Piper stood white-faced and shaking as she stared at the closed door. She couldn't believe he would be so nasty as to bring her father into this, when her actions had nothing to do with him. She swayed slightly and closed her eyes, raising her hand up to her head as a wave of exhaustion swept over her. Now she knew why she didn't drink, she thought, a giggle bursting from her.
Jeanette took her arm gently and moved her over to the couch, making her sit down. "You stay right there and I'll get you something to settle that stomach," she said kindly, dashing off to her own office to fetch some water. She returned a few seconds later with a glass containing a clear liquid that was making fizzing noises, and she sat next to Piper, handing it to her with a sympathetic smile. "Not a drinker, huh?"
"How did you know?" Piper asked, sipping at the drink with a grimace.
"Because that's how I am when I drink, which is very rarely. I can't stomach the stuff." The older woman looked up as a cleaner came into the room and started cleaning up the mess efficiently, leaving after a couple of minutes.
"I guess I can't either," Piper mused, frowning and then dropping her head into her hand. "Oh God what a mess. He's going to hurt my father's business now, and it's all my fault."
"I'm sure he won't be that vindictive, dear, he's not all bad you know," the older woman said, smiling gently as she stood up and smoothed down her skirt. "The trick is to not let him get to you. Don't be cowed by his bellowing, his bark is far worse than his bite."
"Is it? He had me fired," Piper said, her eyes filling with tears as she thought about that. "He didn't have to do that, I would have been fine with him just shouting at me." She jumped when the bathroom door swung open and he came out, barefoot but still wearing his business suit, his eyes glittering as they looked at her.
"Thank you, Jeanette. I'll call you if I need anything else," he said, smiling at the other woman before staring stonily at Piper again, neither of them noticing Jeanette quietly slipping out of the room. He raised a hand and pointed to the chair on the opposite side of the desk from his own, sitting himself down and waiting.
Piper reluctantly stood up and wobbled over to the chair, sinking down into it and not meeting his gaze. "I'm sorry I was sick on you," she said quietly, horribly embarrassed and now worried about what this man was going to do to her father.
Mark stared across at her, his eyes narrowed. "And you think that those little words will fix all this, do you?"
She shrugged, still unable to meet his gaze, and she felt the sting of tears behind her eyes, blinking furiously to stop them, from falling. She would not cry in front of this monster.
"Nothing to say, Miss Williams? Do I not warrant even an offer of reparation for the damage you've caused to my suit? Actually two suits, if we're going to be picky." He tapped his fingers impatiently on his desk as he waited for her to answer, giving a frustrated sigh when she said nothing. "Very well, Miss Williams, I'll tell you what I'm going to do, shall I? In return for the two juvenile acts you've committed against me, I think that I will have the cheque cancelled that I sent to your father. That should be sufficient to reimburse me for the loss of clothing."
Piper raised her eyes and stared at him, horrified that he would do such a thing. "Y-you can't do that," she stammered, gripping the edge of the desk. "He needs that money!"
"Perhaps if he had raised his daughter with more manners and morals, he'd still have it," Mark said, smiling coldly at her.
"I have plenty of morals, you're the one who hasn't got any at all," she snapped, getting angry now and welcoming the anger, knowing this was far better than bursting into tears. "You ruined his business in the first place, so you should pay!"
"And you're the one who ruined his chances of getting damages paid to him, aren't you?" he snapped back, standing up and leaning on the desk, his whole posture threatening. "I find it amazing that you continue to argue with me, when you know what damage I can do to someone you supposedly love!"
Piper stood up and thrust her hands on her hips, trying to match his threatening stance and failing miserably. "If you dare to take that cheque back, I'll sue you over damages to the trout farm!" she threatened, knowing she was fighting a losing battle, but refusing to just back down.
"And if you dare to take me to court, I'll sue you over the two times you've tried to attack me," he said, raising an eyebrow and looking at her disparagingly. "Who do you think will win, Miss Williams? Which one of us do you suppose can afford to drag this through the courts for years, without it bothering them in the slightest?"
She stared at him with defeat shining out of her eyes as she listened to his words. He was right, of course, he was rich beyond measure, he could keep the case going forever and she wouldn't be able to afford to fight him. Her father would be ruined and it would all be her fault. She slumped back down in the chair and burst into tears, covering her face with her hands so he couldn't see. Ordinarily she would have been able to hold her emotions inside until she had reached the safety of her own apartment, but the wine was affecting her now, and she couldn't control herself.
