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Not a lot of things get me upset. Over the years, I’d developed a pretty thick skin when it came to dealing with people and their flaky behavior, especially women. Collecting myself, I leaned back into the seat, straightened my tie and my jacket. Until I could get her face-to-face and understand just what the hell was going on, gritting my teeth over this wasn’t going to help me.
Yet, I also understood the precariousness of the situation I’d gotten myself into by relying on her to do the presentation. Fiona was going to have to find a way to put all the distractions aside and focus. If she did what I asked of her, all of her financial problems would vanish in an instant.
As for our involvement, well, if she couldn’t find a way to keep business and pleasure separate, I’d put a stop to it if need be. That’s not what I wanted to do. She was a helluva piece of ass. A great fucking lay. Just the thought of being inside her threatened to get my cock hard as stone—but one way or another, she’d have to understand the urgency of this situation.
Soon my attention returned to the city scene beyond the tinted glass in the back seat of the limo. I didn’t recognize anything about the surroundings, but from the looks of it, we’d driven to one of the shittier parts of town, if not the shittiest. Just then, Tomas slowed the limo and pulled into the parking lot of a dilapidated apartment complex. I jostled about in the backseat as the vehicle dipped into potholes and rolled over speed bumps that looked as if they’d been jackhammered into huge chunks.
As we meandered through the parking lot, everything I laid my eyes on appeared to have suffered from years of neglect. The entire place was in a state of total disrepair. The city could come through and condemn the whole damn place and I doubted anyone would raise an eyebrow.
Driving deeper into the complex, things got worse… an empty swimming pool, now filled with trash and weeds. Turning a corner, a large, run down playground with broken swings and a basketball court with no hoops came into view. I reached for the divider window control. The thick glass whined as it descended. When it reached the halfway position, I stopped it.
“Tomas,” I began, as I looked at him in the rear view mirror. “Are you sure this is the right place?”
His eyes locked on mine in the reflection “Yes, sir, Mr. Hawkins. It’s the address Miss Holly gave me. Miss Matthews’ building, sir. Straight ahead.”
“All right, pull up and park. I won’t be long.”
“Yes, sir.”
With that, I rolled the window back up once more and readied myself for the scene I was likely to encounter. It’d been a long time since I was broke, but I remembered what it was like.
It fucking sucked.
But at least in my case the poverty stemmed from trying to build my business. As soon as I did, my money problems disappeared in an instant. Fiona had it way worse since the reason she was broke had nothing to do with entrepreneurial zeal, but rather her goodwill.
The simple fact was that when you’re more than a half a million in debt, it severely limits your housing options. Difficult though she was, I respected the hell out of her tenacity. It’s not every early twenty-something you meet who had the guts to take on debt like that.
It said something remarkable about her character.
It was a helluva situation, with two distinct parts to it. First, what the situation required with her was a stern hand. I had no problem with that aspect of it. The other half though—it was a bit more difficult. In the midst of everything going on with billion dollar deals, it’s easy to lose sight of your employees’ real life struggles.
And leaving aside whatever had happened between Fiona and me so far, the fact was that she was still my employee.
Just then, the limo came a stop.
Tomas got out and opened the door. As it cracked open, the back seat filled with bright white from the afternoon sun. I reached for the limo door, hooking my fingers around it, and as I exited, I glanced up towards Tomas.
“What apartment number is it?”
“4B, sir.”
Within a few minutes, I stood in front of the door to Fiona’s home. I had to block out the squalor as best I could. She and I still had some major issues to deal with. Shocking though her living situation was, I couldn’t afford the distraction. After balling up my fist, I rapped against the door with my knuckles.
After ten seconds or so, and no response, I knocked a second time, only harder.
As before, nothing.
Biting my lip, I hardened my fist and with a series of rapid strikes, I pounded against the door with the fleshy pad of my hand. I hit it so hard, the door shook inside the frame. As I finished, I leaned in towards the door, listening for any hint of someone approaching.
Just then, it cracked open.
