CHAPTER 5
JOE
I was damn near suffocating in this suit. Last night I’d dug it out—along with a few others—from a box from the back of my spare room. Then I’d rushed over to a twenty-four-hour dry-cleaner. I’d also shaved. I’d made an attempt to tame my unruly hair. I’d done everything Doug would have wanted me to do. I’d shown up on time. I’d shown up with a smile on my face and a spring in my step. I could make small talk with any fool.
But could I be charming with Lana?
I couldn’t quite manage it. She brought out a weird side to my personality. I couldn’t be fake with her. I couldn’t pretend that it wasn’t torture for me to be here.
But I had to give her credit where credit was due. When she spoke, I could focus.
I could stay in the moment with her.
Most people in this world are so fucking boring. I can’t keep up with conversions and ignore half of what everyone says.
I flirt and joke constantly because any other kind of human communication makes me want to bang my head against the wall. It’s what keeps me sane. If the conversation is too boring, I always change it, bend it to my will, and make things more interesting.
Working as a barista had been a good match for my ADHD. It was fast paced, with tasks easy enough to focus on, no real responsibility, and a constant revolving door of different personalities. My mind could race right along with the racing environment.
But an office environment?
Shoot me in the head please.
But surprisingly, I didn’t hate the one-on-one time with Lana. I guess I liked that she didn’t bother with useless small talk. She didn’t ask me questions, trying to pointlessly get to know me.
She got straight to the point. And as long as I was focused, tell me anything once, and I’d remember it perfectly.
I remembered everything Lana had said today.
Shadow her for a couple of weeks? Hell, I was certain I could shadow her for less than one week and easily take on the Vice President role she wanted to give me. I was versatile like that. A challenge always initially excited me, but I had a reoccurring pattern where I lost interest. I wondered how many days it would take before that happened here.
It surprised me when five o’clock came sooner than expected. “That’s enough for today,” Lana said, at five on the dot, closing her laptop. “Tomorrow, like I told you before, I’m seeing a few potential sites for our newest location up in Tacoma, Washington. I’d like you to go with me. It will just be for one night.”
I let out a breath. One day in and this job was already cramping my lifestyle. “Okay,” I answered because I didn’t have any other choice.
“We can drive separate or together, whichever you’d like.”
“I don’t have a car, so it will have to be together.”
“Oh. Okay.” She sucked in a deep breath. Did driving together make her nervous? Did a woman like Lana even have nerves? “So, let’s meet at the office and we’ll leave first thing tomorrow. If things go quickly enough in Tacoma, then we might not have to stay the night.”
I nodded. That sounded reasonable. I said goodbye and left her office, and quickly set off toward the elevators.
I’d survived my first day. I’d planted three different microphones in Lana’s office at various spots. That way Doug could always be listening, like the sick little maggot he was, and as I left Lana behind in her office, my conscious tried to rear its head. I felt a little sick to my stomach about spying on her. I had no idea what Doug’s grudge against her was, or why he was determined to destroy her. What could she have possibly done to have warranted this kind of attention from a man like Doug?
I decided I’d continue to do Doug’s dirty work for him, I had no choice about that, but at the same time, I would also figure out what Doug’s true intentions were.
I rode the bus home. I started peeling off layers as soon as the door closed behind me. My younger sister, Kitty, was home—good—asleep, tangled in blankets, and snoring on the couch. She’d been living on my couch for nearly a year now. Which was fine with me. At least it wasn’t the streets.
“Kitty.” I hovered over her and loosened my tie before yanking it off. “Kitty,” I repeated, then flung the tie aside.
She moaned. The smell of vodka hit my nostrils as she flipped over onto her back.
“Jesus, Kitty. You’re drunk?”
My stomach dropped. She’d been sober for the last two months. She’d been going to the meetings with me. She’d been making progress. What had happened today in the nine hours I’d been at work?
Her blue eyes blinked open.
