Page 4 of Slipperless 3

“Okay, dear.”

I turned, left the room and walked towards the kitchen. As I did, I found myself struggling against now familiar emotions. Intellectually, rationally, I understood and agreed with everything she said. I had no good reason to think that continuing with Gabe would result in anything but problems for me. After all, he came to my home. What was next? To what lengths would he go to have me do as he wished?

But then there was the other part of me. The part that had all but lost the ability to resist him any longer. I worried that if he were to send for me, demanding I come to his office, I wouldn’t be able to deny him whatever he wanted from me.

But I couldn’t tell my Grandmother that. That struggle was one I’d have to endure alone.

GABE

Fiona had returned to work, and except for the few hours she’d disappeared, she hadn’t missed a beat. As much as I would have liked to get to the bottom of whatever was going on with her, I didn’t have the time. She was just going to have to work through this on her own for now. And frankly, after getting a bit of distance from the situation, I realized that was the best thing for her.

A couple of days had passed since I went to her apartment. We hadn’t spoken, but even so, I still needed the updates she’d avoided giving me. It was the first time since then I had a few minutes to spare. Picking up the phone, I dialed Holly to have her get Fiona to my office as soon as possible. She must have stepped out, because after a few rings, there was still no answer. With no time to waste, I disconnected and called Fiona myself.

She picked up after the second ring.

“Fiona, I need you to come to my office.”

She remained silent for a moment. Through the receiver, I detected the sound of a swallow just before she spoke. “Do I have to?”

Pulling the phone away, I glanced at it in disbelief for a moment before returning it to my ear. “Yes, Fiona. You do.”

More discomfort sputtered from her lips. “Couldn’t we just handle it over the phone? I’m happy to tell you whatever it is you want to know.”

I wrapped my hand around the receiver, crushing it in my grip. I gathered myself, taking a moment before I continued. “Fiona… If I wanted to handle it over the phone, I wouldn’t tell you to come to my office, now would I? What exactly is the problem?”

“There isn’t one. I-I’ll be up as soon as I can.”

“Now. Not five minutes from now. Or an hour. Right now. Drop whatever it is you’re doing, and come at once.”

“Okay, I…”

I slammed the phone down in its cradle as she muttered, disconnecting her. Afterward, I shot to my feet. Sliding my hand through my hair, I took a few steps around my desk and tried to calm myself ahead of her arrival. About ten minutes later, the intercom on my phone crackled to life. The sound of Holly’s voice interrupted my train of thought as I sat at my desk going over some clinical trial data we’d received on the Link Protocol.

“Gabe,” she began. “Fiona is here to see you.”

“Okay, send her in.”

Moments later, the door opened. Still too annoyed to look in her direction, I continued to peruse my notes and pointed in the direction of the conference table.

“Have a seat, Fiona.”

She closed the door, and I listened as she crossed the room and slid into one of the chairs. After a deep inhale, I stood from mine and walked in her direction. Fiona sat at the table, both hands on it with her fingers interlocked. As I drew near, she looked up at me. I noticed a slight clench of her jaw as our eyes locked.

“Fiona, I don’t have much time. We’ll need to keep this brief.”

She nodded as I paused.

“Not long ago, you sat in this office and told me you were ready to deliver the presentation to the investors.”

Fiona shifted in her seat but never took her eyes off me as I spoke.

“That’s right,” she said, after a moment or two. Her tone carried a hint of false determination. It wasn’t hard to see by the look in her eyes that she wasn’t altogether sure of herself. Not only that, but if I wasn’t mistaken, she seemed a bit… annoyed.

I gave her the benefit of the doubt for a moment. Circling around behind her, I continued, “Okay, well, we’ve not really had a chance to discuss it since that day. Are you still on track to do it?”

She shrugged as I finished my question.

“Fiona, I don’t understand. I thought I made myself quite clear at your apartment. If you can’t handle the pressure of the position or the presentation, I’ve got to know, and I’ve got to know right now.”

Just then, Fiona raised her hand towards her mouth. This was not the time or the place for what I expected would follow.

“Don’t start, Fiona.”

