Chapter 69. A low blow
Lilly Bradley
I let out a long sigh when I saw the picture of Jackson with her on the sidewalk of what they say is his building. I scrolled to read the article, a certain anger grew within me, but I had to control myself. I knew now that Arya was the woman from his past. And I had to accept it.
"Lilly, can we talk?" I looked up and there was Maxima, she had taken me by surprise, so I quickly scrolled away from the article so she wouldn't see me reading it.
"Sure, tell me." Maxima smiled.
"How about during lunch?" When I didn't respond immediately, she frowned. "Well, unless you already have plans and..."
"We can go to lunch." I gave a half-smile.
"Perfect, I'll come by for you." Then she disappeared. What did she want to talk about now? If it was about work, she could have come in, sat down like she usually did, and said it, but from what I could see... it wasn't a work matter. I finished my work before one o'clock, before Maxima came for me, I went to the ladies' room, subtly touched up my makeup, and then entered one of the stalls. I was just starting to focus on peeing when I heard the door open.
"Let me check if there's anyone here." It was Maxima, I automatically lifted my feet so she wouldn't see me, why did I do that? I don't know. "No one here." I heard the latch click. "You can talk now, no one will come in."
"I'm worried, Maxima." Then I heard a woman's voice on the speaker, it was quite clear.
"Why would you be? Jackson said he wouldn't do anything, that he'd just ignore you." My heart pounded as I recognized the voice: Arya.
Carefully and silently, I fished my phone out of my pants pocket, immediately put it on silent, found the recording option with trembling fingers, and then hit the red button.
"Look, Jackson is a lottery ticket for any woman on this planet, but involving my cousin was a mistake. Jack will find the author of the column, then we'll be in a war."
"I know Jackson better than you, Arya."
"I know him too," the woman replied angrily.
"But only from what the magazines say and what I've told you over the years. But that's it, he and I have a type of communication that no one else has."
"And what about the employee? That Lilly Bradley?" There was silence, my heart was about to burst out of my chest, they were talking about me.
"Just focus on what you want to do: Get Jackson Johnson back after everything you did. Lilly is not important, Arya."
"Of course she's important, she's been the first woman in his life. Don't you think the intimate bond they've established will make them closer? Now that he knows what it feels like to desire someone carnally, he won't leave her. Since when does Jackson look at an employee romantically? Sex in public? Going to the movies hand in hand? He's clinging to her in a way that worries me, he told me to my face last night that she had his heart."
"Heart? Jackson doesn't have a heart, he wants to pretend he does."
"Maxima, I think you're unaware of several factors and my instinct tells me I need to stop, and if I stop, you will too."
"We're not stopping, your plans benefit me and of course, what you give me for keeping you informed of what he does, but I'm not losing it because of your instinct. If you marry Jackson and take him to Dubai as you've always dreamed, as well as make him part of the family business, I'll be in charge of the conglomerate in his absence." She paused. "Only I hadn't counted on Lilly. I thought she was just a kind of toy..."
"But she's not. Even Isidora is surprised by it."
"But we need to be more careful here, because Isidora really likes Lilly for Jackson, that's why you need to move your pieces as soon as possible, because if your future mother-in-law keeps seeing Jackson so happy, one day or another, you'll smell the roses on their wedding invitations."
"I'll never let that happen." I heard a knock on the door. "I'll leave you, after my lunch with Lilly, I'll tell you what more information I can get out of her. And then you'll know what pieces to move."
"Fine," Arya sounded doubtful. "When you're done, come to my usual hotel."
"The Ritz-Carlton in Central Park?"
"Yes, I'll leave instructions at the lobby, I'm on the top floor now." Another knock on the bathroom door.
"I’m leaving, this isn't a good place to keep talking," then there was silence, the sound of the latch being unlocked, and the door opening. I looked at the phone screen that was still recording. I felt bad about what Máxima was telling the person Jackson didn't want to see, the person who had hurt him so much...
I heard the voices of the employees, and finally, I could put my feet back on the ground again. I was in shock from everything I had heard. I saved the audio; I wasn’t going to keep quiet about what I had heard. I needed to talk to Jackson as soon as possible, but I thought about doing it after lunch with Máxima, so I could record what she wanted to find out about me.
Máxima had brought me to one of Jackson's restaurants. I could see the excitement in her eyes, and inside, I was screaming things at her, like how she was being disloyal to Jackson, the benefits she was getting from passing information. Máxima had seriously fallen from the pedestal I had her on.
"Why so quiet?" she asked when I was staring at the menu, but I wasn't really paying attention. I looked up and smiled at her.
"No, no, it's just that I can't decide what to order. The food here is exquisite." I noticed her eyebrow raise but then lower again.
"I didn't think you came to this restaurant." I pressed my lips together to hold back what I wanted to scream in her face, but I could only let out a long sigh discreetly.
"I’ve been here once. It opened recently, from what I understand. The burgers are exquisite."
"Oh, yes, I remembered that..." she stopped her words. I wanted her to keep talking so I could record. My phone was between my breasts inside my blouse, not noticeable. I had silenced the sound so we wouldn't be interrupted, but the red button... recording everything.
"Remembered?" I prompted her to continue.
"Once I came here, I think I saw you with Jackson." I pretended not to remember.
"Oh, I think that was when you were going to have lunch with him, remember?" She raised an eyebrow. "You were going to have some steaks near some land you were going to see together?" I could see surprise in her eyes, which she tried to hide from me.
"Oh, yes. But at the last moment, it didn't happen, so..."
"That's strange, he told me he didn't plan to go with you." I saw more surprise in her eyes. "But anyway," I remarked, somewhat amused by those last words. "I tried them, and they're delicious."
"I'm glad you liked them..." she murmured, diverting her gaze to the menu.
"Quite a lot." The smile I had given her vanished when she didn't look at me. The waiter arrived, took our order, and then left us alone. "So, what did you want to talk about?" She shifted uncomfortably in her seat, now looking at me.
"Well, it's worth noting that it's not about work."
"Ah, so, it's something personal?" She nodded.
"It's about... Jackson." That did surprise me. What did she want to know? What information did she want to take to Arya?
"Oh, about our boss."
"Well, about the man outside the company," she said in a tone filled with seriousness. I leaned back in my chair.
"And what do you want to know? I think you two have known each other for years. I’ve only been in the city for a month and almost three weeks at the company as an employee."
"But you know more than I do about Jackson's private life." When she said that, she leaned forward, resting her chest on the edge of the table. I did the same without taking my eyes off her.
"I don't know what you want to know. I don't know why you think I might have information about his private life."
"I know you two go out together." I raised an eyebrow. "But don't get defensive, Bradley. I just want to know how he is in his personal encounters." She leaned back in her chair, and I did the same.
"Did you only invite me to lunch to find out about your boss and friend's private life?"
"When you put it that way, it sounds terrible."
"That's what you’ve made me understand. And you won't find out from me. Why don't you ask Jackson directly? I don't have to answer or give you private information." I looked towards the waiter who attended us, signaled him, and he came immediately. "Cancel my order." He nodded, confused, and left. I turned back to Máxima, who was surprised by what I did. "I've lost my appetite. Enjoy your meal." I stood up, took my purse, and walked to the exit, ready to take a taxi back to the company. I had to tell Jackson everything. What Máxima was doing... was a low blow.