Chapter 47 Things went back to normal-ish. There was a simmering tension in the background. A cold war at Nox Salvatore tried not to bring home, but it was impossible not to see the way the dawning of the end of his decade-long friendship was affecting him. I took care of him the best I could, listened when he wanted to talk, but there was only so much I could do, especially when Sam was still walking around Nox like he'd done nothing wrong. I'd been to Nox twice since Sam had sent the fake email. Both times, I'd made sure to seek him out so he could see my face and acknowledge he had not won. I didn't say a word, but I didn't have to. My presence said it all. As always, Sam could fuck right off. As soon as Salvatore's lawyers drew up airtight language Sam couldn't wiggle out of, he'd be out of here. To me, it was taking far too long for that to happen, but I'd never gone to law school, so who was I to judge? I bustled into the Nox conference room, my arms full. Salvatore jumped up from his seat to help me, but I shook my head. "I have everything perfectly balanced. If you move anything, it will all come tumbling down." He frowned. "Your system seems to rely too heavily on gravity cooperating with you." "No way. I am an expert stacker-a skill honed by years of waitressing. You can't just walk off the street and expect to carry five plates without breaking a sweat." He crowded behind me as I carefully set everything down. As soon as the last bag left my hand, he took me by the shoulder and spun me around. His mouth was on mine before I could catch my breath, but my body was so attuned to his, I instantly melted and kissed him back. We were being highly inappropriate, considering we were in his workplace-and technically mine-but he was the boss. Who was going to tell him he wasn't allowed to kiss his girlfriend in his own conference room? A throat cleared behind us. "Excuse me?" Salvatore's grip on my waist tightened. Slowly, unhappily, he lifted his head. Paul was standing in the doorway, shifting uncomfortably as he looked anywhere but at us. "Oh, hey, Paul," I chirped, refusing to be embarrassed even though we'd totally been making out in plain view of the open doorway. It wasn't the first time. "Hello, Bea." He cleared his throat again. "Sorry, Tore, but there's something I need to speak to you about, and I don't believe it should wait. It's about Sam." Salvatore jerked against me. The movement was subtle, but being so close, I felt it. Paul gave a quick glance in my direction. "I can come back-" "No," Salvatore finally said. "It's fine. Say it now." Paul's throat bobbed as he swallowed hard. "Right. Uh...well...this is something I wasn't sure I should bring to you, but I've thought about it for a few days, and it's...not sitting right with me. I don't know if you're aware, but most of the office managers in the tech world have something of an information-sharing network. I have a friend at Astrillex-" Salvatore stiffened, the fingers on my waist flexing. I peered up at him, unsure where Paul was going with this, or why Salvatore had reacted that way. He turned his head to look down at me. "Astrillex is a tech firm in LA. We were acquaintances when we lived out there, and-" Salvatore's lips rolled over his teeth as he measured his words. "They're loud and flashy and like to brag about their culture while acquiring smaller companies and gutting every original founder in sight. I was not a fan, but Sam was friendly with them." Paul nodded. "Right. That's exactly right. They're a pack of vultures." Grimacing, Paul yanked his vest zipper up to his throat. "Anyway, my friend Jenna called me last week for a reference on a former intern. Normal, casual talk, you know. Then she mentioned she had seen Sam last week when he'd gone to their office. She hadn't thought anything of it, except she overheard him telling their CEO he'd be able to bring over samples of our threat-mapping framework to show how it could be improved. Called it a 'case study.'" I wish I understood what Paul was saying, but even as a layperson, it didn't sound good. Salvatore's fingers dug into my side, just shy of pain. I put my hand over his and threaded our fingers, giving him something else to grasp. Paul hesitated before adding, "She asked if that was normal for Nox. Obviously, it's not." "No, it's not," Salvatore ground out. Paul's face turned ashen. "I'm sorry, but that's not all." "Christ," Salvatore muttered. "What else has he done?" Paul took a breath and pulled out his phone. "Last month, someone inadvertently added me to a private Slack channel. Honestly, I didn't think much of it, but one day, I was curious and scrolled. Nothing really caught my attention. Just a few mid-level devs discussing current projects, then Sam joined, and it turned into something else." He turned the screen toward us, and Salvatore's name was in bold at the top of a message. Most of what I read went way over my head, but a few things jumped out. Someone had said, 'I've noticed he can get stuck in loops and delay approvals for weeks.' And Sam had replied, 'We need someone who can move fast, adapt, see the bigger picture.' Paul's voice was quiet. "Sam started this conversation, framing it as company growth. I read between the lines, and...I think he's trying to get the devs on board to replace you." Salvatore still didn't move. "I apologize if I'm overstepping," Paul said, sliding his phone back into his pocket. "But I thought you should see it before things go further. I didn't want to assume anything. I just-" "Thank you, Paul," Salvatore said, his voice tight, restrained. "I appreciate you coming to me. You did the right thing." "Of course." Paul yanked his zipper down to his chest. "Is there anything else I can do?" Salvatore glanced at me then at the table covered in my catering supplies. "Would it ruin your day if I canceled the meeting?" he asked. "Do what you need to do," I replied. He nodded then looked at Paul. "Team meeting is canceled. We'll reschedule for later in the week. Bea will put out snacks in the break room before she leaves. Please let everyone know." "You've got it, boss." Paul hesitated at the door. "For what it's worth, the Slack channel represents a very small portion of your developers. I keep my finger on the pulse here and an ear out for what people are saying. As a whole, most people feel they're part of something revolutionary at Nox and that you're taking us in the right direction." "Thank you," Salvatore replied blandly. Paul nodded once and backed out of the room. Silence fell like a heavy blanket. I waited, and not just because I didn't know what to say. I was giving Salvatore time to process and get a handle on what Paul