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“Eirin is going to kill me for fighting her on that article. I need a miracle. What do you think the odds are the Everetts not only have a vacation home here, but they invite me over to do some candid photos?”
“Uh, slim to none. Did you not hear about how Axel Everett sued the parents of one of his daughter’s classmates after he found out they were selling pictures of the two of them?”
“Gross. I don’t blame him.”
“Yeah, you’re gonna have to give her a threefer.”
“Ugh.” Threefer was the code Ward and I used for when Eirin was so worked up you had to come out of a trip with three different articles. One romance advice article focused around a vacation fling. One write-up about a local event or special interest piece. And one piece of celebrity home-away-from-home gossip. Eirin knew her target audience, and this strange trifecta was what always kept them coming back to HypeKey for more.
The call waiting beeped again, but this time it was Eirin. “Gotta go. The guillotine is calling.”
“Godspeed.” He hung up.
“Sadie. You’ve heard about Clayton and Alison?” Eirin didn’t waste time with small talk and expected her employees to be immersed in popular culture at all times.
“Yes, and I’m so sorry—”
“Save it. Answering the Ashes is opening in a month. The Everetts will be all anyone can talk about by then. You find me their secret Midwest vacation home. Write up this Bay Days Festival like it’s the most interesting thing you’ve ever seen, even if it’s a bunch of slack-jawed yokels kicking rocks around a parking lot. Make. This. Good. Your job depends on it.”
“I…okay.” Eirin had never threatened my job before. She must be beyond pissed we missed the boat on the Rivers-Calderon story. Thanks to me. “I’ll be sure to make it good.”
“You better. We’re going to be doing some restructuring in the next few months and I need to know you’re still on board with our mission. If you start flaking out on my assignments, this isn’t going to continue to work for me.”
Restructuring?
This wasn’t something we’d heard anything about before now. But Eirin had complete control over everything related to HypeKey. Her father patented some kind of mechanical piece for helicopters that resulted in billions of dollars of government contracts, so she didn’t have to work. HypeKey started as a vanity project to make it seem like she had a “real job,” but in the last few years the site had taken off and we were actually pulling in enough revenue from advertising to cover our overhead. Which probably meant she was going to take things in some crazy new direction in the name of innovation.
It was time to bite the bullet and start looking for a new job, but I’d really prefer to get through my next appointment with Dr. York in May before I took on that headache.
“Of course,” I answered her. “I’m going to need Lauren to find me someplace new to stay though.”
“Yes. She played the voicemail you left her this morning. Not the most professional thing I’ve ever heard.”
Wincing, I held my tongue. There wasn’t much professional about working for HypeKey. But this job had gotten me through some tough times and I met my best friend here. “Did you see the website she used to book my rental?”
She made an exasperated noise. “I made her show it to me after she played me your message. I’ve had a talk with her about using more conventional booking sites even if it means she doesn’t find the best deal available. We’ll make sure you’ve got a reservation at an actual hotel for the rest of your time there.”
Relief flooded my system. “Thank you. I won’t let you down.”
“Don’t.” She disconnected the call.
I stared back at the house I stayed in last night. There was still no movement inside. It was time to get my head on straight and get focused. That wasn’t going to happen if I sat here staring at this man’s house.
Coffee and grease were the first order of business. A place called Maisie’s Diner with excellent reviews came up in my search. According to my phone it would only take seven minutes to get there. Kelly Bay wasn’t exactly a sprawling metropolis. Pretty sure you could get anywhere in this town in under twenty minutes.
I sent Ward a quick message telling him I survived my call with Eirin and warning him to keep his ear to the ground about possible restructuring. Then I put the little brick Victorian and its perplexing owner in my rearview mirror.
