3
THE
H
An hour later, my phone rang. It was Michael.
He was livid, practically screaming.
“Susan, what the hell are you doing?!”
“Anderson not only humiliated Becky in front
of everyone, calling her a gold digger who
sleeps her way to the top!”
“He said Sterling Corp wouldn’t exist without
you, that now that you’re on maternity leave,
I’m running around with other women, that I’m
<
“That was you, wasn’t it?!”
I chuckled.
“I can’t control what other people think or
say, Michael. And they have eyes. They can
see what’s going on.”
“Becky stormed out, and the deal is off. Are
you happy now?”
“Ecstatic. You both deserved it!”
I hung up, feeling a little calmer.
A message from my assistant popped up:
news about Becky had spread like wildfire
throughout the company.
<
She’d come back to the office to find
everyone whispering and pointing.
They’d even called her names to her face,
telling her she was delusional and had no
talent, that she was using dirty tricks to get
ahead.
Someone had dumped all her things in the
trash.
Even when she cried and insisted she wasn’t
like that, no one listened.
No one would cross the VP for an intern.
Everyone was kicking her while she was
down.
She was a nobody. a fresh faced intern who
く
She was a nobody, a fresh–faced intern who
thought she could climb the ladder with a
little help from Michael.
Humiliatied, Becky turned in her resignation.
The HR department approved it in a
heartbeat.
It was all her fault. She should have known
her place.
Michael managed to salvage things with the A
Group.
He came home to find me singing lullabies to
our baby.
He stood in the doorway, his face dark, but
he kept his voice down.
“Becky did nothing wrong. She’s a hard-
working girl, and now, because of you, she’s
lost her job and her reputation!”
“You need to get your shit together Susan!
You can’t run around destroying people’s
lives!”
I gestured for him to be quiet and gently laid
the baby down.
Once we were out of the room, I said,
“Becky’s situation has nothing to do with me.”
But even as I said it, I saw the anger and
distrust in his eyes.
“How many times have you bent the rules for
Becky? How many times?”
<
“You’re the one who let her think she could
get away with it.”
“Becky and I are innocent!” Michael snapped.
“Innocent? You give her the things that were
supposed to be mine? You let her move into
your office?”
“You wouldn’t even let your last secretary put
a chair in your office, and now you’re
breaking all your rules for her, going so far as
to yell at me in front of her!”
I lifted my chin, my eyes locking with his.
“I married you because I liked you, and I even
gave you a child.”
<
“But you know I have zero tolerance for
bullshit, for betrayal, for lies.”
“If you cross that line, even just in your head,
I’ll find someone else to be this baby’s dad!”
Michael’s face went white. He turned and
stalked off to the guest room.
But I knew it wasn’t over.
