“It’s not you, it’s me?” He airquoted with a terse tone.
“Hey,” she said, laying a hand on his knee to get his full attention. “You’ve seen my days. They start rough and go downhill from there. I’m a disaster on a good day. It wouldn’t be fair to drag you into that mess.” She hadn’t meant to admit to noticing him so much, but it was the only way to help him understand, so they could move on.
“Right. Sorry, I was out of line. It’s not like I’m in a position to get involved either.”
“Y’all ready to order?” The bartender came back, looking harried and wiping the hair out of her face with the back of her arm. Bri moved her hand to look at the menu, and immediately missed the connection.
“Ah, yeah.” Bri smiled at Ethan as she gave her order. After putting her personal life on hold for so long, why not indulge in the little time she could have with Ethan instead of searching for another route that may take just as long to get her there?
“Well, this night is looking up.” Ethan drummed his hands on the bar’s edge before ordering his dinner.
“Are you having work problems too?” she asked, continuing the conversation, not realizing that it might not be a good topic until his smile dropped.
“Actually, they’re promoting me.” He stared at his hands on the wooden surface.
“That’s great, congrats!” She knew something bad was coming just from his tone, but wanted to be supportive of what should be good news.
“And I’m relocating… to DC.” Wondering at his hesitation, she felt a pinch in her chest at his words.
“Oh. When are you moving?” She leaned back as the bartender laid out the place settings for their meal.
“I meet the moving truck next week. My mom’s thrilled that I’m moving back.” He didn’t sound as excited about the move as his mom was. Bri felt a pang of jealousy to be near her family again. At the same time, she realized there wouldn’t be any potential dates or sightings to look longingly at Ethan ever again.
“My mom is elated that I’m finally taking some time off to see them.” They may be from the same city, but it wasn’t a small town. The sprawling metropolis meant there was little chance that they knew the same people.
“How long has it been?” He asked before becoming momentarily distracted by the food laid before him.
“Only a year, but we’ve always been close, so it feels longer.”
“What kept you away?” Most people would ask if she missed her family. It was unnerving that Ethan seemed to have a way of cutting past all the fluff and getting to the deeper question.
CHAPTER 6
“You don’t wantto hear me complain about all of that. You’ve had to deal with your fair share of my intense days.”
“You asked me to keep it real with you. I hope you can do the same with me. I mean, some of those morning phone calls were ridiculous with how the person on the other end screamed at you.”
“You heard that?” She cringed, replaying the regular beratings from her new boss, reminding her how easily she could be replaced.
“I think the whole city did, without it even being on a speaker. Why would you put up with that?”
“It wasn’t always like that. I came to Seattle to work for this company. It was an awesome opportunity to get into the agency side of PR and marketing. I worked hard to prove myself and was doing well.”
“Until…” he prompted, knowing there was more to the story.
"A few months ago, our CEO was ousted, and her replacement decided that I was 'too big for my britches' and demoted me to an admin. She calls me 24/7 for the most menial tasks and argues that I always get her instructions wrong, even though I write them down and record them." Bri's fingerstightened around her glass, the condensation cool against her palm.
"That's messed up. Did you find out why your boss was dismissed?"
"The rumor was that someone accused her of bribing companies to work with us, and that's the only way she could make the sales numbers she did. Which is obvious jealousy. Others say she was embezzling funds."
"What did she say?"
"I'm not sure the board gave her a chance to defend herself before she was escorted out. I haven't been able to reach her, but all the allegations are petty bullshit." She met his eyes, searching for judgment and finding only concern.
"Is that why the new one seems to hate you?"
"You mean because I voiced my opinion? Maybe…" Her nose scrunched in that way that told him she was holding something back.
