Page 1 of Diamonds in the Dark
Chapter 1
Gwen
Michael Henderson walks into my office as I am finishing my phone call with the seamstress, who is working on my wedding dress. I hold up a finger, letting him know I will be off the phone in just a second. I jot down a few notes as the woman on the line gives me instructions and the time of six o’clock this evening to be there for my final fitting. Hanging up, I slip the notes into my purse under my desk and look up at Michael. “How can I help you, Michael?”
“Gwendolyn, do you have a moment so we can talk in private?” This is an odd request coming from Michael, but I agree. He looks like a nervous wreck and as if he is going to be sick right here in my office. “Michael, please just call me Gwen.” He nods and I motion for him to have a seat as I get up and shut the door. I am just an assistant here at Mason and Clark Law Firm, but I am one of the few lucky enough to have a small office to myself. I return to my desk trying to brace myself for whatever Michael is here to talk about. I have a feeling that whatever it is, it isn't going to be good. It’s not like him coming into my office and requesting a private meeting. Michael and my fiancé´, Edward, are both partners at Mason and Clark; they always work together on major cases. My boss, George, is one of the older attorneys who could retire, but loves his work. He doesn't do much more than estates and such, nowadays. He also stays on here at the firm because he knows he is invaluable to the younger partners. They always come to him for advice. He acts like it's a hardship, but secretly, he loves it.“Michael what's going on?” I ask.
His face pales further, which I wouldn't have thought was possible. Now, I know what he must tell me isn't good. He starts to explain, between nervous stutters, that he felt he had to come to me with this, even though Edward had begged him to keep his mouth shut. If Michael had stopped right there, I would have been able to guess the rest of the story without him saying another word…or at least most of it. I could feel it in my heart and soul, and it’s written all over Michael's face. Not only is he nervous and pale, but he also looks like he didn't sleep at all last night. Not to mention, he is normally impeccably dressed and today he looks half put together. I am just now studying him enough to notice how horrible he looks. I start to dread what is about to come out of his mouth. When he is finally able to calm down enough to form in his mind what he wants to say, he starts letting it all out. He gives me the lowdown on what he saw the night before.“Gwen, I was here late last night working on a case that I am partnered with Edward on. Earlier yesterday, I borrowed all the files and notes from Edward so I could go over them myself and make sure we had everything we needed before we moved forward with the case. Before I left for the night, I wanted to return them to Edward’s office,” he stops and looks down. I wait patiently for him to continue.
“When I got close to Edward’s office, I noticed all the lights were off inside. I assumed that he had already left for the day. I let myself in to put the papers on his desk, so he could have them to go over today.” Again, he pauses and blows out a breath before he continues.
“When I opened the door, I was surprised with an eye full of everything. Gwen, I just stood there like a freaking idiot. I walked in, flipped on the light, and there was Edward and his assistant, Celia, sprawled out all over his desk, butt naked, having sex. I thought about just turning around and walking right back out, but it was too late. They didn't even have the decency to stop or act the least bit ashamed!”
Michael and I are both quiet for a minute, me taking it all in and Michael finding his wording to continue.
He finally starts talking again, “Gwen, Edward tried to play it off like it was no big deal, even asking me if I would like to join in! Celia just laid there on his desk with him still inside her, smiling like she wasenjoyinga spectator watching them. I threw the file on the floor and walked out. It was disgusting…Iwas disgusted! I went straight home and talked to my wife about what I seen. She demanded that I come to you this morning and tell you everything I saw last night and let you decide what to do about it. I didn't know what to do. Around midnight last night, Edward called me begging me to keep quiet, saying that he didn't need you to find out about this little one-time fling with your wedding this close at hand. He even offered me money in exchange for my silence. My conscience, nor my wife, would allow me to remain quiet, even if I lost my job because I upset the owner's nephew. It wouldn't be right to keep this from you. Gwen, I am so sorry…”
I feel myself dying inside. I am trying to absorb everything that Michael has just told me. This is like listening to someone tell me about my own worst nightmare in every deep, dark detail. I feel like Michael just ripped all my fears from the depths of my mind, laid them right out on the table in front of me, and is making me face them head on. This is worse than I thought it would be. I knew Edward had done something from the very second Michael started talking. But this? I don't want to believe what he's just told me. I want to scream at him that he's lying. Unfortunately, I know he's telling the truth. He is an honest and caring man. I can see the humiliation still written all over his face from having to witness the act and having to be the bearer of the unwelcome news. His eyes are still cast down, as if he is having a tough time making eye contact with me, after everything he has just had to tell me. My heart breaks for him as much as for myself. I can't imagine what he has had to go through just to tell me.
