Rita smiled and patted my hands. “My accountant pointed out, you’re my longest lasting employee, other than my daughter, Lauren, but she did marketing - no actual cleaning because of her asthma.”
“Okay,” I drawled.
Rita’s facial expression gave nothing away. “You’re a smart girl, Savannah. But you could be doing so much more.”
My stomach sank since I felt like I was about to be fired.
Rita continued. “Lauren has no interest in keeping my business going. If you were to enroll to get your degree, I’m willing to promote you.”
“But not until I get that degree, though, right?” I asked.
Rita shook her head. “No, I’d bump your pay while you’re working on your education.”
I pushed a lock of hair behind my ear. “This sounds too good to be true. Did Punc put you up to this?”
Rita laughed. “Heavens, no. Why do you ask?”
“He and one of his friends suggested I come to you about learning what you do to manage the business.”
She smiled. “Great minds, my dear, but why do you look sad?”
“It’s just… Punc and I want to start a family, so wouldn’t that interfere—”
“How do you think I got into this? My rat-bastard ex left me high and dry, and I had to do something to feed my girl.” She looked left and then right as though someone might be eavesdropping on us. “It wasn’t right, and for all I know it contributed to Lauren’s asthma, but I took her with me when she was a toddler. Put her in a bouncer, while I scrubbed tubs and toilets - though not in that order.”
I nodded, but didn’t say anything.
“What I’m getting at, is that I understand, and we’ll make it work. Or are you preggers already? Hunkalicious seems quite virile.”
With a snort-laugh, I hung my head. Once I was serious, I raised my eyes to hers. “I’m not preggers already. I definitely want to take you up on this, but I won’t be able to start classes until next semester, I’m sure.”
She gave my hand a squeeze. “It’s all good. I’m just glad to hear you’re interested. Everything will work out, Savannah. My only request is that you keep this quiet from any of the other associates you sometimes work with for larger clients. I don’t want them to think I’m showing favoritism, because this isn’t that. Loyalty and longevity mean something to me, and I think it should be rewarded.”
I twisted my hand to give Rita’s a squeeze. “I’ll keep it to myself. Thanks, Rita. I mean it. You’re a class act, and I’m not sure where I’d be if I’d never met you.”
She shot me a wry grin. “Pretty sure that goes both ways, my girl.”
Punc
The lawn surrounding Savannah’s house wasn’t that large, but Punc felt like he was mowing a football field in the August heat. He had a shift starting at five in the afternoon, so mowing the grass when it was cooler wasn’t an option.
He released the safety handle on the lawn mower and the motor powered down. As he wheeled the mower back to the garage, he saw a beat-up Kia Sportage pull into the driveway with Doug behind the wheel.
Punc had taken his t-shirt off shortly after he got started and left it inside when he grabbed some water. He used a rag to wipe his brow while Doug angled out of his SUV.
“You couldn’t pick a worse time to mow the grass, son.”
Punc tossed the rag onto a shelf. “I’m not your son. What do you want, Doug?”
He shoved his hands into his pockets. “I’ve been trying to reach Catalina, but—”
“She blocked you after Savannah told her what you had to say about her dancing.”
Doug sighed. “More drama.”
“Enough. What do you want from Catalina?”
“I don’t want anything from her. I just want to see her.”
