Kiss Me in the Summer - Barbara Dunlop Page 0,44

long that the sound startled me.

My curiosity about Cecily’s call returned in a rush. I picked up the phone and saw the office number.

“Hey,” I said to her. “It’s about time.” The greeting was out of my mouth before I thought through all the possibilities.

“Is this Laila?”

I snapped my jaw shut at the sound of Luke Perrington’s voice. It was a tactical error. I shouldn’t have picked up for the general office number. I should have held out for Cecily’s cell phone.

I thought about lying and saying it wasn’t me. But that would be ridiculous. Luke knew the sound of my voice.

“I’ve been trying to get hold of you for days,” Luke said, sounding both frustrated and annoyed.

“I’ve been offline,” I said. I couldn’t help but glance at Madeline as I lied.

“You should have called in.”

“I told Elizabeth I was taking a vacation.”

“Just like that.” The sound of his fingers snapping came through the phone.

“Elizabeth agreed it would be a good idea for me to stay away until things died down.”

“Well, they’re not dying down, and you being gone hasn’t made a single bit of difference to the fallout from that ridiculous debacle.”

I was disappointed to hear that.

“You dumped your problems and your workload on everyone else,” Luke continued. “You left the rest of us here to clean up your mess, Laila.”

“That wasn’t my intention—”

“Well that was the outcome. It was a predictable outcome. It was unprofessional behavior.”

“I tried to hold onto the dog.”

“I’m not talking about the dog.”

I couldn’t figure out what he might be talking about then.

“I’m talking about you up and leaving,” he said.

“I’m on vacation,” I reminded him. Everybody took vacation sometimes.

Madeline was giving me a nod and a you-go-girl expression. I appreciated that.

“Time away from the office?” he asked. His tone was setting my teeth on edge.

“That’s what a vacation is.”

Madeline smirked.

“Then let me help you out with that.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re fired.”

It took a second for his words to sink in.

“I’m . . . what?”

“Fired. Think of it as being on permanent vacation.”

I’d thought about this moment. I’d fretted about this moment. But now that it was happening, my mind was railing against the unfairness of the situation. “They shouldn’t have even given me the dog.”

“I told you, it’s not about the dog. I need you here, and you’re not here. I don’t know where you are. And you went around me straight to Elizabeth.”

“But—” I had honestly thought it would be better for everyone to have me out of town for a while.

“Goodbye, Laila. HR will send your personal belongings to your home.”

“You can’t—”

“I just did.” The line went dead.

I let the hand holding my phone drop to the table.

“That didn’t sound so good,” Madeline said.

“I just got fired.” I could barely say the words.

She reached out and covered my hand. “That dog episode was never going to end well.”

“It wasn’t the dog.” I had a really hard time believing that wasn’t the cause of my downfall. “He said it was because I left without telling him.”

“But you had permission from a partner.”

I nodded.

“Do you want to sue? We could sue wrongful dismissal. It would be fun.”

“It wouldn’t help,” I said, defeated. I might be on solid technical ground, but my prospects for building a career at Laatz Wallingsford were zero after this.

Luke was well-liked and well-respected. To be fair, he was a good lawyer even if he wasn’t a warm and fuzzy manager. He deserved respect for the work he did.

If I’d lost his trust, nobody at Laatz Wallingsford was going to give me a chance to move up in the ranks. There was no point in staying.

Chapter Nine

I slept on it, but I knew I should get back to New York City and start my job search. There was no reason to stay away any longer. The worst had already happened. Plus, I had expenses to cover and bills to pay. The rent was due at the end of the month, and I couldn’t let Cecily down.

I had a small cushion in my savings account, but the job search might take weeks or even months. And then I’d be in financial trouble. I couldn’t afford to waste any time, but I didn’t want to let Madeline down either.

I needed to get Max to Rutter’s Point as soon as possible. I thought about asking Madeline again, but then I decided Becky might be a better bet. She obviously knew the plans for coverage during her maternity leave, and Madeline had seemed confused about them