Page 99 of Eye of the Hurricane
“We’ll see.” I shrug.
Marco disappears again and I’m left alone to finish my food and think. I expected the time alone to clear my head, help make sense of things. If anything, it’s all more jumbled than before.
All of the things I want feel like puzzle pieces. Exceptthey’re pieces from different puzzles and none of them fit together.
I want Ares, but I can’t take my focus off of my career. I want my career, but I have to give up Ares then. I want to keep diving head-first into the taste of fun I’ve had lately, but fun is a distraction.
For the first time in my life, I’m at a crossroads with the things I’ve always been certain about. Because for the first time, I know there is more to life and I know that I want the more life has to offer.
I’m asking myself if I get this job, will I allow myself to step back a little and enjoy what’s left of my youth? And it scares me a little that my answer is yes. Because that was never part of the plan.
“Kat!” Marco yells, breaking me out of my own head. I shake the cobwebs out of my head and look up at him. “Your phone. It’s been ringing.” He’s right, it’s been ringing and vibrating and I’ve been so inside my head I didn’t even hear it.
I pull the phone from my purse. Mateo’s name lights up in big bold letters across my phone screen. So I scramble outside and hit the big, daunting, green button.
“Sorry it took me a minute to answer, I’m out at lunch.”
“You’re off the clock, Katherine. You don’t have to explain your delay in answering to me.”
“Yes, sir.”
“What’s your schedule like today?”
“Wide open.”
“Do you have the time to stop in for a bit?”
“Yes, sir. I’ll head that way now.”
“I look forward to seeing you, Miss Graeves.” And he hangs up the phone. My heart races in my chest. As quicklyas I can, I go inside, pay Marco for the food, and get on the road.
The Sea Dragons facility is only about half an hour outside of Doves Harbor. But it’s the most anxiety-filled half hour of my life. I know in my heart that this is it. This is the make-or-break moment.
I know that when I walk into his office I’ll be told one of two things. Either all of my hard work paid off and I got the job I’ve dreamed of since the moment I knew it existed. Or, I’m about to find out I’ve still got an indeterminate amount of time left with the plan. And all of the things I’ve gotten a taste of this year will be just outside of my reach.
I consider calling someone on the drive there to talk my feelings out with. But then I remember that I set out this morning searching for some of my familiar independence and this is a damn good place for some.
So I put on my big girl pants and I make the entire drive by myself, listening to some hype music and giving myself a pep talk.
And when I finally park my car in the employee lot at the arena, I feel ready. Even if it’s bad news, I can stomach whatever he is about to tell me.
I walk through the hallways harshly lit by fluorescent bars of light. Every click of my heels on the ground gives me more confidence to walk in the room with my chin up.
I finally reach Mateo’s office and knock on the door.
“Come on in,” he calls out to me. I turn the handle and sit in the chair across from him. I try to assess his face or his mood for any indicator of the result but he’s calm. Void of any big emotions.
“Good morning… I guess it’s afternoon now. Good afternoon.” The words tumble out of me one after another. He smiles.
“Good afternoon, Katherine. There’s no need to be nervous.” Easy for him to say. The rest of my life is quite literally on the line. Whatever he says right now will decide what the rest of my life looks like.
“Sorry, I just had thirty minutes all alone to think on my way here,” I admit with a nervous chuckle.
“I’ll cut right to it then so you don’t have to keep worrying. Sound good to you?”
“Yes, sir.”
“In short, we would love to extend the offer to you. The position is yours, if you want it.” I think I black out after the first sentence. The world stops. I feel like someone is going to jump out and say ‘gotcha’.
