CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
I awoke with a smile on my face, sun shining brightly through the blinds. I checked my phone but had no message from Jillian. She must still be sleeping, I thought. I yawned, stretching as I decided what I should do this morning. Since I didn’t get to bed until almost five, I didn’t feel guilty about sleeping in late and having a leisurely morning, going out for fresh bagels at my favorite little café a few blocks from my apartment. I took it and my coffee and decided to enjoy them on the roof deck of my apartment building. It was a perfect day out, and it seemed a shame to waste it indoors.
I was spreading the veggie cream cheese on the last half of my poppy seed bagel when my cell phone rang.
“Hello, is this Mr. Grant Hardwick?”
I swallowed my bite and chugged a sip of coffee before answering. “Yes, this is he.”
“Hello, Mr. Hardwick. This is Nikki Beck from Google, Inc. I’m calling in regard to the internship you applied for with our company.”
I put the bagel down and sat up straight. Holy crap, I can’t believe this is happening. “Yes, I did apply several months ago. But they told me the internships were booked up for the next two years.”
“Well, you’re in luck. We have an opening for the fall, and we’d like to fly you out here for an interview tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?”
“Yes, we have a limited time frame for the interview process, and we would need to make a final decision no later than the end of the week. Is this a position you’d be interested in?”
“Yes, absolutely.”
“Wonderful. Mr. Hardwick, one thing we are concerned with is we see you currently reside in Georgia. You do understand this internship is in California and would require a year commitment. We have a partnership with Stanford, and with your GPA it shouldn’t be a problem transferring if you’re accepted for the internship.”
I blew out a breath. I’d applied for the position back in March. I never thought they’d call me so soon. I thought I’d be on the waiting list for at least a year before getting an interview.
Jillian’s face flashed through my mind. How was I going to break this to her? We were on the cusp of something amazing. What would happen if I got this position? But this was everything I’d always wanted. I had to at least try for it.
“Mr. Hardwick? Are you still there?”
“I’m here, sorry. I understand the requirements of the position. And yes, I very much look forward to the opportunity to interview with your company.”
“Fantastic. I’ll set up your travel reservations and email you a confirmation. When you arrive, take a taxi from the airport to our headquarters and check in with Judy in reception. You’ll stay overnight and fly out the next morning.”
“Great, I’ll see you then.”
I hung up the phone and sat it back on the table next to my now-cold bagel. This was my dream interview at my dream company, so why wasn’t I as excited as I should be? I should be doing back flips, but instead my gut was twisting uncomfortably. It seemed like things were finally starting to work out between Jillian and me. Did I really want to give that up already?
I was getting ahead of myself. I didn’t even have the position yet. I would go for the interview, and wait to see how it went. There was no use worrying about a future that wasn’t set. Surely Jillian would understand I had to go on the interview at least. I’d regret it forever if I didn’t.
I picked up my trash and headed back to my apartment to take a shower. Tonight I was going to have dinner with Jillian’s parents and grandmother for the first time, so before heading over to see her I needed to stop and get a haircut.
I drove to the Super Cuts in the Target shopping plaza. There were only a few places to get a haircut in town: Super Cuts, Jimmy the Barber, the expensive salon over in the Brunswick Mall, or Ms. Patty’s Palace, where all the grandmothers from the Baptist church went to gossip all day.
I chose the lesser of evils. The stylist, who I wasn’t even sure was out of high school yet, was in the middle of washing my hair when my phone buzzed in my pocket. I wasn’t in a position to answer, so I let it go to voicemail. Thirty second later, it buzzed again.
“Hey, hold on a sec,” I told the girl, digging into my pocket for my phone, thinking it might be the girl from Google again. I slid the bar on the screen to answer without looking at the caller ID and put it to my ear, keeping my eyes closed so shampoo didn’t get in them.
“Hey, I’m not really able to talk right now. Can I call you back in about a half hour or so?”
“Grant? It’s Ava. You need to get to the hospital—now! There’s been some kind of accident.”
I sat straight up, using the little towel tucked into the back of my neck to wipe my face. “What do you mean ‘some kind of accident?’ Where’s Jillian?”
“Listen to me! That’s what I’m trying to tell you. A neighbor found her on the sidewalk. They think she fell off the roof, but I don’t know a lot of details yet.”
I stood, peeling a few bills and throwing them at the stylist as I headed for my car. “What the hell happened?” I put the car in drive and flew through town, desperate to get to Jillian. “Why the hell would she be on the roof? It doesn’t make any sense!”
I could hear Ava was crying, and then the phone was passed to someone else.
“It’s JT. Listen, man, the information we’re getting is sketchy so far, but it’s bad. Just hurry.”
That was all he said before he hung up, leaving me in a panic.
Why the f*ck did I leave her? I should have stayed last night—she asked me to stay. My fist slammed down the steering wheel as I screamed in frustration. I was helpless to do anything right now, and the feeling made me sick as guilt twisted in my gut. I did the only thing I could do: I drove faster and I prayed.