“Look. Her eyelids are fluttering. I think she’s coming to,” Kate murmured. “One problem solved. Now, to figure out how to solve the rest of it.”

“Did you know Marie was pregnant?” Mr. George whispered.

“News to me. In fact, this is the first I was made aware of it.” She groaned. “Okay, has housekeeping been called?”

“I think Janet is on it.” He exhaled, then sucked in a breath. “Try breathing through your mouth. It’s easier that way.”

“Poor Laney.” Kate’s voice was incredibly close and had me working harder at rousing myself.

As I grew more aware, I discovered my blouse was stuck to my skin. What had once been hot and damp had now turned into cold and wet. I inhaled deeply and gagged. “I smell.” I coughed a few times. “I smell a lot.”

Kate laid a hand on my arm. Her frown deepened. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea. I…” Then she hiccupped and I suspected she might cry.

Mr. George pulled her into his arms. “Oh, Kate. Ms. Jenner can’t possibly blame you for this. Right, Ms. Jenner?” He looked at me, his eyes wide and insistent.

I clicked my tongue. “Right. Not your fault.” At the moment, the fact that Kate was getting all the attention and comforting while I was covered in vomit was truly beginning to irritate me. “I’ll just get up all by myself. Don’t worry about me,” I grumbled, while I struggled to sit up. Everywhere I touched felt moist. And even though they had apparently attempted to clean around me while I was unconscious, they’d done a poor job of it. I lifted my hand from the commercial carpet to find a chunk of something soft and gooey on my palm. “Dear God,” I groaned. “I should’ve stayed unconscious.”

Moving in a pencil skirt was challenging enough. Now, I was trying to figure out how to stand without ripping it. After all, it’s not like I had other clothes laying around. I didn’t pack spare outfits in my purse. I tilted my head. From now on, I’d pack a tote. I’d have clothes and shower supplies. No way was I going to be caught unprepared again. Frustrated, I rolled onto my knees. They immediately sank into the smelly carpet. “I’m so sorry I took this job. Why would anyone put themselves through this? Oh, that stupid promotion they’ve been dangling in front of me like a carrot for the better part of six months,” I muttered under my breath. Then I pushed up on my hands, hoping I’d end up in a standing position.

“Oh, let me help you.” Mr. George moved closer, but I knew he was having hard time trying to figure out how to help, where to grab. My arms were holding me up and the highest part of me was my butt. “Um, Kate?”

“I’ll grab one arm, you get the other?” Her shoes whispered on the ugly brown carpet as she walked over to stand at my side.

“I’ve got this. I can do it,” I announced, confident they could hear the panic in my voice.

“Nonsense. We’re happy to help,” Mr. George responded. Then he reached for me.

Of course, in my warped mind, I had to do this. I couldn’t be beholden to anyone, couldn’t feel even the slightest sense of obligation. In this position, not the ‘only my knees on the carpet’ part, but the forensic accountant job…being indebted made us vulnerable. I had a reputation to protect. No one in the office was more thorough, more rigid, more equipped to handle this situation. So, I jerked away from him and toppled over, right into a puddle of bile. “I guess you didn’t have a chance to clean that yet,” I whimpered. I stared up at Kate.

She clapped a hand over her mouth. Her eyes watered with the effort to hold in the laugh. “I’m sorry,” Kate whispered. She shook her head. “You should see it from my perspective. Never mind.” She removed her hand and inhaled a few times. “Okay. I’m better now.”

Mr. George smiled warmly at her. “That’s my girl. God, I love you.”

A second later, Kate’s cheeks colored. “Stop. Let’s handle this.” She gestured to encompass the entire mess, but I couldn’t help but think I was the biggest problem she saw in the room.

“Maybe I’ll take a little help.” I closed my eyes. Admitting a weakness? My boss would be shocked.

