I inhale sharply, trembling at the iciness in his voice. Shaking, I tilt my head up to meet his gaze. Dark, brooding, and right back to the man he was when I first started working for him. The memory of his serene smile this morning is all but gone.
“Vincent, uh, Mr. Sloan. I can explain. I needed the job, yes, but I didn’t plan on falling for you. That was real. It still is. Please believe me,” I beg.
“It’s worse than I thought,” Jennifer tuts. “She’s just trying to manipulate you.”
“No, I—”
“I said, enough.” Vincent’s booming voice echoes around his enclosed office, shaking me to my very bones. “Ms. Leigh, you are fired, effective immediately. Collect your things and leave the premises without further incident, and I’ll give you one week’s severance.”
“I know I messed up,” I choke out. “I understand you firing me, but please, can we talk about us?” I can go back to the diner, I know there are shifts available. Or I can find another waitressing job. Anything. It’ll suck, but if I have Vincent, it would be worth it.
“Us?Us?” he sneers, his tone full of acid. “There is no us. There never was, isn’t that right? Leave, Ms. Leigh, before I have to call security.”
I stand there, mouth agape, watching the love of my life reject me. Even worse, the tall, leggy, Malibu Barbie is grinning like the Cheshire Cat, watching my life fall apart with glee.
My vision dots with black spots, and I can’t seem to get a full breath in. Sweat beads on my forehead and brow as I back away from the scene, turning to run away. I open the door with a shaky hand and stumble out into the hallway, not even bothering to look at Rhonda as I head to the stairs.
I can’t stand the thought of waiting for an elevator, so I throw the door to the staircase open and nearly fall down the first flight of stairs in my haste to escape. I only make it down three flights before collapsing in the landing and curling up on my side. I have about five more to go, but I don’t have anything left.
Trembling from head to toe, I let the tears consume me, muffling my cries with a hand over my mouth.
There is no us.
Vincent’s words are on repeat in my head, his cruel tone slicing my heart into tiny shreds as I fall apart in the fifth-floor stairwell. The worst part is, I only have myself to blame.