"There was no luck about it," Tessa replied calmly. "I'm just good at my job."Tessa parked her car cautiously into the tight space, grumbling at herself for being late to work. Once again, she managed to wait until the last minute before leaving the library. She barely had time to change into her business attire and had only managed throw her hair into a messy bun.
She stepped out of her car and walked briskly to the entrance of the building that Xtreme shared with a few other companies.
Even being late, there seemed to be a smile fixed on her face. Today had been a good day for her. She managed to get her work done and if she was not mistaken, she had made herself a new friend.
Ahem, I believe CB was the one who made a new friend, the voice inside her head reminded her.
Oh, right, she thought. She was finding it hard to keep up the lie the more she got to know him. It was easy to lie to some suit or some unknown client, but J.C. wasn't either of those things.
How am I going to keep this up for tonight? she asked herself. He's going to expect that I haven't seen him since yesterday.
It was too bad. She wanted to continue their conversation about his career and his life, but that pleasure was reserved for the next time J.C. ran into CB. If that next time ever came, that is.
As she reached for the door, someone stepped out. To her surprise, it was Elise. She's probably just getting out for her lunch break, Tessa thought.
"Well if it isn't Tessa Bentley," Elise sneered. "I see you've got yourself some beginner's luck."
"There was no luck about it," Tessa replied calmly. "I'm just good at my job."
"Keep thinking that, dear. I've learned that optimism always helps when you're not sure what you're doing," Elise retorted.
Tessa's smile wasn't shaken. She was in too good of a mood to let Elise ruin her day. "I'm sorry you feel so insecure."
Tessa began to walk off when she felt Elise's hand gripping her arm.
"Now you look here, you little brat. Just because you got one client to agree to work with us, doesn't mean you're suddenly some great talent," Elise said through gritted teeth.
Tessa was shocked as she felt Elise's fingernails digging into her arm.
"Just because you were able to wine and dine him, doesn't mean that you are going to be able to succeed," Elise continued.
Tessa grew angry at Elise's attempt to trivialize all the hard work Tessa had done the day before.
"In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if Connor had you replaced the first chance she got," Elise smiled coldly. "I bet she's probably up there right now, waiting to give you the bad news. Face it, honey, your job is done."
Tessa tugged her arm away from Elise's grip angrily. "Don't be so sure about that."
Tessa stalked away, leaving Elise with a satisfied smirk on her face.
Tessa could see right through Elise's facade. She knew Elise was just trying to undermine her new confidence because Tessa was a threat to her. Still, she couldn't help but wonder if Elise's spiteful words were rooted in truth.
"So you've made a few of the boys in the art department happy," Rebecca spoke as Tessa entered the office.
Brushing away Elise's remarks for the time being, Tessa replied, "Oh, yeah? What have they been saying?"
Rebecca smiled. "Their girlfriends are getting a kick out of the fact that their boyfriends are working for *N Sync."
Tessa smirked. "Well I'm glad someone is getting something out of this."
Rebecca's eyes narrowed at the response. "Is something wrong, Tessa?"
Tessa shook her head and managed a smile. "Nothing. Just Elise and her usual antics."
Rebecca smiled knowingly. "That girl's just afraid that you're going to steal her job. Forget about her."
Tessa nodded. "Yeah, I kind of figured as much."
"But if you think she's insecure, wait until you see Sharon. She's green with envy because her um, methods, failed and already you have had two dates with the guy," Rebecca warned her.
Tessa blushed. "First of all, they aren't dates. They are business meetings. Secondly, there's only been one da . . . I mean, business meeting."
"But you have another one lined up tonight, right?"
Tessa shrugged. "Yeah, to discuss the layout and functionality of the project."
"That's my girl," Rebecca smiled brightly. "Well, I have some work to do, but good luck tonight. Just keep doing what you're doing."
Tessa allowed herself a nervous smile before heading to her office. Something plagued her mind.
But how can I keep doing something I don't even KNOW I'm doing? she asked herself.
You know perfectly well what you're doing. LYING, the voice answered her.
Tessa felt her stomach tighten. The guilt was starting to eat at her.
"Tessa, there you are," Missy Connor approached her.
"Oh, hi Missy," Tessa stammered.
"Congratulations on the new account. Can I talk to you in my office?" Missy gestured to her door.
Oh no! What is Elise is right? Am I finished? Did Missy only intend for me to get the account and then drop me? Tessa thought worriedly.
Tessa followed Missy into her office with her head bowed low.
Tessa sat down slowly as Missy sat in her leather chair behind her desk.
Missy smiled at her and if Tessa could trust her eyes, the smile was sincere.
"I am very glad I took a chance on you, Tessa," Missy smiled. "You did a great job with the client and this will mean even bigger accounts ahead for Xtreme Productions."
"I was happy to do it," Tessa smiled nervously.
"But with this big account comes big responsibility," Missy began.
Uh-oh, here it comes. Next she's going to tell me that the job's too big for me and send me packing back to the coffee lounge, Tessa thought to herself.
"So I trust that you will use the good judgement you have used thus far to successfully complete this project," Missy finished.
