When I reached the bank, it was unusually quiet. Everyone was staring in the direction of Zayden’s office, making insincere attempts to conceal what they were doing. Mrs. Brian was gasping visibly. I put my things away in my desk, then looked up to see what the fuss was about. My heart stopped.
A beautiful blonde woman who looked like a supermodel was giggling happily at Zayden, who seemed to be slightly frustrated. It had to be a business partner. Or so I kept trying to convince myself. The woman looked older – closer to Zayden’s age, and it was a perfectly reasonable possibility that she was there for something work related. It couldn’t be anything else, could it? Ignoring the uncomfortable knot that had been forming in my chest ever since I saw the woman, I tried hard to focus on work. A good amount of data entry had piled up in the time I had been away from the office, a fact that Mrs. Brian wasted no time in reminding me.
“I’m on it,” I said, annoyed. Most of the time I could stand Mrs. Brian and her judgment and nosiness, but right now, in the midst of worrying about the woman in Zayden’s office and everything else that was going on, I had no patience for her whatsoever.
“That man has no shame,” she was muttering.
Why? Perhaps she knew who that woman was; otherwise she wouldn’t be making these comments. I was tempted to ask her if it was just a business meeting, but was not interested in the slew of questionable looks and comments that were sure to follow. So instead I tried hard to concentrate on typing as fast as I possibly could, occasionally allowing myself a quick glance, which I couldn’t help.
The woman finally got up to leave and to my utter shock and horror, kissed him romantically on the cheek. I couldn’t quite make out Zayden’s expression at first, but then he noticed I had been looking and his face got pale. That was it, I couldn’t take this anymore; I would so much rather deal with Mrs. Brian than let whatever was happening consume me.
“Who is that woman?” I asked, keeping my eyes firmly on my computer and trying to sound as casual as possible.
Mrs. Brian laughed and when I looked up at her face she looked completely thrilled to be the person to have this piece of information. She never passed on any excuse to gossip.
“Want to venture a guess?” she asked smugly.
“I don’t know. A business partner?” I said, trying not to sound too hopeful.
That made her laugh so hysterically, I
felt the Earth begin to shatter underneath me. “Oh dear, dear. You are so innocent. Even if that man were ever to do business with someone who looks like her, do you think it could possibly be just business?” she asked.
I shrugged, trying hard to stop the tears that were forming in my eyes. Why the hell was this making me emotional? I was going to stop the contract. Shit. I was actually falling for him. “Who then? Some woman he’s sleeping with?”
“Not just some woman. The woman.”
“What do you mean?” I was barely able to keep my voice level at this point. The woman. She couldn’t be–
“His wife, of course!”
“What?” I said, unable to keep the tone of horror from my voice. Fuck it. I didn’t even care if Mrs. Brian knew what was going on at this point. I just… I needed to find an empty room… and breathe… before I crumbled completely.
“Well, okay that’s not quite right. You could say ex-wife, I guess. But really, that’s just a technicality. They have been separated for a year now.”
That made me feel infinitesimally better. Ex-wife was much better than wife. But then what was she doing in his office kissing him? And the way Mrs. Brian had called her “the woman.” It didn’t add up at all.
“What is she doing here then?” I looked her straight in the eye, my disappointment turning into anger.
Her face lit up as though Christmas had come early. She had figured it out. Well, it was none of her business. “My, my, Aria. I warned you not to get into this, didn’t I? You young girls just don’t listen. You see a good looking, rich man and he just has to show an ounce of interest for you to run into his arms. You’re all the same. What were you expecting? He’s going to sweep you off your feet and marry you, then cover you in riches?”
“Keep the judgment to yourself, Mrs. Brian. It is none of your business what I do in my free time,” I snapped.
“Get angry with me all you like, dear. It doesn’t make a difference. All the girls before you, it’s the same exact story. They go after him against my best advice, and then fall for him. They all think it will be different with them, no matter his reputation, because they are all special little snowflakes. In the end, Gina always returns; she is always his first choice and always will be. Sure, they have been having some trouble over the years, but what couple doesn’t? And marriage is a very strong bond, as Zayden proves over and over again. They filed for divorce, but as far I as I know, the proceedings were never really finalized. My theory is that they don’t want it to be. Just look at them. They are a lovely couple. I would say they are made for each other,” she said beaming, surely enjoying tormenting me.
Unable to stop the tears any longer, I rushed out of the booth into the ladies room. I had never felt so completely betrayed. Somehow this felt worse than when I had walked into Rick cheating on me; that had crushed me, no doubt, but this made me feel like my whole body had left me, and all that was left was a pool of misery and hurt. After all, Rick hadn’t signed a piece of paper assuring me that he wouldn’t be sleeping with anybody else. No matter what Zayden was – controlling, arrogant, promiscuous – I had never gotten the idea that he was dishonest. Somehow I had managed to let myself trust him, and now I was really paying for it. My face was completely covered in tears, as I tried desperately to dab it with toilet paper. I had to go out there and do my job, but how could I when he was sitting right in front of me?
But if he had broken the contract, didn’t that mean I could… No, but there was no way for me to prove that he had been sleeping with his ex-wife. Whatever way I looked at this, I was trapped. Unable to be composed any longer, I ran into the bathroom stall and began sobbing more, holding my face in the palms of my hands. How had I let myself get into this? I had been so, so stupid.
I was such a strong woman until I met him. Now I felt powerless.
Even more idiotic was that I had trusted him with my body! It wasn’t in the contract, and against my own better judgment, I had decided to sleep with him. Because I trusted him. Despite all the reasons the world gave me not to, I trusted Zayden and believed that he wasn’t going to hurt me. I had caused this to myself and no one else was to blame. He must have had a good laugh. His grand master plan to sleep with me had worked – I had willingly ran into his arms and asked for it.
I pictured him snuggling with his ex-wife and laughing with her about how stupid girls were. They probably even made a whole game out of it. Both of them insanely attractive, both could easily have anybody they desired. That was probably how they even kept their marriage interesting; the divorce must have been some kind of charade that helped them in the games they played with vulnerable people.
I kept telling myself I could, and gathering all the courage I could muster I walked back to my desk.
Mrs. Brian was waiting there for me with a smirk. “Been crying, have we? Sleeping with the boss. Feeling rejected.”