Page 13 of The Overtime Persuasive

“Call him.”

“No.”

“He could come stay for a few days. Look through everything with you. He probably knows people who understand this kind of thing.”

“Exactly.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means Dad always knows someone. A lawyer. An accountant. A contractor. A city official who once came backstage and brought six friends. He makes one phone call, and suddenly everything gets handled.”

“At the risk of stating the obvious, that sounds useful right now.”

“It also means this stops being something I handled.”

“Maybe you borrow from the Bank of Dad once.” Lucy sighs. “It doesn’t mean you have to open a permanent line of credit.”

“You don’t understand.”

“I’m trying to.”

“A lot of the people I grew up around had parents who took care of everything. And now they’re adults who still expect someone else to fix their problems. Their rent. Their jobs. Whatever disaster they’ve created that month.” I swallow, looking at my binder across the kitchen. “I promised myself I would never become that person.”

“Asking for help once doesn’t make you that person.”

“It feels like it does.”

“What did your mom say?”

“She was unhelpful, too. Like you,” I know she can hear me pouting. “Said ask my dad.”

Lucy chokes back a laugh. “Eva, you built Side B. You bought the building. You created the café. You hired the contractor.”

“And apparently I hired the wrong one.”

“That doesn’t erase everything else.”

“No, but having my father ride in and save me might.”

Lucy is silent again. Then she says, “Okay. I’m coming to get you.”

“What?”

“I’m coming by right now.”

“No, you’re not. I need to work through this binder and figure out what I’m going to do.”

Two short blasts of a car horn sound through the phone—and from the street below my apartment.

I sit straighter. “Did you just honk?”

“Yes. I’m parked directly in front of your building. I was already on my way to Liam’s. We’re having dinner at his house tonight.”

“Good for you.”

“Get in the car and come with me.”

“I don’t want to have dinner with you two.”