“No. It’s me telling you you’re not as good as you think you are. But you could be great. Someday. And you won’t be great if you believe all the buzz around you. If your name had been Lorna Kapinski and you weren’t quite so photogenic, I doubt you’d be getting all this attention. I, on the other hand, picked you for your potential as an architect. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“I’m taking this as a no,” Arwen said. “Thank you for your time, Juliet.”

“Thank you for your offer.”

With that, Juliet slid off the stool, pushed her hair behind her ears, and grabbed her bag. “Good luck, Arwen.”

Arwen wasn’t at work the next day, and her office was empty. Kathy, too, was gone, not so much as an e-mail of goodbye after all this time. That hurt, since Juliet thought they’d been friends. But Barb Frost hadn’t raised any fools. Juliet had always been wary of Kathy.

Meanwhile, the rumor mill was churning out stories, and Edward and Dave were in a huddle in Edward’s office. Juliet closed her door and did her work.

It was no surprise when Dave and Edward called her into the conference room at five.

“Juliet!” Dave said as if he hadn’t seen her seventeen times today. “You look amazing! That week off did you some good, did it?”

“One day, Dave. One day off. And yes, it did.”

Edward was staring at his iPad. “Let’s get to it, shall we? We’d like to make you a partner, Juliet. Your excellent contributions here have not gone unnoticed or unappreciated.”

“So true! We’re a meritocracy, and you have merit, all right,” Dave chuckled.

She listened as the men wooed her with phrases like percentage of profits, principal ownership, staff management, increased vacation time. When they were done, she folded her hands neatly in front of her.

“Arwen turned you down, I take it?”

The men exchanged glances. “Uh . . . well, she’s decided to pursue other opportunities,” Dave said.

“I know. She asked me to join her firm.” They flinched in unison.

“Well, we know you’re a team player, Juliet,” Dave said. “Loyal. We gave you your start, after all.”

“When I got my license, I had offers from nine firms, Dave,” she said.

“But you came here, and I think we’ve treated you very well.”

She could do it. Sure, they offered Arwen the spot first, but business was business, and Juliet wouldn’t take it personally.

It was the recent memory of the two of them lecturing her in her own home just a few days ago that did them in.

“No thanks,” she said. “I hereby tender my resignation. All the best to you, gentlemen.”

She called Oliver from the car, and he congratulated her and said they’d talk more when she got home, but he was very proud.