Chapter 12

Phoebe took a cab back home. Back home, ignoring Piper and Paige whom immediately jumped up when they saw Phoebe's expression, she went straight to the phone. "Vicki?," she said when the other women answered. "I'm not feeling well today, I won't be going to work today."

Wrapped in her robe, she told the whole story to Piper and Paige who listen carefully. Paige immediately got angry, "I can't believe Cole is such an asshole! He wants you to be his mistress! What an asshole!"

Phoebe stared miserably at her sisters. "I don't know what to do"

"Quit your damn job," both of them said at the same time.

"Phoebe," Piper said patiently, "why are you pretending to us that your job is a fantastic one? So what if Keith is working there? I don't want you to be miserable at your job, I want you to be happy"

Phoebe stared at her. "Have you been quoting from your favorite romance book again?"

Piper trace circles on her mattress. "Well, it suits the mood now, doesn't it?"

Paige shove Piper impatiently. "Phoebe, if you can't stand seeing Cole anymore, just quit your job, look for another one. I'm sure they're plenty in the newspaper. With your experience, I'm sure many company will take you. Keith is not the only cute guy around you know.."

"You're right. Both of you are right," Phoebe said.

***

"Feeling better?," Keith asked the next morning. Dryly, he added, "Vicky said that after being humiliated at the meeting room, and she said that's what made you ill."

Phoebe's face was pale but composed as she closed his office door and handed him the sheet of paper she'd just rolled out of her typewriter.

He unfolded it and scanned the four simple lines. "You're resigning for personal reasons-what the hell does that mean? What personal reasons?"

"I can't stand working for Cole any longer, I can't stand being humiliated all the time when I'm there either by Cole, Curtis, or Patricia"

Shock jerked him erect in his chair. "Is that it?"

"You ask me why I was resigning."

He watched her silently, the rigidity slowly fading from his features. "I can't let you quit. I won't let you"

Phoebe gaped at him. "What are you talking about? Why won't you let me resign. Didn't you hear me? I can't stand working here with Cole. I have never enjoyed working here at all, well except with you, here, but still.. I'm quitting whether you want it or not"

"If you resign without notice like this, I won't give you a good reference," Keith threatened.

"I don't expect one."

Keith watched her leave his office. For several minutes he was still, his brows drawn together in a thoughtful frown. Then he slowly reached out and picked up the telephone.

***

"Mr. Turner." the secretary bent down beside Cole, her voice lowered to avoid disturbing the seven other major U.S industrialists seated around the conference table discussing an international trade agreement. "I'm sorry to disturb you, sir, but there's a Mr. Keith Evans on the phone for you..."

Cole nodded, already sliding his chair back, his face betraying none of the alarm he felt over this emergency interruption. He couldn't imagine what disaster could have arisen that would warrant Phoebe's having Keith call him here. The secretary showed him to a private room, and Cole snatched up the telephone. "Keith, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, I just needed some guidance."

"Guidance?," Cole repeated in angry disbelief. "I'm in the middle of an international trade meeting and-"

"I know, so I'll be quick. The new sales manager I hired can come to work-"

Cole swore in irritation. "So what?," he snapped.

"Well, the reason I'm calling is because I wanted to know if it would be all right if he reports for work in October, or if you'd rather-"

"I can't believe this!," Cole interrupted furiously. "I don't give a damn when he starts, and you know it. What else?"

"That's about all," Keith replied imperturbably. "How's Singapore?"

"Windy!," Cole snarled. "So help me, if you've gotten me out of this meeting just to ask me that-"

"Okay, I'm sorry. I'll let you go. Oh, by the way, Phoebe resigned this morning."

The announcement bit Cole like a slap in the face. "I'll talk to her on Monday when I get back."

"You won't be able to-her resignation's effective immediately. I think she plans to leave for Missouri tomorrow."

"You must be losing your touch," Cole gritted sarcastically. "Usually they fall in love with you, and you have to transfer them to another division to get them out of your hair. Phoebe saved you the trouble."

"She's not in love with me."

"That's your problem, not mine."

"The hell it is! You wanted to play bedtime games with her, and when she wouldn't, you worked her until she was pale and exhausted. She's in love with you, and you've made her take messages from other women, made her-"

"Phoebe doesn't give a damn about me!," Cole snapped furiously, "and I haven't got time to discuss her with you."

He slammed the phone into the cradle and stalked back into the conference room. Seven men glanced at him with mixture of polite concern and accusation. By mutual agreement, none of them was taking calls except in extreme emergency. Cole sat down in his chair and curtly said, "I apologize for the interruption. My secretary overestimated the importance of a problem and had the call forwarded here."

Cole tried to concentrate on the business at hand and nothing else, but visions of Phoebe kept floating through his mind. In the middle of a heated discussion over marketing rights, he saw Phoebe laughing, her face turned up to the sun, her hair blowing around her shoulders as they sailed in his boat.

Jealousy had been driving him insane for two weeks. Every time her phone rang, he wondered which lover was calling her. Every time a man looked at her in the office, he had a wild urge to smash the man's teeth down his throat.

Tomorrow she'd be gone. On Monday he wouldn't see her. It was best for both of them. it was best for the whole goddamned corporation; his own executives were sliding out of the way when they saw him coming!

The meeting adjourned at eight o'clock, and when dinner was over, Cole excused himself to go up to his suite. He spent an hour and a half on the telephone in his suite, returning calls and dealing with business matters that had arisen in his absence. When he hung up, it was nearly eleven. he walked over to the windows and gazed out.

Phoebe was leaving. Keith said she was pale and exhausted. What if she was ill? What is she was pregnant? Once he had been the only man she'd ever known. Now she could probably teach him things, he thought bitterly.

Cole stretched out on the bed. It was just as well that she was leaving, he decided furiously.

***

The meeting reconvened at precisely ten o'clock the following morning. Because all the men present were industrial giants whose time was extremely valuable, everyone was punctual. The chairman of the committee looked at the six men seated around the conference table and said, "Cole Turner will not be here today. He asked me to explain that he was called back to San Francisco this morning on an urgent matter."

"We all have urgent matters pending," one of the members growled. "What the hell is Turner's problem that he can't be here?"

"He said it's a labor relations problem."

"That's no excuse!," another member exploded. "We all have labor relations problems."

"I reminded Cole of that," the chairman replied.

"What did he say?"

"He said that nobody has a labor relations problem like his."