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  “You are firing me?” I’m surprised at how calm I sound. “What is going on?”

  “You know perfectly well what is going on,” he sneers. “You are fucking Sebastian Bennett.”

  I draw in a sharp breath, clutching the phone forcefully. “That is not true. I don’t know where you get your facts—”

  “From Bennett himself. I spoke to him.”

  “You spoke to him,” I repeat. My hand trembles on the phone, so I grip it tighter. Sebastian wouldn’t do this to me. He knew I’d be fired if Dirk found out.

  “Yes, last night. He answered your phone and I recognized his voice. He proudly announced you are his girlfriend. He had no idea who I was, but that’s beside the point.”

  Despite everything, I let out a breath of relief. He didn’t do it on purpose.

  “I’ve been on alert ever since Anna told me you’re cozy with the Bennetts,” he continues.

  I swallowed hard. Should’ve know that bitch would go right to him.

  “She was in San Francisco again a week ago,” Dirk adds. “She saw you and Bennett kissing. I waited for their show to be over to fire you to avoid a scandal. We are a serious marketing consultancy, Ava.”

  “I know that.”

  “Not an escort service. That clause is in place for a reason. We have a reputation to keep up.” Dirk’s voice is as dickish as it gets.

  “I can explain.” My mouth goes dry, and I press my knees together to stop myself from shaking.

  “I’m not interested.”

  “This isn’t what it looks like.”

  “Did you sleep with Bennett?”

  “Yes, but—”

  “Do we have a clause that specifically forbids it?”

  “Yes, however—”

  “Then things are exactly the way they look. You know very well the trouble that scandal caused us all those years ago.”

  “There won’t be a scandal this time.”

  “It doesn’t matter. It’s best to cut the evil right from the root.”

  “What the. . . Damn it, Dirk. You can’t leave me without my job, and refuse to pay my bonus and termination deposit.”

  “Yes, I can. It’s written in your contract.”

  “I won’t be able to afford . . . I’ll lose everything.” Something hard settles in my chest, making it hard to breathe. Keeping my phone between my ear and shoulder, I swipe my sweaty palms on my skirt.

  “That’s not my problem.”

  “I busted my ass off for you all these years,” I say through gritted teeth.

  “And then you opened your legs for Bennett and threw all that hard work away. I thought you were smarter than that.”

  “You dick,” I yell into the phone. “You have no right to talk to me like that. The board might have named you CEO, but the reputation of the company was built on my back and on that of other consultants. Your incompetent ass wouldn’t have gotten you where you are.”

  “Right. I was about to draft your recommendation letter, but I see one won’t be necessary anymore.”

  I nearly swallow my tongue. “What? No, Dirk, look, I’m sorry I said that. I’m just—”

  “Don’t bother putting your time with us on a resume.”

  “I spent six years in your company,” I shriek.

  “If you put us on your resume and someone calls, I’ll give them enough reasons not to hire you. You’ve been warned.”

  “I am your best employee—”

  “Were. Best of luck,” he says, before I hear dead air. The asshole hung up on me.

  I stare into space, my mind blank, my entire body overcome by quivers. Reality seeps in slowly. Finding a new job will take me months. Without the bonus, there is no way I’ll be able to pay my rent, even if I move to a cheaper neighborhood. I’ll have to dig into my savings. Tears roll down my cheeks. The savings were meant to go toward a deposit for my own home. Good-bye, dream of owning my own place.

  Good-bye, all dreams. Everything will go to hell. Everything will crumble around me. One little mistake, that’s all it took to undo my hard work. How is this fair?

  Dirk’s words resound in my mind. That’s not my problem. Of course not. Why should he care? Shit, why did I have to lose my temper like that?

  Wiping away my tears, I steel myself, looking for a solution. First things first, I need to convince Dirk to change his mind on that recommendation letter. Without that, finding my next job will be a nightmare. A six-year gap on my resume will raise eyebrows. I have to put my job at the agency down, and I must convince Dirk to support me when future employers call him. I’ll make him see reason. I’ve done great things for his company, even if I made a mistake.