Mark stared at the small woman sitting on the other side of his desk, and grimaced. He hadn't realised she would start crying, he thought, shifting uncomfortably as he tried to think of what to do. A man wouldn't have cried. He had business associates he had been far harsher with, and they'd never cried. Women didn't make a hell of a lot of sense, he decided, still staring at her with faint horror. She wasn't even crying softly, as some of the women he had known would have done. No, Piper Williams cried the same way she did everything else - noisily. Huge gulping sobs were echoing around the office and no-one could fail to hear her, including Jeanette, who was probably sitting at her desk shaking her head. He gave a sigh and folded his arms over his chest, frowning. This really wasn't something he needed right now, he had work to do, people to call. "Miss Williams, will you please stop crying," he snapped, his voice far harsher than he had meant it to be, and he threw his hands up in the air as the sobs increased in volume. "Oh for God's sake," he muttered, feeling low. She was mumbling things under her breath and he leaned over the desk so he could hear her.
"Dad will go mad, he'll lose everything and he'll hate me!" she said quietly, obviously talking to herself. "I haven't got any money, how can I help him? I have my life insurance, but....I may as well just go home and kill myself!" she sobbed hysterically, her brain not functioning with any degree of accuracy due to the alcohol and Mark's jaw fell open at her words. "Then he'll get the insurance payout," she mumbled, dropping her hands and standing up unsteadily, wiping away the abundance of wetness on her face with the backs of her hands.
She seemed to realise, belatedly, that he was still standing there watching her and she gave him a glare, ruining it slightly when she started crying hysterically again. "I hate you!"
Mark rolled his eyes. "Good, then we have something in common. Where are you going?"
"I'm going home, and you can't stop me!"
"Yes, I can. Or have you already forgotten about that cheque?"
"Do your worst, you animal, and I hope it makes you happy to see people ruined because of your greed and spite....I hate you!"
"You've already said that. And several other things," he added, glaring at her. "Like you're going to kill yourself so your father can get your insurance money. Isn't there anything more theatrical you can think of?"
Piper continued to cry, the knowledge that she was making an utter fool of herself buried deep in her head somewhere, covered over with a nice numbing layer of wine, and she didn't think about her actions. She picked up the nice expensive desk organiser that held all his pens and pins of various sorts, and threw it straight at his head. It only missed because he ducked at the last second, but she didn't stay around long enough to see his reaction. She ran out of the room, still making loud crying noises and went straight into the open elevator, the doors closing just as he emerged angrily from his office at the far end of the corridor.
"Is everything alright?" Jeanette asked, looking at the elevator doors and then at her boss, seeing the anger and discomfort etched on his face.
"That stupid woman...girl, Jesus!"
Jeanette's lips twitched and she struggled to keep her face impassive. "What happened? She wasn't ill again was she?"
"No, she just made threats, I made better ones, then she started crying. Why do women have to cry?" He ran a hand through his hair and frowned again. "She wasn't even quiet and delicate about it!"
"No, I did hear her," Jeanette said, letting the smile curve her mouth as she thought of the noise she had heard. "Where's she gone?"
"To kill herself, apparently, so her father can have the insurance money! She should be an actress with a routine like that!"
The older woman frowned, staring at him. "That's quite a serious thing to play-act about, and she had been drinking," she said, biting her lip. "She seemed very upset."
"Don't be ridiculous, she wouldn't do any such thing, just because I shouted at her," Mark said, looking down at her, his frown deepening.
"But she just lost her job, too, and now her father's business is in trouble and she thinks it's her fault..."
"It is her fault!"
"I wouldn't like to be the one who let her run off in that state, and didn't check up on her," she said, shaking her head and leaving him standing there as she went back to work.
Mark stared down the corridor and pursed his lips. She had only been making idle threats, surely? But what if she was serious? What if she had enough alcohol inside her to do something stupid because of the way he had treated her? Not that he'd been unjustified, he told himself. He'd do it again! he thought stubbornly, and then rolled his shoulders uneasily. He was going to have to follow her, he just knew it, because his conscience wasn't going to let him alone if he didn't. He swore harshly and turned back into his office to get his wet shoes back on so he could go and find her.