Page 33 of Bleed for You
“What the fuck are you going to say?” Craig ignored him and stood. He locked his computer and moved around his desk. Flint moved to intercept him and went to grab him when Craig stepped back. “You can’t go.”
“I’ve been told to go by the manager. I’ll speak to you when I get back.”
“You’ll do what I tell you,” Flint screamed. “Get to my office now.”
Craig’s eyes flickered over Flint’s face, seeing how red he was, and nodded. “Fine.”
Flint strode out of his office and as soon as Craig left, he turned left instead of following Flint and going right. He strode to the elevator and thanked God when it opened. He steppedinside and hit the button for the fifth floor, ignoring Flint screaming his name. The doors shut, and he leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes. When the elevator pinged, he opened his eyes and saw Lacey standing in wait for him. “I quit.”
Lacey nodded over to where her office was. “Let’s get this complaint written up and now I’ve heard him myself, so you have a witness. And all the other complaints.” She shook her head as she walked into her office. Craig glanced around, seeing the photos of her family on her desk, the large bookcase on one wall with more pictures and books about the company. “Sit down, Craig.”
Craig sat and sighed, body slumping in the leather chair. “I can’t do this.” Not with what was going on with Jinx. He didn’t need to come to work to deal with this shit, then go home and worry about his relationship. Maybe he had overreacted to Jinx not staying in touch with him, but there was something there. It had happened a couple of times before, but not as long as this time.
Maybe he had actually been ill, and he’d gone too far thinking Jinx wanted out. His head was a mess and—
“He’s been worse this past week. I have nine complaints already and now this with you today.” Lacey walked over to a cabinet in the corner and pulled out a form. Sitting back at her desk, she picked up her pen and began filling some of the boxes on the form. “Let’s go through what happened today.”
Craig did, starting from the moment he walked in until the moment he sat in Lacey’s office. As he spoke, Lacey typed away, then checked the form in front of her before going back to her computer. “I like to have a physical copy of the form as well,” she told him. “Some can work from the computer alone, but there is something about having the forms in your hand as well. I’m like that with books. I can read it on my tablet, but there is nothing better than the smell of a new book.”
“I know what you mean. A tablet is great for vacations, but I like to have a book in my hand.”
“Right. Let me print this off so you can read over it. Then we’ll correct if necessary.”
Craig went through the form when Lacey handed it to him and was about to comment when there was a knock on her door. Brenna poked her head in and rolled her eyes. “Flint is here to speak to you.”
Scowling, Lacey said, “Tell him to make an appointment. I’m busy right now.”
With a nod, she shut the door and Lacey stared at Craig. A minute later, they both heard Flint’s raised voice. “Who the hell does he think he is?” Lacey muttered as she stood. “Stay here. I’ll deal with this.”
“I need a drink,” Craig murmured to himself. “A large drink with a drink to chase it down.”
Craig closed his eyes when he heard Lacey raise her voice. A couple of minutes later, she came back into her office and sat behind her desk. “You need to go back to your office and try to avoid Flint until I’ve spoken to the CEO. I’m going to call him now to get the ball rolling on this.” Lacey gave him a close-lipped smile. “I’m sorry, but I fully expect him to approach you about this. Please don’t engage him. If he wants information, tell him to come to me.”
“I feel sick.” Craig blew out his breath. “Can I leave early? I honestly can’t deal with this.” He rubbed his forehead, a headache developing.
Lacey looked at her computer, then nodded. “Go after lunch. I can authorize that.”
Craig nodded and stood. “I’ll do my best to hide from him until then.”
Leaving Lacey’s office, he stood by the elevator and rubbed his face. He didn’t want to go back to his office because he knew whowould be waiting for him. Flint. “Why me?” he murmured. When the elevator arrived, he got in and pressed the button for his floor, swallowing hard when it began to move. When it stopped on his floor and the doors opened, Craig braced himself, but Flint wasn’t there.
Walking quickly, he made it to his office and closed the door, sagging back against it. “Jinx.” He would call Jinx. Speaking to him would help. He went to his desk and picked up his phone, calling Jinx’s number as he watched the door. When it went through to voicemail, he sucked his lips in and ran his tongue over them. “Where are you?”
Putting his phone down, he sat and leaned back, staring at the wall. His mind wasn’t focused on work. It was focused on Jinx. What was he doing? This, on top of what had been going on between them, had Craig convinced Jinx was doing something he didn’t want Craig to know about. Was he actually cheating on him? Was Jinx seeing someone else and wasn’t ready to tell Craig? “Shit.”
Glancing at the time, he winced when he realized he had an hour to go and then ducked behind his desk when he heard Flint’s voice getting closer. Yes, he was hiding and wasn’t ashamed to admit it. He’d had enough of Flint and his attitude. He’d had enough of having to deal with a man who had no idea what he was doing and knew it, so took it out on the staff instead. More shouting had him cringing until it went quiet.
Lifting his head, he peered over the edge of the desk, then slowly stood. A knock on his door had him contemplating if he should answer it, but the decision was taken out of his hands. The door opened and Raj stepped inside, looking outside before closing it. “Fuck, he’s on one. Poor Jemima got caught by him and Perrie hid in the restroom to get away. What happened to you?”
“I’ve been told to keep my mouth shut.”
“Lacey? Please tell me she’s got enough evidence now. I’m about ready to walk out and never come back.”
“I’ve been asked to keep quiet, but things are happening.”
Raj looked up and murmured, “Thank you, God.”
Craig chuckled, even though the situation wasn’t funny. “I’m leaving after lunch. I need to be out of here or I’ll do something I’ll regret.”
