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“I am offering to help you out,” she says indignantly. “I can pick up the forms at the court and even help you fill them out.”
I tilted my head, mocking her with complete condescension.
“Shit, I’ll just fire Brody,” I say sarcastically. “I have you, the legal whiz, here with all the answers.”
All the brightness of her beautiful face evaporates, and she turns her back to me. She resumes fussing with the flower boxes. I spy on her, though she’s doing her best to mask her face with her long bangs, her lower lip wobbles, about to give way to hurt feelings.
“I’m busy,” she says. “I don’t want to lose this customer. So, if you’ll excuse me.”
“I just have a few more questions,” I continued softly. “That stoner who served me, he’s not your boyfriend, is he?”
She turns to me.
“That’s none of your business,” she answers firmly.
Her face is mottled with pain. She may be way too tender-hearted for the likes of me.
“I just need to know for our court thing,” I fib.
In truth, I want to know if I should be jealous of a man with minimal functioning brain cells.
“The woman who keeps calling,” I begin sincerely. As I started to explain the situation to Brynne, Adrianne called again.
“One second,” I say and step away.
It will not reflect well that I am about to yell my head off at an investor, but I have had it.”
“Hey, is there some reason why you are calling me nonstop?” I ask.
“I am just excited about our project,” Adrianne laughs it off.
“My attorney is preparing a report,” I snap. “We ran into a hitch that we are untangling. But all in all, the project is on course. The only obstacle in this gig is you.”
I close my eyes and wait for the backlash. Getting that off my chest felt so amazing, but I just put everything at risk for the momentary relief. Probably not the brightest move I could have made.
“Tell you what, Adrianne,” I say. “Meet me at my office in an hour. Brody and I will brief you. How does that sound?”
“I don’t know, Jack,” she says, sulking.
It’s hot when Brynne pouts. Not at all when my stalker admirer does it.
“Maybe I don’t want to throw my money in with hostile partners,” she says.
“Then behave yourself,” I say. “No one starts hostile. You cannot call me, text me, or social media me nonstop. Otherwise, I will dissolve the partnership.”
“And you’ll burn up any profit you make suing me to do it,” she growls.
“Do you want to meet or not?” I ask. I can turn this around if I throw her a bone of a little in-person time.
“Will it just be us?” she asks.
“You, me and Brody,” I say.
I take a deep breath. Another whole business day down the drain. It is an expensive loss, no matter how you look at it. We will be behind schedule by a week by the time court is over. I will have to pay for an idle crew –it costs just as much to stand around and be available as it does if they were working. And it’s costing me a week in carry costs. Money doesn’t grow on trees, and there is always a cost associated with it.
I am feeling so tightly wound that I may explode at the provocation. I rejoin Brynne, who has busied herself tending to a sidewalk garden.
“I apologize,” I find myself saying, even though she’s the one who thinks she is suing me.
