Page 78 of Broken Headboards
Chapter Thirty-Two
Tess
Alright,this is it—Judgement Day.
The wait was long, and I was pretty scared that Giovanni wouldn’t be able to complete the headboard design in time for us to manufacture it but...I just got a phone call an hour ago, and my assistant told me that the headboard was ready. So I just told her to get the damn thing here as fast possible.
I’m feeling so excited about it that I didn’t even go to the conference room. Most of the other executives are already there, as well as Taylor and the board, but I still got some time before the final challenge starts. And I want to be here, on the ground floor, when my masterpiece arrives. I want to be the one carrying it up, just to make sure no one bumps it against the wall or scuffs it. The moment I show it to the board, I want it to look as perfect as I imagine it is.
As I see the white van entering the street, I climb down the stairs that lead into the sidewalk. I squint my eyes and, the moment I see my logo plastered on the side of the van, my heart starts jumping up and down.
“And here it is, ma’am,” the driver greets me, going around the van to open the backdoors. He climbs inside with his helper, and they offload it quickly. They’re about to lay it on the floor when I just wave one hand at them.
“No way,” I say, taking it from their hands. Surprisingly, it’s lighter than I had expected. Delicate ornaments run the whole length of the piece, and the lines are so smooth and perfect that I have no doubt in my mind—no one else would be able to come up with a piece like this but Giovanni himself. He truly is the best bedroom furniture designer the world has ever seen.
As I head back inside the lobby, clutching the headboard against my, I see Austin.
In his hands, a headboard.
My blood runs cold.
Austin’s headboard looksexactlylike mine! Even the ornaments are the same, the little details I was so excited about plastered all over his damn headboard. How in the hell is that possible? Did he steal the design?Mydesign?
I can’t believe this shit.
No.
Not this.
Not now.
I will not be stolen from.
Not after 18-hour days for weeks straight. Not after everything I’ve done to get here. Every deal I’ve made. Every asshole I’ve had to put up with. Every man who thought they could grab my ass because I wore a skirt. Every fake smile. Every fake laugh. Every single fucking time I’ve held my tongue so I could advance my business.
Every single dollar that I’ve ever made to get me to this point.
I will not let it end like this.
I will rather fucking die. Right here. Right now.
This ends here.
“Austin Randall,” I say, my words loaded with rage as I walk toward him. “You stole from me! How dare you, you asshole?”
“Have you lost your goddamn mind? As far as I can tell, you’re the only thief in here.” He eyes my headboard as he purses his lips, looking as pissed as I am.
Well, that’s his problem.
“Thief? Please. I had Giovanni Giannoni design it for me.” Putting the headboard down, right at my feet, I place both my hands on my hips and stare him down. “But you found out, didn’t you? And the moment you heard I had hired him, you were afraid you’d lose. No. Youknewyou were going to lose. And you just couldn’t stand it.”
“Oh, really? I knew I was going to lose? C’mon, Tess, why don’t you take a fucking chill pill and just admit you spied on me again? I didn’t steal shit from you.” He holds my gaze for a tense couple of seconds, and then continues. “In fact, and as you well know, I was the one that hired Giovanni Giannoni. And I paid handsomely for that too. If you think the board is going to believe that somehow you also hired Giovanni, you’ve lost your goddamn mind. I have the invoices to prove it, you know?”
“Invoices? And what do you think I have? A contract drawn up on toilet paper?” My voice becomes shriller by the second, but my heart is beating so fast that I can’t control myself. I’m so pissed I just want to choke him out. And definitely not in a kinky way.
“Yeah? I don’t know, Tess. Why don’t you enlighten me? A shrewd business woman like you ought to have some proof, sure.” I can see his fingers tightening around his headboard, and in his eyes, I can see that he won’t back down. He’s willing to go all the way with this fucking charade.
Unbelievable.
