Page 42 of How May I Please You

“You're my boss on the job site,” I correct him jokingly. “See, that’s something else you better fix before asking your girlfriend to marry you. You have to earn the right to be a woman’s boss.”

“I’m not afraid to earn it,” Trey says. “Or I’ll die trying.”

I chuckle. “Good luck. Maybe that’s what happened to Cain.”

I laugh at my own joke, but Trey doesn't laugh with me. Maybe it’s the wine swirling around in my system, but my tongue is certainly looser than it should be, and the look on Trey’s face suggests that he isn’t amused.

“What?” he asks, his forehead riddled with wrinkles.

Realizing what I just said, I shake my head and try to backtrack. “Ah, nothing. Never mind.”

“Don't fucking joke about that, man,” Trey snips with a deep furrow in his brow as if he’s truly disgusted.

Journey’s head snaps over to him so fast I can practically feel the wind on my face from the speed of it. Her eyes widen to twice their size, and she doesn't have to say a word. This is the exact look she had when she met Cain for the first time.

“Yeah, that was … I shouldn't have said that,” I say to Trey while keeping my eyes on Journey who hasn't blinked once.

“Dude, I know Cain was an asshole who picked on you a lot,” Trey says, clearly in his feelings. “But he died, bro. He was murdered. Someone broke into his house and killed him in his own bed. They haven't even found the fucking asshole who did it. He and I weren't the best of friends, but he was an associate of mine … of ours. He was a part of our crew for a long time, and while he had some issues that he needed to fix, I can't sit back and let you shit on a dead man’s name. That wasn’t cool, man.”

I nod, knowing it was a bad idea to bring up a man I killed, but I’m not the real issue. Journey isn’t happy at all, and that’s always a problem.

“Who do you think you're talking to?” Journey suddenly dives in head-first. The fire in her eyes could melt steel as she stares daggers into Trey, totally unafraid.

Journey is not the kind of woman who is scared of getting into it with a man. In fact, I think she relishes it. She’s a woman with a tough upbringing who became a police officer and then promoted to detective. She fears no one.

“Okay, we’re good,” I say quickly, trying to extinguish the fire before it can engulf everything around us. “No need to say anything else or go any further. Trey, you're right. Journey … Little One … it’s fine.”

Journey’s eyes slowly shift over to me, and I immediately know that it is not fine to her. If there is one thing Journey can’t stand, it’s the idea that someone is disrespecting me. It lights a fire in her that burns brighter than the sun, and dousing it has proven to be nearly impossible.

“Excuse me?” Trey says to Journey. He swallows hard and straightens out his back, readying himself for an argument if it comes to that. Checking a construction worker is harder than most people realize.

“Oh, you didn't hear me?” Journey says, barreling over my attempt at calming things down. “I asked who you think you're talking to. Don't tell Evan what to do.”

“With all due respect, Journey, I tell Evan what to do every single day,” Trey replies.

Oh, is that fucking right, Trey?

Tension creeps into the muscles in my face, making it tight as I glare at Trey. He’s a friend, but there are lines. There’s only so much I’ll take, and while I do give him leeway because I like him, the rope can only stretch so far before it snags.

“Trey,” I begin, cutting my eyes over to him. “I like you, but let’s not get it twisted.”

“Get what twisted?” he replies with a puzzled expression. “I do tell you what to do every day.”

“At work,” I say a little more aggressively than intended. “We’re at dinner just having a good time, so let’s not act like that extends outside of the job site.”

Or I may have to rescind the pass you’ve gotten because you're a “friend.”

“Okay, I don't know what the hell just happened here,” he says, “but the mood has definitely shifted. All I know is that making fun of a dead man isn’t cool, and I’d appreciate it if you didn't do that. If y’all want to make it about something other than that, then that’s not my issue, it’s yours.”

“Really?” Journey interjects, her tone dropping to something devious. “Well, I want to make it your issue, since you insist on disrespecting Evan.”

“How am I disrespecting Evan?”

“Journey,” I cut in before she can answer. “Let it go.”

Yes, rein her in before I’m forced to hide another corpse.

“Why tell me to let it go and not him?” she says, now pointing her hostility at me.

---