2.11

Liza smiled at him, sure he would be pleased. "It's number one by a mile."

Charles gave a slight smile in return. "That's wonderful."

"Oh, I thought you'd be happier."

"Ahh, I'm... " he trailed off briefly. "I'm more relieved than... than happy. There's this small part of me that.."

Charles hesitated. Could he say this to her? Should he? He continued, "That always secretly hopes that maybe this time...the whole thing would just come crashing down already? It's a lot year after year of wondering if we'll make it. And sometimes I wonder what it would be like if the bottom dropped out and I had to start over again. What would I do?"

He felt lighter after admitting this, but was worried about Liza's reaction. He held her option in high regard; he didn't know how he could handle her thinking less of him.

But the warm smile she had given him remained. "What would you do?"

Charles was a little caught off guard. He hadn't really thought past this part. Not seriously, anyway. "I don't know."

"Well, what's something you've always wanted to do, something you couldn't do because of your job?"

"Um... Do you really want to know?"

"Yeah, I do," she said, and she meant it.

Charles could tell she was genuinely interested — she looked so sincere and completely focused on him.

He was about to speak when her phone buzzed. She checked it briefly then sighed heavily as she put it back on the table. "Sorry about that."

"Everything okay?"

"It's nothing. My boyfriend and I broke up recently and now he's trying to get back together."

Charles felt a rush of both hope and anxiety hit him in full force. He worked over time to maintain a neutral face. "Ah. Do you need to meet him?"

Liza shook her head. "No. To be honest...I'm relieved. Our relationship was fun and exciting, but it wasn't meant to last. We just want different things. It's better that we have a clean break now rather than being completely heartbroken later."

The hope was rising in his chest, his heart thudding madly. "Regardless, breakups can be tough," he said, thinking of his own marriage.

Liza moved without thinking, placing her hand on his and giving it a light squeeze. "It gets easier."

Charles arched an eyebrow at her. "Have you gone through a lot of divorces?"

Liza bit her bottom lip and looked away, her hand still on top of his. "Um...I wouldn't say a lot but..."

Charles gave her a puzzled look. "Have you been through a divorce at all? At 26?"

He didn't have any judgment if she did, but he couldn't imagine who wouldn't want to be with this woman.

She bit her lip again, finally removing her hand, and squirmed uncomfortably in her seat. "Charles...there's a lot you don't know about me."

"Going through a divorce is nothing to be ashamed of, Liza."

She shook her head. "It's not just that. I'm...I'm not a 26-year-old divorcee."

"So you aren't divorced?" Charles was starting to get a little lost.

Liza shook her head again. "No, I am. But I'm not 26. I'm 40."

Charles just stared at her, not one emotion showing on his face.

"I'm sorry," he said finally, "did you just say you're 40?"

She nodded. "Yes. I lied about my age to get a job in publishing. My daughter needed money for school and I was out of options."

This was a lot of information. Charles felt a wave of dizziness. "Your daughter?"

Liza pulled up a photo on her phone. "Caitlin. She's 19."

On the surface, at first glance, Caitlin didn't seem to share much of a resemblance to her mom. But as Charles looked at the picture, he could see Liza's nose, her ears. And something about the determined but joyful look in her eye that felt familiar to him.

Liza put her phone away and looked at him, anxiety and a little bit of fear etched plainly on her face. "My ex-husband cheated on me, which was bad enough, but he gambled away Caitlin's college fund and most of our savings as well."

His heart broke for her, and he felt a small surge of rage toward her ex-husband.

"I worked in publishing before and a little after Caitlin was born. But my mom got sick and passed away, so it was almost impossible for both of us to work full time and take care of a baby. You know how the industry was back then."

Charles grimaced but nodded in confirmation. There were still many miles to go to make their industry — the world — more equitable, but he was glad Empirical had made big strides the last several years.

"Anyway, when I started applying for jobs, nobody wanted to hire a 40-year-old with nearly a two decade gap in their resume. So I improvised. When I first met Josh, he mistook me for a 26-year-old, and I used that to get a job a Empirical."

Liza realized she was doing a lot of talking, but Charles hadn't said anything, giving her only a nod while she tried to explain herself. "Charles, please say something," she pleaded.

He sat for a moment, rubbing a hand across his tired face. Liza immediately felt a rush of sympathy for him. She couldn't imagine trying to raise two daughters after their mother up and left out of the blue. She suddenly felt grateful that her marriage had lasted until Caitlin was grown, and that, while deplorable, the reasons for her divorce were clear and overt.

