Page 38 of Hale Damage
“That money won’t last forever, Serena. You need to get a job.”
“What kind of job?” she asks, her nose scrunching at the mere thought of anything as mundane as work.
The server brings our food then, and I cut a thick slice of my filet mignon, putting it into my mouth and savoring the tender savory meat. Serena forks up a bite of her pear and prosciutto salad.
“I was thinking you could work on a road construction crew,” I say, fighting to keep a straight face.
Serena’s fork pauses halfway to her mouth, and her eyes widen. “Like those people who wear the orange vests and cause traffic jams?”
I can’t help but laugh at her response. “I’m kidding. You got a degree in business, so why don’t you do something with that?” I suggest.
“Ooh, I could start my own tech company. I hear they do very well,” she says, finally taking a delicate bite and chewing. “I could be the next Apple.”
I hold in my cringe. “Yeah, probably not. That would take a lot of capital. Not to mention, that’s not really in your wheelhouse or knowledge base.” I rack my brain, thinking of what Serena likes, and I can come up with only one solution. “You could be a personal shopper.”
“You mean shop forother people?”
“Yes, Serena. For other people. You have an excellent sense of style,and I think people would trust you to build their wardrobes,” I say, taking a forkful of black truffle risotto. Then I tack on, “I would hire you.”
“Really?” She seems excited about the idea. “Okay, what would I need to do?”
“I can help you come up with a solid business plan, but you’re going to have to be the one to put in the work. You should be able to get started without much money up front other than advertising.”
“And some of that can be from word of mouth,” she says, and I can see excitement flaring in her blue eyes.
I point my fork at her. “There you go. Now you’re thinking like a businesswoman. Think about it for a few days, and we’ll meet next week.”
Her smile is beaming with pride, and I hope my friend follows through and finds something to actually do with her life.
“So, what have you been up to today?” she asks.
“I worked,” I tell her pointedly. “And then I went over to see Reecie. You want to see some pictures?”
Serena holds out one hand, doing grabby fingers until I pick up my phone and find the photos Phoenix took earlier this evening. She flicks through them, cooing appropriately. “Aww, her little cheeks are so chubby, and her skin is flawless.”
“She has Phoenix’s dimples,” I say, peering over the table to see which pic she’s looking at. “See? You can tell when she smiles.”
Serena flips to another pic. “Ooh, and look at you all shirtless and looking like a daddy,” Serena purrs with a wiggle of her eyebrows.
I chuckle. “Because the little chickadee spit up on my shirt, so Phe put it in the wash.”
Serena gasps, pressing a hand to her chest. “Not the baby-blue, herringbone one, I hope.”
“No, just a plain tee,” I assure her, amused at her horror.
She closes the photo app and squints at my screen’s background image. “Wait. Who is this redhead?”
“That’s Minnie,” I say, reaching for the phone, but Serena holds onto it, inspecting the still photo I’d grabbed from the security video. It shows me and Minnie walking into the Hampton Inn that night.
Finally she hands it over with a disapproving sniff. “Remington, don’t you think it’s time you let this go? I mean, it’s been eight months, and it was only a one-night stand.”
“It was more than that,” I snap and instantly feel guilty when Serena’s face registers shock. “Sorry, I just… I can’t get over her. Maybe if I knew why she left without a word, I could get closure and let it go.”
My best friend’s lips curl into a smirk. “Maybe you suck in bed.”
I snort out a laugh. “I’m fucking fantastic in bed, and I was especially virile that night.”
Serena lifts a brow and takes a leisurely drink of her wine. “Evidence says maybe you’re overestimating your abilities. I was just checking your Yelp! reviews the other day and…” She gives an exaggerated wince. “Not good, Mr. Hale.”
