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Elizabeth knew she had to establish control with George on Monday morning. Not damage control, per se, but her own control over work and her personal life. As she’d reassured Annabelle on Saturday, the two would not interfere with each other. Now she would let George know, in no uncertain terms, that they were to keep everything strictly professional in the office.
Conflict of interest was a very real danger, of course. Elizabeth didn’t want to show favoritism to George at work, just because she was Annabelle’s sister. However, she didn’t envision their relationship changing, anyway. In fact, part of her job was to show favoritism to George – to mentor and groom her, to push her to the next level.
So she firmly believed that dating George’s sister would have no impact on their already-existing work relationship. She had to believe that and continue to adhere to her principles, because Annabelle was that important to her.
How one moment where she’d seen a goth girl turn into a poised noblewoman, playing lady-in-waiting to the queen, had turned into what she felt now, Elizabeth didn’t know. But she sure as hell wasn’t about to let go of the best person that had happened to her in a long time, just because of one coincidence.
Annabelle brought everything into Elizabeth’s life she felt she’d been missing – warmth, affection, and a shared passion for the things no previous girlfriend had put up with or understood. The fact that Annabelle already had tickets to the new Star Wars movie proved to Elizabeth she was a winner. Maybe even the one...
She wasn’t about to let a circumstance of heredity ruin everything.
George walked into her office as expected, one minute before their day technically started. Elizabeth often jokingly called her “Fifty-Nine Woman” because of that. George certainly didn’t like to waste her time or anyone else’s.
Elizabeth lifted her gaze from the numbers she’d been crunching and greeted her. “Good morning. Are you ready to review the proposal for Hoffstedt?”
The question must have thrown George off, because she said, “Wha-oh, that? Yes, of course I am.”
“We’ll be in conference room three, today, and the big guy is going to be there, so make sure you have all of the numbers ready. I’m just reviewing them now and they look good, but I want you to double-check them, too.”
“Right, but...” George leaned against the door, fire-engine red lips pursed in annoyance. Was she addicted to that damn lipstick? “May I come in?”
“Certainly.”
George not only came in, but she shut the door behind her and then turned, hands clasped at her waist. “Elizabeth, you are the best boss a girl can have. That said, I realize you aren’t perfect. No one is. But I’m hoping we can put this little mess behind us and move forward.”
Something about her impromptu speech made Elizabeth want to grind her teeth. Was this another reason why Annabelle avoided her family? Were all of them like this – presumptuous to a fault? George never seemed that way at work. Then again, they also didn’t discuss family here.
“George, I appreciate that, but there is no ‘little mess.’ There is, at the moment, a meeting for which we should be prepared this morning. Like I said, I’m reviewing final figures and I hope you will go and do the same. The plan is still for you to handle the presentation and I need you on your game.”
“But, I mean, you can’t...” George grasped the back of the chair sitting on the opposite side of Elizabeth’s desk. “You know you can’t keep seeing her.”
Cold, hard anger filled Elizabeth, the kind she rarely felt. She prided herself on her ability to maintain an even emotional keel, especially after some of the crap she’d been through with her own sister. This, however, was definitely dredging up some very rough feelings and memories.
Voice flat, she answered, “I will see whomever I choose. What I do outside of this office is my business, and no one else’s. Nothing has changed or will change. Do I make myself clear?”
George opened her mouth, obviously ready to oppose her, but then swallowed when Elizabeth leveled a glare at her. “Crystal clear.” It came out reedy and thin.
“Good. Now get to work. I expect you to leave your personal feelings outside this office and be a hundred percent committed to landing the Hoffstedt account.”
“Yes ma’am.” George turned on her heel, opened the door, and left the office.
It wasn’t often that Elizabeth had to use what she thought of as her “queen voice.” It came out very much in that no-nonsense “We are not amused” tone, and she only used it if needed. This was certainly one of those moments.
Control. She prided herself on having it when it came to work and her personal life. She refused to give it up to a junior analyst because of something irrelevant to their work.
The meeting went well, George’s composure clearly no longer shaken. Elizabeth made a mental note of that. Control was something her mentee did well, too. Well enough to take her place at this company.
After the meeting, Elizabeth lingered to speak with her boss. He held more of the decision-making power than anyone else who’d been in the room, other than the president of the firm, of course. She approached him with what she knew was her most disarming smile.
