“Don’t scoff at me, lady. You know I’m right. Evie, honey, you shouldn’t be looking this stressed, not at your age. You didn’t leave your office all day yesterday! Plus, you’re starting to get a bit of a reputation with the staff.”
Evelyn snapped her eyes to Maggie. “What do you mean? What kind of reputation?”
“The Ice Queen kind. Evelyn, you hardly talk to anyone. Your face is permanently scowling and you keep such unreasonable hours. It’s making everyone feel on edge, like they shouldn’t be going home at five o’clock.”
Evelyn sat back in her chair and swung it around so she was facing the floor-to-ceiling window at the back of her. She and Maggie always made a bit of a joke about Evelyn being the “Ice Queen.” She’d read enough sapphic romances to know her clothes and job fit her nicely into the category, but in all honesty,Evelyn never thought herself moody enough. When had that changed? And when had she missed her colleagues regarding her as such? Tears suddenly sprung to her eyes. She didn’t want Maggie to see how affected she was by what her friend had just said. The last thing Evelyn wanted was to be seen as some sort of tyrant.
Yes, she was stressed, but that had nothing to do with her colleagues. They all worked hard. The proof was in the numbers. Crawford’s was a raging success. It was on Evelyn to make sure nothing changed. That’s why she’d been killing herself lately, because she didn’t want to let anyone down. But she was letting people down anyway.
Her father would have never made anyone feel on edge. Richard Crawford was the epitome of a perfect boss. It was heartbreaking that Evelyn was failing so badly.
“Hey, hey, hey. What’s all this?” Maggie rounded the desk and knelt in front of Evelyn.
“I’m trying so hard, Mags, and I’m still letting people down.”
“Sweetie, you’re not letting them down. You’re hurting yourself, that’s for sure, but people don’t need you to be perfect, Evie. You know how to run this company with your eyes closed. You don’t have to burn yourself out to do it.”
“But I do, Mags. Dad left me in charge. Crawford’s Pet Supplies is a successful business thanks to him and now he’s gone and I have to make sure it stays that way. Half the board members want me gone, so I can’t put a foot wrong. I can’t…” Evelyn’s sentence was cut off as she sobbed. Weeks of pent-up anxiety, stress, and frustration broke free. Maggie pulled Evelyn into a hug, rocking her back and forth.
“Evelyn, honey. You have to slow down. You’re doing a fantastic job. Everyone who works here supports you. Fuck theboard. Your dad wouldn’t have left if he thought you couldn’t handle it.”
Evelyn let herself cry for a few more minutes. Wiping her eyes and clearing her throat, she sat up straight. This wasn’t the time to be breaking down. There was too much to do.
“I’m fine, Maggie, sorry about that.”
“Don’t say sorry. You clearly needed it.” Maggie sat back on her heels, looking at Evelyn with concern.
“Seriously, Maggie, I’m good. I need to get back to it. I’ll take onboard what you said about the staff. I don’t want them to be on edge.”
Maggie didn’t look convinced, but she rose to her feet and headed to the door anyway. Maggie had known Evelyn long enough to discern there was no point in pushing the conversation further.
Evelyn blew out a breath, retrieved her compact mirror from her top drawer and surveyed the damage. Drunk panda was a good look, right?
After wiping away the smeared mascara from under her eyes, Evelyn got back to work. She didn’t have time for breakdowns.
The morning passed like any other. Emails, phone calls…more emails. The dreaded board meeting, which turned out not to be as horrific as Evelyn first thought.
By the time lunch rolled around, Evelyn was ready for a shot of whiskey and a massage. A Caesar salad would have to suffice. The budget meeting weighed heavily on her mind as she summoned the energy to get lunch. Maggie was right, she needed to break out of her office, even if it was just for half an hour.
Shutting down her laptop and grabbing her jacket, Evelyn slipped out of her chair and began towards her office door. Herjourney was cut short though when she nearly tripped over…why the hell was there a dog sitting in the middle of her office?
Minutes passed as Evelyn stood frozen to the floor in some kind of weird stare-off with the little black and white pooch. Blinking rapidly, Evelyn rubbed her eyes.
“Oh, Jesus. Ihavegot a brain tumour! I knew I didn’t need glasses,” she mumbled to herself.
Pulling herself from the dog’s gaze, Evelyn crept around the animal, who didn’t move a muscle. As soon as she reached her door, she called for Maggie. Evelyn watched the dog whilst she waited…and waited. Where the hell is everyone? The staff probably had the same idea as Evelyn and were out enjoying lunch. What was she supposed to do? She needed confirmation that she was definitely hallucinating before she really started to panic and called for the family physician.
With no hope of finding Maggie, or anyone else for that matter, Evelyn slid the door shut, pivoting on her heel. It was still there, just sitting in the middle of her floor, looking serenely at her desk. Walking back to where she first clapped eyes on the little beast, Evelyn stood with her hands on her hips.
“So…who are you then, and why are you here?”
The dog—or hallucination—didn’t answer with any kind of recognition apart from a blank stare.
“You’re a Cocker Spaniel, I think,” Evelyn continued. “Why would I hallucinate a bloody Cocker Spaniel?”
Of all the things Evelyn’s fatigued and overworked brain could conjure, why a dog?
“This is stupid,” she grumbled, fetching her phone from her purse. “You better bloody pick up, Maggie.” Evelyn really needed to stop talking to herself. Three rings and Maggie’s cheerful voice rang through the office.
