Page 27 of Chasing Blue
She ruffles my hair and pats me on the head. I swipe her hand away as she grins down at me.
“Like I said, dude, I’m twenty-five.” She points at her boobs and draws circles in the air in front of them. I cringe. “Tits, vagina, I’m also a female. An adult female. Most of us are full of sensible advice we’d willingly share with the male population if only they’d take the time to listen.”
“Please don’t say the word vagina in front of me, not ever.”
“And I rest my case. I’ve been more of an adult than you for years. I’ve also been dicked around by fuck boys like you, and it’s not fun, believe me.”
“Who? Who dicked you around? And I’m not a fuck boy, that’s one thing I’ve never been.”
I sit up straighter in my chair as I protest.
She waves me away with a flick of her wrist.
“Don’t worry about who it was. I keyed his car and slashed his tyres. It was dealt with at the time. And no, I apologise, that was harsh. You’re not a fuck boy, Jack, but you’ll be behaving like one if you don’t sort your shit with Jules sometime soon, especially if you’re already sniffing around someone else.”
“I’m not . . .” Milly holds up her hand to stop me from talking, and I silence because everything she’s saying is the truth. I need to sort my shit out.
“Now, Jack. Like this week. If you’re giving her the flick, get it done, don’t lead her on. And I hope you haven’t started anything yet with whoever this new chick is. I mean it. Be respectful . . . to both of them.”
My mouth feels dry as I process Milly’s words and accept what I’ve known all week needs to be done.
“Then,” I’m so lost in thought, I jump when my sister slams her hand on my desk, “ifyou still want my help getting the bar and restaurant up and running, I’m up for it. But, we’ll also need to recruit someone new for the JC Construction side of the business, I can’t do both.”
“Fair enough,” I nod as I speak. “Another full-timer?”
“No, I was thinking more like school hours. Say, nine-thirty till three. We’ll advertise for someone with experience and pay them above minimum wage. That way we’ll hopefully attract someone who knows their shit and won’t be up my arse like a thong and asking me questions all day.”
“You’re a harsh person, you know that?” I tell her, and she flicks her wrist at me at the same time as I get another eye roll. “But yeah, whatever,” I agree. “I know it’s gonna be a big ask but try not to take on anyone likely to fall in love with me.”
Milly shakes her head and moves back to her own desk.
“That won’t be difficult. I’ll just tell them we’re taking on someone new because you banged the last girl and gave her twins as well as chlamydia.”
“That’s not even a little bit funny.”
I ball up a piece of paper and throw it at her. She bats it away.
Milly taps her pen against her lips and studies me for a moment, I remain silent, waiting for whatever question she’s about to ask.
“You sure that’s all that’s wrong? You’ve been a dead set dick all week, even Mick and Finn have avoided you.”
Mick, my blue heeler, lifts his head from his bed in the corner of our office on hearing his name. I swear he smiles at Milly, then sneers at me before resuming his nap.
“I’m good, just not been sleeping well,” I admit, only lying a little bit. “I need to get things sorted with Jules, get the designs for the interiors of the bar and restaurant signed off, and the contracts signed. I also need the bands or DJs sorted for the opening weekend so we can start putting some marketing and advertising ideas together. Plus, we still have the Billings and Wrights jobs to finish.”
I rub at my temples. The stress caused by justthinkingabout how much I still need to do before the bar and restaurant are ready to open, gives me an instant headache.
“Davo can run the Billings and Wrights jobs. He’s got them both under control. Finn has the smaller jobs under control and running smoothly now that he’s driving. I’ll start work on the music for the opening. You just need to sort things with Jules and sign off on the contracts with the interior designer. When do you meet with them again?”
“This arvo.” My twisted gut tightens at the thought of seeing Scarlett later. “What do you know about them?” I ask her.
Her brows shoot up at my question. “I sent you the links to their blog and Insta. Did you not look?”
“No,” I admit. “You know I can’t be arsed with that kind of thing, that’s why I let you run it all.”
“Dude, this isyourbusiness. With the bar and restaurant opening, youneedto be arsed with that kind of thing. Seriously, Jack.”
I hold my hands up in surrender. “Okay, I’ll get better, I promise. But, for now, Ilahi Homewares and Design, tell me about them.”
