36. Orion

36

ORION

" Y ou invited her to dinner again, didn't you?" I asked, watching my mother bustle around her kitchen with suspicious energy. Eating dinner with my mom and sister was a weekly ritual of great importance to me, even if I wouldn't admit such a thing aloud to any living soul.

"Of course I did." Mom didn't even try to look guilty. "That girl lights up this whole house. And you smile more when she's here."

"I do not."

"You're smiling right now," Remmy called from the living room. "Just thinking about her."

I quickly schooled my expression. "I was not."

"Were too." Remmy appeared in the doorway, phone in hand, her face wearing that look that usually preceded uncomfortable questions. "So... when are you going to admit you're dating her?"

"We're not?—"

"Oh please," Mom cut in, batting my hand away from the sauce she was stirring. "The way you two look at each other? I wasn't born yesterday."

I loosened my tie, suddenly feeling warm. "It's complicated."

"Because you're making it," Remmy said. "You know what is actually complicated? Trying to convince an up-and-coming artist that the ten-foot-tall beef sculpture doesn't violate his vegan principles. He's saying he won't let me show his art while that beef stands. Can you believe it? The beef isn't even real. It's made out of scrap metal."

"What if you promised him a separate room?" Mom suggested.

My attention wavered as I looked down to read the email that just appeared on my phone. It was from Roman, saying Davenport was currently talking with Cole Northman at a well-known restaurant in town.

My stomach clenched. I was sure we had the contract all but locked up. What was that snake talking to him about, and why was Davenport willing to meet him?

"Orion?" Mom was watching me with concern. "You've gone pale."

"It's fine," I said, shoving my phone in my pocket. "Just work things."

"Yeah," Remmy teased. "Just work, as if you don't treat work like it's life and death."

I left my mom's kitchen to sit on the couch and stew. My thoughts went from Davenport meeting with Cole to Ember and even to our conversation about legacy and my father's wishes for me.

I rested my face in my hands as I let it all wash over me.

To my surprise, I was most upset by the idea of Cole getting Davenport's business because I worried he would do exactly what I had planned to do. I knew Ember would be devastated if anyone tore down those factories. Without realizing it, my priority had somehow shifted from using this opportunity to catapult Foster Real Estate to the top to protecting those factories—to protecting Ember and Davenport's vision for their future.

The woman was turning me softer than fucking white bread, but I couldn't bring myself to regret any of it.

I only wished I knew how Cole was still stringing Davenport along.

I carefully ignored the little voice in my mind that told me I already knew how he was doing it. It was a fact that had become increasingly hard to ignore, but I was doing my damndest to keep it in the back of my mind.

Just keep focusing on what you can control, Orion. Keep moving forward, and don’t worry about… that.

Another email came through from Roman.

Mr. Foster,

Davenport called the office. He said he's concerned we have been stealing ideas and information from Cole Northman. Apparently, our proposals are almost identical to Cole's. He seemed like he was thinking about pulling out of the deal with both companies because he doesn't know who to trust.

Roman

I swallowed what felt like a ball of ice that settled deep in my stomach. I hated that my first thought once again went to Ember, the charity gala, and the knowing, smug look on Cole’s face when he noted that Ember was working for me.

But I pushed the thoughts away before any real conclusion could form. I didn't even want to take my mind there, because the idea of Ember betraying me hurt more than I wanted to admit.

It had to be something else. Some other explanation. Even if it sounded insane, I was almost certain I had begun to fall for Ember Hartwell. It wasn't a soft, graceful fall, either. I was falling at terminal velocity and without any fucking control. It was exactly the sort of thing I had avoided for years, and somehow I had walked right into it willingly.

There was a knock at my mom's door. I rushed to get up and pull it open before Remmy or my mom could emerge from the kitchen.

"I got it," I said.

"Love sick," Remmy sing-songed from the kitchen.

"Like a cute little golden retriever eager to greet its master," my mom agreed.

Ignoring them, I pulled the door open and stepped out into the apartment complex hallway to stand beside Ember.

She looked... worried. Her shoulders were tense and her eyes darted everywhere, seemingly unable to meet mine.

"Hi," she said.

"Hi..."

