Right. “My office, please.”
Mere seconds after the line went dead, my door creaked open and Kate strolled inside. Even from where I sat, I didn’t miss her eyes were even redder than earlier.
“What happened?”
Shestopped in the middle of the room. With a slight tilt of her head, she gave me a weary glance. “What do you mean what happened?”
Clearly my communication skills weren’t as brilliant as I thought. I waved my hand in her direction. “You seem...sad, and I’d like to know why.”
“You...” That’s all she managed before she slammed her mouth shut. Her brows pulled together as her lips parted then pressed together again. “What?” she finally blurted.
I got up and rounded the desk with the intention of going to her. But with the way her eyes widened and the small step she took backward, I chose to lean against the desk instead.
“Your eyes... They look…” A sigh blew over my lips. Why was this so damn hard? It was just a simple question, and yet my brain couldn’t put the words in the right order. “You’ve been crying. Sounds like it too.”
Her frown deepened. She didn’t even have to say it for me to know she was wondering if I’d lost my damn mind. I was wondering the same thing.
“Well—”
Her office phone chose that moment to ring. She seemed all too happy for the intrusion. Not even sparing a glance at me, she hurried to answer it.
Her impeccable work ethic should’ve pleased me. Impressed me even. Yet that wasn’t the emotion I felt.
“The partnership meeting has moved up.” She didn’t come in, standing in the doorway instead.
“When?”
“Ten minutes.”
Great. Or maybe not so great if the churning in my gut was anything to go by. What the hell was wrong with me? This was what I’d worked toward since I started at Livingston and Thornburg nearly ten years ago.
Disappointment was the last thing that should’ve been burning through my veins.
“Thank you, Kate.”
She turned to leave.
I called out to stop her. I only spoke when her gaze was trained on me again. “I’d like to continue this discussion when I return.”
“Don’t forget to ask about Mr. Livingston’s grandson. His daughter gave birth a few days ago, and I’m sure the interest will go a long way.”
If she thought I’d let it go by changing the subject like that, she had another thing coming. One way or another, I was going to get to the bottom of her damn sadness.
Right after I thanked Mr. Livingston for making me a partner.
That was why I didn’t stop her when she left again. I pulled my jacket over my shoulders and made my way to the conference room. Most of the board members were there along with the senior partners.
That jitteriness I should have been feeling all day made itself known at last. It grew into a big ball of excitement I could hardly contain. My leg jumped, and my heart beat too fast. For the first time in my life, even my palms were sweaty.
All the damn nerves slowed time too because it felt like hours had passed before Mr. Livingston addressed the room.
“I don’t want to stand here and drag this out by making a long speech that will probably bore you all to death—” A few chuckles rang through the room. “The talent and dedication we have at this firm truly is second to none. So incredible that the board had a hard time choosing our next partner.”
Soft murmurs erupted around the table while my blood thrummed loudly in my ears.
“We’ve narrowed it down to two candidates. Two men who have given their all for this firm. Two men who’ll have to fight it out a little longer. Lewis, Tristan, I look forward to getting to know you both better over the coming weeks.”
What.
