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“Tell me you have good news,” I said. I probably could have started with hello...
“I got good news and bad news,” he said. “Good news is you’re the temporary replacement officer. Starting today.”
What?
What?
“What?!”
“I’d call it being in the right place at the right time,” he said. “You get to be the boss. Isn’t that what you always wanted?”
I rubbed my temple, feeling my blood pressure rise by the second. “Temporary. You said temporary. How long until they find the full-time replacement officer?”
Brian sighed. “Well, that’s the bad news.”
Oh no...
“You see, Doreen Boyle, the lady who left today? She’s been waiting on a replacement for a while.”
“She said she’d technically retired six months ago. Are you saying I’ll be here six months?”
Tully’s eyes and smile widened, excited.
“Welllllll,” Brian said. “She technically applied for a replacement back in 2004.”
I slow blinked.
“Two thousand and what?”
“Yeah, just don’t hold your breath, Overton,” Brian said. He sounded far too happy to be getting rid of me. “I sent all your employment data to HR to transfer you over to the Northern Territory bureau.”
Already? He hadn’t even spoken to me...
“I have an apartment in Melbourne, I, uh,” I whispered lamely. Stupidly. My brain wasn’t working.
“The bureau will cover all moving costs,” he said quickly. “They’ll pack your place up and send it up to you if you want.”
I wasn’t sure what to say.
I wasn’t sure what was left to say.
“You know what you can do with my transfer papers,” I said, just as the air conditioning unit began to buzz and whirr until it conked out. I stood up. “You can take the form, fold it up nicely into a neat little square.” I closed my fist and punched the side of the air conditioner. It coughed back to life. “And shove it up your arse!” I disconnected the call and tossed my phone onto the instrument dash. “Argh!”
Tully stood there, wide eyed, slack-jawed but somehow grinning. “Did you just tell your boss to...?”
“He’s no longer my boss,” I said. “Apparently I work here now.” I sagged back onto the chair and held up my hand. “I think I broke it.”
Laughing, Tully knelt before me and inspected my knuckles. “You have a pretty mean right hook.” He gently manipulated my fingers, checking that everything still moved. “I think you’ll be okay.”
I nodded, fighting tears. “I’m sure everyone at the office will be pleased. They’ll probably have a party in my honour right this second, to celebrate the fact I’m gone.”
Tully pulled me to my feet, spun me around, and we began to do some slow, crazy waltz. He was still grinning. “No tears allowed, because this is the best day ever.” I looked at him as if he’d lost his mind, and he spun me out and made me do a twirl before he pulled me back into his arms. “Now you can eat my arse and do that prostate thing all the time.”
I laughed despite the emotional whirlwind and mindfuck of the last ten minutes.
Tully pulled me flush against him, our dance now a slow sway, his eyes focused on mine. “Seriously, Jeremiah,” he murmured. “I’m glad you’re staying. I know this wasn’t exactly what you wanted, but I think you’ll love it here. If you just give it a chance.” He pouted. “If you give me a chance.”
I sighed. There was no way I could be mad when he was holding me like this, looking at me like that.
