A Matter of Trust (17 page)

She was numb, his verbal assault merely reinforcing what she had gradually come to realize over the past weeks. She did not know this man, although she had lived with him for over a decade. If she did not know him, perhaps she did not know herself, and that was much more frightening than anything he could say to her now. Her nerves were exposed—raw—and yet the pain was familiar. She had been living with it for weeks.

“I regret this is happening this way,” she said softly, “because I know I had a part in getting us here. I didn’t pay attention to the things that were lacking—for both of us, apparently—”

“I don’t care what you think now.” He made an impatient gesture, as if anything she had to say was of little consequence to him. “I’m warning you, Michael. I’m not leaving Innova, and if you push me, I’ll lobby the board for a vote of no confidence, and it will be
you
who will be looking for a new position. There are plenty of people who would support me in replacing you as CEO. Remember, your position is only as sound as your ability to deliver a product, and the bottom line is what determines success or failure.”

He grabbed her chin roughly, his fingers pressing unyieldingly into her flesh so that she was forced to stare into his eyes. “You may have the vision, Michael, but you don’t have the skill to do anything with it. You never have.”

She grasped the wrist that restrained her, but he brusquely released her and walked toward the door. As he reached for the handle, he turned and looked at her one more time, dark fury in his eyes. “You’re about as human as a computer. If you were more of a woman, none of this would have happened.”

He had regained enough control of himself that when he left he was able to close the door without slamming it. Nevertheless, as Michael brushed trembling fingers over the tender spot his grip had left on her jaw, she was aware of his anger still swirling around her with almost malevolent force. She took his threats seriously, because she knew that he never said anything he didn’t intend to do. She wasn’t sure exactly how he meant to attack her, but she knew with certainty that an attack was coming. She moved carefully across the room, trying to ignore the quivering in her stomach and the shaking in her limbs.

The door opened, and for an instant, she thought Nicholas was returning for another round. She straightened and took a deep breath; she would not let him see her falter.

“You okay?” Angela asked anxiously as she stepped into the room and pulled the door closed. “The walls are soundproof, but his face spoke volumes.”

“I’m all right,” Michael replied with a grateful smile as she leaned against her desk. “Thanks.”

Angela hesitated. “I’ve heard things...about a split.”

“I’m sure you have.” Michael sighed. “We’re getting a divorce. The rumor mill must be bustling.”

“Not
that
split—well, yeah—some about that. But I meant the company.”

“The company is
not
splitting,” Michael said emphatically. “Nicholas and I are, but Innova will be continuing as is.”

“I’m out of the loop a little,” Angela explained, “because everyone knows I’m...loyal...to you. But I’ve gathered enough of what’s going on to know that Nicholas has been calling in favors and offering unofficial promotions if people swear allegiance to him.”

“God.” Michael ran a hand through her hair. “I’d hoped it wouldn’t come to this.”

She was vulnerable now—she knew that—because if he forced the board of directors to choose between them, it was very possible that she would lose. It was true that the company was founded on her ingenuity and intellect, not to mention her funds, but those were things that might be seen as replaceable. If anything occurred to suggest even slightly that she could not carry the company forward, she would surely lose her bargaining power and any advantage that being CEO afforded her.

“I guess I’m going to have to learn how to fight dirty.” She regarded Angela with a rueful smile. “And here I thought that all that mattered was doing the job.”

“That’s all that
does
matter to anyone who you’d really want around,” Angela stated emphatically. “And there are plenty of people who will support you if it comes to that.”

Michael nodded briskly and straightened her shoulders. “Schedule a breakfast meeting tomorrow for me with all the division heads. It’s time to get this out in the open. I’ll be damned if I’ll meet behind closed doors like I have something to hide.”

“You might have to at some point,” Angela warned.

“If the time comes,” Michael replied resolutely, “then I will.”

“I’ll get right on it.” Angela smiled and reached for the door. “Boss.”

Michael waited until the door was firmly closed before sinking into the chair behind her desk and resting her face in her hands. For the moment, all she could do was stay the course with her current plans. If she brought in the existing projects on schedule and presented the board with a sound strategy for transition, her position should be reasonably secure. A few weeks ago that hadn’t seemed quite as daunting a task as it did right now.

She wished that there were someone in whom she could confide, and she immediately thought of Sloan. How strange, to find herself at this point in her life with no one that she trusted more than a woman she had met only a short time before. That connection, however brief when measured in weeks, had touched her more deeply than anything in all her years with Nicholas. She tried to convince herself that it was only Sloan’s reassurance she wanted, and not her touch, as she stared at the telephone.

*

Michael listened to the ringing on the line, still questioning the wisdom of her actions. She’d spent the afternoon trying to distract herself by drafting several new proposals to present to the board if Nicholas forced a showdown before she could complete her current projects. She wanted to be certain that she could demonstrate her ability to head the company on all fronts. She had debated for hours, her anxiety level rising, before finally relenting and calling Jason to ask for Sloan’s number in New York. Part of her reluctance was that she simply wanted to hear Sloan’s voice, and that was personal, not business. But they
did
have a professional relationship, and she tried to convince herself that that was the only reason she was finally calling. Her heart was pounding by the time the phone was answered.

“Sloan.”

“It’s Michael Lassiter,” she said quietly.

“Michael.” Sloan sat up straight on the side of the hotel room bed, instantly concerned by the unexpected call. She glanced at the digital bedside clock. 8:40 p.m.

“I’m sorry to bother you, but it seemed important,” Michael said with uncharacteristic hesitancy.

