Page 48 of Fake it For Good
I assumed he was talking to another employee. Sometimes, Denton could be a little loud. It was his personality. I focused on work.
“You’re not going in there,” Denton barked again.
“You need to leave,” Dana said.
Things didn’t sound right. Denton was arguing with someone that I couldn’t hear. I pulled opened my office door to see Kelly glowering at Denton. My friend was acting as my gatekeeper. Dana was right behind him. It was nice to know I had friends willing to throw down on my behalf.
“What are you doing here?” I asked Kelly.
“I’ve got it,” Denton replied. “I’m handling it.”
“I need to talk to you,” Kelly said. “Call off your guard dog. Seriously, Denton, you need to get a life. Cane is a big boy. He doesn’t need you to patrol in front of his office.”
“Fuck you, Kelly,” Denton said. “Don’t you have an alley to hang out it in?”
Kelly’s lips peeled back, showing off the teeth I had bought and paid for about five years ago. I could see her winding up. I knew what her temper tantrums looked like and just how loud they could be. Occasionally, the tantrums could get destructive.
“It’s fine,” I said.
Denton glanced over his shoulder. “Should I get the tranq gun?”
“Asshole,” Kelly said.
“Come in and quit making a scene,” I said and walked back into my office.
Denton made a cat noise just as Kelly walked through the door. “I’ll be right here,” he said before I closed the door.
“Since when are you afraid of me?” Kelly asked and took off her coat. She sat down on the sofa like she belonged.
“What are you doing?” I asked with my arms folded across my chest.
I didn’t sit down. I didn’t want her to think I wanted to actually have a conversation with her. We had avoided each other for two years. If we saw each other at an event or party, we avoided each other like the plague. She had tried to talk to me a few times, but I managed to find an excuse to leave her presence.
“Who is she?” she asked.
“Who is who?” I replied with a sigh.
“You were in Texas with a woman you claimed is your fiancée,” she said. “Who is she?”
“None of your fucking business.”
“I saw a picture of her,” she sneered. “She looks nothing like me.”
“Why would she?”
“Usually, you trade up,” she said with a disgusting laugh.
“I’m not trading anything,” I said. “We’re divorced. You cheated on me. You were the one who attempted to trade up.”
“It’s kind of insulting to me that you would take up with a woman like that,” she said, sighing.
“What the fuck do you want, Kelly? You come into my office after two years to bitch at me about a woman I’m seeing. What the hell is wrong with you? Why do you even think you get to say shit to me about any of this?”
“You’re very defensive,” she pouted.
“I just want to know what the hell you want,” I said. “I have a full day. I don’t have time to deal with you. Even if I did, I don’t want to deal with you. Go away.”
“I came by to inquire about your new fiancée,” she said. “We were married for a long time. I thought we could still be friends.”
