“Absolutely,” Dallas agreed, more sedate until Skye launched her body his way. Times Square must be some holy grail in the advertising world to get that sort of reaction from them.
“What’s it gonna cost?” Ducky asked, looking between his two business partners as if they had lost their minds.
They always discussed the expense of everything before making these kinds of decisions. Greer’s bottom dollar approach played like an anthem in Ducky’s mind. What was the return on this investment? Was it truly worth the cost or making an emotional decision because clearly with all the bouncing going on, emotions were at play. Yes, StreamTrainer made money, but expansion wasn’t cheap. They couldn’t just willy-nilly anything right now.
“Ducky, it’s Times Square. StreamTrainer’s gonna hit the big time. Yes, we can afford it,” Skye teased, shooting out a hand to knock Ducky’s shoulder. “How can wenotafford it?”
“We can afford it. Right, Sara?” Dallas asked, finally showing some sign that his brother was still inside his body. About damn time he did.
Sara nodded and put a finger to her lips before she took the call off hold and finished with the advertising agency.
“It’s done. We need to celebrate,” Sara said, placing her cell phone on the desk. She pushed back in the office chair, sliding right between where Ducky and Dallas stood. Her hands went up for high fives all the way around. Of course, he didn’t participate. Ducky rolled his eyes, keeping his arms tightly crossed over his chest as he pivoted away from the group.
The deep inner embarrassment of having his face and body up in lights for the world to see was his cross to bear. The field day his buddies were going to have at his expense made the mortification run deeper.
Speaking of his friends, he hadn’t checked in with anyone in days. If he was smart, he’d start preparing them to get ahead of the teasing. His gaze scanned his desk for his cell phone. He had no idea where it was. How had this become his life?
Work for yourself, they said.
It was more fulfilling, they argued.
What a joke.
A yawn slipped free. He was too tired to really absorb the impact of what they had just done. His arms fell to his sides as he pulled his chair out and dropped into the seat in utter defeat. In hindsight, he should’ve told The Game Awards he wasn’t interested in presenting this year. Never started down this path to begin with. He liked his old self well enough.
“Ducky, let’s go eat,” Dallas said as if Ducky’s only job was to follow his instruction. Couldn’t Dallas see how tired he was of people running all over him? He cast a glance over his shoulder as his brother shrugged on his suit coat. Skye stood beside him, zipping her logoed StreamTrainer jacket.
“You pick the place,” Skye added as an incentive, flipping her ponytail out the back.
“Y’all go without me. I have all this to do.” Ducky swept a hand over the pile on his desk, indicating the mounds of work awaiting him.
“It’ll be here tomorrow,” Skye said, nodding her head toward the open office door.
He answered by reaching down to boot up his computer, hoping they got the message. Seconds later, Dallas’s hand landed on his shoulder, giving a gentle squeeze. His other hand brought a long envelope forward, putting it in Ducky’s line of vision where he couldn’t see anything else. “You don’t have to go with us tonight. I know you’re mad at me, but Skye and I agreed you needed this gift. We planned to give it to you at dinner before I messed it up by going around you like I did.”
Skye’s pretty penmanship scrolled the wordsThank you, Duckyon the pale purple envelope.
He turned in his chair, taking the card while looking between the both of them. The irritation faded a tinge. He slid a finger under the flap, loosening the tight seal. A greeting card with a caricature of a girl in a hula skirt, a cow chewing at the grass of her skirt, slid out.
The card read Moo Chew Grass-ias.
“What’s this?”
Dallas tucked both his hands in his slacks pockets, rocking back on his heels. Clearly, proud of his gift. “You’ve worked nonstop since we started this in our tiny apartment, and you’ve never taken more than a single day off.”
A folded piece of paper fell to his lap from the card. It held an itinerary and two first-class plane tickets. “A trip to Hawaii?”
“Not just a trip. It’s aperfect vacationtrip to Hawaii,” Skye interjected. “It’s gorgeous there. They have these villas right off the water. It can be quiet when you need the peace and has a fun night life. We included a two-week reservation in a private villa with two bedrooms. We want you to go. Take a break and get away. Rejuvenate.”
“We know all this attention you’re getting is taking its toll. Then I didn’t help matters,” Dallas said, throwing a hand back to his desk, indicating the exact place Ducky had had the rug pulled out from underneath him. “And you’ve earned it. Get away and let this happen. When you get back, this will have calmed down.”
“Hawaii must’ve cost a fortune,” Ducky said, looking up at Dallas. His brain misfired as he processed even more new information thrown at him today, not entirely sure how he felt about this new turn of events.
“Don’t look like that. We paid for it out of our pockets. This is from Greer, Skye, and me. Not the business,” Dallas said.
“I don’t know if it’s the right time,” Ducky hedged, deciding he’d think about the trip tomorrow after a good night’s sleep. Besides, which friend did he take? If he asked someone on his gaming team, then another player would get their feelings hurt. Yeah, maybe this was a bad idea. “I’ve got all this work to do plus Sara’s schedule has me starting at five in the morning. We’re doingGood Morning America,” Ducky explained, tossing the card and the itinerary on his desk.
“Delegate. You deserve the time off to relax, Ducky,” Skye encouraged, nodding to drive her point home. She slapped Dallas on the arm. “Let him think about it. Come on. I’m starving.” That was Skye’s code to Dallas to leave him alone and let him work through everything on his own.
