Page 31 of Unrequited Sloth

“Daniel would like to see you in his office,” said Claudette.

Bobby wished he hadn’t picked up the phone, but when the executive assistant of the managing partner calls, you pick up.

“What time?”

“Now.”

“Fuck!” he muttered under his breath.

The laugh from Claudette as she hung up told Bobby he hadn’t been as quiet as he thought. Daniel was on the floor above. Harper and Co. had three floors in The Gherkin. The top floor was all client meeting rooms and the reception. There was also a large space where they hosted all-staff updates, which were usually followed by champagne. Daniel looked after his people. Bobby was on the main floor where most people were based. The floor above housed the senior associates and partners. It was all open plan, with only a few of the senior staff having an office. Daniel being one of them. The bossman would often walk around all the floors and chat to people, although his diary always looked slammed. How he was everywhere at once was a mystery. He was fifteen years older, and Bobby felt exhausted just looking at the guy’s calendar.

Bobby took the stairs so he could get himself worked up even more. Why did the managing partner want to see him immediately? It could have something to do with the Rainbow Futures case, but they had a meeting in the diary about that tomorrow. Was he taking Bobby off the case? Had he done something, or missed an important point? Daniel had said that if he were going to fire Bobby, he would do it in his office. He chuckled. That wasn’t what was going to happen. There were procedures to follow if that’s what was happening, and Daniel Harper did not make reckless decisions that left him open to being sued.

The floor was busy with people, but Thursday was the new Friday for socialising after work. Nobody looked at him as he walked across the floor to the back, where Daniel’s office was. Claudette’s desk was outside, and she looked at him with a smile before signalling with her head for him to go in. The door was open. He approached tentatively and peeked through. Daniel was at his desk, typing something at such an incredible speed that his hands were almost a blur.

“Sir, you asked to see me?”

Daniel looked up and raised an eyebrow.

“I can come back later if you’re busy.”

“Why are you calling me sir, Bobby?”

“Oh . . . I’m not sure.”

He could feel his whole body trembling with nerves, unsure what was about to happen. Daniel stood up and walked towards the board table in his office. The place was immense, and Bobby knew he had meetings in here. If the office rumours were true, Daniel had also done other things on that table with his boyfriend, Josh. He flushed, imagining what that would look like. Bobby wasn’t blind, Daniel was a very attractive man, but why was he thinking about him ploughing his boyfriend?

“Can you close the door, Bobby, so we’re not disturbed, and take that panicked look off your face as well. You’re not in trouble or anything.”

He exhaled a huge breath of relief as he closed the door. Claudette winked at him, the bitch. To be fair, she hadn’t said anything to make him think he was in trouble. That was all him.

“Have a seat, Bobby, and tell me what’s going on.”

“What do you mean?”

“I heard that you’d cancelled the handover meeting before your wedding, and your annual leave as well. Is everything okay?”

Yesterday had been his first day back. His manager was away, but he’d cancelled his leave in the system, as well as the handover meeting with his colleague who’d been going to cover the Rainbow Futures case while he was off for two weeks. The last thing Bobby wanted to do was take time off work with nothing to occupy his mind. He should probably start looking for a place of his own, but Gabriel had said there was no rush, and Bobby knew that wasn’t him just being polite; he genuinely meant it.

“The wedding isn’t happening. We broke up.”

“I’m sorry to hear that, Bobby. Do you want to talk about it?”

Did he want to talk about something so personal with Daniel? He didn’t want to look like a twat, but then he’d done nothing wrong, and with everything Alex was saying, what if word got back to his employer? That could damage his career. If someone’s behaviour outside work brought their credibility, trustworthiness, or professionalism into doubt, they could be sacked for it. Especially in an industry so heavily regulated.

“Can I get your advice on something?” asked Bobby.

“Of course.”

“I found out Alex has been having an affair with my best mate, Dillon, since October, and a lot of my friends knew about it. When I came back, she’d changed the locks and packed all my stuff. She then accused me of having an affair with her brother.”

Daniel didn’t look surprised, but then he had a better poker face than anyone Bobby had ever met.

“Is the property you share with Alex in both your names?”

“No. She never changed the lease.”

“Can you prove you paid half the rent?”