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She sighed, opening the door wider. “Come in, hija.”
“Inviting me inside while you’re kicking me out. Delicious irony.”
“Come inside.”
I went inside. Sitting on her couch, I felt like I was looking in at myself through the window, like I was so far away I could barely tell what I myself was thinking, feeling. María sat down next to me, and she hunched forward, sighing.
“I didn’t want to do this,” she said.
I almost didn’t recognize her out of her suit. The robe made her look more human. I didn’t need that right now. I wanted her to be an enemy I couldn’t empathize with, not… not the woman who had hired me when no one else would give me a chance, the woman who’d been my mother more than my actual mother.
“First of all—” She gave me a sidelong look. “I didn’t have anything to do with your apartment situation.”
“Oh, that’s rich. Miguel said the same thing. Wonder who’s the fall guy for this?”
“I mean it, London. They’d already been planning it for six months before Miguel joined the board, and they started with it two days after he did. Just bad luck.”
“Christ, of course it was. Always just bad luck when it comes to me, huh? Like a fucking… black cloud following me.” I folded my arms on my knees, hunching forwards. “Hell, must make a handy excuse. Oh, just bad luck. Just happened that way. Get out of anything like that when it’s me involved.”
“London. I’m serious.”
“Why?” I breathed, staring at the floor. “Why did you do this?”
She sighed, hard, standing up. I didn’t say anything as she crossed the room, picked up a cup of coffee, and drank from it slowly. Honestly, I was impressed she wasn’t smoking right now. I knew the way she tapped her finger on her thumb when she was craving a smoke. Woman had titanium willpower.
And even she’d caved.
“I didn’t want to,” she said.
“Well, I don’t know how to tell you this, but you could have just fucking not.”
“And let the company die a million dollars in debt two weeks later, instead?” She shook her head, shooting me a look. “I know you took Cameron to a property a fifth the budget she’d said anyway, so it wasn’t like she’d have been the ticket out we’d hoped for anyway.”
“How the fuck would you know that? Have you been watching us from the bushes?”
“The owner told me. Seemed a bit confused, had heard about her touring more expensive places.”
“Fuck me.” I hung my head. “Well, hell. Sounds like she was the ticket out you’d been hoping for anyway. Just… selling her to Leon.”
“I love Queen Pearl, London. It’s my baby. And I hope you don’t think I wanted to sell my baby.” She shook her head, clutching hard at her coffee. “And I care about you.”
“You sold me out. Set me up to take the fall. Miguel told me everything.”
“Miguel’s jealous.”
“Fuck off.”
“I sent you to that conference because I wanted you to have a good look. Quality leads. Help you find a new place to work.”
My throat was so tight I could hardly breathe. Tears burned in my eyes. “And move on to the next place. And the next. And the next. Watch them burn. Dammit, María. Nobody’s going to want to hire me after my track record, especially when I was literally in the Queen Pearl spotlight representing them to the industry as it died, not to mention publicly fumbling the bag of Cameron Mercier. Thanks for the fucking scarlet letter.”
“Don’t say it like that.” She put a hand to her forehead, sighing long, frustrated. “I did what I could for you.”
“You could have fucking told me.”
“You’d never have accepted it. Ever. And Queen Pearl would have fizzled out drowned in debts.” She finished her coffee, setting the mug down hard. “Go to Leon. They’ll take you. Call it a seamless transfer, keep taking on Cameron’s case.”
“You don’t get it. It’s not that easy for me. People don’t want a fucking… bad omen. They’ll take one look at my record and see me out the door. I—” I stood up. “You know, María? Thank you. For everything. You’ve done a hell of a lot for me. But I don’t… I don’t know how to forgive you for this.”
