This story is being posted in four parts due to its length; the fourth and final is written and will follow this one soon.
This picks up after Mallory's explosion at Jim when she thought he was trying to cheat his soon-to-be-ex in the divorce, only to find that Jim wasn't exactly willing to take that lying down.
—C
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"Howdy, stranger." Robin's tone walked a line somewhere between the bubbly friendliness of the last time Jim talked to her and politeness.
"Hi, Robin. Yeah, I've been busy at work. Haven't made it here as much as I should've."
She was coming into the gym as he was on his way out the door. "Have a good workout," he said and slid on his sunglasses against the outside glare.
"Hey, Jim." He turned back. "I wouldn't mind a word."
That's how Mallory deals with it? Sends a friend to do her dirty work.
"I need to get back for a meeting."
As if she were psychic, Robin's next words dashed his suspicion. "I'm not here to play mediator. I'm here for myself. Did you lie to me?"
Jim could see she was troubled at the thought. He could also see it wasn't a rhetorical question; she was looking for an answer. "No, I didn't. But I also didn't lie to you about the meeting just now. I have to go." He could see her parsing his reaction, trying to figure out if he was brushing her off. "You owe me drinks. Pick a time after work ... not Wednesday ... and you can have your word."
"Tomorrow, six-ish, at Mickey's?"
"Tomorrow, six-ish, at the bar in the Marriott. I'm trying to be less locatable at the moment." He could see the wheels turn about that one.
His meeting was with a realtor. When Anthony had headed to the conference with Lori and her attorney last week, Jim had packed up clothing, papers he needed, one or two important keepsakes, and checked himself into the Marriott. But over a hundred bucks a night, plus restaurant charges, for living in a single room wasn't his idea of sustainable. He was trying to work a deal on a condo: rent it until the divorce, then buy.
Anthony had delivered the message to Lori, "You talk through me." Jim knew it wouldn't last, but so far, a blocked phone, a security guard with instructions to deny entry, and a low profile had kept the hound at bay.
Jim was pleased that Robin considered "six-ish" to mean six sharp. He'd spent too much time that day trying to get a customer to see reason, skipped the gym and lunch—
not that Tuesday lunches will be a thing anymore
, he thought—and just wanted to grab a steak and hit the sack.
"What's your poison?" he asked as the gray-clad woman walked up.
"Vodka martini, two olives."
He looked at the server. "Jameson on the rocks for me."
"So," Jim said after they'd had their first sip and Robin showed no signs of starting the conversation. He waited. Finally, barely hiding a smirk, Jim said, "I'm sure they teach you in law school that waiting for the other guy to hang himself is a great tactic. But I've had a long day, and I'm content to sit here quietly and drink."
She acknowledged that with a twitch of her mouth, but still didn't say anything.
Jim shrugged. "Okay, tell Mallory I'm sorry she sees me that way." He started to raise his glass, and then added, "And I'd appreciate it if you didn't shorten that to, 'He's sorry.'"
That got a rise out of her. "I said I wasn't playing mediator. She's talked to me of course, but she needs to handle this on her own. By the same token, I won't deliver any messages for you."
"Fair enough."
"I'm here to resolve why one friend said one thing to me a while back, and another friend claimed she heard something different on Friday. This is about me and you." She paused for a second. "And, if you want to hand me a check for the balance of a hundred ninety-nine bucks before saying anything, I'll accept it."
"I don't need to. I haven't done anything illegal or immoral, and Mallory jumped to conclusions. She could've asked me what was going on. You know, like
you're
doing right now, but—"
"Jim, don't snipe at her to me. As I said, this is about you and me. So tell me the rest of the story."
• • •
"Jim Watson here," he answered the ring.
"Jim, it's Mallory."
There was a short pause and then, without expression, he responded, "What can I do for you, Mallory? Is there something wrong with what we sent you on that last order?"
She ignored his question. "I was going to text you, but that's a bit too impersonal. So, I bit the bullet and was wondering if you'd meet me at Mickey's tonight so that we can talk."
"I'm sorry, Mallory, I have plans."
"How about tomorrow?"
"I'm afraid I have plans then, also."
"Okay." He could hear the frustration in her voice. "When might you be free?"
"Look, Mallory. If you want to yell at me some more, save it for someone who gives a damn. If you're expecting me to apologize for yelling back, don't hold your breath. If, by some chance, you want to apologize, then please believe that I accept your apology right here and now. Okay? You're forgiven. Now, if there's no problem with the order, I need to go—"
She cut him off. "Jim, give me a few more seconds here."
"I have to go, Mallory. I'm in the middle of something here at work. Take care." With that, he quietly hung up the phone.
• • •
"He hung up on me," Mallory said to Robin over a post-workout meal.
Robin's expression conveyed,
I'm not surprised
, even if she didn't say it.
"I mean, we need to talk. I get that he's not leaving his wife in the poor house, but he's obviously worked some kind of dodge."
"Why do you say that?"
"Oh, come on! First of all, in the years I've known him, it's always been 'his business,' not a 'me and my partners' thing. Second, even if he does have a minority partner, that four-eighty K? He bills us almost two-thirds of that a year, and we're just one of his customers. Even at some low multiple, his company's worth way more than that."
Robin tilted her head to study her friend. "I wasn't clear about my question. What I meant was, why do you say that you need to talk? From what you yourself told me, your opinion of him is pretty clear."
Mallory looked at her like she was crazy. "Because friends talk when there's a problem."
"You mean like you did before you jumped on him with both feet?"
The echo of what Tom had said to her froze Mallory's reply. "