Swallowing hard, I knocked lightly on the closed door before opening it and stepping inside.
“Please have a seat,” Jackson Marigold, known casually to his employees as Jack, said, his tone cool as ever despite the tight line of his mouth.
I didn’t want to sit, but what else was I going to do?
When I got situated, I lifted my gaze to meet Jack’s, grateful he’d opted to forego the festive New Year’s outfit he was known to sport. I couldn’t imagine doing this with him wearing those silly glasses or having his hair painted blue like last year. Was that because of me? Was he not enjoying his favorite holiday of the year—as he often told people—just because he had to fire me?
Just another thing I would feel guilty about, I was sure.
My first instinct was to apologize, but I’d already done so numerous times, ever since Ransom put me on high alert with his warnings of impending doom. It wasn’t going to help me now and I knew it, so I figured why bother.
“I’m sure I don’t need to fill you in on my reasons for asking you in here,” Jack said calmly, his voice at odds with the way his hands were clenched on the top of his desk.
“No, sir.” I definitely knew.
Come on, Jack. Just rip the Band-aid off. Best way to do it.
Having a flair for the dramatic, Jack exhaled heavily and leaned back in his chair. “Braelyn, I hate to have to do this, but”—another crestfallen sigh—“we’re terminating your employment.”
I nodded. “I understand.”
His brown eyes narrowed. “No arguments?”
“Of course not. You warned me the last time.” And the time before that. And the one before that. So on and so forth. This man had been kind to me. He’d given me a job, fresh out of college with absolutely no experience, and he’d overlooked a good portion of my personal issues. I didn’t hold it against him.
Jack sat up, tapped a key on his computer—probably telling HR the deed was done—then turned his attention back to me. “Look, Braelyn. You know if it was up to me—”
Before he could finish that sentence, my cell phone rang. I couldn’t stop the flush to my cheeks, warmed from my embarrassment. The last thing I’d expected was to get a phone call while my boss was kicking me to the curb.
However, because of the things currently going on in my life, it wasn’t like I could ignore it.
“I’m sorry,” I said softly, turning my phone over in my hand and glancing at the screen.
I didn’t recognize the number, but that didn’t mean much these days.
Without bothering to apologize again, I hit the button to take the call.
“Hello?”
“Miss Bishop?”
“Yes.”
“My name’s Tiegan Shaw. I’m calling on behalf of Owned, Incorporated.”
I didn’t recognize the woman or the company, but I waited anyway.
“It’s our understanding you’re seeking employment.”
My eyebrows rose as my eyes settled on Jack’s round, fatherly face. How in the world did this woman know that?
Tiegan continued. “I’d like to offer you a position. Competitive salary and benefits, of course.”
Okay, so now I felt as though I was being punked. What were the odds I would get this call at the same time I was being fired?
“If you’re interested, I’d very much like to have a face-to-face.” There was a brief pause. “What do you say we meet for lunch? Eleven o’clock. At Brax’s. Do you know where it is?”
“I … yes, I know where it is.”
Clearly she’d taken my confirmation as agreement, because after a quick, “I’ll see you then,” the call disconnected.
“Is everything all right?” Jack asked when I set my phone on my lap once more.
“I don’t know,” I said, still stunned.
“Look, Braelyn. You know if—”
Because it was obvious he was going to launch right into the speech he’d memorized to let me down easy, I decided to put him out of his misery.
“Thanks, Jack.” I got to my feet. “No need to placate me. I get it. I really do.” I shot him a smile. “Thanks for putting up with me for this long. I know it hasn’t been easy. But…” I glanced at my watch, realized it was already ten thirty and if I had any hope of making it downtown in time to meet Tiegan Shaw, I had to go now. “I’ll just grab my things.”
On the way back to my desk, I pulled up my Uber app, requested a car. No way did I have time to wait for Ransom to get here. Nor could I tell my brother I was on my way to meet a stranger. He would go apeshit.
Now to get my things.
Not that I had much in my desk. Probably had to do with the fact I’d been anticipating this day. Due to my inability to put in a full week of work for the past few months consistently, I was surprised they’d kept me on this long. But sometimes personal things couldn’t be helped.
“Braelyn!”
I didn’t bother turning back as Jack continued to call my name. Instead, I made a beeline for my cubicle, grabbed my purse from the bottom drawer, took the small metal statue I kept on my desk—a silver tiger my brother had bought for one of my birthdays—tucked it inside, then headed for the doors. As I walked, I stashed my phone in my purse and held my head high.
No reason to let them think this bothered me in the least.
I figured Jack had expected me to grovel a little, to beg and plead for them to keep me on. It was possible he would’ve caved, gone to bat for me once more, convincing the higher-ups I wasn’t always such a pain in the ass. Admittedly, I’d considered it numerous times over the past few weeks. Begging. What I would say, how I would say it. It wasn’t like I could afford to go without employment for even a minute. Paying the bills and keeping a roof over my head were kind of a big deal to me.
At the same time, I’d grown to hate this place. I knew everyone was talking behind my back, making accusations, wondering why I was getting special treatment although I wasn’t. And since I couldn’t very well come out and tell my boss that I was desperately trying to stay off the radar because my estranged parents and their psycho lackey were trying to track me and my brother down so they could kill us, this was inevitable.
Now I could only hope that whatever offer Tiegan Shaw was going to make would be worth my while. Otherwise…
Well, I didn’t want to think about that right now.
For the first time in quite some time, luck seemed to be on my side. Thanks to a competent Uber driver, I was able to make it downtown in record time, walking into Brax’s with a couple of minutes to spare. The elegant restaurant with its gleaming dark wood and white linens was welcoming, as was the pretty hostess who greeted me with a warm smile. When I mentioned Tiegan’s name, that smile seemed to brighten all the more.
“Right this way, Miss Bishop.”
I followed her as she led the way through the restaurant, noticing most of the tables were full even this early on a Thursday. Then again, I’d heard good things about this place, most of which had come from my brother. Brax’s was owned by world-renowned chef Braxton McBride, who happened to be one of two submissives Zeke Lautner had claimed as his own. And while I didn’t spend a lot of time with Zeke, he was the only friend of Ransom’s who actually knew of my existence. I wasn’t sure exactly how long Brax’s had been open, but I knew it had been making the rounds in the culinary circuit as the best steakhouse in Chicago.