"I know you didn't want to know, but I can't keep this in any longer."

My stomach clenched in anticipation. I nearly told her to stop. I nearly kissed her, just to keep her from saying more. But all I could do was stand with my back to my mom's door and wait for her to drop the hammer.

“I know you don’t want to know this, but I need to get it out. I’m tired of letting this fester and get worse and worse because I care about you. I even care about Foster Real Estate, and until I get this out, I feel like I’m betraying you with every breath I take.”

“Ember…” I started.

She shook her head. “Let me do this. Please. ”

I swallowed, waited, and then nodded.

"Cole Northman was my ex," she said. Her words came out fast, as if she was gaining momentum as she went, each word barreling into the next. "He cheated on me and was trying to promote his new girlfriend until she could make my life miserable at Northman Group, where I used to work. When I didn't quit like he wanted, he came up with another idea. He asked me to infiltrate your company and give him dirt on you—something he could use to get an edge. That was when I got the idea to work for Hate Notes. I saw how you bribed people to quit, and I thought maybe you would eventually offer me a job if I never took the bribes..." she trailed off as tears welled in her eyes.

I knew I should be mad at her. I was mad. But my damn soft side hated seeing her cry, and it took all my self control not to pull her into a hug and tell her it was all okay. Instead, I waited, eyes steely as she gathered herself and continued.

"I never cared about helping Cole. The whole idea was just a petty way to get revenge. I wanted to drag it out and see how long I could get him to keep paying me while I was working somewhere else. And I imagined how pissed he'd be when he realized I was only stringing him along with no plans to help him. After reading all those Hate Notes and reading online about you, I thought you were probably just as bad as Cole. So I thought if I accidentally hurt you somehow to keep the game going longer, it wouldn't be that big of a deal. But," she added quickly, probably seeing the stunned and hurt expression on my face. "I realized I was wrong. Something about you... and something about working for Foster Real Estate... it changed my plans. I liked the job and, well, I even liked you."

I thought about the email from Roman and felt my expression harden. "But you still betrayed me."

Ember's expression of pain was so clear it made my chest ache. I watched a tear roll down her cheek as she shook her head, lips trembling.

"Not on purpose," she managed. "I... I was trying to buy just a little bit of time early on. Cole made it seem like he was going to call the whole thing off if I didn't give him something. And I just blurted the name Davenport. I didn't know how important the contract was and I had no idea who he even was. I didn't expect it to matter, but Cole latched onto it immediately. And then I found out recently he got access to my cloud files by guessing my password. He was using information from my proposal documents to try to win over Davenport. I changed the password, and he texted me asking for it just a little bit ago. And..." Ember sniffed, wiping at her eyes. "And I'm so sorry, Orion. I should have told you sooner, but I liked you and the job, and I was worried you would hate me or fire me or?—"

"Stop," I said, holding up my palm. "That's enough." There was an odd coldness in my chest. All the warmth and change I had felt beginning to spread over the past few weeks seemed like it had been snuffed out by a sudden, icy breeze. "Thank you for informing me. You can go now."

"Orion?" Ember asked, fresh tears welling in her eyes. "I really am sorry. I know I should have?—"

"We're done here. You can keep your job, but you'll be under close scrutiny until I know you can be trusted again. Otherwise, there's no need for us to speak further. Have a good night, Miss Hartwell."

"Orion, I—" Ember had wrapped her arms around herself, shoulders shaking as she cried in the hallway.

Good, I told myself. Let her hurt like I was hurting.

I stepped inside my mom's apartment and closed the door, knowing even in that moment that it wasn't true. I didn't feel good knowing she was hurting. Hadn’t I betrayed her in the same way by keeping the truth about our plans for Davenport’s factories a secret?

But I bucketed those… Just like she stopped trying to help Cole weeks ago, from the sounds of it.

“Dammit,” I muttered, punching the doorframe and ignoring the concerned looks of Remmy and my mom. I yanked the door open and rushed back out into the hallway, but Ember was already gone.

I stared at the empty hallway and thought about texting or emailing her, but all I could do was sink down with my back to the wall. There was a chasm of emptiness in my chest that felt so cold and empty it practically burned.

I deserve this.