I’ll meet you in there.”
Emmalyn went to the kitchen and refilled her water bottle. She was walking while taking a deep drink as she turned into the conference room, running smack into Isabel's back.
“Sorry, Isabel, I….” Her voice faltered as she spotted her new clients. Lukas and Brian sat next to each other at the far end of the conference table. Database schemas and design documents littered the table. Brian at least had the good manners to look sorry for his part in this disaster.
Isabel tried to compose herself, but her head simply swung between Lukas and Emmalyn. Lukas looked genuinely afraid, and Emmalyn looked purely homicidal. “Em, why don’t you go back to the office, and I’ll get rid of them.”
“We have a legitimate business need. This is a real meeting,” Brian implored, his voice oddly strained.
Isabel shot Brian a look that made him squirm in his chair. “You have got to be shitting me,” she whispered angrily.
He held his hands up and nodded toward Lukas.
“I’m not doing this. Find another UI developer.” Emmalyn turned on her heel and walked quickly back to her office. Lukas was prepared for her to run and was after her before she could get out of the room. He followed her, but because he didn’t remember where her office was, he almost walked past her door. He got his hand in the door just as she went to slam it, catching it squarely on his palm. Out of instinct, she pulled the door open, and he pushed his way in, closing the door behind him.
“Get out of my office,” Em said, quickly sitting behind her desk. She was definitely showing and didn’t want him to notice it.
“Why did you come to San Diego? I thought you said no strings.”
“And there aren’t any. I was in Arizona visiting my mother, and we went to San Diego to hit the beach. I just wanted to say hi.”
“So, why did you leave? Why not wait until I got home to say hi?”
She looked at him incredulously. “Because I didn’t realize you had a roommate. I’m sorry, fiancee,” she said with an angry sneer. “I asked you. I specifically asked you if there was someone else, and you looked me dead in my face and said no. What kind of asshole does that?”
“Emmalyn, you don’t understand.” This wasn’t going the way he’d planned. He’d convinced himself that since Em had come to San Diego, she clearly wanted to reconcile. The angry woman standing before him looked more prepared to kill him and hide his body parts in the river.
Em stood up and walked around the desk. They were no more than six inches apart; instinctively, he took a step back. “I’m going to stop you right there,” she ground out. “I understand completely. I was offering you sex. You wanted the sex, and you lied to make sure I didn’t change my mind. That makes me stupid and you a fucking pig!”
The door cracked open slowly and Isabel stuck her hand in, waving it around to get their attention. Next came her head. “So, yeah, these walls aren’t nearly as thick as one would think, so everyone still in the office can hear everything you’re saying. Just a heads up.” She slipped back out and closed the door behind her.
“Get out of my office. Go back to California and stay there. I swear I will never come looking for you again. Please. Just go.”
She noticed he wasn’t listening to her anymore. His face went slack, and his eyes shifted back and forth between the catalog on her desk and her midsection. She tried to skirt around him and back behind the relative safety of her desk, but he caught her by the arm.
“Are you pregnant?” Lukas demanded.
She didn’t answer. She pulled her arm away and sat back down behind her desk, shoving the catalog under a stack of papers.
“Answer me, Emmalyn. Are you pregnant?”
She didn’t look at him, instead bored holes in her hands. “Yes,” she whispered, barely audible.
“Is it my baby or the dude I saw you at dinner with?”
She looked up at him, red hot anger
Emmalyn went to the kitchen and refilled her water bottle. She was walking while taking a deep drink as she turned into the conference room, running smack into Isabel's back.
“Sorry, Isabel, I….” Her voice faltered as she spotted her new clients. Lukas and Brian sat next to each other at the far end of the conference table. Database schemas and design documents littered the table. Brian at least had the good manners to look sorry for his part in this disaster.
Isabel tried to compose herself, but her head simply swung between Lukas and Emmalyn. Lukas looked genuinely afraid, and Emmalyn looked purely homicidal. “Em, why don’t you go back to the office, and I’ll get rid of them.”
“We have a legitimate business need. This is a real meeting,” Brian implored, his voice oddly strained.
Isabel shot Brian a look that made him squirm in his chair. “You have got to be shitting me,” she whispered angrily.
He held his hands up and nodded toward Lukas.
“I’m not doing this. Find another UI developer.” Emmalyn turned on her heel and walked quickly back to her office. Lukas was prepared for her to run and was after her before she could get out of the room. He followed her, but because he didn’t remember where her office was, he almost walked past her door. He got his hand in the door just as she went to slam it, catching it squarely on his palm. Out of instinct, she pulled the door open, and he pushed his way in, closing the door behind him.
“Get out of my office,” Em said, quickly sitting behind her desk. She was definitely showing and didn’t want him to notice it.
“Why did you come to San Diego? I thought you said no strings.”
“And there aren’t any. I was in Arizona visiting my mother, and we went to San Diego to hit the beach. I just wanted to say hi.”
“So, why did you leave? Why not wait until I got home to say hi?”
She looked at him incredulously. “Because I didn’t realize you had a roommate. I’m sorry, fiancee,” she said with an angry sneer. “I asked you. I specifically asked you if there was someone else, and you looked me dead in my face and said no. What kind of asshole does that?”
“Emmalyn, you don’t understand.” This wasn’t going the way he’d planned. He’d convinced himself that since Em had come to San Diego, she clearly wanted to reconcile. The angry woman standing before him looked more prepared to kill him and hide his body parts in the river.
Em stood up and walked around the desk. They were no more than six inches apart; instinctively, he took a step back. “I’m going to stop you right there,” she ground out. “I understand completely. I was offering you sex. You wanted the sex, and you lied to make sure I didn’t change my mind. That makes me stupid and you a fucking pig!”
The door cracked open slowly and Isabel stuck her hand in, waving it around to get their attention. Next came her head. “So, yeah, these walls aren’t nearly as thick as one would think, so everyone still in the office can hear everything you’re saying. Just a heads up.” She slipped back out and closed the door behind her.
“Get out of my office. Go back to California and stay there. I swear I will never come looking for you again. Please. Just go.”
She noticed he wasn’t listening to her anymore. His face went slack, and his eyes shifted back and forth between the catalog on her desk and her midsection. She tried to skirt around him and back behind the relative safety of her desk, but he caught her by the arm.
“Are you pregnant?” Lukas demanded.
She didn’t answer. She pulled her arm away and sat back down behind her desk, shoving the catalog under a stack of papers.
“Answer me, Emmalyn. Are you pregnant?”
She didn’t look at him, instead bored holes in her hands. “Yes,” she whispered, barely audible.
“Is it my baby or the dude I saw you at dinner with?”
She looked up at him, red hot anger
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