Page 42 of She Likes It, Hey Micah
“Says who?”
I snort. “You literally begged me to plan your wedding for you when Skyler left it up to you because she was too busy with The Bookstore.” They were engaged for seven months before Kit finally asked me to help plan their wedding, three months before it happened, because neither of them bothered to start planning it.
Mumbling something about how he could have planned the wedding if he wanted to, Kit clears his throat. “I’d better focus on finding your coworkers, but we’re doing some remodeling on the store next week. I was thinking maybe Sky and I could come visit. Houston could use a friend.”
I squeal and jump up and down a few times. “Yes! Do it! Like you said, I haven’t seen you since your wedding! Wait, why does Houston need a friend?”
The lobby suddenly goes silent, and my heart drops. That feels like a bad sign.
“Hold that thought,” I mutter, though now I’m super curious about why Kit thinks there’s something wrong with my brother. His team won the World Series this week, which should mean all sorts of good things for Houston, their best pitcher. (At least, Houston says he’s their best pitcher. I don’t know enough about baseball to know otherwise.)
“I need to go help my colleague with something,” I tell Kit.
He laughs. “You sound so adult when you say the word colleague.”
“I know. I’m all sorts of mature now. But really, I need to go before he thinks I’ve abandoned him.”
“He, huh?”
I groan. “There’s nothing to read into, Kit Morgan. We’re just colleagues.”
“That’s what they say in all the books.”
“Gotta go, but I will see you next week because you’re definitely coming. Byeee!”
He’s right about books, but my life would argue reality doesn’t follow the pattern, no matter how much I wish it did. Otherwise, I would have found my soulmate before now.
Stuffing my phone into my pocket, I slip back out into the lobby only to come to a halt a few feet from the room I’d been hiding in.
Fischer has placed Lila and Grant on one of the couches, and he’s pacing in front of them with a deep enough scowl that he looks like a disappointed father who just got out of a meeting with the school principal, where he learned his kids started a food fight in the cafeteria.
Grant and Lila are silent, and though I can’t see their faces, I can tell they’re trying not to laugh because their shoulders keep shaking. They’re also all over each other, Grant with his arm around her and Lila practically falling into Grant’s lap.
I slowly get closer, and the movement catches Fischer’s gaze.
“Don’t move,” he tells our bosses, and then he crosses the lobby and takes me by the arm, pulling me farther from the couch. “They’re completely drunk,” he growls.
“What? How?”
Lila bursts into a fit of giggles, and Fischer closes his eyes like he’s praying for patience. “I have no idea. What about the others?”
“They took a wrong, uh, road. Ended up in Diamond Springs.”
“Colorado?” He nearly shouts the word.
“Well, we are right on the border…”
“Not helping, Micah. We’re a week out on this event, and your boss—the person in charge of making all of this happen—can’t even speak straight let alone walk. Now you’re telling me the people whose job is to map out the lodge and get everything finalized arehoursaway, making this entire trip a complete waste?”
I wonder if he’s always been such a Debbie Downer or if this is a more recent addition to his charming personality. I take his hand, noting how little he responds to my touch outside of growing tenser than he already is. “Fischer, I know this situation isn’t ideal.”
He huffs a humorless laugh.
“But we can handle this! This might even be a good thing because now Grant and Lila have no choice but to let us take over!”
I expect him to relax and agree, but Fischer clenches his jaw, the muscles below his ears straining in a way that is more attractive than it should be. “This is a disaster waiting to happen, and you know it.”
“Or exactly what we need.”