They were bloodshot with black makeup smeared all around them. It looked as if she’d been crying, too.
I dropped to my knees. “Kitty,” I said softly. “What happened?”
“Mark broke up with me,” she sniffled, rubbing her nose on the blanket. “Like I meant absolutely nothing to him. He called and ended it this morning. Where were you?”
“I told you. I’m settling things with Doug Maddox once and for all.”
“Is that why you’re dressed like an asshole?”
I smiled. “That’s why I’m dressed like an asshole.”
Kitty returned my smile, briefly, before she rolled over and vomited straight onto my shoes. I jumped back, cursing, because I’d just bought these shoes yesterday. I’d saved a few suits from before, but I hadn’t saved any suitable shoes. I’d have to hope I could throw these ones into the washing machine tonight and they’d turn out decent.
The rest of my evening was spent tending to Kitty. She was even worse off than I’d initially thought. What was it with her and jackass boyfriends? How could she let every bullshit-talking guy who came along right into her heart? It would be one thing if a broken heart was all that followed one of her break-ups, but it never was. Each time she’d binge, mostly on alcohol, but I could tell there was more in her system this time.
By nine, I was freaking the hell out. I was scared shitless about going to Tacoma tomorrow. I couldn’t just leave Kitty for a whole day, possibly two, in her current state. What if she intentionally hurt herself?
But Doug would have my head on a stake if I called out of work on my second day.
I sat down on my bed in my room with my phone clutched in my hand. Lana had given me her contact information earlier today. She’d made it clear that I could call her whenever if it was work related. This wasn’t exactly work related, but dammit, I had to do something. And the one good thing I had working in my favor right now was that Doug wasn’t listening on the other side of a microphone.
I dialed Lana’s number.
I sat there with my heart thumping in my ears as I listened to it ring, waiting on her to answer. After the fourth ring, she picked up.
“Lana Bitterman,” she answered, sounding like an automated answering machine.
“It’s Joe Coffee,” I said, getting straight to the point, breathing heavily. Damn, what was I even doing?
“Is everything okay, Joe? It’s late.”
“It’s not that late. Um, so about tomorrow, something’s come up.”
“Oh. Okay.” I think, if I wasn’t mistaken, there was a hint of disappointment in her voice.
“I’m not canceling,” I explained before she jumped to that conclusion. “I’m calling to ask if it would be alright if my little sister tagged along with us on this trip. She’s an adult. She’s a piece of work. And she’s not in a good state today. Honestly, I’m worried if I leave her tomorrow she’ll do something stupid.”
“Um—”
“She won’t get in our way. She’ll keep to herself. She’ll just be another body in the car. What do you think?”
Silence followed my request.
“Honestly, I wasn’t really sure what to do,” I said to her, speaking softer now, speaking from my heart, clutching the phone tighter in my hand. It was kind freeing not having the microphone taped to my chest, knowing I could say whatever I needed to say.
“We could postpone,” Lana suggested.
“No, I can’t do that to you.”
“Then okay. She can come. But, Joe, this can’t become a regular occurrence.”
I breathed out a sigh of relief. “It won’t. I promise.”
“Why don’t you send me your address and I’ll pick you up in the morning from your place?”
“That works for me. And Lana, thank you, you have no idea how much I appreciate this. I have your back.”
Wait! What? I don’t know why the hell that last sentence slipped out of my mouth. I have your back. I most certainly did not have her back. I don’t even know what I meant by saying it. My heart spiked, pounding like a kick drum against my ribs because I knew I shouldn’t have said that. “Okay, bye,” I added quickly. “I’ll text you my address.” I clicked the button to end the call immediately, not even allowing her to say anything in response. I tossed my phone away from me on my bed, then I tangled my hands into my hair.
“Shit,” I said aloud.
Doing this thing for Doug was already turning out to be harder than I had expected.
Still, I picked up my phone and texted Lana my address.