  The second thing I need to convince Dirk of is to give me that bonus. That’ll give me a safety net until I find a new job.

  I dial him again, but he doesn’t pick up. Fuck you, Dirk the Dick. I need to fly to New York right now and do some damage control. The hours it’ll take me to get to New York will be enough to allow Dirk to cool off, but if I let too much time pass, it’ll become even harder to turn things in my favor. I’m about to go to Sebastian’s office, then remember he won’t be here for the day. I call him, but it goes straight to voice mail. Right, he probably shut off his phone during the meeting. Hanging up, I ponder what to do. I can call again, but my voice is too undependable to leave a voice message. I write him a quick e-mail.

  I have to return to New York. Cancel the vacation. Sorry. Call me when you can.

  I book myself the next flight to New York and head straight to my apartment. I pack all of my things as quickly as I can, then drop the key to the building administrator. I take a cab and stop at Sebastian’s place to gather the few things I have here. That’s when I realize I have to return his key. I stare at it in my palm, and then set it on the coffee table with a heavy heart.

  On the way to the airport, I try calling Sebastian a few more times, but it goes straight to voice mail again. I really don’t want to take off like this, with just the e-mail I sent him earlier, but squeezing all that’s happened into a voice message will bring me to tears.

  I also call Dirk a few dozen times, but he doesn’t answer. I do my best not to flip out, but I burst into tears several times during the flight.

  My most important goal is to convince him to give me a recommendation. If I achieve that, I can sort out the rest. It’ll be a mess, but I’ll manage. I always do.

  I can’t lose everything. Not after working so hard, for so long.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Sebastian

  My last meeting ends at eleven o’clock at night, and I head straight to Ava’s apartment. We agreed before the show that she‘d pack up all the things she has at the hotel this afternoon and I’ll help her move them to my place. Thank fuck we’re leaving for the Bahamas tomorrow. She and I for two weeks. That’s exactly what I need. I knock at her door, calling her name a few times, but she doesn’t answer. I make a grab for my phone, and then realize I left it in the car. I go back downstairs. Maybe she decided to move the things by herself. It’s late, after all, and our plane leaves very early tomorrow.

  The building administrator throws me a fuck-me glance when she sees me. Jesus.

  “Did Ms. Lindt check out already?” I ask her.

  She frowns. “Yes, shortly after lunch. She requested a cab to the airport.”

  “What do you mean ‘to the airport’? There must be a mistake.”

  “No mistake, I did the check-out myself. She said she needed a cab to the airport, but had to make a stop on the way.”

  I slam my fist on the hard wood, swearing.

  “You look like you need a drink,” she says. “My shift just ended, and I know a cozy bar downtown.”

  “That won’t be necessary.” I barely keep my voice straight. She drops her eyes to the floor, and I add a quick, “Good-night.”

  I stomp out of the building.

  I want to call Ava the minute I’m in the car, and then remember my phone battery has be
en flat the entire day. Fuck. I hit the steering wheel hard, and nearly crash into a car on my way home.

  “Ava,” I call once inside the apartment. No answer. “Ava, are you here?”

  With horror, I realize she’s taken all of her things. There’s no trace of any belongings of hers. It’s like she’s never been here. The punch to the gut comes when I see the key I gave her lying on the coffee table.

  She wouldn’t do this. Except. . . she did. There must be an explanation for this. Gathering all the calm I can muster, I plug the charger into my phone. The few minutes until the phone comes to life are excruciating.

  She called me a few times, but left no messages. I dial her number, but it goes straight to her voice mail. I realize I haven’t checked my e-mails. Sure enough, I find one from Ava.

  I have to return to New York. Cancel the vacation. Sorry. Call me when you can.

