"If this was meant as a pep talk, it's not working."
"Okay, change of subject," he says. "Thanks for the loan, I got your Venmo last night. It's just that the deposit for the new place was higher than I thought. I'll pay you back."
"Larry honey, trust me when I say that you paying me back is the least of my concerns, so you shouldn't worry either."
He leans over, dropping a kiss on my cheek. "Well, now I feel bad about the whole dusty vagina comment."
"Sure, you do."
"Spoken from a place of love." He smiles serenely.
The phone on my desk buzzes and I gratefully punch the speaker, happy for any distraction that gets me out of this depressing conversation.
"Violet?" It's the timorous voice of Jones, our intern. "There's a gentleman here to see you, something about a donation?"
"I'll be right up, Jones, thank you." Flashing Larry a smug smile, I head for the door, smoothing my hair back into its tidy French twist. "See? This day is looking better already."
The day is not looking better.
The man at the front desk and currently flirting with my seventeen-year-old intern is a Chad. One of the big boss Chads, if I'm correct.
Colin Ashford. He's dressed in a rich asshole suit with a rich asshole tie, and greets me with a rich asshole grin. "Violet, dear," he says, seizing my hand and pulling me closer to kiss my cheek. He's got sandy blonde hair, blue eyes, and a cleft in his chin that I'd bet my salary was created by plastic surgery.
Ugh.
"Your father told me I should stop by and say hello, he's-"
"Jack is not my father," I interrupt before recalling there was some mention of a donation. "But we're honored, of course, that you found the time to visit. Would you like a tour?"
I stare pleadingly at Larry, hoping he'll throw himself on the sword and show Colin around, but he mumbles something about getting the preschool program going for the day and conveniently disappears.
He is the worst friend ever.
Still, we got each other through Columbia University. When I wept hopelessly at 2 AM as I finished a paper, he'd be there with a monstrously huge bag of Snickers and Milky Ways. When he was hysterical and inconsolable while studying for finals, I'd supply him with bad boxes of wine.
Oh. The Chad is talking. "As you know, we're deeply invested in supporting important local causes," he says, flashing a grin. "Especially when it's for the less fortunate." He attempts an expression of humility, which looks uncomfortably like he's hiding a fart.
"Well, if you have a moment, I'd love to show you around," I'm resigned to my fate. "Our library is to your left." This is the room I'm proudest of, it's built to look like an old attic with lots of bookshelves, nooks, and crannies to curl up in. "While almost everything is online now, we keep a proper library full of banned books. We feel that it's important for the kids to –"
"Where's your office?" Colin asks briskly.
"Oh, I'm afraid that it's a terrible mess right now," I lie. "I have paperwork for our tax return scattered everywhere, so…"
His brow furrows. "It's June."
"I'm starting early."
Colin's face clears. "I have a better idea! Let me take you to lunch. You can tell me all about that preschool program, because it looks very sweet."
Yeah,I think,they're just about the age where you start looking for girlfriends.
I stare at Colin, hating him with everything in me for dangling the offer of a donation so I'd let him put me through this hell.
Screw this,I think.I'll apply for another grant.
He can tell he's losing me. He may be an asshole country club clone, but he didn't get to where he is by not being as sharp and cunning as a street rat. "You know your father's-"
"My stepfather."
