The Line That Binds Series Box Set (61 page)

Her last words were reassuring, but I still wanted more. “And just because I’m backing off it doesn’t mean I trust
him
,” I said for Spaz’s benefit. “Iz, can you keep me posted with what happens in class?”

“Sure, no problem,” she agreed with a soft, sympathetic smile.

They mostly talked to each other the rest of lunch, deciding to give me some space. I didn’t mind. I just wanted the day to be over so I could enjoy more space at home. Alone.

By the end of the period, we were talking bikes. “Hey, you up to having that friendly bike competition this weekend? A couple of guys who work with my mom ride and they’re down to throw in some cash,” Spaz said.

“I’ll have to check the event house’s schedule first. It’ll be nice to tear the track up a bit.” It would help take my mind off of things too. Maybe the distraction would clear out the crap long enough to figure out a way to search for answers without being in LJ’s house. There had to be another way.

“Great. Let me know about the schedule and I’ll pass on the info.”

The bell rang and everyone shuffled toward the door. “Hey,” I said to Spaz and Iz before they bolted. “Thanks, guys.”

“Hey,” Dad called from the kitchen when I leaned through the front door. “How’d the first half day go?”

I dropped my bag beside the entry table and held the door open. “It was all right.”

“Everything else okay?”

“I’ll let you know after I finish my first day in the office with Simone,” I joked and rolled my eyes.

“I’m sure you’ll be fine,” he replied, walking out of the kitchen into the foyer.

I shrugged. “I agree. She seems to be in a more pleasant mood lately. We think someone’s decided to notch her bedpost,” I said, regrettably including Ben in the “we.” Associating him with my conversations even hurt. Dad coughed like he was choking on his own spit. “Are you okay?”

He nodded and smacked his chest a couple of times. “Fine,” he said with another light cough. “It’s not very nice for you to say those types of things about people.”

“Well, it’s probably true.”

“Still. It’s not nice. But I am glad she’s been more cordial. Have you eaten?”

“No, but I’m fine.”

He took a few steps back into the kitchen, grabbed a breakfast bar off the counter, and tossed it to me. “Eat this at least, please?”

“Thanks,” I said, catching it before stepping outside. “Oh, and the car still needs gas.”

“Thanks a lot,” he replied with a laugh.

I closed the door and crossed the lawn to the event house, eating the breakfast bar along the way. Fallen leaves scattered along the front drive, rippling over the grass and pavement in a low current of wind. It was odd knowing I wouldn’t have to rake them anymore. If Lloyd or Randall didn’t get to them this afternoon, Ben would have to do it later. Alone.

I shook my head before grabbing the doorknob, attempting to bury my thoughts of him. Crying would not be a good way to start work with Simone, and tears would surely come if my mind lingered on him. Using pain as a distraction, I inhaled so deeply it hurt then walked inside.

A few people stood back near the courtyard’s door, beside the kitchen entry. I recognized two of the guys from Ben’s birthday, though I couldn’t remember their names. They glanced my way for a moment then went back to talking. The event house’s décor was back to its normal nineteenth-century elegance, but somehow it felt flat without the hay bales and fancy painted pumpkins. Leaving the soft sounds of kitchen chatter behind, I walked upstairs.

“Right, right,” Simone’s voice came through the crack in her office door. “We have earlier openings if that’s something they’re considering.” She paused for a moment. “February is possible.”

I knocked and cracked the door wider to see her. She stood in front of her desk wearing a white, button-down business shirt tucked loosely into a gray pencil skirt that ended just above her knee. Her light brown hair was fluffed out with enough body to keep its new length from touching her shoulders. One hand held a phone to her ear and the other swiped the air, motioning for me to come in.

She pointed to one of the leather office chairs in front of her while she flitted back to her own chair. “You find out what dates they are leaning toward and call me back tomorrow. Okay. Talk to you soon.” She hung up the phone and worked her fingers across the computer keyboard. “Looks like the Tanners changed their minds about a spring wedding. I need you to pull up their file on the other computer and update some info for me.”

Nothing like jumping right in.
“Okay,” I said, hopping up and going to the closet office where Emily was usually stationed. “Will Emily be here today?”

“No, she’s not on the schedule until Friday afternoon,” Simone said as I took a seat at the tiny desk. I breathed a little easier knowing I wouldn’t have to deal with Emily all week.

The room was larger than an average closet, with enough space to fit the antique writing desk, two standing filing cabinets, a trashcan, and a thin printer table.

I opened the files. The name Tanner was one of the few documents stored in a folder for May of next year. “Where do you want the file moved?”

Simone walked in behind me and set a paper beside my keyboard. “It gets moved from the May file to date pending.” After I moved the file she said, “Now we just go into the main schedule and remove their names from their original date.”

I complied, pleased I understood their general program. “Is that everything?”

She backed away from my chair when I finished. “For that couple, yes. Now I should go over some basics with you.” She crossed her arms loosely and tilted her head a bit. Her little brown eyes squinted as she considered what she wanted to say. “I’ll show you everything Emily does. On days she isn’t here, you can log more hours and work until five with me. On days she is scheduled, I’ll cut you out when she shows up. I think it’ll make things easier for everyone this way.”

Her eyes studied me after her statement. The separation was a smart move. She knew about the fight at school, but I had no idea if she knew about the incident on the stairs last week. Either way, it didn’t matter. It was a logical decision.

“I’m good with that,” I agreed. There was no need to elaborate.

