for the nearest waiter who had drinks.
I got a tall glass of white wine and gulped down at least half of it in one go.
“So,” said a familiar voice suddenly from behind me, “we meet again.”
I turned around slowly, because I knew who it was.
“Kain,” I said, doing my best to smile and not look awkward. “So, uh, how about this coincidence?”
Kain wasn't smiling, however. His eyes were cold, and he wore a frown on his face.
“Why didn't you tell me the other night that you were working at my father's – at my company?!” he demanded.
“How was I supposed to know it was your father's company?! I didn't see you there when I went to the conference the other night and met Phil. You never told me your last name. How on earth did you expect me to know?”
“You should have known,” he muttered. “Well, this isn't good. This isn't good at all.”
“How do you think I'm feeling?! I mean, if I had known that it was you, that your dad... you know what I mean, then I would never have done that. Jeez, I don't even know what I'm saying.”
“Look, it is what it is,” he said, looking me directly in the eye. “What happened, happened, and neither of us can change that. I think the best we can do right now is just try to pretend that it didn't happen.”
“Great, so that's your solution? Just pretend it didn't happen? Yeah, that seems like a perfect solution to this problem,” I said sarcastically.
“Well, what the hell else can we do? You and I, we're going to have to work closely together. We might as well try to at least make that pleasant.”
“Maybe I should just tell your dad I can't take the job. It'll be embarrassing as hell, considering that I just stood up in front of over a thousand people to be introduced as the new marketing director but—”
“No, no, you can't do that,” he said. “My dad thinks you're the perfect person for the job. And it's a fantastic job. This company is an amazing company to work for. You'd be making a huge mistake if you quit over something like this.”
“Oh, it's an 'amazing company to work for,' is it? Will it still be an 'amazing company to work for' when you've sold it off to investors and let so many people go?”
His face paled instantly, and his mouth hung half open with shock.
“Yeah, Kain, I remember everything you told me when you were drunk. And I bet your father – and every one of the other thousand people here – would be very, very interested in hearing about your plans for the future of this company.”
“No, listen, you can't do that,” he muttered. “And those plans, they're not set in stone, I never said I was gonna do that for sure. It was just drunk talk, it didn't mean anything.”
“Oh, really? You sounded pretty sincere to me.”
He sighed and hung his head. Suddenly, I felt sorry for coming at him so aggressively.
“I just didn't know if I could handle this,” he admitted. “My father pushed me into it, he pressured me to do this. I guess I thought about doing that in a moment of panic. And I don't know why I said it to you. I shouldn't have. But please, please can we keep that between us? Look, we need you here. I looked at your CV, at the work you did at your former job. You're incredibly talented. And to be honest, I don't think I can do this without someone like you to work with. I'm so sorry about the other night, and I'm sorry if I came off as a bit of an idiot. But please just give me a chance. Just give this job a chance. Please.”
I stared at him, and that intense attraction began to surge through me again. I didn't know if it was a good thing or a disaster waiting to happen but I had a decision to make.
I drew in a deep breath and then exhaled slowly. “All right, Kain, I'll stay.”