Tessa breathed a sigh of relief. She wasn't fired.
But Tessa was letting her guard down much too soon.
"But if you slip up then you can start looking for another job," Missy added to Tessa's dismay.
I knew there would be catch! Tessa thought.
Tessa tried to keep herself from panicking. It's okay. I'm good at my job. I just have to be careful about everything.
Just before she let herself relax, the voice laughed, Yeah, you're fine unless Missy finds out you've been lying to the client.
Oh God. I didn't even think of that, Tessa moaned inwardly. What am I going to do?
"That's all Miss Bentley. Don't you have a dinner meeting to go to?" Missy's eyes stared at her.
"Oh, of course, thank you Missy, thank you for giving me a chance to prove myself," Tessa stammered.
Missy simply waved her hand and returned to her work as Tessa stepped out of the office.
Tessa walked briskly to her desk and plopped into her chair. She had dug herself into a gigantic hole and it was her job to dig herself out of it.
What's this? Tessa though, as she noticed a red envelope on her desk. She eyed it warily, noting that there was only her name written in a scribbled cursive on the front of it. Who's sending me letters?
"Just open it, Tessa!" Rebecca laughed from behind her desk, noticing Tessa's perplexed gaze.
Tessa broke into a smile. She knew she was being silly. She carefully tore open the envelope and pulled out it's contents. It wasn't a letter after all. It was a card.
Happy Monday! I hope you're having fun at work . . . not too much fun though! If you ever have the time and you're not having breakfast with a celebrity, haha, hope you'll can come hang out with me.
Your friend, |
"So, Tessa, is that your invitation?" a female voice asked Tessa from behind her.
Tessa turned to face a smirking Sharon. "What invitation?"
"You know. The Agency's annual ball," Sharon told her snidely.
The Agency was an organization that awarded the top marketers in the region for their work. It was a very elitist group, but anyone who was anyone in advertising hoped for an invitation, but only the best did and Sharon knew that.
Tessa grew angry, knowing that Sharon was just trying to pick a fight with her. She wasn't going to let Sharon get to her. "No, I haven't. But then again, my father isn't on the Board."
Sharon glanced coolly at Tessa, ignoring Tessa's attempt to insult her through her father. "No, your father's dead, isn't he?"
The silence and tension in the room could be felt charging the air between the two women.
Tessa couldn't believe Sharon had just said that. She never knew anyone could be so cruel.
Tessa had no idea.
A grin grew on Sharon's face as she added, "Lucky for him. He's not alive to see what a disappointment you are."
That was it.
Any control Tessa had flew out the door as Sharon spoke. Tessa didn't want anything more that moment than to slap that snobby grin off of Sharon's face.
She didn't know how, but she maintained her control, though just barely. She knew that acting out on her anger would mean losing her job and it was all she had.
Tessa felt tears threatening to fall.
"Too bad, your father isn't so lucky, Sharon," Rebecca said through gritted teeth from behind her desk. She had heard every word and she couldn't believe the nerve of the woman. "You better shut your mouth if you know what's good for you."
Sharon merely rolled her eyes and walked back to her office leaving Rebecca to glare after her and Tessa trembling in her chair in anger.
"Don't let that sleaze get to you, Tessa. You've got more class in your pinky finger than she could ever dream of possessing," Rebecca offered to her.
She nodded slowly, trying her best to push away the hurt. "I know. It's just, she knows what buttons to push with me."
"Take it as a compliment. She's jealous, desperate even. She's trying every card she has to get you down. But I have faith in you, Tessa. Nothing she can do can keep you from showing everyone how talented you are, right?" Rebecca asked.
Tessa looked up at her with a smile in her eyes. "No, she can't bring me down."
"Exactly," Rebecca said, picking up a folder from Tessa's desk. "Now you go home early, take a shower, put on the hottest little number you own and blow that popstar right out of his dancing shoes!"
"But what about the work?" Tessa panicked, gesturing to the folder Rebecca picked up.
"Don't worry about it. I'll get it done for you. You just worry about your first big project," Rebecca smiled. Then she added, "The first of MANY."
Tessa felt all the hurt slip away and strength replaced it. "Thanks, Rebecca. I needed that."
"Not a problem," Rebecca said, heading back to her desk. "I am not about to let talent go to waste."
I'm sure Rebecca doesn't mean your talent for lying, the voice suggested to Tessa. Boy, isn't she going to look foolish once everyone finds out how you tricked that poor man into working with you.
Oh shut up, Tessa snapped inwardly. I'm going to show them all what I can do, no matter what it takes.
~!~Later At Tessa's Apartment~!~
*ring**ring*
Tessa ran to grab her phone as she pulled her hair into a ponytail.
"Hello?" she answered, breathless.
"Have I caught you at a bad time, my dear?" a pleasant and familiar voice chuckled over the phone.
Tessa smiled. "No, Emily. I was just getting ready for a da---business meeting."
"With Joshua?" Emily asked.
"Yes."
"Don't you have something to tell me?"
"What do you mean, Emily?"
"I don't make it a habit of lying to my close friend's son without a reason," Emily explained.
