Page 12 of With a Broken Wing
Her face was as red as her hair when she reached her hand out and slammed her finger against the button, causing the elevator to jerk back into motion. I shrugged and stepped back, leaning against the wall I had thought about holding her against only moments earlier. She huffed, her breathing heavy, but as soon as the elevator doors slid open on the first floor, her generous smile had returned.
* * *
The thick smoke from my cigarette filled my lungs, and I released it with a sigh of relief. We stood in front of a line of office buildings in downtown Seattle. I worked to convince myself this wouldn’t be nearly as much of a disaster as I’d expected when my brother bailed on joining me for the summer. All because of a woman.
That woman was quickly becoming the source of more than one pain point in my life. She was the reason my brother was completely distracted from work, even though he claimed otherwise. She was also the reason I’d hired a certain red-headed bombshell who had me questioning everything. As much as I liked my new sister-in-law, I did not like the forced changes she’d brought to my life.
“So tell me, boss. What do you think? She going to make it?” Scott sucked on his own cigarette next to me, letting the smoke out in my face.
Erin and Shelby stood a few feet away by the car, talking to each other. They both looked unbothered. I quickly scanned the area around us, unable to find anyone Scott may have been referring to.
“Who?”
“Andy, obviously.” He rolled his eyes like I should’ve expected the question. “You seem pretty irritable with her already. I mean, you really think she can handle working for an asshole like you?”
Another deep drag of smoke, and I held it in my lungs until it burned. “If she can’t, she doesn’t stay. No skin off my back.”
Scott raised his eyebrows, likely thinking I was a dick. It was the honest answer. If Andy couldn’t handle working with me, then she wasn’t going to be able to stick around. I didn’t understand why the idea of her leaving left a bad taste in my mouth, though.
“I wouldn’t mind her sticking around,” he said with a wink.
I pulled the cigarette from my mouth and tossed it into the ashtray on top of the trash can without acknowledging his statement.
“Let’s go.”
I walked into the building. Was Scott right to question if she’d be able to do this job? I wasn’t so sure she would be able to handle it, but I wanted to believe she would.
* * *
We boarded the plane, everyone buzzing with energy after successfully landing our first large investor. The meeting had gone smoothly. He loved the app and our pitch convinced him to sign on the spot. Scott might have been a bit on the unhinged side of things, but he could put together one hell of a proposal.
Shelby and Erin sat together, giggling about who knew what, while Scott stared across the aisle at Andy. She sat with her petite legs tucked beneath her, resting her head against the back of the seat. Her red hair was a bright contrast to the black leather. As she looked up at us, I realized how long I’d also been staring at her. She quickly turned her head away.
“I’m just going to say it. I’m sure glad theentiretrip wasn’t acompletedisaster.” Shelby turned her gaze pointedly, and when she did, Andy stiffened. The relaxed look on her face slid to annoyance.
She cleared her throat, unfolding her legs and sitting up in her seat. Instantly, her face twisted into a disgusted glare. “You know, if a car being a few minutes late can constitute acomplete disaster, then I want to live your life for just one day.” She shrugged, sitting back before mumbling under her breath, “Spoiled fucking bitch.”
Shelby scoffed, whipping her head from Andy towards me like she expected me to step in. Clearly, she didn’t know me well enough to know I didn’t interrupt or acknowledge employee drama. Instead, I shrugged and returned my attention to the influx of emails on my phone.
“Seriously? Going to callmespoiled? How’d you even get this job, hmm? Your rich mommy and daddy friends with the boss?”
As Shelby fired insults in her direction, Andy tried to hide the way it bothered her. She did a great job too, never letting the smile drift from her face, but when Shelby mentioned her parents, she closed her eyes for a moment.
“Listen, you know nothing about me or how I got this job. My parents had nothing to do with it. I’m good at what I do, and I have never been spoiled. So how about you go back to yourperfectlittle corner and just let me exist in mine,hmm?”
It took all of my control not to let the enjoyment at her responses show on my face, but I liked seeing her stick up for herself. For the first time since she’d walked into my office, she was the Andy she had shown me originally. The fiery woman I’d offered a job to. And for the first time, I thought she might actually be able to handle the role.
Sacramento wasa city I’d never been to, and if I was being honest, it was one I could do without seeing. I’ve just never had any interest in it. That was where we were headed, though, and a sickening cluster of nervous butterflies erupted from my stomach and settled in my throat.
In the pit of my stomach, worry about the travel arrangements was eating at me. I didn’t want to experience an angry Demetri yelling at me in front of the team again, and I wasn’t going to tolerate any of Shelby’s lipstick-coated criticism. The car would arrive early this time. I had requested it to arrive twenty minutes before our reserved landing time. He was nice enough, even insisting I stop apologizing for the inconvenience. I didn’t, though.
The bounce of the plane against the tarmac caused me to fall back against my seat, and I sucked in a deep breath, hoping the car would be parked and waiting. Judging by the way Demetri glowered at me, he didn’t have confidence it would be, but as I stepped up to the door, a wave of relief flowed through me. There it was,parked and waiting.
Demetri turned and looked at me, a content look of appreciation clear in his eyes. Still, he didn’t wear more than a tight-lipped smile. I looked from him to Shelby to find her glaring at me. Her hands sat on her hips, and as she tilted her head to the side, she cleared her throat.
“Looks like you caught on quick,” she said.
I rolled my eyes dramatically enough to elicit an annoyed sigh from her before I stepped out of the plane and made my way down the roll-up stairs. The sun and breeze felt good on my skin, and I took a deep breath, choosing not to acknowledge Shelby further. When I stepped off the last stair, I made my way to the car. The driver watched me with added interest from where he stood leaning against the side of it.
