"Christine, is there something you'd like to tell Emily? Maybe what you told me a few minutes before she came into work." Sharon asked. My eyes moved across the table. Christine was staring at her hands on the table, refusing to meet my eyes.
Finally, after a long moment of silence, she began. "The reporters being here… it's my fault. My friend, Ben, the bartender, recognized you the other night with Lexi and Reed and then saw you again last night with Reed at The Palm. He called me to tell me you were there. I was angry. I thought you were trying to steal the event away from me. After the press released information about the event, the reporters started calling here asking questions. They asked me about the event and I told them you should have all the answers. I told them where you were and your name." She paused and met my eyes. "I'm sorry, Emily, I didn't think it was going to get this crazy. I just wanted… I don't know what I wanted. I was just so angry with you."
Bitch. I didn't say it out loud, but I was thinking it as I glared across the table at her.
"I really am sorry, Emily."
I narrowed my eyes on her. Even though she really did look regretful, I still wasn't buying it.
Isabel poked her head in the conference room, breaking up the tension in the air.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, Sharon, but you have a phone call."
Annoyed, Sharon turned toward her. "Take a message, Isabel. We're in the middle of something."
"Um." Isabel hesitated as she stood in the doorway. "It's Lexi Alexander. She wants to talk about the event."
She was probably calling to tell Sharon the event was off. After the call, Sharon would come back in here and fire me. I might not be the only one getting fired, though. I looked across the table at Christine again.
Sharon stood up and then stared down at the two us. She looked like she was about to have a coronary. "You two, try not to kill each other. We will finish this when I get back."
Isabel and Sharon left the room, leaving the two of us alone.
"I know you don't believe me, but I didn't mean for all of this to happen." Christine glanced up and looked me in the eye. "Really. I knew I made a mistake right after I told them."
"Why did you do it in the first place? What did I do that made you hate me so much?" I couldn't control the anger in my voice.
She sighed and sank down farther into her chair. "I don't hate you." She paused. "It's never been about that. Well, not exactly. It's just that you got this job so easily. I've been here for three years. I have a degree and I still had to start in the receptionist position. I worked my ass off to move up. But you came in, and boom, you're taking over half my office, you're getting accounts that should've gone to me, and you hardly have any experience." She huffed and shook her head.
My shoulders fell. I allowed the built-up tension to flow out of them. As mad as I was, I could see her point. Kind of. I did get this job pretty easily. I actually wondered myself why Sharon had given me a chance.
"I didn't know you felt that way, and I didn't know you worked so hard to get where you are."
Her face softened. "Listen, I know I've been a complete bitch to you and I'm sorry. I'm not usually like this. I guess… I guess I was just jealous of you."
I wanted to laugh. I wanted to tell her she had no reason to be jealous of me. My life was so messed up no one should envy it.
"I'm not going to apologize for getting this job, but I would like us to work together," I said. "It's not very fun hating and being hated by your office partner."
"Yeah, it's exhausting." She rolled her eyes and then a tiny smile appeared on her lips.
I shook my head, but on the inside I was relieved. It seemed like something good was going to come out of this mess. Hopefully, Christine and I could finally work together, if we still had jobs.
Finally, Sharon came back in the room, saying nothing as she sat down. She looked a little more relaxed. "Well," she began, "Lexi would like to follow through with the Black and White event."
The buildup of anxiety in my chest eased a bit. Lexi had seemed so unsure about it last night. Maybe she was even stronger than I thought.
"That's really good news," Christine said, nodding. She looked a little more relieved as well.
Sharon glanced over at Christine, her stressed and bitter face returning. "This isn't over for you. I'm going to have to simmer and think about what to do about the situation you put Emily and the company in. I won't allow the employees here to feel bullied or betrayed by their co-workers. What you did to Emily, it was inexcusable."
Christine cowered down in her chair more and more. I swore if Sharon kept talking, she would be under the table soon.
"I'm so sorry, Sharon. It won't happen again. I don't know what I was thinking. I've already apologized to Emily over and over."
Sharon turned toward me. "She did." I nodded.
"Well, right now, we need to continue with the Black and White event. We only have a few weeks, so we'll need to work double time. Everything else, including this mess, will just have to wait. I'm going to talk to the press and answer all of their questions. Hopefully, they'll get the information they're looking for and leave."
With that, Sharon stood up and we all exited the conference room. Christine and I were halfway back to our office when I turned around and headed toward Sharon's office. There was something I had to do.
Sharon was already sitting at her desk, looking over some paperwork. I knocked lightly on her door and her head shot up. She looked at me over the glasses that sat on the edge of her nose.
"What is it, Emily?"
"Can I talk to you for a minute?"
She nodded and then I hurriedly shut the door.
Before I could say anything, she began. "I'm really sorry about what Christine did. She's a great coordinator and I really can't afford to lose her right now." She shook her head. "I knew she had a bad attitude, but I never thought she would do something like that."
"It's okay. I get it. Kind of. I mean, I know why she did it and it's actually what I wanted to talk to you about. Christine's better at all of this than me." I paused and took a deep breath. "I think she's the better choice to run this event. She'll do a better job."
Sharon cocked her head, confused. "You're giving this event up to Christine? This could be a great opportunity for you."
I swallowed hard, wishing I could explain it to her but knowing I couldn't. For now, I would just do my best to tell her the truth without telling her the whole truth. I just couldn't handle the press and all of the attention the event brought right now. "It's not that I don't want the challenge. I really do, but I also want the best for Lexi, and I think Christine is the best in this situation."
She narrowed her eyes and sat back, assessing me. I felt like she was trying to read between the lines. It was like she knew there was more to my story than what I was telling.
"I'm not sure I can do that. What Christine did… it's not something I take lightly." She continued to stare at me. Maybe she was waiting for me to take it back or something. "I'm not sure how Lexi and Reed will feel about this. They specifically wanted you."
It would be hard to tell Lexi, but out of all people, she would understand. Reed, I wasn’t so sure about, yet after this morning, I really didn't care what he thought. "Lexi will understand. She's leaving town for a few days to get away from the press, but I'll tell her when she gets back."
She sat there, contemplating what I’d just said to her. "Okay. If you're sure about this, I'll give it to Christine, but I still want you involved. I still think it's a great learning opportunity for you."