“Good job,” he congratulated her once they were alone together. “Once again, you’ve knocked it out of the park. I think this is going to impress them. That account is as good as ours.”
“Yeah, I think so too. Really, it was Georgina Scott who knocked it out of the park, not me. You saw her presentation, Frank, and I think you’ll agree that this account needs to go to her if we get it.”
“Georgina Scott? Why should she control this account?” He looked genuinely puzzled, his white eyebrows drawing together over his nose. “Didn’t she just get Yates?”
Elizabeth nodded and smoothed her hands down her pencil skirt. For some reason, her palms were a little damp, something she hadn’t felt since her first nerve-wracking years at the firm. “Uh huh, she sure did, and I’m confident that she’s going to manage them well. My oversight at this point is really token at best. She knows what she’s doing and I think she can handle another major account. It’s time to push her into the deep end of the pool.”
“I need better reasons than that, Elizabeth.” Frank held his hands up before she could argue. “Look, I know your instincts are good and she’s doing a great job, but give her a year to prove herself on Yates, first. Then, if all goes well, she can take over Hoffstedt, assuming we get them, of course.”
“Right, right.” Elizabeth turned to walk out the door, with Frank just behind her. She hated the sudden awareness of her rapid heartbeat. It felt like it was pounding in her throat. “But Frank, I feel that I’m in a place where my workload needs to decrease, not increase. I’ve had George here for over a year already and she manages her other accounts without a problem. I could certainly offer greater oversight on Hoffstedt, just to ensure she’s capable of balancing both them and Yates. What do you think?”
“I think something’s wrong. You’ve never wanted to give up work in your life.”
This was where she would have to tread carefully, Elizabeth realized. She didn’t want this to turn into the kind of conversation that ended with her leaving that corner office with a box full of her belongings. Not just yet, anyway.
“Trust me when I say her potential is going to waste if you don’t let her take on another major account. Give it six months, if you want, to see how she does with Yates. But, Frank, I’m not getting any younger. You have fresh, passionate talent right here, ready to take on the world. Let her.”
The way Frank tucked his lower lip under his teeth, Elizabeth knew he was considering it. He finally lifted his fingers and said, “Two major accounts, but complete oversight from you. I want her to run all decisions through you for the next six months. All decisions.”
“Absolutely. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Thank you, Frank.”
Elizabeth strode back to her office, feeling that sense of control she cherished so much. After a few calls, the day seemed to be going exactly as it should, with the Hoffstedt account headed for George's hands if things went well.
She used lunch time to flip through her address book. It had belonged to her mother a long time ago, and had all the wear and tear of use to prove it. The yellowed pages smelled musty and the tattered leather corners were soft in her hands. All the most important people in Elizabeth's life were in the address book – aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, and even her sister.
Just looking at her sister's name saddened her. Odds were they wouldn't be exchanging holiday cards, let alone gifts. Catherine remained a stickler when it came to her principles. At least Elizabeth couldn't fault her for that.
She flipped through, stopping at the S section.
Elizabeth had never written any of her girlfriends into the address book. It wasn't that her mother would have minded. It just never felt right, like the lady had to be someone special, someone who was going to last.
She set about working on her gift list and asked her assistant to handle the ordering for everyone, except Annabelle. That, Elizabeth wanted to do on her own.
Working to win a new account meant long nights at the office. There was no time to shop, let alone mail out season’s greetings to everyone she cared about in her life. She texted Annabelle to let her know it would be a late night and asked if they could do something together on Wednesday.
Annabelle's affirmative response came a few minutes later. It was just a few words, but the fact that they ended with “I miss you” made Elizabeth smile.
Getting through the next several hours didn't feel so difficult with those three little words at the back of her mind. Even George's newly-reserved behavior around her didn't sting as much as it might have otherwise.
Wednesday night rolled around after what felt like an eternity. Elizabeth arrived at Annabelle's apartment with a change of clothes. Just in case, she told herself.
When Annabelle opened the door, neither of them said a word. They just fell into one another's arms and right into bed. As it turned out, it was a good thing Elizabeth thought to bring the change of clothes.
An hour later, as they lay side by side, fingers laced together, Annabelle said, “I almost thought this wouldn't happen again.”
