Sam flinched but stood her ground. With a sad shake of her head, she said, “Good luck finding another woman like me.”
He nearly snorted with contempt. “Secretaries aren’t that hard to come by.”
She narrowed her dark eyes at him. “I meant in your bed, Brody. It took over thirty years to get a woman into it. Let me know how long the next one takes!”
* * *
That was a low blow and she knew it. She could tell the moment the words crossed her lips and Brody’s expression crumbled from angry to just plain hurt. A part of her was glad. She was hurt, too. It was only fair that he feel the same. But then he regrouped and she dreaded what might come next.
“It shouldn’t be difficult,” he said, his lips curling into an angry sneer. “You aren’t the only woman in this town willing to sleep her way to the top. Of course, you must not be very good in bed. Every boss you sleep with fires you.”
Brody had gutted her with words. Sam could only stumble back against the wall to brace herself from the impact of his insult. He had reduced their love affair to something sleazy that she’d engineered to further her ambitions and called her a lousy lay in one breath.
There was nothing she could say to that. She closed her eyes and prayed she could keep the tears back a few more seconds. When she opened her eyes, he had turned away. She caught only a second’s glimpse of him before he stormed into his office and slammed the door.
The moment he was gone, her bravado crumbled. She slumped back against the wall and slid to the floor. The tears poured out of her almost faster than her body could manufacture them. She could only hold her things to her chest and sob into them.
How had this happened? Why wouldn’t he listen to her when she tried to explain herself? She’d sat patiently waiting for him to explain about Tommy’s death. She deserved equal consideration for a far lesser crime.
Yes, she wanted Brody to see the doctor in New York. But not for the reasons he claimed. His self-esteem was so low he couldn’t even fathom that she would want him the way he was. At the slightest evidence to the contrary, his fears were realized and he pushed her away. Why couldn’t he understand that the person who wanted him fixed the most was him?
This morning, she’d been saddened thinking she might never be able to introduce the man she loved to her friends and family. Now, she was heartbroken and none of that mattered because she’d lost the man she loved for good.
Sam looked around, feeling lost. That was when she noticed the box on the floor. It wasn’t hers, but he’d tossed it out with her things. She reached for it and opened the box. She gasped when she saw the golden sun necklace inside. It was stunning with a center stone so perfectly cut, it shimmered even in the dim florescent lighting of the lobby.
He’d bought it for her, she realized sadly. What could’ve been a beautiful moment between them was ruined. She grasped the chain and clutched it against her chest with fresh tears falling.
The chime of the elevator sounded and Charlie, the head of security, stepped out onto the landing. The older man looked at her with concern and then bent down to pick up a tube of lipstick that had rolled across the room when her purse dumped out.
“Come on, Samantha. Let’s get you out of here.” He held out a strong arm to help her off the ground and slowly walked her back to the elevator.
“I’m sorry about all this, Charlie.”
“Don’t be. It’s the most excitement I’ve had around here in a while. Despite all the fancy locks and alarms, this isn’t exactly like the covert ops I’m used to. I almost never get to walk people out. Especially not pretty young ladies with broken hearts.”
How could Charlie see what Brody couldn’t? “He wouldn’t listen to me. I mean I…I love him. I want him to be happy.”
Charlie frowned at her and put a reassuring arm around her shoulder. “I know, kiddo. But have some faith. He’ll come around soon. And if he doesn’t, Agnes will knock some sense into him the moment she comes back from her trip.”
Twelve
“What, in the name of all that is holy, has happened here while I was away?”
Agnes’s sharp words penetrated Brody’s near soundproof walls. He didn’t even need to look up at the surveillance cameras to know she was back from her vacation and fit to be tied.
Brody stumbled out of his office to greet her and knew immediately why she was upset. Things had not gone to plan over the past week. Being without an assistant had been harder than he thought. The janitorial staff wasn’t allowed on his floor, so he had days of trash piled up outside his door with more than a few stinky food cartons in it. Charlie had graciously picked up his lunch deliveries and brought them upstairs, but that was all the assistance he’d received.