I shook my head. “I didn’t say there was a relationship.”
He grinned. “You didn’t have to. Is she good?”
I almost choked. “What? What the fuck? We’re not in a locker room.”
He burst into laughter. “I guess we know where your mind was. I was asking if she is good at the job. Can you afford to have her quit? Can you make the company the best without her help if you have to fire her?”
“I’m not firing her.”
“You certainly seem bothered by the idea of working with her,” he said.
“It isn’t that. She’s good at what she does but there are some things I want changed to make the company better.”
He slowly nodded as he sipped the beer. “But you’re afraid of her.”
I scowled at him. “What the hell is wrong with you? What are you even talking about?”
“You’re all out of sorts and I have to believe it is because you saw her again.”
He wasn’t wrong, but I wasn’t going to tell him that. “I’m sure she’ll be able to adjust to the changes I want made.”
“You don’t sound very confident,” he said with a laugh.
“She’s strong-willed,” I muttered.
“Sounds to me like you’re going to be spending a lot of time with this Saige woman.”
“Why do you say that?”
He shrugged. “Because she’s been doing the job for a long time and you want to make changes. In my experience, when someone has been working somewhere for a while, they develop their own way of doing things.”
“Yes, I get that, but her way is wrong.”
He laughed again. “I now understand why you are single.”
“By choice.”
“You’re going to have a hell of a time getting this lady to change her ways. You’re going to have to be there and see her and spend time with her. Can you handle it?”
“I don’t care if I can handle it or she can handle it. It needs to be done.”
He nodded and looked thoughtful. “Do you think you’ll ever get married again?”
I almost choked on my drink. “Why in the hell would you say something like that?”
“It’s a valid question. You’re getting a little long in the tooth. Don’t you want to settle down and have a couple of little Nashes?”
I shook my head. “I’m not ready to bust out the walker just yet.”
“What are you, forty?”
“Fuck you. I’m thirty-eight. I’m in my prime and I’m not slowing down with a ball and chain dragging me into a pit of hell.”
He laughed again. “All right, you’ve got some serious feelings about this marriage thing.”
“I don’t like it and I don’t want it.”
“Got it,” he said. “I have a feeling I’m going to see you in here a lot more this coming week.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re going to be trying to change a woman’s mind,” he said with a smile. “I’ve personally tried to change a woman’s mind. It’s not something I’ll do again.”
“I’m not afraid of a woman,” I said.
“Famous last words,” he said with a laugh. “I’ll order extra liquor.”
“It’s not going to be bad,” I said. “I’m actually looking forward to it.”
“Good luck to you.”
Chapter 7
Saige
I turned my head and looked at the alarm clock. I loved the weekends. I loved sleeping in, and I really loved not having to pull Jace from bed and rush him out the door to school. When I was a young, naïve twenty-something, before I got pregnant, I imagined myself being the typical soccer mom. I was going to stay home and be a fulltime mommy. I was going to bake cookies and be the classroom mom and do all the things mom’s do.
Unfortunately, being a single parent meant I had to drag my ass out of bed five days a week and earn a living. I liked my job, but I would love to be home when Jace got out of school. I wished I could volunteer in his class more often and be a chaperone on field trips. I wanted the best of both worlds. But wishes were the stuff of little girls’ fairytales.
“You’re in the real world and that means laundry and grocery shopping,” I muttered.
At least I got to do those things with my son. I rolled out of bed and headed into the kitchen to make coffee. The first thing I noticed was the sun. Then I heard birds singing. Spring had sprung!
“Screw laundry and housework!” We were going to the park.
It had been a long winter and I was looking forward to hanging out in the sun. I started my coffee and found myself humming. A little sun did a lot of good. I was going to make Jace a good breakfast.
I pulled out the box of Bisquick and the waffle iron. I couldn’t wait until the farmers’ market was open and I could have fresh strawberries to go with the waffles.
“Do we have to go to school today?” Jace asked.
I turned to look at his sleepy face. He rubbed his eyes with his little hands and looked totally innocent and precious. “Nope. It’s Saturday. We’re going to eat waffles and then I was thinking we could go to the park.”
“The big park?” he asked with big eyes.
“Yes. We’ll stay as long as you want. I’ll pack some snacks and my book, and we can laze away the day.”
“Can we ask Caitlyn and Joss to come play?” he asked.
I thought about it for a second. I was kind of hoping to hang with him, but I knew he’d have more fun playing with Caitlyn. I would spend the evening with him. This was his day off too. “I’ll text Joss right now,” I told him. “Have a seat. The first waffles are just about done.”
I quickly texted Joss to see if she was up for a day out with the kids. She replied almost immediately with an excited yes. After eating breakfast, I got ready for the day before packing a few snacks and drinks in the oversized insulated bag I kept for just this reason.
We walked to the park that was already bustling with kids in the neighborhood. The first real spring Saturday always brought out the crowds. We were all craving sunshine. It took a few minutes to find Joss and Caitlyn.
Joss had a blanket spread out. “This is prime real estate,” she joked. “I hoped to get a bench or a picnic table, but they were all spoken for.”
I put the bag down and settled in next to her on the blanket. The kids were already off and climbing things. “I brought plenty of snacks,” I said.
“I brought some too. If I can keep her out here all day, I’ll do it. The girl needs to run off some of that energy and attitude.”
I laughed. “Rough morning?”
“I swear she woke up and was fourteen,” she groaned. “I love her, but boy, does she try my patience.”
“She seems to be having fun now,” I said as I watched the kids laugh and play.
“Good.”
“How’d it go with the new boss?” she asked. “You didn’t say much last night.”
“He’s just how I remember him,” I said. “Arrogant, demanding, and certain his shit doesn’t stink.”