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Jay’s bark of laughter showed that he was as surprised by that answer as Janessa was. Her brows rose, then lowered as she scowled at him.
“Come on, guys,” she said. “Aria is a good friend, and she’s a hard worker. She’d be a benefit to the clinic. I know she would be.”
“Why does she want to move here?” Gareth asked, clicking his pen again. “I mean, it’s not like Serenity is a thriving metropolis or anything.”
“She wants a change of scenery,” Janessa said. “And she has nothing holding her in Sacramento. C’mon, guys. She’d be perfect here. I just know it.”
Jaylen’s dark eyes narrowed, and the stubborn set of his jaw was now aimed in Gareth’s direction. Gareth knew what was coming and wanted to shake his head in frustration. They couldn’t be making decisions based on taking the opposite stance from each other.
He’d promised his dad that he’d try harder to get along with Jay, but butting heads seemed to be their way of communicating. Gareth was well aware that he was as responsible as Jay was for their sometimes-tense relationship, but both of them had to try if they were going to make any progress.
“Maybe we could give her a trial,” Jay said, confirming Gareth’s assumption. “Three months or something.”
Janessa’s huff of frustration was audible, while Gareth managed to keep his inside. He knew that Janessa wanted to give her friend the job without restrictions.
“We can’t keep going without a receptionist,” Gareth said. “But I think we should go for someone local. Someone who already lives in the area. Haven’t we gotten any applications from local people?”
“Sure,” Janessa said with a nod. She flipped through the papers in the folder in front of her, then slid one across the table to him. “Check that one out.”
Gareth picked it up and scanned the info, wincing as he read the name. “Well, that’s a definite no. Why is she even applying? Do people really re-apply to places they’ve been fired from?”
“Read her comments at the bottom,” Janessa said with a smirk.
I promise not to flirt with Jay and to not comment on Gareth’s broad shoulders. I also won’t try to get either of them drunk by spiking their coffee at nine in the morning.
“Yeah. Because spiking my coffee later in the day would be totally acceptable,” Gareth muttered. He crumpled the paper in his hand and tossed it at the garbage can. Unsurprisingly, he missed, making Jay snicker.
“Should’ve let me do it,” Jay said, as he got up to snag the paper. He settled back in his chair, eyed the garbage can—which was further away from him than from Gareth—then managed a perfect shot.
“Show-off,” Gareth griped.
Janessa lifted her hands in a stop gesture. “Let’s get back to the issue at hand.”
“So none of those other applications are any better than Chelsey’s?” Gareth asked with a gesture at the garbage can.
Janessa’s shoulders slumped. “There are probably one or two, but please, guys. Just give Aria a chance. She won’t disappoint you.”
Gareth stared hard at Janessa for a moment. “Is there something more you’re not telling us?”
“She just really wants to move and start a new chapter of her life now that she’s on her own.”
Jay’s phone dinged, and he picked it up. After reading the message, he said, “Let’s get this settled. I have plans.”
Gareth did too, but they didn’t involve the opposite sex as Jay’s likely did. Though he still had reservations about the whole idea, it was essentially two against one, and he knew that his argument against hiring Aria Jensen really wasn’t all that strong.
Clicking his pen again, Gareth glared at it as he said, “Fine. I’ll agree to it as long as she comes here on a trial basis.” He looked up at Janessa, seeing the hope on her face. “Is she going to stay with you?”
Janessa nodded. “I talked to Charli, and she’s fine with it. We’ve got the room, so it’s not a problem.”
“Not sure living and working together is a great idea,” Gareth said. “But I guess it’s your life.”
“So we’re done here?” Jay asked. “You’ll let her know?”
“Yep.” Janessa smiled broadly. “This is going to work out great. I just know it.”
She popped up from her chair, then came around the table to give each of her brothers a kiss on the top of the head. “Thanks, guys.”
As she left the room, Jay pushed to his feet. “Bet that hurt.”
