working on, I zoned out a little and gazed around the room, noticing the resemblance between some of these people and certain breeds of dog. The long-legged, long-haired woman in white looked like an Afghan hound I’d groomed just last week. A short, bug-eyed man reminded me of a pug. And there were poodles and terriers aplenty.
Anna caught my eye, giving me an are -you-okay look. I smiled to show her I was, and to underline it, I said, “Think I’ll go get a drink. Do either of you want something?”
Arden held up his half-empty scotch and said he was fine.
Anna asked for a gin martini but continued to question me with her eyes. It was pretty annoying. Sudden irritation flared through me, and I tamped it down. Mood swings are a fun symptom of my brain injury I’ve had to learn to control.
I beelined for the bar and waited in line. Standing in place is the worst thing for my messed-up leg, and my hip was throbbing by the time I reached the bar. Then I couldn’t remember what Anna had ordered or think what I wanted myself. The bar was right by the damn DJ, and the music was too loud.
I ended up repeating what the guy in front of me had just said. “Two rum and cokes.”
I turned around with a drink in each hand and searched the crowded room for Anna. She wasn’t where I’d left her—or where I thought I’d left her anyway. I started to walk, scanning faces and feeling increasingly uncomfortable.
“Hey there, Jason.” The sly-looking guy, Dan or Dave, was right beside me. He and a few others stood in a cluster I’d wandered into. “You lost?”
“No. Just misplaced. Anna’s around here somewhere.”
“She ditch you?” His eyes twinkled as he smiled in a not-merry way. “So, Jason, I hear you work with animals. Like a veterinary assistant or something?”
“ Something like that.” I wasn’t about to mention dog washing to this group.
“You used to clean the building, right?” an equally sharp-eyed woman asked. “I remember seeing you sometimes in your little uniform.”
“Would you consider your career change a step up or a lateral move?” Dave asked.
Several people hid smiles by sipping their drinks. A pack. That’s what they were. Nipping at the flanks of an outsider who didn’t belong.
“I enjoy what I do.” I kept my tone smooth and even, suppressing a fresh wave of irritation. And then I remembered what Anna had told me about Dave. He was the horndog of the office, who’d hit on every attractive female at some time or another, including Anna.
I glimpsed the Afghan hound lady across the room. She was overdressed even for this swank event, sparkling with diamonds and wearing floor-length white satin as if she were at an awards ceremony. I couldn’t remember her name, but Anna had pointed her out as one of the senior partners—the top dogs in this pack. No longer young, but she was beautiful and reeked of power.
“Hey, Da ve.” I lowered my voice, while the rest of the group continued their own conversations. “Who is that woman?” I nodded toward the Afghan. “The woman in white.”
Dave followed my line of sight. “Cara McElroy? What about her?”
“She was standing near me when I was at the bar. I heard her talking to that other lady about you.”
Da ve’s eyes narrowed. “Yvette?”
“ I guess. Anyway, she was saying she’d like to… Let’s just say she sounded interested.”
“In me?”
“In getting laid.” When he looked at me doubtingly, I shrugged, nearly spilling my rum and cokes. “She sounded a little sloshed. But she definitely told that other lady ‘I’d like some of that’ and mentioned you by name.”
“ No shit?”
I’d never been fishing that I could remember, but I felt the thrill of an angler as the hook bites in firm and deep. Still, there was a trace of doubt in Dave’s voice that I needed to ease.
“That’s what staff Christmas parties are for, right? What happens at the party…”
“Stays at the party,” he completed.
Anna caught my eye, giving me an are -you-okay look. I smiled to show her I was, and to underline it, I said, “Think I’ll go get a drink. Do either of you want something?”
Arden held up his half-empty scotch and said he was fine.
Anna asked for a gin martini but continued to question me with her eyes. It was pretty annoying. Sudden irritation flared through me, and I tamped it down. Mood swings are a fun symptom of my brain injury I’ve had to learn to control.
I beelined for the bar and waited in line. Standing in place is the worst thing for my messed-up leg, and my hip was throbbing by the time I reached the bar. Then I couldn’t remember what Anna had ordered or think what I wanted myself. The bar was right by the damn DJ, and the music was too loud.
I ended up repeating what the guy in front of me had just said. “Two rum and cokes.”
I turned around with a drink in each hand and searched the crowded room for Anna. She wasn’t where I’d left her—or where I thought I’d left her anyway. I started to walk, scanning faces and feeling increasingly uncomfortable.
“Hey there, Jason.” The sly-looking guy, Dan or Dave, was right beside me. He and a few others stood in a cluster I’d wandered into. “You lost?”
“No. Just misplaced. Anna’s around here somewhere.”
“She ditch you?” His eyes twinkled as he smiled in a not-merry way. “So, Jason, I hear you work with animals. Like a veterinary assistant or something?”
“ Something like that.” I wasn’t about to mention dog washing to this group.
“You used to clean the building, right?” an equally sharp-eyed woman asked. “I remember seeing you sometimes in your little uniform.”
“Would you consider your career change a step up or a lateral move?” Dave asked.
Several people hid smiles by sipping their drinks. A pack. That’s what they were. Nipping at the flanks of an outsider who didn’t belong.
“I enjoy what I do.” I kept my tone smooth and even, suppressing a fresh wave of irritation. And then I remembered what Anna had told me about Dave. He was the horndog of the office, who’d hit on every attractive female at some time or another, including Anna.
I glimpsed the Afghan hound lady across the room. She was overdressed even for this swank event, sparkling with diamonds and wearing floor-length white satin as if she were at an awards ceremony. I couldn’t remember her name, but Anna had pointed her out as one of the senior partners—the top dogs in this pack. No longer young, but she was beautiful and reeked of power.
“Hey, Da ve.” I lowered my voice, while the rest of the group continued their own conversations. “Who is that woman?” I nodded toward the Afghan. “The woman in white.”
Dave followed my line of sight. “Cara McElroy? What about her?”
“She was standing near me when I was at the bar. I heard her talking to that other lady about you.”
Da ve’s eyes narrowed. “Yvette?”
“ I guess. Anyway, she was saying she’d like to… Let’s just say she sounded interested.”
“In me?”
“In getting laid.” When he looked at me doubtingly, I shrugged, nearly spilling my rum and cokes. “She sounded a little sloshed. But she definitely told that other lady ‘I’d like some of that’ and mentioned you by name.”
“ No shit?”
I’d never been fishing that I could remember, but I felt the thrill of an angler as the hook bites in firm and deep. Still, there was a trace of doubt in Dave’s voice that I needed to ease.
“That’s what staff Christmas parties are for, right? What happens at the party…”
“Stays at the party,” he completed.
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