This Was Meant To Be

Chapter 2

Leigh was annoyed at everything. First, work wasn’t exactly going very well.

Coleman was a demanding boss, but she didn’t mind that. She liked demanding bosses who challenged her. But Coleman was the lead counsel on the case, and a lot of details were being handed to William Trask – the junior Trask.

His uncle was one of the name partners of Coleman, Trask and Miller. His uncle wanted him to be groomed to follow in his footsteps, of course, but it wasn’t working out very well, at least from what Leigh could see.

There was something extremely annoying about William, apart from the general incompetence that comes from knowing that no matter what you do, you’ve got a safety net. If there’s absolutely no fear, no edge of nerves, you cannot do your best. But if that fear begins to leech into every decision you make, then you make mistakes.

Leigh was beginning to worry that she might end up there, because she was not in control of what William Trask did, or didn’t do.

He was also slimy and hitting on her, but she could handle that. She had been handling that for ages. She practically had a degree in it.

Which was more than what the little slimy bas*ard would’ve had if his family hadn’t bought it for him. He was cunning, but not in the way that made it an asset in law. He was cunning like a snake, and one without the knowledge that made that cunning an advantage.

But she was also beginning to get the feeling that he was sabotaging her after she rebuffed his advances. Coleman had told her that he’d been disappointed with her work. She’d been stunned, but then she had realized that she’d gotten her orders from slimy Willie, who had obviously set her up for a fall.

Well, if he thought he could make her fail, he was wrong. She was going to work harder, and be more careful.

Constant vigilance, she thought with a grin. Well, she had always wanted to go to Hogwarts. She could do constant vigilance.

Second, Carl still hadn’t come around to accepting that she just couldn’t take the time off. There had been a couple of ugly fights that had left her drained, and she couldn’t afford that.

That harmony that she’d always counted on between them seemed to have gone. It felt like they had reached an impasse.

Carl wanted her to take that year off, and he’d be satisfied with nothing else. Every time she felt as if she’d made some progress with him, things got worse. It was as if Carl just couldn’t let go.

Her suggestion that he do it himself had ended up in two days of sulking. She hadn’t thought it was a very good idea, but he’d seemed offended that she could even suggest it.

Leigh was at a loss. She dreaded going home now – it was like going from one high-stress environment at work to another one at home. On balance, she thought she might even prefer work, to be completely honest.

At least there, she wasn’t stuck with the antagonizing little Slimy Willie all the time. She had space to move, and to think.

Third, and maybe most annoying, she had to go to a benefit. It was the last thing she wanted to do – not because she didn’t appreciate the honor of representing her firm, or her family, or even because she didn’t think building schools in Afghanistan was a worthy cause.

No, she was just so tired that all she wanted to do was soak her poor feet in hot water, instead of shoving them into punishing heels that added more height, and squeezing herself into a dress that felt like it might cut off her circulation above her waist. Or below.

But she hadn’t wanted to stay at home with Carl, or try and tell Coleman – or worse, Slimy Willie – that she couldn’t make it. She knew, of course, that her commitment would immediately be called into question.

Still, she knew she looked incredible in the shimmering bronze gown with the cinched in waist and the slit halfway up her thigh. The neckline was demure, but the leg was not.

She had invited Carl, of course. She’d asked him to come, as nicely as she could.

He had refused in no uncertain terms, and it had pissed her off.

But then, the fact that she would go to what he considered to be a work event after she refused to go on his gap year with him made him mad, too.

So again, they were at an impasse.

So now, there she was, in a cab, on her way to a benefit where she would be expected to mingle, make intelligent conversation and smile a lot.

Maybe she could get away with the bimbo act, as she sometimes did when she was simply too out of it to make conversation and be interesting. You just had to open your eyes wide, look engrossed, nod a lot, smile, and laugh while tossing your hair.

She was very good at that, too.

But Slimy Willie would be there, and she wasn’t going to give Slimy Willie more to gossip about. She’d have to be smart and aware, and though her shoes were fabulous, her feet hurt so much.

“Chin up, Leigh,” she told herself.

The beginnings of a bad headache were beginning a drum solo in her temples.

It was going to be a long and very annoying evening, thought Leigh with another sigh.

She was beginning to sound like Carl – long suffering sighs and all.

She tipped the cabbie well to make up for all the sighing that she was sure must have annoyed him.

At least there would be free wine, though it would be bad. But if it’s free, you couldn’t be too demanding, could you?

Walking up the stairs, handing her coat over, Leigh didn’t notice how she drew the eye. She wouldn’t have been very surprised if she had. She knew she was attractive – and striking enough to make an impression.

But she didn’t think much of that. You get lucky with your genes, but that didn’t mean you worked for it. If Leigh was often proud, it was always for things she had worked for, not accidents of fate.

Her stomach rumbled as she walked in, and she headed straight for a waiter holding a tray. With a sigh of relief, she snagged what looked like salmon mousse and fish fingers.

Before she had to make the rounds and do what she was supposed to do, she gobbled up enough to keep her going, and washed it down with a glass of wine.

She turned her smile on the waiter, who was young and immediately dazzled.

“I’m not sure if this will get you a bonus, but you can tell your boss that you absolutely saved a life today. I was ready to swoon.”

The young man looked delighted, and about ready to swoon. She didn’t bite back her grin.