Page 15 of Bone Deep
I bark a laugh, knowing exactly how wellthatwent.
Dita frowns. “I’m sorry, Sir. But there was no stopping her.”
I tap a knuckle on her desk. “No, there isn’t. And it’s fine. Jen never needs an appointment.”
My newly Jen-initiated assistant nods and plops in her chair, immediately jotting down a note:Ms. Clark NAN
Yep, efficient.
I smooth my Brioni tie and push open my office door.
My colleague—and the closest thing I have to a friend—is perched in the chair across from my desk with her tablet open on her lap. Jen’s heel taps lightly against the floor as she scans a page while twirling the device pencil between her fingers.
She glances up. “You took an awful long time just to get coffee.”
“I also got breakfast,” I reply, setting the bag on my desk.
“That better be an everything bagel,” she chirps.
“It is. But it’s mine.”
“Rude.”
I shrug out of my jacket and hang it on the back of my chair. “You didn’t place an order.”
Jen rolls her eyes. “Still rude.”
I sit, unwrap the sandwich, and take a bite while she flips a page in the file.
“Toll and Fritz,” she says, tapping her tablet. “Or as I continue to maintain,Titz.”
I sigh. “You’re twelve.”
“You love it.”
“I do not.”
“You totally do.”
Jen leans forward slightly. “Anyway. I came to see if the redlines are ready so we can move this monstrosity forward.”
“I’m still waiting on those,” I say around another bite. “Parker was working through them with the paralegals last night. We should have them in short order.”
Jen nods, satisfied for the moment. Then she studies me, her eyes narrowing. “What’s going on?”
I freeze mid-sip of coffee. “What?”
She tilts her head. “You look… distracted.”
“I am not distracted.”
“You’re distracted,” she insists.
“I’m waiting on redlines.”
“That’s not the distraction.”
I take another bite, ignoring her, but she watches me like a cat stalking prey. “There’s no distraction,” I huff.
