Page 30 of If the Suit Fits
“Yeah.” He comes to a stop on the opposite side of the hall where he could see me if only he looked this way. So I’m not caught, I turn and rest against the wall. I’m just a guy, waiting in the hall for his date to return.Completely normal. “You must be aware of the impeccable reputation our firm boasts,” he bites out. “Manson, Mason, and Samson have more than a hundred years within the industry, and at all times, we’ve shone above the rest, Ms. Hamilton. We conduct business with the best, deliver only the best, and we remain entirely blemish-free amongst the gossiping grape vines.”
Don’t you do it, Manson. Don’t you fucking dare.
“I-I’m unsure what the issue is, sir.” Mel’s voice crackles with nerves and an inability to stand up for herself. “I’ve always enjoyed working with your firm, and I’m confident I give my everything to every project I’m involved with. Honestly, I thought I’d done something especially praiseworthy when I brought in the new Downtown project.” She fusses and shifts on her feet;I just know it. “Have I misunderstood something?”
“You came to mebeggingfor a chance, Melanie. And unlike the countless vapid nobodies who do the same on a near-daily basis, you were fortunate enough to come with your father’s backing.”
I’m gonna ram his head through a fucking wall.
“And for that, I appreciate your faith, Mr. Manson. I’m just?—”
“Theonlyreason you’ve been allowed to work on the new Downtown project is because somehow, though I’ll admit, I have no clue how you pulled it off, you had the connection with Ms. Anderson. Her employers have deep pockets and large ideas. Butdespite all that, I ignored my intuition and allowed you to remain head of the design team.”
“Sir—”
“This was a mistake, compounded by your disregard for deadlines. Instead of knuckling down and delivering on our firm’s most important project, you requested a week off.”
“I’ve been working all week!” she cries out. Because one thing Mel can’t swallow is unfair judgment. “I’m taking the week unpaid, but I’ve been working too, sir. I’m almost done.”
“Then I arrive here today,” he hisses, lowering his voice, “and your character is being dragged through mud?! You stole, Melanie?”
“No, I?—”
“You lied. You were unfaithful towards your fiancé, but I know I’ve heard you talking with the girls at the office. You would have me believe he wronged you when all along?—”
“No!” Tears in her throat make her exclamation weak. “That’s not how it?—”
“Have your drawings on my desk first thing Monday morning.” He snarls, taking a step back so I see his movement in my peripherals. “You’re done.”
“What?” Mel’s breath explodes on a fast exhale of heartache. “No, Mr. Manson. You can’t?—”
“Now we must go into damage control, and removing you from the helm of this project is step one. Ms. Anderson is due in our office on Friday, where she’ll expect to see your completed design. When she asks, I expect you to tell her you’ve stepped down due to personal reasons but that you give your full support to the rest of the team.”
“Mr. Manson?—”
“You still have a job,” he sneers, “purely because of my fondness for your father. But you will no longer be a front-facing associate within our firm. We willnotshine a light on liars and thieves.” Turning on his heels and stalking off with a huff of arrogance, he leaves Mel behind as she crumples against the wall at her back, a breath-squeezing sob bursting from her chest.
I turn to go to her, to sweep her up and take her away. But the ballroom door opens again, music filtering through and filling the hall until it almost feels like a living, breathing thing. Then Drew steps through, his expression jumping from intolerance to curiosity in a single beat of my heart. He stares at Mel for a moment, tilting his head and looking her up and down for as long as she’s blind to him. But when she glances up, his face changes to faux-concern like he’s spent his whole life faking it.
“Mel?” He charges forward and takes her arms in his hands, folding his neck to get a look at her face. “Honey, what happened?”
Don’t you fuckin’honeyher, you asshole.
“Hey?” He croons, oblivious to my presence. “You’re scaring me, sweety. What happened?”
“I just got fired!” She throws his hands off and strides six feet this way before turning back to face him. “I still have a job, of course. But it may as well have been termination. Such bullshit!”
“Did you mess up on a project?” He follows her, leaning into her space and resting his elbow on the wall above her head. “I heard about that big downtown one you’ve been working on. I was pretty proud when I found out.”
“Proud?” She hiccups and wipes her nose, swiping tears from her face, and stares up into his eyes.Stick a fucking pitchfork in myheart. She’s looking at him like he didn’t screw her over. “You were proud of me?”
“Sure…” He reaches across with his free hand and glides his knuckles over her jaw. “I was beaming with pride. I’ve known you since forever, right? I knew you when your dreams were big, and architecture was all you ever talked about.”
Slowly, she turns her face, her wet eyes sliding along the arm he holds close. “It’s all I’ve ever wanted.”
“I know.” He inches closer, casting a cursory glance along the hall to make sure they’re alone. “So when I heard the good news, I stupidly expressed my happiness and caught a lot of heat from Karla.”
Stunned, Mel’s eyes swing back to his. “What?”
