Gabriel nodded his agreement, and they both quickly grabbed their belongings and left before Kelly got down from the stage.
Jason was feeling worse for wear. After they’d left the party, Gabriel had suggested they hit Soho, which had been a mistake. Well, not in the moment. He’d had a good night, but he needed to be in the office today because it was Kelly’s last day and there was a lunch with the leadership team. Gabriel had left with a guy, even though it was unlike him to pick up in a bar. He was all about having a date first, so he usually met guys online. They’d almost hooked up once, but Gabriel was like Charlie– a big-dicked bottom. It was a shame, because that thing was enormous. Jason had taken a sneak peek in the bathroom, for no reason other than he enjoyed looking at dicks. Gabriel also had a huge crush on his sister’s fiancé, which he’d got into during their night out. Apparently the guy he’d left with was a doppelgänger of the fiancé, which was not at all weird as fuck. Had Gabriel closed his eyes and imagined he was being railed by his sister’s fiancé? That was too much to try and unpack with a hangover.
Jason had enjoyed dancing last night and not been preoccupied with trying to pull. He’d been approached a few times, and by some hot guys, but he had his mind set on one man. All he needed to do now was pluck up the courage to talk to Patrick about it.
The morning dragged. He didn’t have many calls, and regretted that decision now. It would have been easier to just be in back-to-back calls all day rather than having to do focussed work. His brain didn’t want to cooperate today, especially with something as dry as reviewing policies. It was his least favourite part of the job, because nobody reads policies.
“Jason, have you got a minute?” asked Jane.
“Sure,” he said, swivelling his chair round.
“Let’s find a room.”
She had a serious look on her face. His stomach dropped. Had he fucked something up? Was she pissed at him for being hungover? Everyone else was hanging as well, and itwasn’t like she hadn’t been to work hungover before. Jane had left the party early last night because she believed people couldn’t fully relax if the boss was there.
As it was Friday, it was easy enough to find a room, but Jane didn’t speak until they were sitting down. She had her boss’s face on, which wasn’t a good sign. He’d never been on the receiving end of it himself before, but he’d seen it with others.
“Do you want to talk me through what happened last night?”
“What do you mean?”
“You know what I’m talking about, Jason. Kelly on the karaoke.”
Oh fuck!
“I can see from your reaction that you know what I’m talking about. Why didn’t I hear from you about what happened?”
He wasn’t sure what to say. Jason would never grass on someone. It had been ingrained in him growing up. That wouldn’t be something he’d be saying out loud, though.
“I would have expected a heads up from my leadership team who were there when it happened, but I had to hear it through the grapevine. You know I don’t like being blindsided, Jason.”
It was taking all his strength not to respond. He could feel his chest tightening, and his head was swirling with panic. His leg bounced up and down uncontrollably. Jane appeared oblivious because she was on a roll.
“I know Gabriel was there as well, and I’ve spoken to him.”
Thanks for the heads up, Gabriel!
“This is something you’ll have to get used to in this job, Jason. You have to role model leadership, and in that moment, you should have gotten her off the stage. Instead, she stayed and kept singing.”
Oh fuck!
“Thankfully, the lyrics of the other songs were more suitable for work, but for you to just leave was not what I would expect from a leader. It’s not what Alex expects either.”
Alex was the CEO. Had she told him? There went his chance of getting the job. He knew he shouldn’t have gone for it. Now he would have to deal with the humiliation of being rejected and everyone knowing about it. He’d have a new boss come in who’d regard Jason as a threat because he went for the job as well.
Jason mumbled out an apology and got out of there as quickly as he could. Once he was back at his desk, he tried to focus on his work, but he felt emotionally dysregulated. How was he going to sit through this lunch? He wasn’t sure he could do that. Jason needed to talk to someone, but Charlie was in New York with Sebastian, and the others didn’t know about the job. He pulled out his phone and fired off a text.
Jason:Where are you?
Daddy Patrick:Working at home today.
Jason:Can I come over?
His phone started ringing. He rushed into a room and answered.
“What’s wrong, boy?”
Jason burst into tears, and then somehow explained what had happened. Patrick didn’t interrupt him as he got out everything he was feeling. It was completely unfiltered, and he couldn’t control what he was saying. He didn’t want Patrick to know he was like this, but once he’d started talking, he couldn’t stop. Eventually he ran out of steam, catastrophising everything that could happen to him now. Did he need to quit his job?
