Page 6 of Sapphire Spring

“This is Pari Kazemi. I’m unable to take your call at presentbecause I am fully engaged in the act of creation.”

“Oh, Jesus Christ,” Naser moaned.

“Before you share your thoughts with me today, I’d like togift you with a verse from Rumi.”

Naser’s eyes rolled back into his head. He flounced downinto the chair in front of Jonas’s desk.

“Little brothers should be seen and not heard, especially ifthey have chosen to live lives free of daring as mediocre number crunchers whosesole purpose is to interfere with outpourings of genius from their older andmore talented siblings.”

Jonas frowned. “This isn’t Rumi.”

“This isn’t her voicemail. Pari, knock it off and tell uswhy you sent jack—”

Pari’s imitation of a voicemail beep sounded more like a possessionscene from aBlumhousefilm.

Then she hung up on them.

Naser shot to his feet, craving a pillow to punch. Instead,he headed to the window, hoping the view of the hotel’s southern side lawnwould calm him. Outside, a wall of interlocking Draco palms rose between thegrass and the downhill slope of rooftops that were the hotel’s private villas.Some of Sapphire Cove’s pre-renovation drapes framed the window—thick and dustypink and puddling on the carpeted floor, a pleasant throwback to all the eventsNaser had attended here in college when he was just Connor’s best friend. Nowhe wanted to gather them in both hands and scream into them.

A few deep breaths later, Naser said, “I don’t want to beone of those people who calls everyone I disagree with a narcissist, but mysister is a narcissist.”

Jonas rose and fetched himself a bottle of water from hismini-fridge. “Perhaps. The world has so many.”

He offered Naser a bottle, which he reluctantly accepted.Naser craved something stronger, but it was barely past nine in the morning, sohe gulped the Arrowhead on offer. “How can you be so calm about this?”

“Well, she’s not my sister.” Jonas returned to his chair.

“She sent jackhammers to the hotel.”

“And Gloria sent them away.”

“She knows I work here. She should be more respectful.”

“Nas, our boss, who happens to beyour best friend, just told you he doesn’t have any concerns about her event. Ihave…a few, but…” Naser glared at him. Jonas sighed and threw up his hands.“She has something called an elevator clause in her contract. It means that shedoesn’t have a strict cap on her headcount, but we’re not on the hook to providefood and drinks for the extra guests if we don’t have it on hand.”

“Soshe could put this Googooshrumor out there and a hundred people could show up and there’s nothing we coulddo?”

“Not quite. There’s a fire marshal limit on the pool deck.”

“What is it?”

Jonas cleared his throat and looked to his lap. “Fivehundred.”

Naser let out a ghostly sounding wail and rested his headagainst the nearest wall. “This was supposed to be a fifty-person cocktailparty. She always does this!”

“Nas, do you care to tell me whatthis isreally about? Events aren’t your department,and you’re close to stroking out about this.”

“Insurance is my department, and my sister has a tendency toset fire to things.”

“True, but we’re well covered.”

“My family is also my department, no matter how much I tryto get fired.” Jonas gave him a steady look, a look that had inspired Naser tomake his fair share of personal disclosures since they’d started workingtogether. “It’s rude. She should be more respectful of where I work. Why is shehaving the event here anyway? She had to know I’d be breathing down her neck.”

“Maybe Connor’s discounts sealed the deal. Listen,Nas, the elevator clause is a self-negating thing we buildinto contracts so that we don’t have to be jerks about crowd control. If shedoesn’t pay for booze for the extra guests, the extra guests will leave. It’sthat simple.”

“And if she sneaks in booze from an outside vendor?”

Jonas rolled his head from side to side, unspoken wordsbuzzing in his throat. “Well, that would be a violation of her contract.”

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