Suddenly, the idea of being a hermit feels abnormal. I bite the bottom of my lip as he studies me like a science experiment.
“I don’t have time,” I say, fiddling with my napkin and ignoring his gaze. “It’s by design.”
“Seems to me that you need to rethink your design.”
“Why? So I can split my time between work and play and constantly be stressed out? Because right now, there’s no split, and it really works for me.” I lift my fork and finally look up at him. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
His head is tilted to the side. “How do you refill your tank?”
“Coffee.”
He laughs.
I start to spear a french fry when my phone rings in my purse. I set the fork down and dig inside my purse. My assistant’s name is on the screen along with her personal cell number.
“I’m sorry,” I tell him. “I need to get this.”
“Of course.”
I tap the green button. “Hello?”
“Hi, Blaire. It’s Yancy.”
My assistant’s voice is stressed—more so than it was when I left the office last week. It feels like someone threw a rock into my stomach.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, ignoring Holt’s concerned glance.
“The Grimrose Building is closed,” she says. “The contractor redoing the bottom floor found asbestos, and the city came in and shut us down. Everyone had to vacate the premises.”
“Oh, shit.” I switch the phone between my hands. “What does this mean?”
“No one is allowed in until it gets remedied. We had a few minutes to grab any files we needed and were ushered out by the health department.”
I rub my forehead with my hand. “What about my apartment?”
She sighs. “I think you’re locked out, Blaire. Do you have any pets? That’s one thing they’re letting people go back in for.”
“No. No, I don’t have any pets,” I say, my mind racing. “Do they know how long this is going to take?”
“I’ve heard it’s confined to the first floor so far. It’s mass chaos down here right now. No one knows anything for sure, but the office will be closed until at least the start of next week, and I’m not sure when you can get back into your apartment.” She takes a breath. “I’m sorry.”
Me too.
“Yeah. Thanks. I … Did you get the Lawson files? I have a hearing on that next week.Shit,” I say, fidgeting in my seat.
“I didn’t. I literally had five minutes to get things, and I forgot about Lawson. I’ll file an extension with the court now.”
I groan. “Thank you, Yancy.”
“Is there anything else you need me to do immediately that you can think of?”
“No. I just … Let me get back to my files in a little while and get back to you. I’m supposed to fly home tomorrow, so I might need you to help me find a place to stay until they sort this out.”
“For sure, Blaire. Anything you need.”
“Thanks for calling.”
“Absolutely.”
