Page 91 of So This Is War
“Hmm, maybe I should give him some holy water for Christmas.”
“You do that. Let me know how it turns out for you.”
He laughs. “Probably not well.”
“I can guarantee you it won’t go over well.”
“Was he always this cranky and unpleasant while growing up? And I say that under strict boss-assistant confidentiality.”
I pat his shoulder. “Don’t worry, I won’t be repeating anything we talk about to him. As long as you can promise me the same.”
“I don’t think he wants to hear about my sore toe, let alone what we talk about.”
“Good,” I say. “And yes, he’s always been like this. His smiles are rare. Even rarer when he’s in a good mood. I don’t know, he’s just always been . . . grumpy.”
“Was that hard to live with?”
“At times, yes. Living with someone who gets angry at the drop of a hat is stressful. But I guess I just started to ignore it. There comes a time when you just think, they will always be angry, it’s not me, it’s them, and you move on.”
“Shit, that sucks,” he says. “I’m sorry you had to deal with that growing up. Doesn’t seem too fair.”
“We all have our shortcomings. At least he cared about me. Some parents are angry and don’t care. That would be a terrible situation to be in.”
“True.”
I turn toward him and push his floppy hair back. I immediately notice the goosebumps on his forearm, and I think another great win for me. “What about you? Did you have a pretty decent childhood?”
“Yup,” he says. “Really low-key. Played hockey from a young age and pretty much focused on that. My parents knew my passion. They helped me grow it along with my skill, and I skipped out on all the troublemaking in order to accomplish my goal.”
“So then how did you become a ladies’ man?”
He chuckles. “I thought that was a secret.”
“It’s not, but nice try.”
“Well, throughout high school, I was a beanpole. It wasn’t until I reached college that I started lifting more. I grew into my skin and sprouted in a different way. I started getting attention from the opposite sex, and then at twenty, I lost my virginity.”
“No way,” I say, utterly surprised. “You lost your virginity at twenty? That’s so hard to believe. Not that it’s a bad thing, but given your reputation, I would have thought it was sooner.”
He shakes his head. “Not when all you do is play hockey. I had no time for anything else growing up. But when college came along, that was a different story. And I started to realize how easy it was to talk to women.”
“Talk to women, that’s a nice way of putting it.”
He chuckles. “Well, either way, that’s how it went down.”
“Have you ever thought about settling down?”
“Not really,” he says. “But only because I haven’t found the right person.”
“Ever had a girlfriend?”
“Awfully intimate questions for an assistant,” he says, seeming more relaxed than ever. This feels like the same Levi Posey I first met in the hotel. Smooth in conversation, smirking. Flirting. He seems like he’s in his element.
Which of course makes me like him that much more.
“As your assistant, I think it’s my duty to know all things about you, including relationships. You know, in case some lady claims to be your ex, begging for access to you.”
“I see. And what if some lady does try to gain access to me? What would you do?”
