A Foundation of Lies

First day back in the office. I was face down at my desk during lunch when the desk next to mine started rattling under a series of hard knocks.

I looked up. It was the firm's new architect, Flora Reeves.

"Lunch time ended five minutes ago. You're still asleep at your desk? Don't bother coming in tomorrow. You're fired!"

I told her I had just come back from a client meeting. I had been pulling all-nighters on the project for a week.

She looked at me like I was something on her shoe. "All you do is take clients out, drink with them, and scribble a few sketches.

"You don't even punch in. You're barely in the office. What gives you the right to nap at your desk during work hours?"

I almost laughed in her face!

I was the firm's chief architect. The bulk of the projects on Walsh & Co.'s books had my name on them.

The firm's success was, frankly, carried by me.

She saw me out of the office most days. She did not see me in another city, on another job site, talking down another client.

And in our industry, most of those clients had hired Walsh & Co. because of my name and reputation.

I kept my composure. "You're not in HR. On what authority are you firing me?"

She said, "On the authority that my husband is the president of this company."

I went still.

When did my boyfriend get married?

"I'm giving you exactly ten minutes. Pack your things and get the hell out of here!"

Flora Reeves's voice was sharp and pleased with itself.

I remained unfazed. "If you claim to be the boss's wife, show me some proof. Empty words mean nothing."

I was sure she was bluffing.

To my surprise, she actually pulled up a few photos on her phone and shoved the screen in my face.

In the pictures, my boyfriend, Louis Walsh, had his arm wrapped intimately around her waist. He was smiling tenderly, kissing her hair, his eyes brimming with absolute adoration.

"See that? Louis is my husband. We've been married for ages. What's left not to believe? If you know what's good for you, get out!"

My breathing hitched. I stared fixedly at those sickeningly intimate photos.

"That's impossible. He's been my boyfriend for ten years."

Flora burst into a fit of mocking laughter. "Look at your pathetic, shabby self. You actually delusionally think you could be his girlfriend? Keep dreaming!"

Drawn by the commotion, colleagues gathered around, their whispers rising and falling in waves.

"Who is that? I've never even seen her before."

"I think she's the lead architect who handled a few big projects a while back. No wonder she's got the nerve to go head-to-head with Flora."

"What lead architect? She probably just drank with clients and slept her way into those contracts. How does she have the gall to call herself the boss's girlfriend?"

"The boss and Flora have been practically