I do a pouty face, quivering my bottom lip for maximum begging. We have a staring contest for another thirty seconds.
She relents first, because she knows my deep well of stubbornness can’t be defeated. “Okay. Ground rules. I’m going to be lookout, in public spaces only. We’ll get some earpieces and I’ll order something shaken not stirred and keep an eye out on whatever door you tell me to. I won’t be doing any actual trespassing.”
I think about the compromise. “And getaway driver? And diversion if needed?”
“Unless the police come and it all gets too hot. Then the only person I’m driving is myself. As far away from you and as fast as I can. And you have to wear matching jammies with me for Christmas and make Ajay do it too.”
Christmas-obsessed cousin. But I nod. “I accept these terms. Want to come over later and seal the deal by eating all my pizza and watching all my Netflix?”
“Is this your sad attempt to get me to hang out?”
“You can hang out while I work on this catalog.” I hold up my iPad.
“You need more friends.”
Friends? How does one get those? All the people I knew in high school are spread across the US, my friends from college are all in England, and I haven’t had time to meet new people since I started working seventy-hour weeks. Meeting new people sounds exhausting.
Eh, I’ll just keep making my family hang out with me.
“Do you want to come over at like six, or seven?”
“At six. Do I need to order the pizza?”
“Yes, please. Love you. Thanks, byyyyyyyyye.”
Sonia leaves my office without saying anything, and I assume that means she’s ordering the pizza, because otherwise we’re having ketchup, tea and whisky for dinner. Maybe a microwave dinner. Whatever I can find in my kitchen.
My computer dings, the calendar letting me know I have a reminder.
Weekly meeting with the king.
Damn it, it’s that time already?
Chapter Five
I get a notebook and pen, and walk out of my office. Then I realize I probably need my phone, so I rush back in to get that. Then when I’m outside again I realize I could use my tablet, so I rush back in. But what if I get thirsty? That’d be terrible. I come back inside and get my water bottle.
Then I run out of things to get and have to acknowledge that I just don’t want to go to the meeting.
Dad makes me and Ajay come in every week to sit down and go over what’s been happening, and what’s coming up. His meeting of the “inner circle,” like we’re an ancient secret society for preppy college boys on an Ivy League campus.
I don’t know why I’m there, because Dad spends all his time talking about Ajay’s projects. But it’s better to be in the loop than wonder what they’re doing here, so I keep going. I try to get Sonia to come, but she says she doesn’t want to deal with the bureaucratic crap, the same reason she gives for her continual refusal to be promoted to getting her own department.
I get in the elevator to go up one floor, not necessarily trusting myself to go all the way if I had to walk there. Plus heels.
A predictably short elevator ride later, the door opens to the penthouse of our office building. I have to stop my hand from pushing the button for the ground floor and taking a nice walk through Central Park. Or maybe the Met. That could be research for the catalog, legitimately.
An employee heads for the elevator I’ve taken over, so I force myself to do the adult thing and leave the space.
The first thing I hear when I walk into Dad’s office is laughter. Dad and Ajay are having a great time, apparently. Against my will, I’m ten again, getting dressed up to go to the office with Dad only to have Mom tell me that he already left with Ajay.
But that’s supposed to be over now. I’m here. I’ve got a damn seat at the table. So why do I still feel like I’m still on the outside?
“Did you start the meeting without me?” I saunter to the table, projecting confidence until I actually feel it. I set my iPad up, opening my notes in an effort to avoid eye contact, just in case the insecurity is visible there.
“Just talking, beta.”
I hate it when Dad calls me child. I’m not a child; I’m a grown ass professional woman, at my place of work. Maybe he needs to be reminded of that. “Okay. Well, I’m working on Harrison Richmond to sell his pieces in a house sale, and I’m getting more and more pieces for myFemale Gazeshow.” I look up expectantly, waiting for the hit.