I leaned away as a chain stretched across the partially opened door caught my attention. Just above it, a pair of blue eyes, half-concealed in shadow stared back at me.
“Gabe,” Fiona whispered. “What are you doing here?”
I frowned in disbelief. “What am I doing here? Why aren’t you at work?”
Fiona turned her cheek, glancing away from me for a moment. She paused before looking back at me again. “You shouldn’t have come here, Gabe.”
“Open the door, Fiona.”
She shook her head, shielding her eyes behind her hair. “No.”
Without warning, Fiona made a sudden motion to close the door. As she did, I thrust my hand inside at the last instant, hooking it around the edge and stopping it in place. Fiona grunted as I forced her backward. The chain rattled as it flexed to its maximum.
“Gabe, stop it. Please.”
“No,” I replied. I shoved the door once more, stretching the links to their breaking point. “Let me in right now or you’re fired, Fiona.”
Fiona looked up at me through a curious gaze. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say her eyes held the reflection of shame in them.
“Gabe, please don’t. Look, I-I’ll come outside to talk to you. Okay?”
Still holding the door with a forceful grasp, I felt the tension ease from her body through the door as she stopped resisting me. I studied her for a moment or so before I answered at last.
“All right,” I said, nodding. “Come on out.”
Fiona’s gaze remained fixed on me as I accepted her bargain. I peeled my fingers away from the door, and as I did, she lowered her head and disappeared from view while she closed the door. I heard the distinctive sound of the chain as it rattled free. A moment later, Fiona cracked the door open, pulling it inward towards her. As she did, I wasted no time and pushed against it. In less than a second, I’d crossed the threshold into her apartment.
“You bastard!” she said with a loud whisper. Fiona pressed her small palms into my chest, slapping me and shoving me as I walked inside. “You promised!”
I grunted as her harmless blows glanced off my torso. Just then, Fiona turned away from me and grabbed hold of the doorknob once again. She gestured towards the yellow daylight beyond the entrance.
“Get out Gabe, get out, get out!”
I glared at her in silence. “I’m not leaving, Fiona. I’m not going anywhere until you tell me what the hell is going on with you.”
After I issued my warning, I took a quick look around. Man, she lived in borderline poverty. And the apartment itself was barely big enough for one person, let alone two. I’d assumed her grandmother lived with her but I didn’t see or hear anything to indicate where she might be.
“Gabe!” Fiona said, stomping her foot. “Leave! Now!”
Ignoring her, I continued to study the surroundings in complete disbelief. Even at my poorest, I never lived anywhere this run down. As I gazed in slack-jawed wonder, Fiona reached her boiling point and slammed the front door. She marched over towards me, and grabbed hold of my arm at the bicep. As she did, I heard something down the hallway. Without thinking, I nearly asked about her grandmother but at the last second, I caught myself.
Instead, I nodded in the direction of the sound. “Left your television on.”
Fiona snapped her hands to her hips. “Thank you for the update. Will you please leave?”
I nodded. “Yeah, okay, Fiona. I’ll go. But before I do, you’re going to tell me what the hell is going on with you or I can promise you won’t have a job to come back to.”
She thinned her lips and spun in a flash, turning her back to me. In the span of a few seconds, Fiona disappeared into the kitchen. I followed right behind, the soles of my shoes sinking into the old, soft linoleum flooring. At one point, it felt as if they might give way and I’d fall straight through to the apartment below.
Fiona stopped and with her back still facing me, she reached up and ran both of her hands through her hair. Afterward, she placed them flat on the counter, just at the edge of the partially rusted aluminum sink. Fiona locked her arms straight, dropping her head a bit.
“What do you want from me, Gabe?”
I reached up towards my face and wiped my palm across my lips. “It’s real simple, Fiona. I just want the truth.”
“Gabe, I’m sorry I left the office, okay? I…”
I interrupted her. “Fiona I think I’ve given you ample opportunity to be honest with me. If you can’t trust me enough to do that after everything I’ve offered to you well, then, I suppose there’s nothing left to discuss.”