“No problem.” In fact, there was no one else she’d rather hear from. Even being in New York City hadn’t been enough to make her forget the weekend—or Michael. After a room service meal, she’d been lying down, trying rather unsuccessfully to read. “Is something wrong?”

“No. Well, maybe. I...”

Now she wasn’t certain what to say. The encounter with Nicholas had frightened her, and, worse, it had left her unsure of herself. His threats to sabotage her standing within the company were serious, and she knew that he was determined enough and ruthless enough to accomplish exactly what he’d spelled out for her. It was his personal assault on her and the life they had shared that had done the most damage, however. It hurt to hear how easily he had discounted everything about their life together, but facing how unaware she had been of her own needs and feelings had left her wondering if some of what he’d said hadn’t been true.

You’re about as human as a computer. If you were more of a woman, none of this would have happened.

“Michael?” Sloan prompted.

“I’m sorry to disturb you,” she began again. Even accepting that her concerns about Nicholas were reasonable, she warred with herself over calling Sloan when she felt so emotionally unsteady. She did not want to turn to this woman simply as a remedy for her own fears and pain. She took a deep breath, determined to steer their conversation onto a purely professional level. “I thought you should know of some developments here.”

“What?” Sloan listened as silence descended once again. She could almost
feel
Michael’s struggle. Something was clearly very wrong, and, immediately, she thought of Nicholas. She’d been worried that he would do something rash, and now the fear tore at her. Struggling to sound calm, she said gently, “Michael, I’m
glad
that you called. It’s good to hear your voice. Just tell me what’s happened. It’s all right.”

Finally, Michael relaxed, reassured by the acceptance and comfort evident in Sloan’s voice. “Nicholas was here at the office late this afternoon.” She laughed grimly. “He apparently did not find my attorneys’ proposal to his liking. He made it clear that he would resort to almost any means, including undermining my position in the company and my credibility with the board, to preserve his position. I don’t know precisely what he intends, but I don’t expect that he’ll wait very long. I wasn’t certain if it would make any difference with what you need to do up there, but it seemed appropriate that I should let you know.”

Michael’s heart was pounding. The phone call seemed foolish to her now, when she had so little concrete to tell Sloan, but she remembered the cold fury in Nicholas’s eyes and the feel of his fingers on her flesh, and she shivered. Her hand on the receiver was clenched so tightly her fingers were white.

With a calm that belied her racing pulse, Sloan asked, “Are you all right?”

She’d heard the faint tremor in Michael’s voice and knew she was trying hard not to become too emotional. She recognized the fear, too. All she really cared about was Michael’s safety—the business aspects could wait.

“Yes.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yes, I—”

“Then what aren’t you telling me? What did he do?” She was on her feet, her heart racing.

“Nothing,” Michael said swiftly. She hadn’t meant to involve Sloan in this. “It was nasty, but it was only words.”

“Just words?” Sloan probed, searching the silence on the line that followed. “Michael, did he
hurt
you?” She knew her tone was deadly cold, hard as stone, but she could feel herself burning with fury.

“No! He...he crowded me a little. Touched my face—”

“I’m coming back,” Sloan declared, fighting not to curse aloud.

“Sloan, no,” Michael said firmly. “That’s not why I called.”

“I
know
that.”

“Please, you needn’t worry. I’m fine.”

“If you’re sure,” Sloan conceded reluctantly.

A hundred miles away, she wished desperately that she were there and could see Michael’s face. She wanted to assess for herself just how
all right
Michael really was. Instead, she squeezed the bridge of her nose between her thumb and forefinger, tried to focus on the issues at hand, and tried even harder to quell the rising surge of anxiety in her chest. She hated even thinking about Michael being frightened and upset, and when she considered what the confrontation with Burke must have been like, she nearly choked on her anger.

Taking a deep breath, she reined in her emotions. “Okay, if you’re
really
sure.”

“I promise,” Michael affirmed, touched nevertheless by Sloan’s reaction. Trying to get the conversation back to business, she asked, “How are things going up there?”

With effort, Sloan replied, “I’ve spent the afternoon with the computer people here, and we actually made a fair amount of progress. I don’t think there are any major problems at this end, and I expect to be finishing up within the next few days. There are always things that are going to need to be tweaked and modified, but I can do most of that by phone. I’ll need to sit down with you to go over exactly how I want you to use the new encryption programs, but that can wait until the beginning of the week.”

“Thanks, Sloan.” Michael sighed, finally feeling calmer. “I probably didn’t need to call and bother you, but I have two major deadlines coming up, and I need to make final proposals and presentations by this time next week. These will actually be the first main projects that I’ve handled with almost no input from Nicholas. He was traveling so much with other ventures that we simply worked around him. It’s important that I finish these up without any difficulties. It will solidify my position not only as a theorist but also as someone who can actually bring in the final product.”

“I understand,” Sloan said. “If there’s anything I can do, even if it’s just to talk, please call me. I’ll probably be here through Thursday afternoon, but Jason can always find me.”

Michael laughed, relieved and, she had to admit, simply happy to have talked with her. “I expect I’ll be spending most of the rest of the week and most likely the weekend, too, right here in the office. I doubt that I’ll need to bother you again. It was good to hear your voice, though.” She hesitated, wanting to say more, but not quite certain how to express her muddled thoughts. Deciding it was better not to try, she said softly, “Good night, Sloan.”

The words seemed too final, but Sloan cherished the warmth in her tone. “Good night, Michael,” she whispered.

When her cell phone rang three nights later, Sloan was sound asleep. She croaked, “Hello,” and had to look twice at the clock before she could make out the red numerals. Just after midnight. That got her attention, and she sat up, immediately alert. A phone call at this hour could only be trouble.