had just told him. He had to be overloaded, and I wasn't going to add to that weight. He stood perfectly still for a few heartbeats then pulled his hand from mine and walked over to the table where I should have been setting up my spread. Bracing his hands on the edge of the table, he bowed his head and exhaled a breath that sounded like it'd scraped his lungs raw. I gave him another minute. When he didn't speak, I crossed the room, curling my arms around his middle and resting my cheek against his back. His muscles vibrated with tension, but little by little, some of it eased. "Tell me," I whispered, stroking up and down his torso in a slow-motion rhythm. "He went to Astrillex and pitched to them like he was a free agent." His hand covered mine, warm and solid. "He offered to show them a glimpse of our internal threat-mapping models. Bea, this is proprietary work we have spent years refining. It's work we've never published or shared." I felt his pain more than I understood the specifics, but I knew enough to know in Salvatore's world, trust was everything. It had to be, with how sensitive the data they protected was. And Sam had stomped all over that trust like it was nothing. Fuck right off, Sam. "He's never made wanting more a secret. More control, more credit, more visibility. Over the years, I've handed him pieces of what I built because I thought...I thought we were a team and always would be." He straightened and turned toward me. When his eyes met mine, I saw it. The same mix of anger and grief he'd been carrying the past few weeks. But now, it was slashed with an ugly streak of betrayal. "I've known for a while he wasn't going to stay if I didn't agree to take Nox public. But this...he wasn't just trying to leave," he said quietly. "He tried to take people with him. He has been planting seeds of dissent among the developers. And I missed it, Beatrice. I did not see what was happening right in front of me. Until very recently, I never questioned his motives. Not when he second-guessed my decisions, not when he contradicted me in front of the board, not when he continued to make connections with companies we should have had nothing to do with." He dragged a hand through his hair. "I feel like an idiot." "You're not an idiot." I pressed my palm to his chest. "There's nothing stupid about believing your oldest friend will have your back. That's how most people work. Sam's the idiot for trashing your loyalty." His throat worked, but no sound came out. I rested my head against him and held him tight. "It's not just about the company," he murmured. "It's the language he was using to describe me. He took my inherent traits and turned them against me. And I think...he's always done that." I pulled back just enough to look up at him. "He'd say things like, 'You know you're not good with people, let me handle the communication.' Or tell me I fixated too much on the details so he'd make the final call. The truth is, I'm good at what I do because I fixate. Details are vital in my line of work." He blinked hard. "But...I let him. I let him convince me I couldn't run this on my own because my mind works differently than most-that he was the reason we were taken seriously. Without him, I'd stall or get lost in the weeds or become...unmanageable." "Sal..." Sam could really, truly fuck right off. Like, right now. Expediently. He looked down at me, his expression hollow. "The worst part is, I didn't even notice it until recently. His little nudges were so insidious, deliberately steering me into doubting myself. I handed over pieces of my authority, thinking it was my idea." My stomach twisted. If Sam had ever been a true friend to Salvatore-which I really fucking doubted-he wasn't anything close to one anymore. I was no psychiatrist, but I was pretty sure Sam was an actual sociopath. "I hate him, Sal." I knocked my forehead against his chest. "You are so damn perfect and loved. I've seen the way your employees look at you. They practically bow. Sam has to see that. No one admires him the way they do you. That has to eat at him. And it must kill him having to ride your coattails because he isn't smart enough to come up with his own ideas. He probably stays awake at night, all alone in his bed, thinking about your beautiful family and gorgeous girlfriend who's totally bananas for you." Worked up, I kept on rolling. "Sam is a manipulator. In the brief interactions we've had, I've gotten to see how he works, and it's ugly. He found you when you were insecure and tried to mold you into his little robot as if you weren't a fully formed human already. He changed your name, Salvatore. He tried to rewrite you." I tugged on his shirt. "That's insane. This man never wanted the world to see you. He wanted them to see a version he thought he could control." He nodded heavily. "You're right. He caught me when I was low. When I wanted to believe someone understood me without judgment. It took a long time for me to see how much I was shaving off to make him comfortable." My heart cracked wide open. Salvatore Gallo was as perfect as any human being could be. To think his closest friend had him convinced there was something about him that needed to change made me sick. "Don't waste another second on that man." I slid my hands up to his jaw and held his face. "You are Nox. This is your brainchild. You built it into what it is. Sam made you doubt your voice, but I've heard it. It's the clearest, strongest voice I know." His eyes closed, and a tremor passed through him. "I see you," I said so fiercely his eyes shot open. "All of you. Salvatore. Tore. However you want to be known, whatever name you carry, I see you. I'm not going anywhere. I will stand with you, whatever you decide to do. If you need to rebuild from scratch, I'll be here with you." He lowered his head on top of mine, heaving a breath that came from his soul. "I wish I could have found you sooner," he murmured. "We found each other when it was time." I pressed my cheek over his thudding heart. "I love you." "I believe that. And I love you very much, Beatrice." "Yeah, you do." I tipped my face back. "Now, what are we going to do about Sam? I'd really like to tell him to fuck right off." He huffed a short laugh. "I appreciate the sentiment, but I'll handle it. My lawyers already have the clauses drafted. I was trying to give him a chance to walk away clean, but that's over now." "Good," I whispered. "He's not just a liability to Nox, he's a traitor, and I want him out of your life." He nodded, resolute. "He will be. Starting today." I didn't doubt he would make it happen. Not for one second. Discover our latest featured short drama reel. Watch now and enjoy the story!