He pursed his lips slightly, which, Liza noticed, looked incredibly sexy, despite the serious expression on his face.

Finally he cleared his throat. "How much of it is a lie?"

"Just my age. I mean, my kid and my divorce are in there too, but they're related to my age, so I feel like they don't count as extra lies? I'm still Liza. Everything you know about me — my interests, my likes, my dislikes — that's all real. I have been as honest as possible while still protecting my age."

Charles nodded in understanding. "So, to clarify, you lied about your age to get a job in order to pay your daughter's tuition because your husband gambled away all of your money?"

"Yes," Liza said sheepishly, not quite looking at him.

"Well then," he replied, reaching for her hand to return her earlier gesture of comfort, "it seems like you are justified on all fronts."

She gaped at him. "W-what? You're not mad?"

"No. Shocked? Yes. It will take some time to fully wrap my head around it, but I'm not angry. Why would I be? You were confronted with a troublesome obstacle, so you adapted. It's unfortunate that your brilliance went unnoticed because of your age. Not only that, but you did it for your kid. I can understand that. Even before the divorce, I would've done anything for my girls, but now...there's an extra layer of protection."

Liza slumped back in her seat, a mountain of tension releasing from her entire body. "I just...Josh was..." she shook her head. "He was so angry, like I betrayed him. I know I should've told him the truth from the beginning, but I really didn't expect us to get this far. I can understand why he would feel that way, but he just wouldn't hear any of it. Like my reasons didn't matter to him. All he saw was a liar."

"Hey," Charles said, "look at me." She did and he continued. "Telling a lie doesn't make you a liar. You're not a con artist. You're doing what you had to do to survive and take care of your daughter. If anything, that just makes me admire you even more."

Liza blushed under his gaze. "You admire me?"

"How could I not? You're brilliant, well-read, kind. You're wonderful with kids, which makes a lot more sense now, but my daughters say you're their favorite babysitter. You're a good friend, from what I've observed. A respected and valued member of the Empirical team. You're patient and level-headed, which is why you're the perfect assistant for Diana."

Liza laughed, and Charles was pleased to have brought a smile back to her face. She was radiant.

"Your daughters are delightful, and incredibly well-adjusted given everything that's happened to them this past year. I'm honored that you trusted me with them and that they trust me, too. I think they would get along well with Caitlin."

Liza hadn't meant to let that slip. "Not that, um, they would really spend any time with her? Or meet her even, since she's in school. I just meant that—"

"I think they would like that very much," Charles interrupted. "I would, too, when you're ready."

Liza took in a sharp breath. "You...want to meet her?"

Charles nodded. "Yeah. How else could I tell her I'm in love with her mom?"

There was a glimmer in his piercing eyes that filled her heart to bursting. Suddenly feeling shy, she asked, "You love me?"

"Ask me again," he replied. "Ask me what I would do if the whole company collapsed tomorrow."

Liza swallowed. "What would you do?" she asked, barely above a whisper.

Charles stood and offered her his hand. "I'd start over with you. If you'll have me."

Liza took his hand and raised herself up to meet his gaze. "On one condition."

"What's that?"

She gave him a mischievous grin. "This."

As tall as she was, she still had to rise up on her tip-toes just a bit to kiss him. Once his brain got over the initial shock of what she was doing, Charles gathered her in his arms, pulling her flush against him.

When they pulled apart, he kissed her forehead. "I accept your conditions."

"Good, because I will likely refer back to them often," Liza teased, intertwining their fingers together.

As they exited, she caught sight of their reflection in a window and couldn't control the giggles that escaped her mouth. "We look..." she began, trying to control her laughter. "We look ridiculous."

Charles examined their reflection, chuckling alongside her. "We certainly make an interesting pair."

"Will you still love me when I'm not Princess Pam Pam?" she joked as they walked on.

Charles stopped and gave her a quick kiss. "Divorced moms from New Jersey are more my style."

Liza smirked at him. "Okay, now you're just trying to get in my pants."

Charles leaned over to whisper in her ear. "And what about it?" he said, giving her lobe a light nip.

Liza felt her body flood with heat. She turned toward the street, stuck her arm out and called, "Taxi!" She turned back to Charles and said, coyly, "How far is your brownstone from here?"