None of that fit on a flash drive.
Gregory studied me for another few seconds.
Then he tried a different approach.
“You’ve done good work here, Adrienne.”
Yesterday, apparently, that good work had been worth half my salary.
“Thank you.”
“This company has given you a lot of opportunities.”
There it was.
The debt he thought I owed forever.
I nodded.
“And I’ve given this company eight years.”
His expression hardened again.
I left before he could rewrite our history any further.
That afternoon, Victoria sent the final partnership documents.
I reviewed them carefully.
Then I signed.
The following Monday morning, I walked into Gregory’s office carrying a plain envelope.
He looked at it before he looked at me.
“What’s that?”
“My resignation.”
For once, Gregory Dalton had no immediate response.
I placed the envelope on his desk.
His eyes moved from it to my face.
“You’re serious.”
“Yes.”
He picked up the letter and scanned it too quickly to absorb more than the first few lines.
“Where are you going?”
I had expected the question.
“Hayes Strategic.”
His face changed.
Not dramatically.
Gregory was too practiced for that.
But the color around his mouth disappeared.
“Victoria Hayes?”
“Yes.”
His hand tightened around the page.
“They’re a competitor.”
“I’m aware.”
“What position?”
I held his gaze.
“Partner.”
The silence that followed was very different from the silence during my review.
That day, he had controlled the paper between us.
Now he was holding mine.
“You can’t just walk into a competitor and take our business with you,” he said.
“I’m not taking anything that belongs to Dalton and Pierce.”
“You think clients won’t follow you?”
“I haven’t asked them to.”
That was true.
Gregory leaned back, but this time the chair no longer looked like a throne.
“This is what yesterday was about?”
“No.
Yesterday made my decision easier.
Victoria contacted me before the review.”
The distinction hit him.
He hadn’t caused another firm to notice me.
