Unease starts creeping in as we approach Manhattan, so I dial Andy, knowing his voice will calm me, but I’m directed straight to voicemail, which only pushes me further into my nervousness.
I make the familiar way to the twentieth floor, where the name partners sit, directed to Hirsch’s office by his assistant.
“Phoebe, my girl!” Hirsch beams when I walk in. “I didn’t think you had it in you, but boy, was I wrong.”
“What?” I ask in confusion, looking over at Cornelia Berger, who seems extremely uncomfortable, and Felix Teller, who is just staring at his phone in disinterest.
“I told you she’d deliver!” Hirsch exclaims.
“Albert, what are you talking about?” I ask more firmly this time.
“You really have no idea, do you?” Cornelia turns to Hirsch with rage when I shake my head at her question. “You said she agreed to this, Albert.” Cornelia Berger is the youngest of the three and became partner by bringing in one of the biggest banks in the country as a client.
“It was implied.” Hirsch shrugs with disinterest.
“Implied?” Cornelia’s voice raises an octave. “You slimy old ass, what’s wrong with you?”
“Have some respect, Cornelia,” Teller scolds her as if she’s a petulant child, not even lifting his head from his phone. “But this could be a legal liability.”
And now they’re talking over my head.
“She did it for the partnership. She won’t say squat if we give it to her,” Hirsch dismisses.
“You know what?” Cornelia pulls out her phone and taps the screen for a few seconds. “I think you’re wrong, aren’t they Miss Jenkins?”
I’m confused as hell, but since it’s obvious I’m not going to like what I’m about to hear, I figure I might as well skip the pleasantries.
“I have a resignation letter in my bag.” I pull it out and toss it to Hirsch. “I signed a contract to join Gabriel Marsh as an equal partner at his practice last week. I came here to inform you I will no longer be under your employment.”
“Hirsch had a PI photograph you and Mister Atkins in intimate situations to use as leverage on him to sell the inn,” Cornelia informs me, coming to stand by my side. “I’ve emailed you all the information, and I’m escorting you to HR to file a complaint right now.”
“You sneaky bastard,” I hiss at Albert, who cowers under my gaze.
Teller finally lifts his head from his phone, though he hardly seems phased. “How much will it take to make this go away?”
“Your mild reaction tells me this isn’t the first time, is it?” I cross my arms and shake my head. “You must not know much about me, Mr. Teller, but the only way to keep me quiet is to have me murdered.”
“That can be arranged.” A sinister smile stretches over his lips. “Joking, of course.”
“You know how much of a pompous idiot that man is?” Cornelia turns to me with a wicked smile of her own. “He asked me to record this meeting, so we’d have proof that you agreed to the photos.”
“Which makes it admissible in court in case anything happens to me,” I say, completing her sentence and snicker. “Men.”
“Right?” She gestures to the door, and I gladly leave that room, hopefully never to return.
The entire ordeal takes about an hour, including packing up my office, which is sparingly decorated, considering how many hours I spent here a day, as if I knew I was just waiting for a reason to up and leave.
Cornelia takes longer to pack. After all, she’s worked here for over a decade.
“You okay?” I ask when we step outside.
“I should have done this long ago,” she confesses. “I was scared of having to start from scratch, but years of working in a place that encourages means justifying the end, the end being money, of course, it does something to your view of yourself. Eventually, you believe you don’t deserve better.”
“How’d you know I wasn’t going to take the partnership?” I wonder.
“The way you looked at Atkins, I suspected you’d fallen for him even if you were playing along with Albert’s plan,” she explains. “But once I realized he lied, it was obvious you would never let them off the hook for using you against the man you love like that.”
“Sounds like you’re speaking from experience,” I observe, a forlorn look setting in her eyes.
“I loved someone like that once,” she tells me. “Like you, I had to choose between love and partnership. Unlike you, I chose wrong.”
“The bank?” I assume, and Cornelia nods with a grimace. “Maybe try to contact him?”
“He won’t forgive me, and I can’t blame him.”
“What did you do?” I wonder how bad it was.
“Cole was the son of the majority shareholder. His dad was very sick, and he was set to inherit all the shares. The secondary shareholder, his dad’s best friend and partner, wanted him out because Cole planned on implementing new anti-laundry systems that would cost the bank millions in foreign accounts.” She gazes at me with so much remorse my heart breaks for her. “You can guess the rest.”
“I don’t guess other people’s stories, Cornelia.”
“I was sent to work on an investment deal for the side opposite the bank. I guess someone told Hirsch I was Cole’s type. We got involved, I didn’t plan it, but his passion and integrity just drew me in like a moth to a flame. God, I loved him.” A tear escapes the corner of her eye. “You have to understand, Phoebe, I came from nothing. My mom walked out on us, and my dad worked three jobs to keep us afloat. I worked my ass off to put myself through college and get a job in a large firm in the city, clawing my way to the top. So when Hirsch gave me a choice—Cole or partnership—I chose the safety of having a good salary over the uncertainty of love that can abandon you. Cole was so devastated by the betrayal he disappeared somewhere in Europe, leaving his dad’s partner in charge.”
“I’m sorry.” I place a tentative hand on her arm.
“It’s my own fault. I’m just glad you made better choices.” She smiles genuinely.
“Phoebe!” My heart flutters at the voice calling me, and I drop my box, turning around just in time for Andy to swoop me into his arms, his lips crashing over mine. “Are you okay?”
I reply by pulling him in for another kiss.
“Andy, this is Cornelia Berger,” I introduce, and Andy raises a questioning eyebrow.
“Yes, Mr. Atkins, that Berger,” Cornelia confirms his suspicion. “Well, formerly that Berger.”
“Nice to meet you.” Andy nods, then turns to me. “Did you hear my voice message?”
“That was you?” I ask with a furrowed brow. “Only telemarketers still leave those.”
He’s about to reply when a stretch limo pulls up next to us, none other than Hamond Zane stepping out of it.
“You ladies are fast.” He feigns wiping sweat from his brow with a smile.
“You’ve got a lot of nerve showing your face after what you had Hirsch do.” I stare him down.
“I assure you Hirsch hatched that plan all on his own.” Hamond’s face turns serious. “I didn’t think the idiot would go to those lengths, and I never would have allowed it.”