Rendezvous at Silver Lining

Sarah

What just happened?

Did he just blow me off?

After Raphael basically told me to go to hell, he left me standing in the elevator. I was too stunned, to say the least. I would have never believed this would be happening to me right now. Of course, I knew I wasn't the only woman, but all other women were usually one night stands and in the moment situations. With me, we've been at this for about as long as he began running the company. He hired me the moment he saw me. Yes, I'm smart, but it wasn't my intellect that got me this job, although I was using my head if you catch my drift. His father was weary of the choices he made when hiring new recruits, especially that w***e. He thought her to be too young and inexperienced for this type of work, to be hired right out of college. I, on the other hand, had been working in the corporate world for 3 years prior to working for Raphael. His father would constantly be on her case, trying to get her to quit. He would always force Raphael to give her some of the hardest executives and companies to manage. But time after time, she prevailed. Not only getting people to sign on and partner with Silver Lining, but they all raved and praised her for her work. By the end of the first year, his father was all peace and love concerning her. She moved up the ladder swiftly, and no one had a singular negative thing to say about her. People thought maybe she was sleeping her way to the top, but those thoughts always disappeared after many met with her. She wasn't… heinous to look at, but she definitely didn't have anything on me. I knew that from how Raphael would react around her and completely ignore her. I would hear stories about other company heads, co-workers, and wealthy men wanting her. It's like she was a magnet for men to want to pursue her. Then, here she comes, playing innocent, not ever acknowledging the looks and flirtatious remarks. I usually get rid of people I deem as a threat, but she wasn't one to me where Raphael was concerned. He never looked her way twice, and they barely interacted even though she had the most interactions with him because of her job. So I let her be. Do your work and leave. But today, I’m starting to think I missed something. The moment I saw the way he damn near stopped breathing when she walked in the building. The way he defended her earlier from the truth I was saying and how he jumped into his car to ignore confronting me. Has he truly just been hiding his feelings for her?

I huffed my way to my car and sat there seething. There's no way I'm gonna allow that b***h to steal my place. I've worked hard to secure my spot and needed to find a way to make sure I didn't lose it to her. After a few minutes a thought popped into my head. I pulled my phone out my purse and dialed Lauren's number. I knew if he was gonna take Divinity, then he would take her to Carrina's.

Phone call:

Lauren: Hello

Sarah: Hey girlie, I need a favor.

Lauren: Sure, wassup?

Sarah: You will not believe the day I'm having.Tell me how Raphael just told me I'm not going with him to the Blakfield’s charity event.

Lauren: WHAT!! How come? Who's he taking?

Sarah: He's taking this nobody named Divinity. I tried talking him out of it, but he refused to listen to reason. So now she's taking my place. It's gonna be a s**t show. That woman has no style and no decorum. There's no way she'll be able to maneuver effectively in such an environment. I don't know what she did or said to make him take her, but he's not changing his mind.”

I was f*****g pissed. I will not take this embarrassment lying down.

Lauren: Damn. I'm surprised. You always go with him… what is it you need from me then?

Sarah: I need you to destroy whatever dress she chooses tomorrow morning. I know he'll use the shop you work at tomorrow for that b***h, that's where he always took me. I can't stop him but maybe I can make sure she looks horrible. If what she wears is not appropriate or up to par with everyone else, Raphael will regret ever taking her and she'll become black balled from ever attending such an event like that again.

That b***h should have never crossed me.

Lauren: Hahah. Oohh, you bad, Sarah. You got it. I'll let you know when it's done.

Sarah: Ah, great! Thanks love. I'll talk to you tomorrow.

End of phone call.

I knew Lauren would be eager to help me. I met her years ago when I first started attending these charity events with Raphael. Lauren was a shop attendee who helped me with my clothes. I would spend a lot of time there and bought her some things as well. I would even invite some of my other friends, considering he would give me free reign to get whatever. He never complained so I continued to do it. I was looking forward to my end of the year splurge. There are several important events that happen throughout the year and I go to each of them. That b***h is cutting into my time and I don't appreciate it. After feeling satisfied with my plan, I decided to head home. I'll call Olivia tomorrow, she'll definitely be down for a little playtime. With that thought I headed home.

…

The next day

It was around 1:15pm and I received a call from Lauren. I smiled knowing what she was calling me about.

Phone call:

Sarah: Did you get it done?

Lauren: Yeah I did. I was caught but had to come up with a believable excuse.

Sarah: What? What happened?

Lauren: Debbie, the old witch, attended to her and her friends. I saw them when they came in. I followed behind them so they wouldn't notice me. I went in and out of the room to see what dress she would pick. Once she finally found her dress, Debbie handed it to me when I was walking by and told me to ring it up and pack it away foe a later delivery. I took the dress to the back and sat it on the counter. I couldn't figure out a way to ruin the dress, but then realized I needed to print out a receipt so it could be given to Mr.McCoy. The printer was low on ink and that became the perfect excuse. I accidentally, on purpose, poured black ink all over the dress. As soon as I was done, Debbie walked into the back and started throwing a hissy fit. I told her I was only changing the ink and tripped. The dress got ruined by accident. I put on the water works and everything. She told me I needed to take the dress to a shop to get it fixed or see if it could even be fixed. So that's what I'm doing now. They didn't have a backup dress picked out, this was the only dress she liked. Now, unless she's going to the ball naked, I doubt she'll be going.

I squealed in excitement.

Sarah: OH MY GOSH!!! Thanks so much Ren Ren. I soooo owe you a favor. Ok, I gotta go. I'll talk to you later. Bye.

End of phone call.

I was beyond happy. No one will upstage me. She should have turned him down. This is no one's fault but her own, she should've stayed in her place. I'll call Olivia in an hour or so. I need to get an outfit together just in case Raphael calls me. I sighed. I'm back on top and she's back to nothing, where she belongs.