Chapter Four

Tally was so surprised she didn’t answer straight away.

“Tally?” Ryan’s tone held concern.

“Yes, yes.” She would not start discussing her personal life with her boss.

Frowning at her, Ryan turned his attention to the file in his hand. Looking through it, he checked the facts and said, “It looks in order, thanks Tally.” Dismissing her.

“Is that it?” She blurted out, surprised. She had expected a bigger reaction from him. Like yelling at her, which he had done before. Granted, those times had been rare. She wouldn’t have stayed in the job if he was awful.

Sighing, Ryan put the file down. Before rounding his desk and leaning back on it, facing her. “Tally, something is obviously going on with you right now and if you don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine, but I don’t kick someone when they are down. I just want to let you know you can talk to me.” Raising an eyebrow at her as if encouraging her to open up and letting her know he was aware something was going on with her. 

Did he truly expect her to discuss this with him? Angry because he now wanted to talk about something personal, Ryan wasn’t interested in anyone’s personal life at work. He was a stickler for keeping his distance from his employees and their personal lives. She found it surprising that he made it a point to attend the Christmas party every year.

“Ryan, I had told you I’m fine and I’m sorry for leaving the file at home, but honestly, when have you ever been interested in my personal life?” She raised her eyebrow at him in return, almost daring him to deny her charge. Before turning on her heels and leaving his office.

Ryan scowled as he watched her walk away. Her spine was stiff. She wasn’t just upset, but pissed as well. It’s what had stopped him from putting a reassuring arm on her shoulder. She wouldn’t have been comfortable with him doing it, and maybe it would have started her crying again.

She had done a good job of fixing her makeup, but there was no mistaking the fact the Tally had been crying. Ryan kept his distance from the staff because of the trouble it had unwittingly brought him in the past. Including his own secretaries. If he had a wall between him and his staff, then he wasn’t treating the women differently to the men and the women didn’t get the wrong idea. It hadn’t been an issue with Tally. For one thing, she was engaged. Plus, Ryan had heard her call him an asshole on more than one occasion. Tally wasn’t falling over herself to get into his bed. Ryan thought with a self-mocking smile.

Tally sat down behind her desk. She felt the suffocating weight of her crumbling personal life. The files on her desk blurred before her eyes, the words becoming a jumbled mess of meaningless symbols. Tally’s hands trembled as she reached for the papers, struggling to maintain composure amidst the chaos that had suddenly infiltrated her world.

She could feel her heart pounding in her chest, the blood rushing to her head, and her fingertips tingling with the intensity of her emotions. The vibrating phone seemed to amplify her rage, making her hands tremble ever so slightly. Lifting her vibrating phone to see Blake calling yet again. She was so mad she answered the call without thinking. “What?” She asked shortly.

“Tally, thank god you answered. Listen, what you saw it wasn’t what you think...” Blake said.

“What do you mean, Blake? It looked pretty obvious to me.” As she listened to Blake’s feeble attempt to explain, her brows furrowed and her jaw clenched tightly. The anger that consumed her was so palpable that even her voice carried a coldness she didn’t recognize as her own. It was as if a glacier had formed around her, shielding her vulnerable heart from further pain. She was mad, spitting mad. If he was standing in front of her this instant, she was sure she would kick him in the nuts.

Catching movement out of the corner of her eye, Tally turned her head to see Ryan watching her from the doorway of their connecting offices. 

“Well, it’s not what you think!” Blake said in her ear.

“I don’t think you understand what I think honestly, and I’m at work. I can’t talk about this right now.” Cat couldn’t believe how unemotional she sounded.

“I want you to come home right now so we can talk about it, Tally.” Blake’s desperate attempts to salvage their relationship only fueled the fire within Tally. How dare he try to make demands of her? The audacity! She couldn’t help but feel a twisted sense of satisfaction, knowing that she held the power now. Blake’s betrayal had stripped away any rights he once had over her.

Despite her mind being clouded with a whirlwind of emotions, she reiterated, “I’m at work,” her voice steady and firm. Tally couldn’t help but wonder if Blake truly understood the gravity of his actions. Did he comprehend the depth of the pain he had inflicted upon her? The shattered trust that could never be repaired?

Blake growled. “Is your fucking job more important than us?” 

When Blake’s words took a darker turn, Tally momentarily forgot about the presence of Ryan, who had been silently observing the one-sided drama unfolding from the doorway. Questioning the importance of her job compared to their relationship, Tally was taken aback. Her widened eyes reflected a mixture of shock and disbelief. Was he truly implying that her dedication to her career was somehow a betrayal?

At that moment, Tally’s anger reached its peak. She pulled the phone away from her ear, staring at it as if it were a symbol of all the lies and deceit that had tainted their relationship. The weight of her realization settled upon her shoulders. Blake’s infidelity was a clear indication that their bond had been severed, irreparably broken.

“Blake, now isn’t a good time.” Looking towards Ryan again. That hadn’t been what she wanted to say. But her upbringing didn’t allow her to air her dirty laundry in public.

“Why? Because your boss is listening? I don’t give a ……” Tally wasn’t sure what he was about to say as she pulled the phone away from her ear again and hung up. Asshole cheating men would no longer define her worth or happiness.

“I’m sorry Ryan, did you need something?” Tally couldn’t believe how she was holding it together. Her whole life had fallen apart in one hour and here she was calmly sitting at her desk. When all she really wanted to do was curl into a ball and cry her heart out. Eat a bucket or two of ice cream. But growing up with her father had taught her to have a stiff upper lip and not show how she was truly feeling to others outside. What happens behind closed doors stays there. 

“Do you need to leave?” Ryan questioned kindly.  

“No, why would I? We have the meeting this afternoon, after all.” She said before turning back to her computer to finish off the emails and reports Ryan had requested this morning.

She could feel Ryan watching her for a minute or so before turning and heading back into his office. Sighing in relief. Tally looked down at the ring on her left hand. Her engagement ring. It was modest, simple, but beautiful.

Pulling it off, Tally opened her top drawer and threw it in, slamming it shut.