Chapter 3

The next morning, I showed up right on time to process my resignation.

The HR manager, Lily Winston, sent out a group announcement. [East Coast clients have jointly raised concerns about the new account manager's competence. Handover of business is on hold.]

Tyler replied right away. [I'm sorry, Ms. Chase. I really didn't mean for this to happen.]

Vivian wrote back, [Take your time. No rush.]

I froze for a second. I remembered three years ago, when I'd first gotten sent out of state, drinking with clients until I threw up blood and still couldn't close a ten-thousand-dollar deal.

Back then, all Vivian did was blame me. "How can you be so useless?"

And now here she was, gently comforting Tyler, making excuses for him after he lost a one-million-dollar account.

My phone buzzed. It was a message from Vivian. [Did you tell the clients not to sign with Tyler?]

I answered calmly, [They're my old clients, but they're also businessmen. If you want someone to blame, blame Tyler for not putting enough into the contract. Ask him about it.]

She went quiet. A moment later, another message came through. [Go apologize to the clients, take them out for drinks, and get them to sign with Tyler as a favor to you.]

My fingers trembled as I typed.

Three years.

Vivian had never once wondered whether closing deals wore me down. Never once showed me an ounce of concern. And now she was ordering me to pave the way for her new assistant.

I didn't respond. Instead, I texted my clients to let them know I was changing companies.

In the break room, coworkers were still gossiping.

"Isn't Ms. Chase spoiling him a little too much?"

"A million-dollar deal, and she just lets it go because it's Tyler?"

"Guess real love just hits differently than the rest of us working stiffs."

The second HR received my resignation letter, they called me into the office.

Lily said, "Derek, you're one of the founding employees here. A promotion and a raise were only a matter of time. You really don't want to..."

I cut her off with a smile. "What's Tyler's salary?"

"Eight thousand."

"And mine?"

"Four thousand... but Derek, you make a lot more in commission."

"Vivian gave my old accounts and my commission to Tyler."

Lily let out a quiet sigh. "That's really not right of her..."

See? Even someone with no stake in this could spot the favoritism instantly. Vivian didn't, and she kept twisting the knife deeper anyway.

My phone buzzed again. It was another message from Vivian.

[Derek, what's the deal with telling clients you don't know Tyler? Do you have any idea how bad that makes both of us look?]

[So what am I supposed to tell them?]

She paused. [Just tell them Tyler's new, ask them to be patient with him, and try to get the deal signed for him instead.]

[Vivian, I built those accounts myself. I visited every single one of them in person, toasted every single one of them myself. They trust me because I actually know what I'm doing, and because I nearly killed myself proving it to them. What exactly does Tyler bring to the table that would convince anyone to sign with him?]

There was silence on the other end for a long moment.

[Are you still upset about what happened at the team building? Is this you going after Tyler on purpose?]

[You're reading too much into this.]

[Don't play innocent! Tyler's still an employee of this company. If there's an issue with the contract, that's on you for not handling your handoff properly. If this deal doesn't close, you can expect a pay cut.]

[A pay cut?]

I laughed. [Look at you, keeping business and personal feelings so separate. Go ahead, Ms. Chase. My base salary's four thousand. Dock whatever you want.]

I flipped my phone face down and rubbed my temples.

Tyler saw this and immediately sidled up next to me.