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.
揂nything else, Katelyn??I ask.
揥ell, one more thing.?She strides forward, leaning over my desk with a whisper. 揝he took off for a two-hour lunch earlier. I抦 not sure where she went, because there抯 nowhere around here where you can lounge around and eat for hours without someone trying to turn you out for table space.?
I look behind her, again fixing my eyes on Destiny.
揓ust thought you抎 want to know. I抦 going to go catch up on the filing. I抣l leave you two to talk it out.?My assistant retreats with her usual tact, knowing when to leave things in my hands.