“What – sex or us?” The words chilled Elizabeth to the core, the idea of not seeing Annabelle anymore something she refused to consider.
“Us. I wasn't entirely sure you would show up, like work might have just been an excuse until you could figure out how to break up with me.”
“Ouch. So much for having faith in me.” Elizabeth couldn't stop herself from wincing. “I thought we established that we belong together, just like two Star Wars-loving peas in a ren faire pod.”
Annabelle lifted herself up on her elbows and Elizabeth did the same. The sheets barely covered them, but that didn't matter in Annabelle's cozy apartment. It seemed to retain the perfect amount of heat and the vanilla cupcake smell was ever-present.
“Please allow me to enlighten you, since you seem concerned about where this is going.” Elizabeth rolled to face her. “I have been having the best time with you. You are nothing like the girls I’ve dated before and I think you are everything I want in a woman.”
Annabelle finally smiled. “I like the sound of that. Tell me more.”
“Well, it’s not like I’ve dated a ton of women.” Elizabeth used her index finger to draw slow, lazy circles along Annabelle’s arm. “But most were pretty similar to me. They were either in the same course of study in college or my MBA program, or women I knew from networking, social connections – you know.”
“I know. Kind of like the kind of women my stepmonster tried to steer me toward when she found out she was gaining a lesbian stepdaughter.”
The grimace on Annabelle’s face was too cute to ignore, so Elizabeth leaned down to kiss her pouty lips. “Exactly,” she agreed. “And they were wonderful women – the ones I dated, I mean – but there was something missing. No spark. No excitement. They were very...”
She searched her mind for the right word, not sure if she could come to it. Annabelle saved her the trouble by supplying, “Polite?”
“Yes. Polite. Like, they never raised their voices, they were always understanding if we couldn’t see each other, and there was just no drama. I’ll be honest, I don’t care for too much drama, but there’s got to be some level of it. Some kind of excitement and chemistry, you know? I mean, flip your hair and stomp away from me at least once. Have a strong opinion. Something.” Now she was laughing, because it sounded absurd to her ears. No one in their right mind wanted drama.
But Annabelle seemed to understand. “You were bored,” she said. “They were too normal, too much like you to keep you interested.”
“Are you calling me normal?” Elizabeth feigned offense, batting her eyelashes as Annabelle chuckled.
“No. I’m just saying you’re normal with a side of something special.”
“Hm, I like it. I guess that makes you all special, with a side of normal?”
Annabelle barked out a harsh sound. “Ha! No. I think I’m more running away from normal, but it’s not serving me well. Maybe I’m going about everything all wrong as far as my family and my future, whatever that holds.”
“Tell me about it.” Elizabeth straightened to sit back against the headboard, arms wrapped around her legs. When Annabelle was also sitting up, their gazes met. In that moment, Elizabeth realized Annabelle had gone from reluctantly dating her to baring her soul. The trust she’d put in Elizabeth, into a woman she saw as part of something she wanted to avoid, made her want to cry. It was too beautiful to ignore.
“Well, a friend of mine pointed it out last week. She said I’m running from my privilege, when I could be using it for good. Do you think I’m making a mistake?”
It was a poignant question, one that had Elizabeth shaking her head. “No, honey, I don’t. I think it’s yours to do with what you will. No one else can tell you what to do with what you have. You need to search inside and see what answers you come up with and let me know.”
The response didn’t seem to make Annabelle happy, because she quirked her lips a bit as she nodded. “Right. Well, maybe if I’m more specific, you’ll see what I mean. There’s money – I mean a lot of money – in a trust fund for me. My sister and I each have one from our Grandfather Scott. There’s certain stipulations about its use, of course, and that’s what pisses me off. I don’t mind someone doling it out as long as I prove a need or good use for it. I care more about the fact that I’m expected to make so many appearances at family events every year and behave a certain way. So that’s what I ran away from – not the family, so much as the idea that I need to act the way they want me to, or else I’m cut off.”
“So you voluntarily cut yourself off before they could do it,” Elizabeth concluded. “That makes sense to me. I stand by what I said – only you can decide if there’s a better way to go about this.”
“Thank you. Your belief in me means a lot.” Annabelle leaned over so her lips met Elizabeth’s for another kiss, and Elizabeth let her eyes drift shut.
They were just fine, she told herself, so there was no need to worry another moment longer about their relationship.