Finally, I take a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to collect all my thoughts and emotions. I feel like I am losing my mind and I am working hard to hold myself together in front of Michael. I stand up slowly to make sure I have my footing and walk over to Michael and hug him.
“Thank you for coming to me and telling me what you saw last night. I am grateful for your honesty. I will forever be indebted to you for coming to me like you did and putting a stop to me making a huge mistake that I was about to make in less than two weeks. If this had not come out, I would have not only been Edward's wife, but I would also have been his little fool as well.”
Michael starts apologizing and I can't help but let out a little snicker, “Why are you apologizing, Michael? You have nothing to be sorry for.” He gives me a sad smile, nods, turns around, and walks out of my office without another word.
After Michael leaves, I sit back down at my desk and gather my thoughts. The more I think about everything Michael said, and the fact that Edward put Michael in such a sick situation, the angrier I find myself. I feel myself starting to shake so hard that my knees start knocking together under my desk. Before I have time to talk myself out of it and end up in a corner somewhere crying my eyes out, I storm out of my office and march myself straight up to the 4th floor where Edward’s nice cushy little office is located. Being the nephew of the owner has its benefits, I guess. I take the stairs, so I have more time to get my words together in my head before I face him.
When I get there, I see Miss “play toy” Celia, in the flesh, sitting at her desk... I walk right past her on the way to Edward’s office. From behind me I hear, “Excuse me Miss, Edward is in an important meeting right now, you will have to wait.” I stop dead in my tracks, turn around, and glare at her. She looks so young sitting there in her office chair, like a kid pretending to be an adult with a smug look on her face that I would love to knock from it. She looks completely out of place in the professional setting that surrounds her. She would fit in more at a strip club in the attire she's wearing than in this office building. Her clothing leaves extraordinarily little to the imagination. I am quite sure if I dressed this way for work, George would send me home or fire me on the spot. Her skirt is barely covering her voluminous butt when she gets up and bends over to pick up a paper she dropped as I was walking in. Her shirt is skintight and cut so low that when she bends over, not only does her skirt rise so high I can see her cheeks (and not the ones on her face), but I would also swear her boobs are going to spill out all over the place like a volcano erupting. I know at once, Edward hired her based solely on her looks and the way she dresses, not at all on her experience or knowledge. I am sure when she walked in for her interview, he probably needed a burp rag for the drool that, I have no doubt, was hanging from his mouth. She smacks the gum in her mouth so loudly I want to grab her by her hair and ask her if her mother ever taught her a damn thing about manners or decency, including keeping her panties on and her mouth closed when chewing gum.
She sits back down and starts rearranging papers that are scattered all over her desk. Then, she finds a nail file she must have been looking for. She turns around and starts staring back at me, holding her nail file in her hand as if I am keeping her from her personal manicure time. I am not a violent person, but at this moment I am feeling a rage that has me seeing red.
As calmly as I can, I ask her, “Do you know who I am?
For a second she looks at me like I have confused her. Finally, she smirks and mumbles, “Of course I know who you are. You are Edward’s fiancée.”
There is the answer to all my questions. She knew he was engaged to me and didn't even care. I don't understand women that can sleep with a man that is engaged or married. She had to know it was just sex. I feel myself starting to lose control. Angry heat starts spreading throughout my body as my temper starts to peak. I am not sure if I have ever been as mad as I am right now. I take a deep breath and release it slowly, hoping to calm myself down. It doesn't help at all. I am still seeing red. She sits there looking at me like I am crazy. I finally find my voice again through the rage. “I do not care if he is in a meeting, I am going to walk in there and I am going to interrupt it. Let me put this nicely Celia, you are a nasty human being, and he's even worse! He needs to know that he can have you, and vice versa. I am done with him. I hope you enjoy him, maybe he can make your life as miserable as he has made mine!”
I wait a few seconds, never taking my eyes off of her face. I am enjoying watching her expression as she processes what I have just said to her. Her mouth parts slightly as if she is going to say something in response, then she shuts it and looks down at her desk, killing all eye contact with me. Feeling triumph, I bolt past her to the meeting room Edward is holed up in. I hesitate only a second before I knock loudly on the door. Edward opens the door slightly, looking startled to see me there. “Hey Sweetheart”, he whispers. “I'm in an important meeting right now, as you can see. Can you come back at about noon or so? Maybe we can go grab some lunch together?” We stand there staring at each other. I want to start yelling at him right here, right now, but I don't know who all is behind that door, so I make a quick decision to not lose it until we are alone. He realizes something is wrong and turns to whomever he is in the meeting with and asks if they can continue the meeting later in the afternoon. Everyone must have agreed because he tells them thank you and grabs me by the arm and starts pulling me roughly towards his office. I jerk back. “I am not going in that room with you! The room where, just last night, you were getting your rocks off with your sweet little secretary.”
