Page 56 of Small Town Boy

“Wrong?” Noel guesses.

“Wrong. When Marie said anything, she meant anything.”

“I am not sure I like where this is going.”

“Earlier this year, there was a chance for a promotion. A big one. Like, career and life changing big. The executives asked each of us who were interested in the role to put together a presentation with a branding and marketing plan. They gave us products and specs and all the needed information. We had to build our platform. I worked on it for a month. Day, night, weekends. I put together the most amazing things you’ve ever seen. A couple of days before everything was due, the CEO gave us all a schedule of who would be presenting to the board when. They’d drawn names from a hat, so the order was entirely random.”

“Seems fair to me.”

“It was. Best part? I was first! At least until the morning of. A half hour before go time, the CEO called and asked to push me back an hour. One of the candidates had come to him with allegations of bullying, saying that others had been sending them messages telling them to quit and how horrible they were. All these message left this person afraid that someone was going to steal their presentation.”

“Marie?”

I nod. “He probably shouldn’t have told me who, but I think he assumed I knew about the whole thing because she and I were so close. I didn’t; it was all news to me. And since she and I had been together the night before, talking about our presentations, I was shocked. But she was my bestie, so I agreed to let her go first. When I hung up with him I rushed to her cubicle, but she wasn’t there and I couldn’t find her anywhere, and…well, I gave up, figuring I’d talk to her after. When it was my turn, I headed to the conference room, got set up, and started my presentation. I don’t think I got five minutes in, when they stopped me.”

“Why?”

“Because they had already heard my presentation. An hour before.”

“Wait, Marie…” He trails off, face twisting as realization hits him. I stay silent, holding in all my emotions. Even nodding would push me over an edge.

“Stole my ideas. All of them. Right down to copy and artwork. And since she’d sold her story about being bullied and ideas being stolen, guess who looked guilty.”

“That…” Noel stops himself, mouth snapping shut. I can tell there is a choice word sitting right at the tip of his tongue, but that small-town gentleman is holding him back. I swoon, even through all my hurt, loving his visceral reaction.

“It’s okay, you can say the word. God knows I have said worse.”

“That bitch!”

“That’s actually nicer than the word I usually go with.” Another wry laugh slides out, this time with a matching smile.

“So, what happened?”

“I tried to defend myself, but it didn’t really matter. They took her side. CEO told me that if I left quietly, we could put this all behind us, and that it would never be spoken of again. So, that’s what I did. Cleaned out my cube and left.”

“And Marie?”

“I tried calling her after, wanting some kind of explanation. But she never answered. Left all my texts and messages on read. For what it’s worth, they ate up her presentation, calling it brilliant, and she got the promotion. She’s now their new branding darling.”

“But you landed at Hayes.”

His gentle southern accent is calming. It’s also all that’s needed to make the tears break through. The first one slides down my cheek, a brave little soldier guiding the way for the rest of his troops who swiftly follow. Noel reaches out, wiping them away with his thumb. The callouses on his skin are rough, despite his gentle touch, the juxtaposition making me yearn for more.

“A month after this all went down, I got a call from Gus. He’d seen my name in a trade magazine of 35 under 35 to watch, and was wondering if I would be open to a conversation. I told him I was, and the rest, well, you can piece together. But, I…errr…I might have left out the part where I was fired. Gus, Auggie, Willa…none of them know. They all think they poached me.”

I sob, everything inside of me pouring out. I can’t hold it back.

“You should tell Willa. She’ll have your back.”

“I know. But after what happened…trusting is hard. And what if Gus and Auggie don’t understand? They’ll think I lied to them. After stealing someone’s work.”

“They’re pretty good judges of character. They’ll know you’re telling the truth.”

“You think?”

Noel shakes his head. “I know.”

Another sob bursts through, this time with a tidal wave of tears. Noel leans forward, wrapping an arm around me and yanking me into his lap. His embrace is warm, comforting, and feels like home. A place that I want to stay forever. I nuzzle my face into his neck, letting myself relax. Dropping the pole I’m still holding, I snake my arms around his neck and let go.