Tessa's face flushed white. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Emily. I didn't mean to put you in such a tough spot the other night. It's just . . . I don't know what to say."
"How about the truth?" Emily said lightly.
Tessa bit her lower lip. "Where do I start? You see, I have this job at this marketing firm and as you know, J.C. is in the group *N Sync and we are trying to get their account. Unfortunately, I met him earlier that day while I was at school and I was rather, um, rude."
"I see," Emily said.
Tessa quickly added, "Not that he didn't deserve it! It was just . . . well, a bad day for me. Anyway, when my boss, Missy, told me that I was assigned to this new account I knew that if he thought I was the girl he met that morning, I would never get anywhere with him."
"So you decided to feed him the fake twin sister story?" Emily offered.
Tessa sighed. "Yeah. I panicked. It was the first thing that came to mind."
"I'm just surprised he believed you," Emily chuckled. "It sounds like something out of a soap opera."
Tessa smiled. Emily and her soap operas. "Are you going to tell him that I lied?"
"I think that's up to you, dear," Emily said softly. "I just hope you know what you are doing. I don't want either of you to get hurt."
"I know, Emily. I don't either," Tessa replied. She added, "What would one of your soap opera characters do if they were me?"
There was a pause on the line until Emily responded, "Well, on General Hospital, Sonny lied to Brenda about who he really was and they broke up and lost their chance forever."
"But I'm not looking for a relationship, Emily. I just want him to not hate me when he finds out the truth . . . if he finds out the truth," Tessa explained.
"On Days of Our Lives, Marlena found out that John had lied to her about being with another woman but she stood by him," Emily offered. "That could mean something."
Tessa laughed. "Emily, what am I going to do with you? This isn't that kind of relationship. J.C. and I are just business partners."
Emily replied, "I can't help it. Soap operas don't have any other kinds of relationships."
"Emily, thanks for the advice, but I think I'll have to figure out this one on my own," Tessa smiled. "Unfortunately for me, in real life, people don't conveniently forget that you are a lying snake and decide to marry you."
"Tessa!" Emily laughed. "So you DO watch soap operas. I never liked that Sami character."
Tessa smiled. "I plead the fifth."
"Well, I have to go prepare for the big fiesta next week. You take care of yourself, okay, Tessa?"
"I will, thanks Emily," Tessa said, before hanging up the phone.
*knock**knock*
What now? Tessa thought.
"I'm coming!" Tessa yelled as she pulled on her black sweater with one arm and opened the door with the other.
"Well if it isn't my favorite munchkin," David teased as he pulled Tessa into a hug.
"Thank God, you're here David. I'm a complete wreck!" Tessa said as she stepped back from the embrace. "I have a date in one hour and I have nothing to wear, no make-up on and my hair has decided to hate me today."
David laughed his familiar laugh. "Well, why don't you go blowdry your hair, I'll help you choose an outfit while you get made up and you'll be done before prettyboy even parks his expensive car downstairs."
Tessa smirked at him. "You're making fun of me."
"Nope," David said, walking towards her closet. "Just your boyfriend."
"He's not my boyfriend!" Tessa yelled at his retreating figure.
"I can't hear you!" David said from behind the closet doors.
Tessa groaned in frustration at her friend's un-ending teasing, but she relented to a smile. David always knew how to put her in her place and make her see things practically. She was lucky to have him as a friend.
"Ta-da!" he said, coming out of the closet with a gorgeous pink shimmery dress in his hand.
Tessa laughed. "You do know that's wrinklier than Professor Sartaki and he's 95."
David shook his head. "Ye of little faith. You go do what I said and I'll have this thing straighter than your A's, CB."
Tessa paused when he said "CB." This would be a problem. "Could you call me Tessa when he gets here and not CB?"
Please don't ask why. Please don't ask why . . .
"Why?" David asked.
She thought quickly. "Ummm, well, because, uh, you know, I'm supposed to be a professional. The people around the office call me Tessa and I think I should uphold that professionalism."
David shook his head with a laugh. "Ever the perfectionist. But if it's all business, what was he doing showing up on campus to see you?"
Tessa panicked. She had no explanation for that. What could she tell him? He had been her friend for awhile now. She couldn't lie to him anymore than she could lie to Emily. What was she going to do?
Maybe I can tell him what's going on, Tessa thought to herself. Then she shook her head. No, he would think I was a horrible person and he may be the last friend I have . . .
"Look, David, this is really important to me," Tessa pleaded. "Could you please just do what I ask? I really need this account and Missy and everyone is counting on me."
David's face turned serious. Then he guiltily replied, "I'm sorry, Tessa. I know how much it means to you. Whatever you want, I'll do it."
Tessa grinned and embraced her friend. "Thanks so much!"
Then she ran off to style her hair, leaving David to fix her dress.
He walked down the stairs to the laundry room and threw the dress into the dryer. Selecting wrinkle release, he set the machine. He pulled up a chair and sat down, staring at the machine as it rumbled away the wrinkles.
He whispered to himself, "Whatever you want, Tessa. Whatever you want."