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Oh, aye. I am falling for Gavin Douglas.
Chapter Nine
Gavin
Jamie insists on making breakfast for us in the morning, just to prove that she's capable of doing that. I never thought she wasn't. But I've realized lately that she feels kind of inferior to her brothers and sisters. Catriona is an archaeologist, Rory is a solicitor, Lachlan is a financial adviser, Fiona runs a dress shop, and Aidan owns a construction company.
Well, that's what I assume---until I notice something strange about her grammar. She started out using the present tense but then shifted into past tense when she talked about Aidan and Catriona.
"What gives?" I ask as we're snuggled together on the sofa, having stuffed our faces with Jamie's excellent food. "It sounds like Catriona and Aidan don't have jobs anymore. You used the past tense when you mentioned them."
"Aye, it's true. They are both...seeking new opportunities."
"They're unemployed. You can just say it. I won't think they're massive losers because they're between jobs."
"What do you do for a living?"
I squirm and wince. "Well, I, uh...It's nothing interesting."
"Please tell me, Gavin. I'm currently unemployed, like Aidan and Cat, so you don't need to feel embarrassed to tell me about your job---or your lack of one, if that's the case."
"Oh, I've got a job. It sucks, though." I scratch my cheek and wince again. "I'm a sales rep for a company that sells emergency home recovery services."
"What does that mean? I've never heard of that sort of thing, so I'm interested in learning more."
"You really don't want to know more. It's boring as hell."
Jamie has been smiling sweetly at me ever since we sat down on the sofa. She seems to genuinely want to know about my job, and I don't want to get cagey about that. I've avoided telling her a lot of things about my past, so the least I can do is share this boring part with her.
"Basically, I talk to people on the phone all day long. Mostly, it's cold calling where I harass perfectly nice people and try to talk them into buying services they don't need. About sixty percent of my job is like that."
She just keeps on gazing at me like I'm Superman.
"But I do also work with customers who've experienced a residential disaster and call us for help. That's what the company calls it. Residential disasters. It means that if your sewer backs up or your septic system goes wonky, we're here for you. We also handle broken water pipes, mold problems, insect infestations, and other stuff."
Jamie studies me for a moment. "You expected me to be disgusted with your job, didn't you?"
"Yeah. Duh. I annoy people for a living."
"But you also give people the services they need in an emergency. I assume the company actually delivers on their promises and doesn't simply take the money and not do the work."
"No, our disaster recovery team does the work, and they always finish the job." I think my whole face is scrunching up now. And yeah, I'm using my baby sister's term for that expression. "But lately, most of what I do is cold calling. I hate that."
"Have you looked for another job?"
"Yeah. The job market is tight these days. Hard to find anything I'm qualified for."
"But you must have had other sorts of jobs in the past."
I slump against the sofa and sigh. "My only previous work experience was in the Marine Corps."
"Oh. But your job in the military must have given you some experience that you could leverage in the civilian world."
"My MOS was ground ordnance maintenance."
She bites one side of her lip. "What does that mean? I'm not well-versed in military jargon."
"MOS means military operational specialty. Basically, my specific job in the Corps which was ground ordnance maintenance. That means I inspected, repaired, and maintained weapons systems in the field." I let my head fall back against the sofa. "So you see, I don't have relevant experience for getting a civilian job. The only thing I could get was being a telemarketer." I snort. "And I only got that gig because the guy who interviewed me liked my voice. He said it would make people feel more at ease."
