Page 52 of Knocked Up by my Best Friend's Brothers

“I love it,” Cassius mutters, fingers already tapping away. “It runs smoothly.”

“It has a quick response time, but we’re still calibrating the engine. I think we can do better,” I reply, beaming with pride as I watch them interact with the app on the triple-split wide screen.

I can feel Nathan’s eyes on me. He has this way of making his attention known without saying a word. Slowly, I turn my head.

“What?” I ask, shy and self-conscious all of a sudden.

“Back when you and Tee were maybe six or seven, still playing with dolls in the upstairs tearoom,” he says, “did you ever see yourself doing something like this?”

“Like coding and complex mathematics for major financial technology systems? No, I had no clue whatsoever,” I reply. “I knew I wanted to do something my mom and dad would be proud of.”

“Christa, you could be a trash collector and your parents would still be proud of you,” he says. “No matter what path you chose in this life, it’s yours, and you are owning it with a strength and resilience I rarely see.”

“Thank you,” I mumble, genuinely overwhelmed by the weight of his expression.

“I know it’s not easy being a woman in this industry,” River agrees with a slight nod. “We certainly hit the jackpot when we decided to hire you.”

Cassius scoffs, slightly amused. “They’re trying to make sure you feel comfortable and happy here, so you won’t try to run off again.”

“Dude,” River groans.

“It’s the truth,” Cassius replies with a shrug.

“Fair enough,” I softly concede. “Someday I hope we’ll be able to look back and laugh at this whole thing. For what it’s worth, I never intended to hurt anyone.”

Cassius and I lock eyes for what feels like a strangely long minute. He gives me a relaxed wink and nods at the screen, deciding to revert to the original topic, sparing me the ensuing discomfort of digging deeper. “You’ve done a wonderful job withthis,” he says. “I’m impressed and eager to see what the real beta can do.”

“Oh, you’ll love it,” I say, lighting up like the sun. “I’ve been working on several features. Colin just makes sure he can integrate them into the interface, but I write the codes accordingly.”

“You are losing us in programming lingo,” River jokingly warns.

“I doubt it,” I shoot back with a wink. “I think you know exactly what I’m talking about.”

“The currency options?”

“And the speed dumps. That particular function will be our greatest challenge,” I say, pleased with how this presentation turned out.

It makes the rest of the development process feel like a walk in the park. Anything work-related is easier to deal with than the personal aspects of my life, and I think the Hawthornes can sense that, too. They can tell I’m more comfortable droning on about the crypto app than I am about what made me want to run away.

Little do they know I’ve been spending every moment since I got that letter persistently looking over my shoulder wherever I go. Without Teagan to call during my lunch breaks and with no mood to hang out with the rest of the programmer squad every day, I resort to a solo spot at the table closest to the parking lot window. It’s nice and quiet, giving me enough privacy while I eat my tuna sandwich, praying I don’t immediately throw it up.

The past three days have been rather confusing. I could eat the entire panini bar, yet as soon as I’m halfway done, my stomachrebels.

“Can I join you?” A familiar voice makes me look up.

Alexandra Jones, of all people. Ever perfect in her peach-colored pantsuit and glittery lips, while I’m struggling with a pair of jeans that don’t really fit as well as they used to underneath a large, navy-blue shirt.

“Hey,” I mumble with a mouthful. “Sure. Have a seat.”

“You look a little pale,” she says as she sits down with her own lunch tray.

“I’m just tired and hungry,” I reply and swallow, then wash it down with more cold water. To my dismay, coffee is no longer an option. The mere scent makes me want to hurl. “Everything okay on your end?”

“Oh, I’m great. The green energy project is going ahead,” she says, using a fork to stab her fresh fruit salad. “River and I are actually in the middle of a pretty heavy negotiation.”

“Oh yeah?”

Alexandra giggles softly. “That man could charm the pants off anybody.”

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