He guided me through the ballroom, weaving between tables of guests.
"Director Lambert, this is my wife, Gay Fox."
"Well, well! Attorney Mason really does have it all—career and love." George Lambert smiled broadly.
"Too kind, sir. I owe it all to your mentorship."
Once the pleasantries were done, we drifted to a table near the edge of the room.
Mary Pruitt was sitting there.
She wore a white strapless dress tonight, looking every bit the fresh-faced college graduate—pure and innocent.
When she spotted Brad, her eyes lit up.
"Mr. Mason!"
Then she noticed me. Her smile dimmed a fraction.
"Mrs. Mason, hello."
I looked at her.
So this was the girl he'd blown three hundred thousand dollars bailing out.
This was the girl who'd been handing him "pink tickets."
I gave a polite nod.
"Hi. I heard you got your full-time offer. Congratulations."
"Thank you, Mrs. Mason." Mary's voice was syrupy sweet. "Mr. Mason is so strict with me at work. I only made it because he pushed me so hard."
"Is that so?" I smiled. "He's pretty strict with me, too. Always docking points and fining me."
Brad's expression shifted. He nudged me with his elbow.
"Gay. Watch the jokes. Wrong audience."
Mary covered her mouth and giggled. "Mrs. Mason is so funny. Mr. Mason is the gentlest person I know. He'd never fine anyone."
Gentle.
I looked at Brad.
The way he looked at Mary—there was genuine tenderness in his eyes.
The kind of tenderness I hadn't seen once in three years.
"If everyone could quiet down, please."
Director Lambert's voice cut through the ballroom speakers.
"Tonight is our firm's annual gala. And it is also the occasion to announce an important personnel appointment."
The room fell silent.
"Following a unanimous vote by the partners, Attorney Brad Mason is officially promoted to Senior Partner of this firm!"
Applause erupted.
Brad straightened his suit jacket, face glowing, and strode up to the stage.
He took the microphone.
"Thank you to the firm for this trust, and to all my colleagues for your support."
He launched into the speech he'd been rehearsing for weeks.
Ideals. Justice. Responsibility. The spirit of contracts.
"I have always believed that in both work and life, rules and contracts are the cornerstone of order."
"I've carried that same philosophy into my family. My wife and I have always operated our marriage on principles of rationality and transparency..."
He spoke with easy confidence on that stage.
I sat below, slipping the USB drive out of my clutch.
I walked toward the AV booth.
The tech guy running the sound was scrolling through his phone.
"Excuse me." I tapped the table. "I'm Attorney Mason's wife. He asked me to load this slideshow to go with his speech."
The kid glanced at my polished, elegant outfit and didn't question it.
"Sure thing, ma'am."
He took the USB drive and plugged it into the laptop.
"Which file?"
"The only slideshow on there."
Double-click.
The firm's logo vanished from the massive screen.
In its place, bold black letters filled every inch of the display:
BRAD MASON: A THREE-YEAR MARRIAGE PERFORMANCE REVIEW
