She says something about not going, but my heart is thumping so loudly that I can barely hear her.
“Leaving so soon, Alexandra?” a smooth voice echoes from behind Skylar.
That one I hear loud and clear.
3
ASHTON
TEN MINUTES EARLIER
“What the hell was that?”Skylar throws her hands up, placing them on her hips, and directing a scowl at me.
“Sorry,” I mutter.
“Sorry? You were supposed to announce the promotion tomorrow when I’ve had a chance to get my bearings and I don’t look like an actual dumpster fire. Ashton, I’m a complete mess. I haven’t slept in two days. I haven’t eaten. I’m pretty sure I had a banana yesterday, but I can’t be certain it wasn’t a hallucination. Not to mention the last time I showered?—”
“Sky. Look at me.”
Her bright green eyes flick up to meet mine.
“You’re going to be okay. This…” I gesture around the now empty room, “is all going to be okay.” Which I truly believed this morning, until I saw Alexandra Montgomery sitting in the middle of the conference room. I shouldn’t be surprised. I knew this was a possibility. I told Emory about the food writer position here a few weeks ago. How the hell could I have known I would be thrust into being editor-in-chief, and therefore Allie’s new boss, with less than two days’ notice?
“How do you know?” Skylar interrupts my thoughts.
“Because you’re you.” I cross over to the door and open it, gesturing for her to go out first. “Remember when we had to dissect that frog in ninth grade and you were freaking out?”
“Yeah, you passed out after making the first cut, and I had to do the whole thing by myself while you kicked your feet up and ate graham crackers in the nurse’s office.”
“Right. But before that…what did you do the entire day before?”
“I freaked out.”
“Exactly. I was carefree about the whole thing. Yet, I was the one who passed out and you got us an A. You always second-guess yourself, Sky, but you know what you’re doing.”
She sighs and walks through the doorway. “Thanks. Although now I’m more worried about you. I forgot that you faint under pressure.”
“I grew out of that,” I say, narrowing my eyes at her. “Now, why don’t you walk me to my big, important private office?”
Skylar rolls her eyes as we walk through the main area of the newsroom. “Okay, but—shit, we have a runner.” She takes off down the hall, and I’m hot on her heels as she nearly throws herself in front of Allie, who is almost out the front door.
“Please don’t go,” she pleads. “Whatever it is, we’ll figure it out, but I can’t add finding a new food writer to my plate right now. No pun intended.” She snorts at her own bad joke.
Meanwhile, Allie looks…speechless.
I take a step forward.
“Leaving so soon, Alexandra?”
Allie takes a slow, calculated step to her right so that I’m fully in her line of sight. She pops her right hip out, piercing blue eyes storming behind black-rimmed glasses.
“I was under the impression I would be working with different leadership,” she says, slowly moving her eyes up and down in pure disgust. She has the nerve to look atmethat way?
“Circumstances have changed. Adaptation is a sign of intelligence,so I guess it makes sense that you would have trouble with it.”
“Trouble with—did you just call me stupid?”
“Of course not. I can’t say I’m surprised, though. Running is your MO. But if you’re going to take off at the slightest little change of plans, then maybe this isn’t the right job for you.”