  I stare at the e-mail, dumbstruck. Call me when you can? Then she switches off her phone? Right. I grit my teeth. Right.

  ***

  “Weren’t you supposed to be in the Bahamas?” Logan asks two days later. He enters my office, dropping in the chair opposite my desk, staring at me. He was away from the office yesterday.

  “I was, but Ava got cold feet and fucked off to New York.”

  “What? Why?”

  “Ask her. She wrote me an e-mail, saying she had to return, I should call her, and now she’s not answering her phone. It goes straight to voice mail.”

  “Have you e-mailed her?”

  “I have my pride, Logan.” I hit the table with a fist, drawing in a breath. “I’m not going to beg a woman who didn’t even have the decency to tell me to my face that she wants out.”

  I almost e-mailed her. I must have drafted out at least fifteen e-mails, and then deleted them. Imagining her reply kept me from sending them. The mere idea of seeing her rejection written was enough to prompt me to press Delete. Yes, I’ve officially become a coward and am passing it off as pride.

  “Ava’s not that kind of person. Hell, she didn’t chicken out when the marketing manager up and left one week before the show. That woman’s got some balls. Maybe she had an emergency.”

  “I thought about that, but she’s not even picking up her phone. I don’t know about you, but I can take a hint when it’s thrown at me.”

  “You love her, don’t you?”

  “Does it matter?” I counter. “Yes, I do.”

  “Okay, let’s talk about something else. I hate to break this to you, but we need to hire a marketing manager like. . . yesterday.”

  “I know, but I’m not in the mood right now.”

  “I’ve been looking into promoting someone from within the department, but they all lack the necessary leadership skills. On the other hand, if we bring someone from the outside again, we’ll repeat history.”

  “I’ll find a solution. Eventually. What else is on the agenda?”

  Logan talks about the meeting he attended yesterday. I don’t listen to one word. My concentration is atrocious. It doesn’t help that I haven’t slept at all since Ava left. I came to the office yesterday morning and remained here, sleeping on the couch. I keep asking myself why she did it, driving myself mad looking for an answer. Other women took my money when they left. Ava took my sanity, along with everything else that was worth it in my life.

  Well, it is what it is. Everything will go back to the way it was. I hate how horribly depressing that thought is. Back to empty days and meaningless nights. I already put my assistant in charge of renting out my place. I won’t return there alone.

  Logan’s monologue lasts about an hour before Pippa interrupts us.

  “What are you doing here?” She stands in the doorway to my office, looking at me as if I grew a second head.

  “I’m the CEO, this is my office,” I answer sarcastically. “Why wouldn’t I be here?”

  “You’re supposed to be somewhere else.” Strutting into the room, she puts her hands on her hips, surveying me with wolf-like eyes. “You look terrible.”

  “Why, you’re all sunshine and rainbows today. Thank you for the compliment.”

  “I wanted to point out that you look dreadful when I came in,” Logan adds. “But I kept my mouth shut.”

  “That’s because you’re smart.”

  I have a two-day beard, and I haven’t changed my shirt, which looks like crap after I’ve slept in it. I probably smell too. So what?

  “You didn’t answer my question,” Pippa insists. “Why are you here?”

  “Bahamas got canceled. Don’t ask me for—”

  Pippa throws her hands in the air. “Not Bahamas, you idiot. You’re supposed to be in New York.”

  “Why would I be in New York?”

  I look at Logan for a clue. I must be missing something. Logan looks as lost as I feel.

  “Because Ava’s there.”

  I squint. “How do you know that?”

  “She got fired from her job. She’s there trying to put out all the other fires that broke out as a result.”

  “What do you mean ‘she got fired’?” I ask.

  “When?” Logan jumps to his feet.

  “Didn’t you know?” Pippa asks.

  “No. How do you know?”

  “A colleague of hers informed me. Apparently their boss found out Ava was dating you.”

  “Shit,” I say.

