Claire walked over to a chair in the seating area. She was far enough away to give Jason some privacy but close enough to offer assistance if needed. After several phone calls, Jason seemed to reach the person in charge at Lynwood. He put his hand over the phone and asked, “Claire, could you possibly look in my briefcase over next to our luggage and see if you can locate the files on Lynwood?” Claire walked towards the bedroom and located Jason’s briefcase. Claire put it on the edge of the bed and pulled out a stack of folders looking for anything on Lynwood.
She pulled out two folders and continued to thumb through the remainder when a name caught her eye. Confused, Claire wondered why Jason would have a file on her in his briefcase. Her curiosity getting the better of her, Claire opened the folder and stared at the contents in shock, unable to grasp what she was seeing. She thumbed through copies of her loan application from Danvers as well as a copy of the check issued to her.
A note was attached to the check copy, ‘Mr. Danvers; per your instructions, I wanted to advise you that Claire Walters did apply for a loan of five thousand dollars today. As per your directive, the loan was approved immediately, and the funds made available the next day. Ms. Walters inquired about repayment of the loan and I was able to convince her that her payments were deferred for six months due to a special promotion. These funds were issued from your personal account as requested.' On the next page, Claire found an email from Pam at Partiez Plus. Almost unable to process any further information, Claire made herself read the email.
‘Dear Mr. Danvers, It was a pleasure and somewhat of a surprise to hear from you concerning an employee. I was never informed that Claire was under contract to Danvers and that the contract precluded outside employment of our specific specialty. Claire is a valued member of our staff, and as such it is with great regret that I’ll need to replace her. I do, however, understand and commend your need to protect the employment and benefits of a key employee. I will as you requested keep this matter confidential and will notify Claire of my intentions to fill her position. I can’t thank you enough for recommending Partiez Plus to Mr. and Mrs. Smythe; their business will be invaluable. Please let me know if I can be of any further assistance.’
Claire was numb, her mind desperately looking for another explanation for what she’d read. Jason was behind the scenes of her life directing it like a play. Her turn of good fortune was not actually fortune at all; it was Jason pulling the strings, taking over and making her into someone whom he deemed acceptable. The sense of betrayal on so many levels was overwhelming. At the center was Jason. Leslie the creditor of course owed her loyalty to Jason and even though ethically it was wrong, she probably felt as if she were doing Claire a favor.
Pam in her estimation was as guilty as Jason. She’d basically sold out to him for his contacts. After the years of working for her and what she thought was a friendship between them, Pam had betrayed her confidence and privacy by discussing her employment with Jason. It was obvious from her email that she’d no intention of using Claire any longer despite her assurance that she would have the opportunity to work future parties.
What other problems had Jason decided to solve for her? Were her mother and Louise now on their way to live in Florida with his aunt Ella? Would she come home to a new house herself? Surely, someone living in an apartment wasn’t good enough for the mighty Jason Danvers to sleep with. Well, that was no longer something he would have to worry about. She was finished with Jason and finished with Danvers. Word had probably already spread there by now that she was Jason’s kept woman.
“Claire, what’s keeping you? Did you find the file?” asked Jason from the next room. Rage burned through her causing her hands to shake as she gripped the file. Claire stalked back in the sitting area and smacked the folder with her name on it down in front of him.
Jason gave her a questioning look at the abrupt gesture. He balanced the telephone on his shoulder as he opened the file, not noticing the name on the front. Claire recognized the exact moment when he became aware of what he was looking at. His speech stopped mid-sentence, and he closed his eyes briefly as if in resignation. With a brief, “I’ll have to call you back,” spoken in the cell phone, Jason disconnected the call and turned to face her.
She waited for Jason to defend himself, to say anything, but he continued to sit and study her, seeming to be waiting for her to say something. “Well, surely you have something to say?” snapped Claire. “You have plenty to say to everyone else concerning me so why not to me in person?”
“Claire, you’re upset, let’s leave this until you’re feeling rational enough to listen to reason.”
The tone of his voice, as if he were humoring a child, infuriated her further. “I want you to explain what the hell you thought you were doing invading my privacy and taking over my life.”
“If we must do this now while I’m in the middle of a major problem, at least sit down so that we may discuss this like adults.”