Page 105 of Falling Slowly
It had been a pain to work in the treehouse, crouched over my laptop in the tiny space. But I’d made a start, something good enough to hand over to Bess maybe. Not good enough to present.
“We can go to the car to look at them on the bigger screen if you want?” I suggested.
I wanted us somewhere private. Maybe we could go for a drive.
“It’s okay. I can zoom in,” she said, handing me her drink to work the touch screen with two fingers. “These are great. They just need a little tidying up. Maybe spread these formats over two or three pages, so there’s not too much there. One thing at a time.”
“Yeah, you’re right.” I slid my hand around her waist, steering us towards the car anyway, hoping for the best. “I thinkthey’ll love it. It’s so compelling. The tone of voice, everything. It’s perfect. That’s why I don’t want to put in anything that distracts from it. Keep it simple.”
“I agree,” she said, limping along.
And that’s when I saw Teresa. Tall and dark, her face like a storm warning, she’d already spotted us and was powering across the street, her handbag swinging on her shoulder.
Was there any way to avoid this? Bess could barely walk. We were sitting ducks, waiting for impact.
“You!” Teresa bee-lined to me, her finger held up high. “You bastard! This is where you’re hiding when the whole agency is a fucking shitshow and people are losing their jobs!”
“Who’s losing their jobs?” Bess looked up at me, eyes filled with liquid fear.
“You don’t know?” Teresa cast her an alarmed look. “I keep texting you. Your phone’s been off.”
“I lost it in the mountains. What’s happening?”
Teresa turned to me, lifting a perfectly shaped, angry eyebrow. “Why don’t you fill her in?”
Chapter Forty-One
Bess
Icould barely stand, my head spinning like I was the one on the merry-go-round. But I couldn’t lean on Charlie for support. I couldn’t lean on anyone.
“What’s going on, Charlie?” I asked him again, my voice cracking.
He glanced at his car. “I… I was going to tell you, I swear. They’re doing some restructuring at the agency. Some layoffs. I’ve tried to talk my dad out of it but he won’t budge.” He cast a dark look at Teresa. “Trust me, it’s not my idea.”
“But you knew about it, Charlie,” my friend shot back. “Why doesn’t she know she’s losing her job?”
“I’m losing my job?” I couldn’t breathe. “When?”
“In two weeks.” Teresa stared at Charlie like she was challenging him to a duel. “I bought a condo, Charlie. I signed on the dotted line a week ago. No one warned me about this. No one.”
“Wait.” Charlie frowned. “You’vebeen fired? Dad said it was just the production team.”
“Then I must be special,” Teresa bit out. “I’m not stupid, though. Everyone kept asking where you were, and nobody seemed to know. Except me…. And it turns out, Trevor. And when I couldn’t get hold of Bess….Fuck, I thought you’d made a pelt out of her.” She glanced at my leg. “What happened to you? Did he hurt you?”
“No! I tripped and fell. That’s probably when I lost my phone.” I looked pleadingly into my friend’s eyes. “I appreciate you coming all the way here. I hate that you had to worry about me.”
She looked a little ashamed. “Well, I was worried about you, but I also wanted to find this guy and hear it from him.” She turned to Charlie, her gaze fire and ice. “Your dad’s a sociopath, so I expect this from him. But how do you sleep at night?”
Charlie swallowed. “Poorly. I hate this. You must believe me.”
“Come on, girl, I’ll drive you home.” Teresa offered me her arm, along with a compassionate look.
I glanced over my shoulder. “My daughter is here with my mom. They’re on the carousel.”
“Well, let’s go find them,” Teresa looked at the town square where colorful lights blinked, and carnival music played. It had sounded so cheerful earlier but now made me think of a horror film soundtrack.
“Please, Bess.” Charlie’s voice cracked. “Let’s go for a drive. I’ll tell you everything, I promise.”