“Good idea.” Mr. George nodded. “Kate, let’s each take a hand. Then we need to pull her back before we try to stand her up. The table is in the way.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that.” My eyes widened. I could feel the wet currently stopped in the middle of my back. If they dragged me, I’d be soaked. Skirt too. For some reason, however, they ignored my objection as if I’d never spoken. Kate grabbed my left hand as Mr. George snagged my right, even though I’d begun to wave it in an effort to get their attention. Suddenly, my arms were yanked over and behind my head. They were really going to lug me through the puke. “Wait!” I made one last ditch effort to halt their progress. Unfortunately, they only seemed to have eyes and ears for each other. A second later, I was towed through the disgusting wet mess under me. Then they hauled me to my feet.

“Nice job, Kate.” Mr. George stood in front of me, hand up, ready to high five Kate.

My head hung as I tried to process the extent of the situation. My butt felt wet. I’m pretty sure I was soaked all the way through to my super sensible cotton panties. I started to cover my face while I whimpered, but as my hands neared my face, I realized they reeked. Soon I was choking back puke and tears. Puke and tears. That would be the title of my memoirs, not that anyone would read them. I shook my head in utter dismay.

“What’s wrong, Ms. Jenner? You’re off the floor.” Mr. George frowned and looked over my head to speak to his wife.

“Oh, my Lord.” She sighed so hard, I felt it on my back. “She’s soaked. Completely covered in it.” Kate sounded more annoyed than sympathetic. “Think, Kate.” She walked around to my side and began to pace. I’d seen her do this many times before. This reaction almost made me feel better. In a matter of seconds, she’d have some brilliant brainstorm, save the day, and earn more compliments from Mr. George. “We’ll get her clothes from the shop downstairs. I can have them sent up in a matter of minutes. She can use the employee locker room to shower and change. We’ll send her clothes out for cleaning.” Kate threw her hands in the air and beamed.

I frowned, since I’d now have to burst her bubble. “I can’t let you buy me anything. And chances are, I couldn’t afford anything from the boutique.” I sighed. “You are talking about the boutique I passed, right?”

Kate nodded. “Yes, but why not? Your clothes are essentially ruined. You don’t want to smell like that, or ride like that, or pretty much leave the room like that.” She pointed at my soiled clothes. Then she walked closer. “God, it’s even in your hair.” She reached for a tissue from the table and positioned herself to pull the offending remnants from my hair.

I held my hands up to stop her. “I can do it.” With a frown, I reached for the tissue. “If you point me toward a mirror.”

“I have one in my purse, down the hall. I can go get it.” Her hands were on her hips now, a telling sign of her displeasure.

“I’ll get your purse, Kate. You two need to figure this out.” Mr. George gave her a quick peck on the cheek and then slipped out the conference room door.

“You can pay us back if you don’t want us gifting it to you. It’s not like I’m trying to make you feel like you have to give me a break if we treat you with respect.” She sighed. “You hate me for some reason. I have no idea why.”

I opened my mouth, but before I could object or explain, Mr. George had returned. He held her compact out to me. “Thank you,” I murmured glumly. Armed with a mirror, I worked to get Marie’s stomach contents out of my hair.

“Okay. Nothing that costs anything.” Kate pursed her lips and swished them from one side of her face to the other. Her nose was twitching like in Bewitched. Mr. George watched her with rapt fascination. Who could blame him? She was adorable. Even I could admit it. “Aha! I’ll be right back.” Then she dashed from the room while I waited uncomfortably with her husband.

“I’m sure she’ll be right back. Don’t worry. Kate will fix everything. She’s absolutely amazing.” He grinned and I could see the love positively shining from his eyes.

“Yeah. I’m sure she is.” I struggled to hold up my end of the conversation.

In a flash, she returned with a dry-cleaning bag and a small paper bag. “These are from the lost and found. They’ve been cleaned. They have all been here at least six months. So, free and you don’t have to return them.” Kate smiled triumphantly. “Now let me show you to the showers.”

Yeah, she was brilliant. There was no way I could find fault with her solution, which was why I trudged behind her on the way to the locker room.