Page 84 of Company Ink

"Fine, fine." She throws her hands up in surrender. "But you should know that I did tell Nadine to bunk us together at the resort. I'll get the truth out of you one way or another." She pauses as she heads back to her desk. "Maybe you just need a little liquid courage to open up."

And I thought working with Kitty was going to be boring. Never judge a book by its name.

Kitty's observation is super disconcerting. Am I being that obvious with Adrian and Blake? Does the whole office think something is going on? Or is it just Kitty? Oh my God! If David thought something was happening, he'd totally rat on me! Oh, I need to be more careful.

I nervously knock-on Adrian's office door. Maybe lunches with my bosses aren't a good idea. But it's just lunch, right? People need to eat! It's a vital part of existing. So, what if two people of the opposite sex who work together sometimes eat together? No biggie. It's fine. I am fine.

"Come in," Adrian sighs, and I shuffle inside to find him glaring at his screen.

"Hey," I begin. "You ready to go?"

Adrian looks up at me, his expression annoyed. "Shit!" He checks the time on the clock hanging on the wall. "Fuck!"

I'm startled yet somewhat entertained by his outburst. "Is everything okay? Or is this just the new way we're greeting each other now?"

Adrian runs a hand through his hair. "Sorry, it's just—" He lets out an exasperated grumble. "I need to submit this patent and the server is down, and I have to wait for IT to fix it, and I—"

"Can't go for lunch?" I offer lightly, disappointment washing over me. "That's okay, I can get some food with Kitty."

"I'm sorry, Cassie. I was really looking forward to this." Adrian's apologetic eyes meet mine.

"It's fine. It's just lunch, Adrian."

"It's not fine. I made a commitment to you and I…I don't like—" he sighs. "I just…I'm sorry."

For someone who's so afraid of commitments he sure as hell feels bad breaking them.

"How about I take you for dinner instead?" he suggests, his tone almost pleading. "Please?"

"I can't tonight, I'm going to my parents' house to help them pack."

Something I amsonot looking forward to. I haven't seen either of my parents since that shit show of a dinner a few weeks ago. I've spoken with my mom a couple of times, but Dad, nothing.

Adrian's eyes soften. "Are you going to talk to your father?"

I stiffen. "No."

"I think you should, Cassie. They're leaving in under two weeks, your opportunities are fleeting." Adrian's phone rings. "Fuck, I have to get this. Listen, Cassie, just think about it, okay? You might feel better and it might help."

I roll my eyes. "Thanks, Dr. Phil," I mutter, exiting his office. Talk to Dad? Hah. Laughable.

Kitty looks up from her desk. "You look blue," she notes.

"I'm fine," I say sternly. "Change of plans, it seems as though I am free for lunch."

Kitty grins, grabbing her purse. "Excellent! Let's go get our salads on."

"What the hell is this?" I ask, holding up a ratty doll type...thing.

It's almost 8 pm and my eyes are no longer functional. Why are all boomers such hoarders? My parents must have three storage containers worth of crap in their house. I don't see how they're going to get everything packed in time. They might need to hire a professional, or just burn the place down seeing as they're only taking 'the essentials'.

My mom cranes her neck, eyeing the scary doll. "Awe, this is the voodoo doll you and Monique made when you were thirteen."

I shriek, tossing the demon toy to the side. "Oh my God! Why would you keep it? Also, what? I don't remember ever making voodoo dolls!"

"You don't remember? Really?" My mother laughs. "I think you made this after you caught James, cheating on you. I think the doll is supposed to be that Kelly girl."

Yikes. Clearly, I was more demented as a teenager than I thought. "And you let me? That's kind of creepy, mom. How could you let your only daughter toy with dark magic?"

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