  “Yeah, shit. He kicked her out, no bonus, no termination clause. From what I was told, he didn’t want to give her a recommendation either. Ava went to their office two days ago to talk to him, and he threw her out.”

  “The jerk. How did he find out?”

  “You told him,” Pippa says, clearly annoyed.

  “I didn’t. . .” I stop, remembering that late-night phone call. That’s why his voice sounded familiar. I assumed only a journalist would call in the middle of the night. It didn’t even cross my mind it could be a boss who has no respect for his employees. “This is my fault. Why didn’t she tell me this?”

  “My guess is she must be busy trying to solve her situation,” Logan says.

  “But I can help,” I say, louder than I intended. Pippa flinches. “We all can.”

  “I assumed you were in New York already. Look, Ava’s been fighting her way through life on her own for years,” Pippa says. “She’s not used to asking for help. You just have to give it to her.”

  “What if she doesn’t want my help at all? She doesn’t pick up her phone. I must have called her a hundred times.”

  Logan eyes me.

  “What?” I bark at him, annoyed by his smile. “I wasn’t about to admit that to you.”

  “You have your pride. I get it,” he says, smiling even wider. “That’s why you won’t e-mail her.”

  “Don’t get on my bad side today, Logan.”

  “Right now, you are both getting on my bad side,” Pippa says. “Sebastian, get your sorry ass on a plane and fly to New York. Why are you hesitating?”

  I hiss out a breath. All that talk about how it angers me she didn’t have the courage to tell me to my face she wants out. I couldn’t stand hearing it from her. Reading it was bad enough. What if the reason she isn’t taking my calls is because she’s not interested anymore?

  “That woman loves you, you know that. And you love her,” Pippa says. “Don’t be stupid, Sebastian. You have to put yourself out there completely. You both deserve to be happy.”

  This sobers me up. “Logan, take over all my meetings for today. I’m flying out to New York.”

  “Hold it,” Pippa says, stepping in front of me as I’m about to exit.

  “What? You were all set on kicking me out of my own office.”

  “I would’ve done it too, but you can’t fly out like this. You need to change. You stink.”

  I groan. “I suspected as much.” Without taking my eyes off Pippa, I say, “Logan, change of plans. Drop any immediate meeting and go to my apartment. Bring me clothes to change.”

  “Because I’
ve been downgraded from CFO to your personal butler?”

  “Because you’re my brother, and I need to take care of something else while you bring me the clothes.”

  I hear Logan stand up fast. “Okay, I had enough dick lines today. I’m on it.”

  I give Logan the keys for my apartment, and then he leaves the office.

  “You still must shower,” Pippa points out.

  “There are showers down in Creation. I’ll use those. Meanwhile, is your prototyping guy here? I have a task for him.”

  “Yeah, he is.” Pippa narrows her eyes. “I know that look. You’re planning something.”

  “You’re damn right I am.”

  Her eyes widen, and she drums her fingers on her cheeks, like she used to when we were kids and preparing mischief. Well, this will top all of them. “Tell me.”

  “Nope. Payback for telling me that I stink. Twice. Even if it’s true.” I enjoy immensely seeing her grow more restless by the second. My sister’s never been one to accept there can be secrets between siblings. At any rate, I will have to tell her. I won’t pull it off on my own, but I can tease her a bit more.

  “Come on, give me a hint at least.”

  “What did you say earlier? It was a nice phrase. Oh yeah, I will put myself out there completely. And you will help.”

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Ava

  You know you’re a lost cause when even ice cream tastes like shit. It’s my favorite ice cream too: Ben and Jerry’s with almond and caramel. I eat it with a large spoon, sitting on the couch inside my apartment, watching some mindless reality show. There are packed boxes all around me.

  My meeting with Dirk the Dick two days ago was a disaster. I didn’t manage to convince him to give in to even one single request: no bonus and no reference. After my disastrous encounter with him, I announced to my landlord I have to leave this apartment; thankfully he understood my situation.