Page 41 of Thanks for the Friendship
I frown. “I don’t know.”
She looks at her engagement ring. “Is it just me, or does everything feel like it’s changing? Not all bad changes, obviously.”
“Yeah, obviously,” I echo. “Anyway, I’ll see you at the office. We can talk more later.”
When I arrive, I’m surprised to see to see Elizabeth in one of her black power suits and a pair of black stilettos. Her hair is styled, and she actually looks like her old self. I guess whatever decision she’s made has brought her back to the land of the living.
“You look much better,” I tell her.
“Yeah, stressed and worried isn’t a good look for me,” she says with a wink.
I sit down in her office and cross my legs.
“Well, what’s the verdict?” I ask.
She leans back in her chair.
“I wanted you to come in early so I could talk to you about an idea I had.”
I chew on my lower lip. “Okay.”
“I’ve decided to go to London with Billy,” she says cautiously.
I nod. “I had a feeling.”
She tells me about how she spent many nights weighing all her options and about how she thought of every possibility and offered to show me some spreadsheets.
“Which brings me to now—I won’t be here to run Fun in the Sun, but you will be. … Would you consider taking over the agency? We could work out some sort of a deal for you, or we could partner for a while and see how things go.”
There are hundreds of thoughts swirling through my mind right now.
“You don’t have to decide right this second, but I hope you’ll consider it. I think the others would love to stay, and you’ve been number one around here for a while. I believe you can take us to the next level.”
Wow, it definitely makes me feel good knowing that she has so much faith in me. At the same time, I’m just not sure I want to take over the day to day operations. I love my work and the freedom it gives me.
“I’m really flattered, but I’m not sure I’m ready for that. And I’m sure Suzanna won’t enjoy working for me.”
She laughs. “Yeah, I thought about that. Will you at least think about it?”
I nod. “I will.”
“Anyway, I’m going to update everyone today about the possibility of me going to London. And I’ve already reached out to a few friends, and you all would be welcomed at any of those agencies. I’d much rather the team hear from me than from someone else in the industry. I owe them that much.”
I should’ve known Elizabeth would cover everything. Working for her has been a dream, and this news is quite a blow.
Elizabeth takes a phone call, so I return to my desk. Gabby is the first to arrive.
“What’s going on?” she whispers.
I open my mouth to say something when Suzanna comes in.
“I’ll text you.”
Gabby heads to her desk. When I go to pick up my phone, I have a text waiting from a number I don’t recognize.
Hey, it’s Cal. Just got off the phone with Theo. Can we talk today if you have a few minutes?
My heart begins to pound against the walls of my chest. Did Theo tell him what I said about Sara and AJ? Ugh, I immediately regret my newfound friendship with my neighbor. We’ve gone this long barely being able to tolerate each other, and I throw all caution to the wind with one conversation.
