“Her name is Beata.”
“What now?”
“Beata. I met her here. She works on the twelfth floor. She’s the receptionist.”
“And she’s going out with you?” I didn’t intend for that to sound as disbelieving as it came out, but here we are.
“She doesn’t care that I work here,” he mumbles. “I’m only here anyway because they’re flexible with my school schedule.”
“What are you going to school for?” I ask automatically, even though I don’t care.
“Business.” Billy smooths his hand down the front of his ratty band t-shirt like it’s a three piece suit.
“And what are you going to do with your generic business degree?”
I’ve had this same conversation with myself before. After I aged out of the system, I’d looked into going to school so I couldmake somethingof myself, like my caseworker had said, but nothing held any appeal. I’d been worthless as a baby, and I’d be worthless as an adult, too.
The only comparably worthless thing was a degree in business. They were a dime a dozen and everyone had one. Four years of college and tens of thousands of dollars in debt wouldn’t make me anyone’s preferred candidate for anything.
Whatever.
“Go into business,” Billy answers, his eyes a little wide like it should have been obvious.
I sigh and shake my head. “You’re so young.”
“What does that even mean?”
“You’ll figure it out eventually.”
I’m done with this conversation, so I drag the tip jar across the counter and dump it out. There’s a few bills and a lot of pennies, but I count it all out and make two even piles. I shove one his way and tuck the rest into my pocket. It’s not a lot, but it’s enough for a drink tonight or a fresh pack of smokes.
“Ready to close up?” I ask, opening the register because even if he’s not, I am.
“Sure, alright.”
“You can go do the dishes, I’ll do the money.”
Billy frowns, but goes into the back. The water in the sink turns on and I walk around the counter and lock the door, then flip the open sign to closed. That is one thing I like about working here. Since we’re in the office building, there’s no reason to be open after three in the afternoon. I have nights and evenings free.
I go through the close out procedures and drop the cash from the register into a bank envelope, then lock it all up in the safe beneath the counter. I email the total sales to the manager and turn off the lights in the pastry case. Billy comes out of the back, his apron long gone and fingers pruney.
“Ready?”
He nods, and we slip out the front. I double-check the door to make sure it’s locked and we go our separate ways.
On the way home, I bypass stopping for more smokes, deciding saving my tip money for a drink would be a better use of it. Once I get home, I strip down to my underwear and flop back onto my bed.
My apartment is small. It’s really just a studio, but it’s just me, and it’s always going bejust me, so it’s all I need. My pillow smells like it’s seen better days, and I yank it out from beneath my head and shake it until it slips out of the case. If I’m hoping to bring Ezra back here tonight, the least I can do is have clean sheets. The rest of the place is a bit dumpy, but there isn’t anything I can do about that.
I change the sheets and lay back down, deciding to catch a nap before I head over to Coven. I’m hoping to keep Ezra busy until the sun comes up, so I need my rest.
I think my brother is fucking his best friend
“Why do you insist on making them so irritable?” Henry sighs and kicks half a dozen decorative pillows off my bed.
“Why do you insist on makingmeso irritable?” I bend over and snatch up the pillows and throw them at his face. He bats them away with a flick of his wrists and levels a disapproving look at me. He’s really got that judgy older brother thing down. “Did they tell you about Hawaii?”
“Of course I know about Hawaii. She’s been talking about it for years.”
