Consequences(179)

Claire closed her eyes and tried to stop the pounding in her temples. Perched on the chair’s edge near his desk, she refused to budge. The folder—the gift he’d given her—sat closed on her lap. She didn’t care about people she didn’t know, and her head hurt too much to read anymore. She waited as his fingers flew between the keyboard and mouse. Sitting silently and expressionlessly she remembered Courtney’s kind words: Life isn’t a test you must continually pass. Claire absentmindedly rolled her shoulders and straightened her neck. If her only possibility of calling Emily was passing this test, then by God, she wasn’t moving from this seat. Finally, he turned to face her.

“Why have you not called until now?” He presented his question with harsh overtones.

Thinking out loud, she said, “I’ve been busy—I can tell her about the Red Cross and preparing for our interview.”

What followed were not suggestions—but orders—“You will be apologetic and explain that you have been meaning to call. Seeing her recent e-mail reminded you—you haven’t. Your reasons sound valid. I’d prefer you didn’t discuss the job situation—it’s done, and of course, there are no hard feelings.”

The directives should have been upsetting, but she’d played this game before—they were the means to her goal. “Yes, I promise.”

He dialed the phone, put it on speaker, and didn’t bother to turn away. The phone rang three times. Claire’s hopes began to sink until finally Emily answered.

“Hi, Emily, it’s Claire.” Emily’s voice brimmed with excitement. Claire’s sounded happy and apologetic. They spoke for about ten minutes. On a few occasions, Tony indicated that the subject needed to be changed. Claire attempted to keep the discussion away from the job, but Emily was determined to discuss it, explaining how John was currently very close to being named partner. He didn’t feel right abandoning the firm that had taken a chance on him when he first graduated. He’d worked hard to get to his position and didn’t feel right working for family; however, he was very honored Anthony would consider hiring him. They also discussed Emily’s class, and she asked about the interview Claire mentioned. Before they hung up Claire promised to do a better job responding to Emily’s e-mails.

It amazed Claire how one phone call could make her both happy and sad. Maintaining her happy voice during the call almost reduced her to tears on its completion; her energy was totally depleted. “If it’s all right with you, I’ll take the folder upstairs and look through it. We can discuss the e-mails after dinner.”

“That’s fine, you may go.”

Once upstairs, Claire decided to nap instead of looking through the folder. It’d been a long day. The contrast between the interview and her reality intensified the pounding behind her eyes and more recent nausea. She took some acetaminophen, crawled between the soft cool sheets, and allowed the tears from the phone call to flow. Sleep was a welcome escape.

It wasn’t long after she fell asleep when Tony woke her. He wanted to thank her again for her performance during the interview—he also believed she wanted to thank him.





This only is denied even to God, the power to undo the past.



—Agathon





Chapter Thirty-Seven


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On March 15, Tony brought home the final copy of the article approved by Shelly. It was scheduled to be published the end of March, officially the April 2011 issue of Vanity Fair:

Anthony Rawlings Introduces the World to the Love of his Life,