Edward stops dead in his tracks looking as stunned as his little pet sitting up front did when I confronted her. He turns and looks at me. “Then where exactly is it you would like to go?” He grunts out between gritted teeth. “How about the meeting room you just cleared out? Or have you screwed her in there as well?” I ask with cattiness creeping into my voice. He agrees to the meeting room without comment. He turns around and starts walking back towards the room he just left, avoiding any eye contact with me as he clenches his jaws so tight, I am surprised his teeth aren’t shattering into tiny pieces inside his mouth.
He opens the door and motions me to enter. We both sit down at the large table that was made to seat up to twenty people. The room, suddenly, feels too big and it's all I can do to stay in my seat. So many emotions are fighting each other for space in my head. It's making me feel a little insane. I just want to stand up and knock the hell out of him, just lay him out on the floor and bash his head in with one of the chairs. For a second, I allow my head to have its own revenge, even though I would never really do something like that. I wasn't made for jail. I don't know where all this violence in my head is coming from today. I assume Edward has just pushed me to my limits and this is how my mind is processing it.
We sit there in silence, for what seems like forever, and I realize I am going to have to be the first to speak. I start by telling him all I know. At first, he, of course, denies it all, swearing he would never do me that way. Blah,blah,blah.
Finally, he breaks down and admits it's all true, with the exception that somehow, he turns the blame on me! This I find amusing and allow him to finish his blame game just so I can see how sick his mind really is. He starts, “Gwendolyn lets both be honest here, you are kind of a prude. You dress like you're fifty and I have told you in the past that you need to show more. You have the body for it, and I just want to see it. You could really take a lesson from Celia on how to show off what you were gifted with. Instead, you always want to dress professionally. The only person you are trying to impress is me, so why not wear what I like seeing you in? I have bought you a closet full of clothes that I like, and you won't even touch them because they ‘show too much skin’. I also like having fun and I love having fun by having sex. What did you expect me to do when my fiancée turns me down every time, I invite her into my office for a little midday sex session? Your only excuse is ‘we are at work’? It gets old, sweetheart. What's the point of us working in the same building if we can't have some fun at work? Yes, I had sex with Celia, big deal. She screams sex and I had to have her! Any man would be crazy to turn down that piece of ass when it's being offered or rather shoved in their face all day long. I’m sorry if what I did hurt you. You can just think of it as my bachelor party since I am not having one. I had a little fun and had a taste of something different before I give the rest of my life to you. If it bothers you so much, it will not happen again. I can even fire her if that would please you.”
I am in complete utter shock. Who is this man sitting here in front of me? I know after listening to all his arrogance and the basic bullshit spewing from his mouth, that this relationship is over one hundred percent. I don't know why I even stayed in a relationship with him these last five years. He has never cared about anyone except himself, and of course, his little friend between his legs. As I am processing all the vomit he just spewed out of his mouth, I realize for the first time in my life, I feel honest hatred for someone. He repulses me. I am in awe at how fast I went from thinking I loved him to completely hating him.
I am finished with this conversation. I have heard all I care to hear from his mouth. I stand up as gracefully as I can. I am so mad I am shaking again. I feel the burn of my temper rearing its evil head once more. I am not sure how I held it in check this long, but I think it has to do with the shock I was feeling as he spoke his word vomit. I walk to the door and as I reach for the doorknob, I have a second thought. I walk back over to him; I get right in his face and watch a slight smile come across his face. He really thinks I came back to kiss him and forgive him. That just proves how arrogant he really is. I get as close as I can to his face and as he reaches for me to pull me in for a kiss. I scream at the top of my lungs, “GO TO HELL YOU SICK ASSHOLE!!”
The look on his face when I stand back up is priceless. I smile at him, turn, and walk out of the room, never looking back, even when I hear him behind me begging me to come back and talk to him. As far as I am concerned there is nothing left to talk about.
Chapter 2
Gwen
On the way back to my office, I pull my cell phone out of my pocket and call my boss, George. I love George, and I love working for him. He treats me well as an employee and he also treats me like I am one of his own kids, except he doesn't pry into my business as much as my own dad, which I appreciate. George answers in his loud booming voice and I ask him if he has a minute to talk. “Of course, Gwen, meet me in my office. I am heading that way as we speak.” I guess he could tell by the sound of my voice I was upset. I head to his office and when I get there, he is holding two coffees and has two donuts sitting on his desk. He hands me one of the coffees, points to one of the donuts and tells me to have a seat and enjoy some unhealthy breakfast. I take the coffee but turn down the donut; even though it looks delicious, I don't think I could stomach it right now.
