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“I don’t know. You’re not all blinged out. You don’t have strategic rips across your thighs or a T-shirt that later might have to be surgically removed from your body. Less hair gel.”
“I know you’re trying to insult me, but all I’m hearing is how much you enjoy the dressed down version of me.”
“Prefer, not enjoy.”
I smiled and kept eye contact, knowing exactly what was going on, and not willing to help her out one bit. Because while her mouth might be on the attack, the rest of her looked poised for an escape. Wound up. Tensed. Even Nitro sensed it. When she went to pick him up, he bit her on the thumb before lopsidedly flying over to the arm of the couch instead. I was making Sadie nervous, and it felt good to be the one with all the power for once.
Why was she so nervous? Was it because we were alone together? That had never happened before. Even in the short time she lived with me, there were always other people with us. Maybe I should have brought Stinton along with me tonight. We could have a tiny roommate reunion they’d both hate.
“I’ll be sure to get the mixer to Makayla for you.” Sadie nodded towards it, a clear invitation that I could leave now. “Oh, and if you’re going to keep quotingPride and Prejudiceat me, at least get it right. In chapter eleven, Elizabeth tells Mr. Darcy that his defect is to hate everybody, and he responds that hers is willfullytomisunderstand them.”
“Wow, I missed a whole ‘to.’ I see why you felt compelled to bring it up.” And research it. And then memorize it. It was amazing what a little harmless misquoting could do. I’d be sticking a pin in that fun little detail and returning to it later.
Instead of leaving, I meandered over to the bookshelf and rested my back against it, knowing it would push her a little closer to losing it. Then I studied Sadie with the same scrutiny she’d given me. Something about her was different tonight. Good different, I had to admit. While I might be dressed down, Sadie had clearly dressed up for her bird people video chat. She had a winged eyeliner-thing going on that was very flattering to her big hazel eyes, and she’d done her hair again, this time, straightening it before creating beach waves and adding some product that made it smoother and shinier than I’d ever seen it, well except for a flyaway little piece on top that I figured was Nitro’s doing. I shuddered at the thought of having a bird on my head.
But it wasn’t just her hair. Instead of her non-descript work clothes or a graphic T-shirt paired with baggy jeans, she’d worn a cute pair of cut-off shorts and opted for an actual blouse that opened generously at the neckline, showing off shapely collar bones and—NOT TODAY, BRAIN. Hormones. Brain. Whatever was causing me to check out Sadie, of all people, andnotice things. I panicked and went to rest my elbow on the shelf behind me, panicked more when the shelf wasn’t where I thought it was, and crashed my elbow down hard, causing a spike of pain up my arm.
Sadie’s eyes widened, but it was Nitro who went nuts. He squawked and called me a name I hadn’t heard since the sixth grade.
“Nitro, stop that.”
He gave me an irritated chirp, but settled down at Sadie’s command.
For the first time ever, I was grateful for my parrot aversion. It meant she didn’t question why I was being weird. And it reminded me that overstaying my welcome was a stupid plan, one I was abandoning immediately.
Not that finding Sadie attractive was a big deal. I mean, I’d always known Sadie had the potential to be drop-dead gorgeous. I just hadn’t ever reacted to it before because it wasn’t relevant information. It still wasn’t relevant. My hormones had temporarily taken the reins while I was in rebound mode. That was all. Everything was going to be fine. Well, it would be fine the second I got out of this apartment and didn’t have to see Sadie’s long, tan legs in those shorts or the way she ran her hands over her thighs when she was nervous. Like right now. She should really stop doing that.
“Okay, well. I’ll see you at GoWithFriends. Thanks for getting the mixer back to Makayla.” I walked straight to the door and opened it enough to squeeze out before shutting it firmly. I didn’t want Nitro to escape. Just me.
Chapter 11 – Sadie
What do you wear on your first day of work when there’s a chance you might be riding a scooter and sitting cross-legged in a beanbag chair? Well, not a dress, and not heels. Not that I would have worn those again anyway.
GoWithFriends had no dress code, which I’d learned the moment I showed up at my interview and almost everyone else was dressed casually, including the people doing the interviewing.
Denver dressed up,too, my mind so helpfully pointed out. He’d looked way too good in a white shirt and slacks. I told my mind to shut up and continued flipping through my closet until Jenny came back in, a bowl of cereal in hand, and took over. She pulled out the cute, silky blouse I’d worn for my Zoom call with the bird people, and I immediately took it from her and put it back. Denver had seen me in it recently. That was a stupid reason to not wear it, but still a reason.
I traded it for a long-sleeve, gray T-shirt with a silhouette image of a spooky owl sitting in a gnarled old tree. The branches of the tree wrapped up and down the sleeves like an intricate tattoo. I didn’t have any actual tattoos because… needles. But I liked the look. Office buildings were often cold inside, so it didn’t matter that it was going to be blazing hot out. I paired the long-sleeve shirt with a pair of black jeans and my usual half boots and put everything else away before gathering my things and heading to my car.
I was used to a long commute, one where I could mentally prepare for my day, but five minutes after leaving my house, I was at work. There wasn’t time to worry, or snoop, or even get a tour. As soon as I had my keycard and I was signed in, Brenda Sloane whisked me off to a secure office on the third floor and had me sign my life away, promising I’d never reveal anything I’d ever see about the company, their methods, the app users, the algorithm, or anything else I might find out about… well about anything.
If there was quirky office culture going on downstairs, I wouldn’t be seeing it anytime soon. Their security was legit. I wouldn’t have internet access except for approved sites I’d need for my position and no access to my cell phone unless I left the room. The only cameras allowed were the ones overhead monitoring me. I had a landline for making inner office calls and a private luxury bathroom. It was like a spacious, high-tech jail cell, which strangely, I found awesome, rather than depressing.
“Call and ask me as many questions as you like,” Brenda said after walking me through their vetting program. “I can access your screen remotely and help you anytime you get stuck.” She wrote down her extension on a sticky note. “I’ll have someone bring you lunch at noon, and then please meet everyone in the dodgeball room at two. Don’t be late.”
“The dodgeball room?” I thought maybe I’d misheard, but she only smiled.
“Yes. Dodgeball is great for loosening up stiff joints and muscles. The room was custom designed by a company out of Houston. They make a latex and foam therapeutic ball that bounces like you wouldn’t believe, but doesn’t hurt on impact.”
“And that’s where the meeting is?”
“There isn’t a meeting.”
We stared at each other for several beats, until I finally nodded like I knew what was going on, and she left me to get to work. At my last job, we had meetings to discuss the next meeting, to plan for a meeting that would be in preparation for another big meeting. I hadn’t realized how ingrained that was in me until Brenda’s blank stare.
For the next several hours, I studied all the new applicants who had been vetted by the algorithms and then interviewed by video conference. The list seemed endless, but so was my curiosity. Maybe I could never tell anyone about what I was seeing, but I was still seeing it.
All these people wanted to get into GoWithFriends, and I had the power to make it happen. Well, shared power. The company had set up what they called a blind check, so there was another employee somewhere, going over the same list as me. Anywhere we disagreed, the application got another look by someone higher up the chain who would read our notes.
