Page 21 of Failure to Match

She shrugged. “It’s forty grand in thirty days.”

“Right,” I said. “And we kind of need it to pay for the clothes I ruined.”

Mitch nudged at his wire-framed glasses. “It wasn’t all your fault.”

Except it kind of was. Alice had specifically warned me to be careful with the dress. It wasn’t their fault I’d chugged a bunch of alcohol on an empty stomach and tripped on my own two feet. Alice had even tried to stop me from drinking too much while it was happening; I just hadn’t listened.

“He’s going to make your life hell if you do it,” she said. “After what we saw last night, it’s not going to be a pleasant experience. Especially for your first Immersive—” She cut off when the door was ripped open by a very tense, very huffy Vivian Hale. It slammed shut again behind her.

The Sinclairs were already gone, then. That was quick.

Her dark eyes zeroed in on me. “You have so much explaining to do. In what world did you think it would be appropriate to insult our biggest client right to his face?”

I said nothing. I could tell she was only getting started and interrupting her would just prolong what was already going to be a painstakingly long process.

But instead of falling into another scolding rant, Vivian placed both fists on her hips, looked me dead in the eyes, and said, “You’re doing it. The Immersive.”

I blinked. She was the one who said I didn’t have the experience or skillset to do it, so why was she changing her mind all of a sudden?

“Minerva isn’t taking no for an answer,” she said. “And she won’t agree to have you shadow a senior consultant either. I tried.”

“ButIcould still say no,” I pointed out, frowning.

She shifted on her feet, looking uncharacteristically uncomfortable. Alice and Mitch picked up on it too, if the shared glance between them was any indication.

“You could.” The words scraped against her throat on their way out, almost like it hurt for her to admit. “But the Sinclairs would fire us if you did.”

How was that my problem?

“I made a deal with Minerva,” Vivian went on. “If you do the Immersive and are still unable to find Jackson an appropriate match, they won’t take their business to a competitor. This will be it for them, which is the best-case scenario for us. It’ll limit rumors, minimize damage to our reputation, and prevent an exodus. You need to do it.”

Was she serious? She expected me to just smile and agree? After everything that had just happened?

I weighed my options. I could say no and tell Vivian to shove it. Or I could agree, go through one month of hell for forty thousand dollars, andthentell Vivian to shove it.

“When do they expect me to start?” I asked.

“Monday, the fifth. You’ll be going through an intensive two-week training program with me and Tammi beforehand. Expect to be here at six every day, sans Sunday. We’ll likely need to go until eight or nine p.m. to get you prepared in time.”

She said it with a straight face.

“Will I be compensated?”

“Compensated for what?”

“All the overtime you expect me to work for the next two weeks. Will I be compensated for it?”

Alice brought a subtle hand to her mouth to hide her smile, her dark eyebrows lifting with genuine surprise.

Vivian studied me for a few moments. “You’re a salaried employee. It’s expected that you put in a few extra hours here and there when required.”

“Right. But I’ve—we’ve—been working overtime nonstop for eight months straight. So, unless I’m going to be paid for the additional hours, I’ll be here from eight to five, Monday to Friday.”

Either way, I’d be earning the same amount of money.

There was a shocked beat of silence as Vivian’s forehead broke out in blotches of red.

“What’s gotten into you?” she asked.

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