Page 1 of The Boardroom: Jonathan
Chapter 1
“I just need five more minutes!” I shouted, wincing as I nearly twisted my ankle tripping over a loose shoe.
“That’s what you said five minutes ago, Johnathan.”
I scrambled through the house trying to figure out where the hell I had left my keys. Bathroom? Nope. Kitchen counter? Under last week’s issue ofThe Economist? Nope, Nope,shit, nope.
“You know the meeting is today, right?”
“Yeah, dude, just one minute.”
I heard Kirk sigh outside the door. He was my best friend, but sometimes my bad habits could be a point of contention.
“That’s it, I’m coming in.”
Kirk pushed the door open to find me far from five minutes away from ready. My tie hung loosely around my neck and the papers from my briefcase regarding today’s meeting were scattered all over the floor.
Kirk laughed. “Aw man, dude. What, your alarm forgot to go off again?”
I muttered as I started haphazardly stuffing the papers into my briefcase. “Yeah, well, you know, I was up late getting ready for the meeting today and—”
Kirk’s eyes suddenly widened at something underneath one of the living room chairs. “Nice panties, dude.”
I sighed in defeat. “Okay, okay, so I wasn’t up prepping for the meeting last night. I went out to a bar with Cassidy again.”
“Aw, and let me guess, there’s a hot blonde in the other room who you’re never going to see again?”
“Redhead, but close.”
Kirk rolled his eyes at me as I dug my keys out from behind a couch cushion. Girls tended to know what to expect from Kirk and I when they saw us coming down the street. Kirk was the boyfriend, the good guy, the one who walks your dog for you and helps your mom chop vegetables when you bring him home for dinner. At five feet nine, with deep cocoa skin set off by square glasses, he looked like the kind of guy who would help you with a computer problem at Starbucks. And occasionally for that, I envied him.
Girls knew straight away that I was trouble.
We opened the door to find a gorgeous autumn morning dotted with clouds, typical for this time of year in Seattle. I yanked open the passenger door of Kirk’s Jaguar and threw myself into the passenger seat. Our carpool routine was no longer really necessary now that the company had made it big, but it had become an unbreakable habit. It was comforting to have someone next to me as I entered the workday, and it made me feel as if I wasn’t so alone going into it.
“So,” Kirk said. “What podcast is it today?”
I pulled out my phone and grimaced when I looked at the battery bar. “Sorry man,” I said. “I forgot to charge my phone last night.”
“It’s cool,” Kirk said. “Let’s just talk, we haven’t really done that in a while.”
I tried not to make my groan audible. Kirk and I had a somewhat sacred routine of listening to business podcasts on the way to work…which, as much as I love the guy, served as an excellent way to shut him up. He had a tendency to try and play therapist with me.
“So, tell me about the girl from last night,” Kirk said, which I knew was a trap.
“Well, her name was Sarah, and she works in publishing, and she has a dog named…Snoopy.”
“You’re making that up. You couldn’t pick that girl out from a line-up.”
I leaned my head against the car door. He was right. “It was a one night stand. It doesn’t matter.”
Kirk gave me his best serious face as we drove into the city. “No, but your quality of life does. It does to me, and it should to you too, man.”
Here we go.
“Johnathan, you’re not happy. I can tell. I know the Torver Group is doing great, but money and success aren’t gonna keep you forever. In a few years you’ll be forty, and maybe it’s time to you know…start dating seriously. Think about settling down.”
“I’m not sad, Kirk.”
