Page 2 of A Hard Sell

He interrupted her with a tortured moan. “It’s okay, babe. I already hate myself.”Neverwould heever againdate someone from work.

Tawney softened. “Okay, but don’t stay too much longer. You need some rest. Tomorrow is a big day.”

Luka looked at her, mind scrabbling for purchase. “Remind me…”

“You poor thing, it may be too late for you. The Big Bad Wolf, Luk! He’s here tomorrow!”

Luka smacked his forehead. “I knew that. Shit, this week has been insane. Ishouldget out of here.” He would just come in a little earlier than normal to finish polishing the storyboards. Because it actuallywasa big day. Thomas Badgley, a.k.a. ‘The Big Bad Wolf,’ was a company legend. A VP known for swooping in and working his magic for the major clients. And their office had just landed the Sartini account. It wasmajor.

“Yes, you should. I hear he’s intense. You don’t want to be half-asleep when you meet him.”

“I guess you don’t get a nickname like ‘Big Bad Wolf’ by being a giant ball of fluff.”

“Guess not. See you tomorrow, Luk.” Tawney gave him a wave and eased out through the door. The office was dark, the empty desks and chairs now just humped, silent shadows. Last one out, again. Then his stomach growled, more insistent this time, and he decided that the smushed granola bar at the bottom of his bag was not going to cut it. Time to go home.

He struggled to keep his eyes open on the train, then grabbed an order of red curry from the Thai place he hated, just because it was fast and on the way. Luka dropped his keys on the side table, dumped his laptop bag on the chair then went straight into the kitchen to find a fork. A minute later he was digging into his dinner in front ofBreaking Bad.He let himself sink into the meth-dealing shenanigans, his exhaustion temporarily forgotten.

But by the time the episode was ending, Walt’s current predicament seemingly beyond hope, Luka’s eyelids were drooping. He turned the TV off as soon as the credits began to roll, before the next episode could suck him in. He meant to go to bed, but somehow he found himself picking up his guitar from its stand by the couch. He plucked a few notes, a melody that had been winding through his head all day, the metal of the strings cool under his thumb. He strummed again, closing his eyes, letting the vibrations wash over him.

His mom had started teaching him piano before he could even reach the pedals, and the violin and guitar had followed soon after. Music was woven into the fabric of his soul, but it was a part he didn’t share with many people. Not since theSay HiHorror, anyway. Besides his family, the only people who knew about his musical talents were Tawney and Finn. Though now, against his better judgment, Morgan had been added to that group.

He put his guitar back on its stand and went to bed. It took him just a minute to fall fast asleep.

Unfortunately, Luka had the annoying habit of waking up well before his six a.m. alarm. There would be a moment, usually around five, sometimes even earlier, when he became aware that he was awake. A switch would flip, and his brain would begin whirring away. Mostly things to do at work—Shit, I never got back to accounting about the hours for the Boyer file. Is the meeting with the casting director at nine or nine-thirty? I have to remember to check with Finn about the font for the catalogue…But there were other random things, too.Did I have five cups of coffee yesterday? Is that too many? Do I need to buy more coffee? Ooh, it’s my sister’s birthday next week. Should I get her a gift certificate for a massage? Wait, is that what I got her that last year?

Sometimes, just for fun, his brain would start flipping through the stack of index cards that meticulously recorded all the embarrassing or stupid things he had done in his life. Secretly fucking Morgan for months was at the top of that stack right now, and theSay HiHorror always made an appearance.

On rare occasions, when he was really worn out, he would manage to shut all that noise down and drift back to sleep. Of course, then he began his day being jarred awake by the alarm at six. He wasn’t sure which was worse. This Friday morning, however, he must have been extra exhausted, because for the first time in years, he turned his alarm off and fell back asleep without even realizing it.

When he woke up a while later, feeling refreshed, he picked up his phone to look at the time, then threw himself out of bed with a shriek. “Fuck! Fuck fuck fuuuuuuuck, fucking fuck!” It was 8:07. He was supposed to be at his desk by eight-thirty. That was not happening. Of all the fucking days to be late for work for the first time.

He dashed into the shower to scrub clean, then yanked on the first clothes he got his hands on. A bagel thawed in the microwave while he brewed his coffee, since there was no functioning without it. Then he was out of the door, travel mug in hand, swearing again when the coffee sloshed onto his shirt.

Collapsing into a seat on the subway, he texted his boss.

Hi Ilona—I’m so sorry, it seems I slept through my alarm, I’ll be a little late…

He held his breath after he had hit ‘send’ then sighed with relief when it went through. His boss was beautiful, polished and more than a little intimidating. Some days he still couldn’t believe Ilona had hired him, a fresh face with not much more than a charming smile and a padded resume. And that was when he wasn’t running late for the most important meeting of the year.

Then the lights flickered and the train began to slow down, before grinding to a halt in the dark tunnel. Luka joined the other passengers in groaning loudly. How could this be happening? The speaker crackled to life and a disinterested voice explained there was a technical problem causing a short delay and thanking them for their patience. Luka added another text for Ilona, leg jittering as he tapped on his phone.

And my train just stopped.

This one didn’t go through.Fuck. No signal.He sighed and pressed his head to the cool glass, willing the metal tube back to life.Oh, God.He pictured everyone sitting around the conference table, staring at his empty seat, Morgan as smug as ever.

It was an excruciating fifteen minutes before they were moving again. Luka had been starting to wonder if he could pry open the doors and climb up to a manhole cover, but that was rendered unnecessary when they lurched back to life. As the beleaguered train was finally pulling into the station, two messages popped up. One was a reply from Ilona.

Come to the conference room when you arrive.

The other was from Tawney.

Where are you???

He dashed up the stairs and sprinted the three blocks to his office, dodging cars and what seemed like exceptionally slow-moving foot traffic. Eyeing a crowd waiting at the elevator, he bounded up four flights of stairs, his heartbeat echoing louder than his footsteps. White spots were floating in front of his eyes by the time he arrived in the foyer, sweaty and heaving like a racehorse. He dabbed a sleeve at his forehead and made his way down the hall, attempting to get his breathing under control lest someone call nine-one-one on account of his imminent heart attack.

Pausing outside the conference room, he caught a glimpse of the packed space, all eyes focused on a person at the front he couldn’t see.Fucking. Hell.There was nothing to do but go in. He took another ragged breath, smoothed his jacket then pushed the door open, oh so quietly.

Every head in the room whipped over to stare at him. Luka froze, an awkward smile on his face, determined to avoid making eye contact with a single person. Another bead of sweat trickled down his forehead.

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