“Good.” She straightened up and moved back to her desk. I followed when she jerked her head, indicating I do so. “As you know, we have some part-time employees and temps on the payroll. They help setup and teardown for larger functions and are called in to work some full events. Because we don’t have a full-service staff, we occasionally outsource, especially when clients choose all inclusive packages that require us to handle everything for their event. A good portion, though, hire their own planners. Most of the local planners are familiar with our property rules so they don’t push the boundaries. Unfortunately, about half of our business is from out of town. That’s where we run into a majority of our problems.

“In addition to normal duties, you’ll also supervise some events. The events that are fully managed by us, or some smaller ones that don’t have planners, usually require at least one of our staff to be on site in case any problems arise. It gives clients peace of mind knowing someone can be easily located. The sooner you start doing them, the better. They’ll give you a well-rounded perspective of the business.”

I stood beside her desk and stared at her for a long moment, processing the information. “So that’s basically like babysitting, making sure the clients are happy and that they don’t screw up the property.”

She smiled.

She smiled! Wow.
Her bright, white teeth almost blinded me. It was the first time I’d seen them this close up. “Yes, I suppose it is a glorified babysitter. But, seeing as how it’s only considered babysitting if it isn’t your child, this won’t actually be babysitting for you. This property will be your baby soon enough.”

Oh.
Was that a sarcastic smile? It was hard to tell because it had already disappeared from her face. I guess now was the best time to discuss the tension that had been hanging around since I’d moved here. “Simone, I don’t know you very well so I could be reading this all wrong, but I want you to know that I intend to do the best I can with the property—”

She waved her hand up to cut me off. “I didn’t mean anything by it. It was a funny analogy, and it fits. You’ll see exactly how much when you sit your first event. People tend to get a little crazy during wedding receptions.”

Now it was my turn to smile, relieved she wasn’t being harsh. “I’ve seen my fair share of crazy. I’m from Vegas,” I said with a laugh, which faded as thoughts of my mom popped into my mind. I was willing to bet I’d seen more crazy in the comfort of my old house than any wedding party here could compete with. Unless of course the bride was jacked up on coke and decided to nail the best man under the trellis or something. I guess I’d find out soon enough.

She picked up a pen and tapped its tip lightly onto a note pad a few times. “I’ve realized that you have good intentions for the property. For one, you decided to do the Co-op program. That shows me that you’re not just
willing
to learn more, you
want
to learn more. Also, I saw how you worked the grounds. Lloyd and Randall were pleased with your work ethic, and Ben has relentlessly sung your praises.”

I flinched at his name as her eyes dropped to the pen, tapping the notebook again. I pulled in a quick breath, happy she hadn’t seen my reaction. “I try my best.”

“Good,” she said with a quick glance to me. “Have a seat and we’ll start going over the standard event application paperwork.”

She was back to business in a heartbeat, which was encouraging. I was here to do a job, to learn what has become my future. For the next hour, we discussed the basic applications as planned. Over the next few, she spewed quick rundowns of event rules and standards, our affiliated companies, employee wages, and the average annual costs to maintain the business and property. My head was spinning by the end of the work day.

“We’ll get a little more in depth tomorrow,” Simone said, shouldering her leather satchel and following me out of the office.

“Hopefully, I’ll be able to handle it,” I replied. It was honestly more information than I anticipated. I had to hand it to her, she knew her job.

The clacking of her heels echoed through the deserted building as we traveled down the stairs. “You seem to be doing well so far. I don’t see it being a problem.”

At least she felt confident. I knew I could learn it all, but with everything happening lately, I was a little concerned. “Thanks,” I replied awkwardly.

Halfway down the stairs, she let out a breathy laugh. I glanced sideways at her, wondering why she was amused. Her eyes widened when she noticed my reaction. “Oh, I’m sorry. That wasn’t directed at you. I was just thinking about something someone said to me recently.” She chuckled again without sharing what was funny.

A headache ripped through my mind out of nowhere, jackhammering my skull. I grabbed my temples and continued walking the steps, not wanting Simone to see my pain.

“I wish I had the guts to tell him how I really feel,”
Simone’s voice spoke in my mind.

So it was true. She
was
getting some. I smiled through the pain. Was this person the cause for her happy moods lately? If so, maybe it was best she had the guts she wanted. It wouldn’t just be good for her, it would make my work environment a lot more pleasant.

Why not?

I grabbed her hand when we got to the bottom step, effectively stopping both of us. Her eyes darted to our hands, shocked by the sudden physical contact. My body and mind rippled with the emotional surge of the curse, granting her wish and giving me the blissful feeling I was happy to accept.

“Sorry,” I said, dropping her hand after a couple seconds. “I thought I heard a strange noise or something.” Since all the other employees had already left the building, the lie wasn’t too crazy. I knew she believed it when she shrugged, indicating she hadn’t heard anything.

After we moved to the entrance, I grabbed the handle of heavy front door. It swung open before I pulled and I stumbled backward. Just as Simone grabbed my right arm, Ben’s hand caught my left, steadying me.

“Sorry, I didn’t realize anyone was coming out,” Ben said. He dropped my arm and shoved his hands into his pockets.

Simone let my other arm go and looked back and forth between Ben and me.

I looked down at my hands so I didn’t have to look at him. “It’s okay,” I said. That’s when I felt the blood drops trickle from my nose. I finally looked up and Ben’s eyebrows scrunched together. He freed his hands from his pockets and gripped the bottom of his shirt, ready to be chivalrous once again. I pinched my nostrils together quickly, not only to stop the blood but to stop the tears too. I turned to Simone. “Thanks for today. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“Sure. It’s nothing,” I squeaked out, stepping sideways to make my escape. I glanced at Ben, watching his hands drop the edge of his shirt.