Page 54 of Breaking All The Rules

Regina: When you have a chance, please forward me your sister's contact information. I will reach out to her as soon as possible.

I felt the tension release from my shoulders as I typed my response back to her, thanking her for considering my sister for the position. I knew that Regina would still need to interview other candidates as well and that there was a good chance that they wouldn’t pick Lucy for the position, but I still had to try.

Lucy had been working for the hospital for eight years. While they were flexible with her when she first had Jackson, they’d recently started giving her a hard time about her requested shifts. Instead of letting her work during the week, they would assign her the weekend shifts or the graveyard shifts. Both ofthese would make it impossible for her to work as a single mother. I knew this would be something that Lance would use against her to prove that she wasn’t able to provide a stable environment for Jackson. I wasn’t about to let that happen if there was anything that I could do about it.

I sent a quick email to Regina with her information and then sent Lucy a text to let her know what was going on. I felt excited that maybe something good would happen for once, and Lucy would get the job. After the bullshit that happened today, I needed something good. I felt bad for not talking to Ethan about bringing Lucy on before I mentioned it to Regina, but in all fairness, it wasn’t like there was a position to consider her for until now. There was an opportunity, and I took it.

Was he right that we wouldn’t be able to work together without letting our personal lives get in the way? Maybe. Honestly, I didn’t know. I was five years older than her, and that seemed to work well for us growing up because we were never into the same things at the same time. But, on the flip side, she had also complained a lot that I was more like a second mother than a sister, so there was that.

The day dragged on, and I was ready for it to be over so that I could go home and drink some wine before sulking in my apartment all weekend. My phone vibrated on the desk, alerting me to a new text message. I picked it up and swiped it open to find a group message between Lucy, Gabi, Brittany, and myself.

Gabi: Are we still meeting for dinner and drinks tonight?

I decided to respond as quickly as I could before anyone could get the bright idea to make this happen tonight. I wasn’t in the mood for it and desperately just wanted some alone time.

Me: Brittany told me it was canceled last night. I already made other plans. Sorry.

Brittany: I said that so you would go to dinner with your sexy fuck buddy and his friends. Those better be your plans. If not, dinner with us is still on.

Gabi: Agreed. Go to dinner with your fuck buddy, and let’s do brunch in the morning?

I exhaled heavily and pulled my shoulders back. I wasn’t in the mood to deal with this.

Me: We had dinner last night instead after Brit ducked out and stood me up. I have other plans tonight. We’ll catch up later this weekend. K?

Lucy: What’s going on? Why don’t you want to meet up with us?

Gabi: Maybe she’s tired from all of her friends with benefits action?

Brittany: He is DELICIOUS. I'm just saying I would be tired after a night with him, too. You can bet that I would be buying an ALL-DAY pass for that ride...

Me: Alright, well, you ladies enjoy dinner. I’ll talk to you later.

I put my phone down and closed my eyes as I rubbed the back of my neck. Today was turning out to be more of a disaster than I thought. I prayed that they would sense my bitter attitude in the group text message and stop asking to meet up tonight.

My phone continued to vibrate on my desk as they continued to send messages. I didn’t bother to check them as I held out hope that they would just leave me alone.

By five o’clock, I was ready to go home and fall into bed. My stomach growled loudly, reminding me that I had missed lunch. But I was in such a bad mood that I had no desire to do anything about it. I grabbed my purse and turned my computer off, making sure to check the screen to confirm it was really off this time. I felt stupid for being so foolish to have left it unlocked, to begin with. Had I been smarter, all of this might have beenavoided, and I wouldn’t have to worry about the entire office knowing that I was fucking my boss.

I flipped the light switch to turn off the lights as I stepped into the hallway and pulled the door closed behind me. Ethan’s office was already empty, his door closed, and lights turned off. I didn’t remember seeing him leave, but I also tried my hardest to avoid him as much as I could today.

As I turned to walk down the hall, I felt a body as I collided against it. My hand flew to my chest as I took a step back.

“Lucy!” I shrieked, my eyes wide with surprise. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“I came down to meet with Regina. We just finished a few minutes ago. I thought I would come see if you were still here and drag you out to dinner if your other plans fell through.” She winked as if she knew my secret and locked her arm in mine as she led me down the hall.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were coming to meet with her?” I asked, trying to get my heart rate back down. I decided to ignore the last part about going to dinner. If I pretended not to hear her, then she couldn’t get mad when I refused to go... right?

“It was so last minute I didn’t have time. I got Jackson to Mom’s house and rushed right over.”

“So, how did it go?” I could feel the hope radiating through me as I reached out and pressed the button for the elevator.

She pulled in a deep breath and waited for the doors to open before she jumped in and turned to face me.

“I got the job!” she squeaked excitedly, doing some awkward cheerleader pose as I laughed and joined her in the elevator. I pressed the button for the lobby before reaching over to hug her.

“That’s amazing, Lucy. I’m so happy for you!”

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