Good for her. For everyone抯 sake.
But fuck, I just can抰 be that gracious. Can抰 resist the urge to rib her a little more.
Consider it justified payback for our last encounter, which undoubtedly gave the lab personnel a month抯 worth of gossip.
How抯 my mocha coming along? I hit reply.
Miss Angelo抯 response comes a minute later. Peachy. I抦 just working out some kinks now.
I glance at the time. It抯 after ten o抍lock at night and she抯 still working?
I frown, remembering that the main security force changes over to a skeleton crew at ten. That means nothing but cameras in the attached parking garage.
A hundred unlikely scenarios flash through my head, each more terrible than the last. Does she stay this late because I made it personal?
Damn. Maybe I shouldn抰 have thrown down the gauntlet in front of half the development team. If only she weren抰 being such a fiery little smartass...
With a sigh, I pick up my phone and punch her contact.
揌ello??She sounds surprised she抯 getting a call this late.
揑t抯 fine if you want to postpone the next tasting until next week. You抮e a new employee. I don抰 seriously expect you to strike coffee gold multiple times in one week,?I tell her flatly.
揇oes that mean you抮e scared, Mr. Lancaster??she throws back, a fluttery laugh at the edge of her voice. 揥hat? Are you worried you抣l look bad because you told me no one could come up with a second scorched drink in three days??
The mouth on this girl.
I feel my lip curl with amusement and disgust.
揌ardly, but it抯 well past standard work hours and you must have pulled a sixteen-hour day. Are you still at the lab??
?..it抯 either do it here or carry on with the basic setup I have at home, but we both prefer the high-end stuff. So, yeah.?
揋o home, Miss Angelo.?My hand slaps my desk.
揘ot yet. Busy.?
揙bviously, I have high expectations, but I don抰 expect you to sacrifice sleep. I抳e never seen anything good come out of my staff when they抮e worn raw. Get some rest. We抣l do the testing next week.?I clench my jaw, hoping like hell she listens just once.
揓eez, you say it like you抣l come and tuck me in personally.?
For a second, I stop breathing.
My brain descends into this terrible hell where I抦 hovering over Eliza Angelo like a vampire, stripped bare with nothing but a sheet over her.
Goddamn. Tucking her in would be my last choice in those circumstances.
揗iss Angelo, please棓 I start, but she cuts me off.
揧ou don抰 understand. I抦 having fun. Sometimes I do my best work when it抯 late and quiet and my mind isn抰 overloaded like it is during the day. I brewed like this at home, too.?
Frankly, I don抰 give a shit if she turns into a genius night owl. I don抰 want her walking through that garage alone.
揘ot the point. You shouldn抰 be at the office so late. It抯 unconventional for anyone who抯 not on the security team.?
揂ren抰 there cameras everywhere? You don抰 have to worry about me robbing you, Lancaster.?
I hold in a snort.
揥oman, you抮e a piece of work. That抯 the furthest thing from my mind and you know it.?
揧eah? So, what are you worried about then??She truly doesn抰 get it.
Fuck.
揑抦 concerned about you walking to your car in the dark. Security pares down to a handful of people after ten. You shouldn抰 be there by yourself, especially leaving the building alone.?I realize how ridiculous I must sound.
揧ou抮e in luck. I usually bike or take the bus,?she says.
揟hat抯 even worse,?I snarl, pressing my hand into a fist.
揌ow nice of you to grow a conscience. Unfortunately, my drill sergeant boss wants another scorched drink by the end of the week. Where will I develop it if I抦 not here? Oh, and by the way, can I just say that has to be like the worst working name ever? Remember the last time you went to a caf?and ordered burnt coffee? But, hey, you抮e the bossman. Who am I to argue with Commander Coffee??
揃adger Lady, do you ever shut it??
揘o梐nd did you just call me a badger??She sounds surprised.
揘ot my call. Destiny said you were a honey badger after the incident at the shop on seventh. She said you tore me apart without a care in the world.?
揝mart girl, Captain Coffee. Guess you did one thing right, raising her.?
I can抰 hold back anymore, chuckling deeply into the phone.
揑抦 fifteen years deep, so I suppose I抣l keep her. Also, I thought I was Commander Coffee? Did you just promote me??
揓ust changed my mind. You抮e a pretty big jerkwad sometimes. But you need to come up with something better than 'scorched drinks' for a name.?
揟hat抯 what I have Marketing for. They抣l pick better names that resonate when we抮e ready for that stage. In the meantime, I抣l come up with the code words in development. I抦 still the CEO.?
揙kay, Moby Dick. I have to go.?
揥asn抰 Moby the goddamned whale??I ask, bewildered.
揧ou抮e right about one thing梚t抯 too late to discuss literature with you. Now, do you want your new scorched drink or not? I need to do a quick taste test and hope it抯 not as burnt as the name says.?
揗iss Angelo, sign off. Go home now. Or else I抣l start restricting lab access for everyone as part of a new security policy.?
She gasps. For a solid ten seconds, she抯 silent.
揥hy are you so worried? You抮e scaring me, Lancaster. I might think you actually do care,?she says, her voice so small.
揑 care about the quality of my product梩hat involves your health and safety,?I grind out, turning my face away from the phone Shit.
Way to play the grade-school, tugging-on-the-cute-girl抯-pigtails game.
I clear my throat before I continue. 揑 care deeply about my employees?well-being, of course. Until now, I never had to worry about my lab people staying so late. There are also liability issues. Insurance is hideously expensive.?
揥hatever. Softie.?She laughs loudly again and hangs up.
I slump back in my chair with a groan.
I think the most annoying woman ever born is onto me.
The next day, I抦 back in my office with a steaming black Americano at my side, reviewing a proposal.
I抳e got a meeting in less than two hours, and I need to close this out.
The deafening knock at my door doesn抰 care.
揥ho is it??I yell back.
I don抰 need more interruptions right now.
The door swings open. Katelyn Storm stands behind Destiny with an exasperated look.
Dess stares at the floor with the same sheepish face I抳e seen a thousand times.
揇o I want to know??I fold my arms, knowing what抯 up before I even ask.
Something抯 wrong.
Kate crosses her arms, and from her posture, I can already tell she抯 set to give me hell. 揧ou know I have twin boys, right??
揑抦 aware,?I say slowly.
揟hey did the whole job shadowing thing a few months ago. Only, they don抰 listen to me and they抮e pure chaos together. They had to choose a place where their parents don抰 work, and they couldn抰 choose the same place because I guess no one deserves that,?Kate says without taking a breath.
揙kay??I抦 not sure where this is going, but I know it抯 nowhere good.
揝o, one son was Microsoft抯 problem while his brother went off to harass Alaska Airlines. But my employer梐ka, you梔idn抰 have the foresight to make his kiddo someone else抯 problem. Now, what I don抰 understand is why I抦 being punished for it.?
Fuck. Because I thought my daughter could handle this job without piling misery on my poor EA?
揥hat did you do??I give Destiny a stern look.
Her head darts up like a deer hearing a rustle in the brush, her lower lip protruding.
揢m. Nothing.?
My eyes shift to Kate, knowing it抯 something, or they wouldn抰 be here.
揝he抯 not lying, actually,?she says with a soft smile for Dess. 揟hat抯 what she did. Absolutely nothing. But now the filing isn抰 done because you told me she needed stuff to do, so I saved a week抯 worth of it for her. When I came back, everything was still boxed up just like I left it.?
My eyes fall on my daughter, watching her face turn into a tomato.