She lowered her head, shielding her face behind her hair. I walked around to the opposite side of the table for a better look. While I moved, she turned her head once more. But as she did, I noticed a droplet splash on the surface of the table.

“Sorry,” she muttered. Grasping her sleeves in her hand, she wiped at the lone tear, smearing it away with the fabric of her shirt.

I almost couldn’t believe what I was witnessing. Frustrated with her behavior, I tried to encourage her nonetheless. “Fiona, you’ll get through this. I promise you will.”

She shook her head. “It’s not that. I mean, I’m nervous about the presentation, but…”

I looked down at her as her voice trailed off. I shook my head. “But what, Fiona?”

Still not looking up at me, Fiona made two brief swipes at her cheeks before returning her hands to the top of the conference table.

“I-I don’t know what to do anymore, Gabe,” she said with a whisper. “I can’t say ‘no’ to you.”

Mystified, I slid one hand through my hair. “Fiona, why do you think you’re here right now?”

She shrugged. “I’m not sure.”

“What do you mean ‘you’re not sure’? I told you why I’ve summoned you here. I don’t get the reason for the apprehension.”

As I finished my thought, Fiona drew her eyes up to meet mine. The emotion that brought on the tears moments earlier appeared to have vanished. In its place, her irises flickered with a hint of anger.

“Do you have any idea, Gabe? What it’s like? Being in my position?”

I exhaled in disbelief. Was she really serious?

“Fiona,” I began with a groan. “Just tell me what you’re getting at here.”

“Never mind, it’s nothing,” she said with a casual flick of her hair. “I’ll do whatever you tell me. What do you want me to do, Gabe?”

I leaned away as the meaning of her innuendo settled in upon me.

“Listen, Fiona. I asked you up here today strictly to discuss business matters. Nothing more.”

“Yet somehow it always winds up as something more, doesn’t it, Gabe?”

I crossed my arms at my chest. After glaring in silence for a moment or two, I replied, “There’s a lot of women who’d like to trade places with you. Believe me.”

“Well, I wish they would.”

Wiping my hand over my mouth, I took a few steps towards the conference table. As I reached it, I leaned over it and placed both palms flat.

“You act like… I’m a monster or something, Fiona,” I began. I shook my head and with a shrug added, “Look, if you don’t want to have sex, I’m not going to force it on you. Frankly, I really resent the fucking attitude. I’ve given you a goddamn lot since you’ve been here. Now I’m not gonna rehash everything we discussed at your apartment, but I will tell you this… So long as you work for me, you will do as I say. As far as the rest of it goes, well, you’re free to tell me ‘no’.”

After I finished speaking, we looked at one another in silence for several moments. Eventually, Fiona broke her gaze.

“I’m only going to ask you once more, Fiona. How is the preparation going for the presentation? Have you been working on becoming a better speaker?”

After clearing her throat, Fiona spent the better part of the next five minutes explaining that she’d joined Toastmasters and was, in fact, growing in confidence where public speaking was concerned. Frustrated though I was with her, I listened intently, asking questions where I needed clarification. Satisfied she’d been putting in the effort she’d likely need, I nodded, returned to a standing position and walked back towards my desk.

“Thank you. Feel free to show yourself out, Fiona.”

After a moment or two, I heard the sound of the chair moving along the carpet as she scooted it out from beneath the table. After sliding back into my own, I glanced up at her for a moment. As I did, Fiona smoothed her clothing and slid a handful of her blond hair behind her ears. It was a pity, really. She was such a beautiful woman. Curvy in all the right spots… an absolute angel. I just wished she’d learn to see herself the way I did.

“Gabe,” she said, as she turned to leave. “I’m sorry. I-I didn’t mean it.”

Breaking eye contact with her, I reached for my pen. “Goodbye, Fiona. We’ve all got work to do. Let’s get back to it.”

FIONA

I stood there looking at him. My stomach sank.

All I wanted was for him not to treat me like an object at every opportunity he had. Of course it was flattering but at the same time it was becoming an ever greater threat to me in a professional and emotional sense. I couldn’t understand why he was unable to see it.

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