“I heard your mother sent you here because she was so frustrated with dealing with you.”
“True,” he agreed. “And I wrecked her car. But in my defense, she is also very sensitive. I think it’s a genetic thing.”
Oh, for God’s sake, I thought, fighting the urge to roll my eyes. Of course it was everyone else’s fault. Next he’d blame the tape dispenser. My mother, however, smiled at him, clearly amused. “Did I hear Bee say you need a job?”
“That’s what I’m told,” he replied.
“You’re told?”
“It’s actually more of an ultimatum,” he admitted. “Apparently I am both annoying and expensive.”
Instead of replying, my mom just studied him, one hand twisting the diamond necklace she wore every day. I didn’t like the look on her face even before she said, “How about this: you work for me this summer, and I’ll take your wages off my fee, which your mother is paying.”
“Really?”
“Mom?” I said, stunned.
Ambrose grinned at me. “Did you hear that? We’ll be co-workers!”
“But you have to actually work,” she told him, firm now. “I don’t do annoying or expensive. And you show up on time. Is that clear?”
“Absolutely,” he replied. “When do I start?”
“Now.” My mom pushed out her chair, then pointed under the table. “Pick up all this tape. Then come find me for a coffee order. I need caffeine.”
“On it,” Ambrose said, giving her a mock salute as she started into her office. I followed her, glancing behind us just before shutting the door to see him crouched down on the carpet, picking up the tape one piece at a time. He saw me looking at him and gave me a cheerful thumbs-up. Jesus.
“Are you crazy?” I said to her, closing the door. “Why in the world would you hire him?”
“It’s our job to keep brides calm and focused,” she replied, pulling her wallet out of her purse. “This wedding is a mess so far, and yet the only time I’ve seen Bee upset has been because of Ambrose. This way, he’s out of her hair and helping us at the same time.”
“No way,” I said, shaking my head. “You’ve never hired anyone on the spot like that. You background check the rare person you do take on. There’s no way you’d risk your name and your event just to keep someone busy.”
“I can’t do a good deed?” she asked, amused.
“You don’t do good deeds,” I said flatly.
“Hey!” she protested. I just looked at her. Finally, she sighed and said, “Okay, fine. I may have gotten a phone call earlier from Eve about how Bee was at her wits’ end with her brother and asking if, for an additional fee, we could divert him somehow.”
“She’s paying you to babysit him?”
“Not babysit. He’s working, or no deal. I told her that.” She slipped a twenty out of her wallet, handing it to me. “And I’m not going to trust him with anything crucial, God knows. Errands, physical labor, last-minute details, and coffee runs.”
I thought for a second. “But that’s my job.”
“Exactly.” She smiled. “And you are about to graduate and have your last summer before college. I’d like to see you actually try to enjoy it.”
“Do not do this for me,” I said, in a warning voice. “I’ve already dealt with him enough to know I’d rather work alone than with that kind of help.”
“You’re welcome,” she said, as if I hadn’t spoken at all. Then, before I could protest further, she leaned forward, pressing her lips to my forehead. “Give him this and the standard coffee order and point him toward Jump Java. Then you’re officially off duty. Okay?”
I wanted to keep at this, stop what would surely be a runaway train before it even had a chance to gain speed. But over her shoulder, the clock said four fifteen and I had a date to meet Jilly in line, Steve Baroff between us or not, in two hours. Plus, based on all I’d already seen of Ambrose Little, he wouldn’t need me to sabotage him: he’d do it himself. Probably before I even flipped my tassel.
“Okay,” I said, taking the bill from her. “It’s your funeral.”
“What a charming way to put it,” she replied. “Spoken just like a high school graduate.”
I rolled my eyes, reaching down to open the door. When I pushed it open, it banged hard against something on the other side. Which, I saw as I peeked around it, was Ambrose, who was still on the floor and, most likely, close enough to have heard everything. Whoops.
“I think I got it all,” he said now, not sounding offended at least. “Man, that is some sticky tape.”
“That’s why we keep it in the dispenser,” I told him as he got to his feet, picking pieces off his hands and dropping them in a nearby trash can. “My mom wants coffee. I’m supposed to give you her order and point you there on my way out.”
“Great,” he replied, so easygoing, like a person who’d never had a reason not to be. Of course he hadn’t heard what I’d said. Even if he had, I was sure he’d figure I was talking about someone else. Or that I was just sensitive. “Lead the way.”
“It may seem like just coffee,” I said, as we stood in an unexpectedly long line at Jump Java. “But nothing is just anything when it comes to my mother. That’s the first thing you need to know.”
He nodded. “She’s a tough nut, is what you’re saying.”
I looked at him. “Never call her that. Like, ever.”
“Noted.” He shook his head, that one curl bouncing off to the side. “You know, I’m getting the sense you don’t have a lot of confidence in my ability to do this job.”
“You’re correct,” I replied, as the line finally moved a bit.
He had the nerve to look offended. “Why? You don’t even know me.”
“Maybe, but let’s recap my experience with you so far. You delayed your mother’s wedding—”
“Which, in retrospect, might have been a good thing. Imagine if I’d been talking to Demi even longer? She might have come to her senses and saved herself a lot of anguish.”
“—and just today,” I went on, “you broke company property and made a client cry.”
“I made my sister cry,” he corrected me. “At the time, I was not yet an employee. Let’s be clear here.”
The line inched forward, slightly. “Do you always deflect anything that might make you accountable for a problem?”
“For some reason, blame is often directed toward me. I have to be vigilant.”
“For some reason?”
“Weren’t you going to give me the coffee order?”