Page 56 of Work with Me

I didn’t.

“No, I’ve got a benefit tonight.” On the screen, Cooper weaved back and forth, sweat dripping off the darkened ends of his hair as he pedaled his exercise bike. “You always have your partyonHalloween, not the day before.”

I almost felt bad.Almost.Cooper and I hadn’t missed a Halloween together since freshman year of college. From the keggers we’d hosted in our dorm room to more over-the-top warehouse blowouts to that one memorable weekend in Amsterdam—well, at least the part I hadn’t blacked out—Halloween was my thing. No Jones family obligations, only the anonymity and lack of accountability that came with costumes and a lot of booze. Yeah, I’ll admit it: those ragers fed right into the playboy image I’d tried hard to cultivate. The parties, the racing, the women, all of it layered into a hard shell I’d built around the insecure kid who couldn’t focus, the company founder who regularly disappointed people.

Not even Cooper saw through it.

“The last time Halloween fell on a weeknight, I had to send Marlee after you the next morning. Remember?” he asked fondly. “Where’d she track you down?”

“On a chaise next to Weston’s pool.” For some reason, I’d thought it was a good idea to show up at the CEO’s place early on November first, but I’d passed out on his deck before I’d accomplished whatever prank I’d gone over there to play.

“Marlee’s a lifesaver.”

Didn’t I know it. One of the many reasons I’d refused to furlough her. I lifted a package of spider garland out of one of the bags. I’d hang it over the door to the patio so people could brush through it on their way to get a beer.

“Some of the people I’m inviting have kids. They wouldn’t come to an adults-only party on Halloween. So I did it a day early.” I’d almost danced, right there in the office, when Alicia said she’d come.

Cooper’s pedaling slowed. “That’s actually kind of considerate of you.”

I shrugged. “I guess I’m growing or something.” I pulled out a package of eyeball ice molds. “I love these!”

“Growing,” Cooper grumbled. He sped up. “Maybe I can come out early tomorrow. We could go for a ride. Or a hike.”

If all went well tonight, I’d hoped Alicia might invite me over to her place for Halloween. Together, she and I could walk Noah around the neighborhood trick-or-treating. I hadn’t done that since my sisters were little. I’d imagined acting like friends. Not colleagues.

Now that I’d decided to stay in Austin, I had weeks, if not longer, to spend with Alicia. Maybe she’d let me come to one of Noah’s soccer games.

“Sure. Let’s do it.” I’d spend the next day with my best friend, who’d be in town for only a night or two.

Cooper slowed again and beamed at me. “I’ll be there by noon. And, Jay, I’m proud of you.”

I smiled back, not quite as broadly. “Can’t wait.”

* * *

ALICIA

I’d gottena twinge in my belly when I saw Jackson’s address in the emailed invitation. There were a lot of apartment complexes on that street. It couldn’t be the same one. I couldn’t be that unlucky.

But I was. The twinge turned into a full-on sinking feeling as I parked in front of Jackson’s building. I glanced toward the other side of the complex, past the swimming pool, sport court, and clubhouse. I couldn’t even see the building that housed the apartment where I’d slept with Rick that one time. I deliberately slowed my breathing. This was a risk I could avoid. If I stayed inside Jackson’s apartment, especially if I left early, the chances I’d see Rick were minuscule.

I got out of my Honda, smoothed down my costume, and fluffed my hair. Taking a deep breath, I scanned the building until I located his apartment number—though the AC/DC blaring from his door gave it away—and walked in.

The apartment was dark except for colored lights pointed at the ceiling, the uplights giving everyone a spooky glow. Garland was strung everywhere: splayed across the walls, dangling from the peninsula that separated the kitchen from the living room, fluttering across the open slider to the patio. There didn’t seem to be a theme to it, other than things you could find at a pop-up Halloween shop: there were skeletons, spiders, bats, even a fewverycreepy clowns. Plastic jack-o’-lanterns sat on every flat surface, battery-powered candles flickering inside.

Jackson bounded up to me, wearing jeans and an untucked pink polo with the collar popped to show off a gold chain around his neck. A backwards baseball cap covered his dark hair, and sunglasses glinted across the top. And, of course, he wore his now ever-present boots. His expression was the same as Noah’s had been last year as we’d stepped off the porch on Halloween night, about to go trick-or-treating: boyish delight. Jackson reached out as if to give me a hug, but at my warning expression, his hands dropped to his sides. Sure, friends hugged. But coworkers didn’t, and I’d already spotted Kevin in the corner, an orange plastic cup in his hand.

“I’m glad you’re here.” He looked me up and down. “Eleven fromStranger Things,right?”

“Yeah.” I’d found the geometric-print shirt at a vintage shop and paired it with high-waisted jeans and suspenders. “Are you…also eighties-themed?”

His face fell a little. “I’m abrogrammer. Get it?” He made jazz hands.

“Oh. Totally.” I scrunched my nose to keep from giggling. Itwasa little clever.

“Can I get you a drink?”

“Um, okay. A beer?”

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