Maybe if I had given myself the night to consider Dick's offer, I would have a chance at taking him up on the position in South Carolina. Instead, I have a feeling I’m going to walk in to the hotel to a sign that says “No” on it. Dick isn't one for second chances, but all I can do right now is try.
It's cold as hell today, and just to make it a little more miserable out, it’s also raining. Between the bus and the three long blocks of walking, my pants are soaked and the rain’s sideways mist hit my hair in a bad way, even under my umbrella. I must look like a wreck. I sure as hell feel like one.
I walk through the revolving door and find Tatiana at the front desk, helping a customer. Her smile is welcoming, which I know the guests love. What I don’t understand is how she never seems to have a bad day. It's not that I’m miserable or anything, but I have a hard time putting on the charm when I’m tired and worn out after a week of long shifts.
“Hey girl!” she calls out to me as she finishes up with the customer. “I heard.” Her voice lowers to a whisper and her mouth quirks into a rigid grimace. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah—no—I don't know. I need to talk to Dick. Is he here by any chance?”
“Yeah, he just went to grab a coffee. I’m sure he'll be back in a minute.”
“Oh, good.” I place my purse down on top of the counter and run my fingers through my wet strands. “I'm a disaster.”
“I'm sure you’re stressed out. I would be too,” Tatiana says. “I did overhear that he offered you a position in South Carolina, though. That’s a pretty big move, but maybe it would be worth a try?”
I look up at her and sigh. “Yeah, that's why I'm here. I should never have just walked out yesterday without giving the opportunity any thought. I definitely wasn’t thinking clearly at the time. Maybe the position in South Carolina would be good for me. I don't know if it’s too late, though.”
“Oh, I’m sure he’ll still let you have the job,” she says, slapping her hand at the air as if to suggest he’d do anything for me. Dick hates me. Always has, but I’m not exactly sure why. I wasn’t always showing up late. It’s just been happening more often recently since the bus schedule changed. Before that happened, I could literally run out of my apartment ten minutes before I had to be here, and I’d be on time. Now, I have to leave an extra thirty minutes early, and it’s still a struggle to get here on time. Not like any of that matters now. I’ve been fired from this location.
“Scarlett, what brings you back to our establishment today? If you recall, you were escorted out of here yesterday for a good reason. Am I right?” I cringe at the sound of his voice while summoning my courage as I turn toward him.
“Richard, can I have a word with you for a moment?” I ask him, avoiding eye contact with the habitual twitch in the corner of his top lip. He constantly looks like he wants to murder me.
Dick hesitates for a brief moment, and I hold my breath the entire time. “Sure.” He gestures toward the back room with his arm, and I don’t waste any time before heading back to the quiet employee room. “How can I help you?” He closes the wooden door and pivots on his heels before crossing his arms over his chest. My focus holds tightly to the puckering of his suit jacket, and the way his tie is knotted crookedly, forcing it to hang slightly to the right. “Well? What is it?”
I snap out of my frozen gaze and look up at him, hearing Brendan’s warning about never looking a dick right in the eye, but surely today is an exception. Of course, now I have the desire to burst out laughing, but I know that won’t help me more than I’ve already helped myself. “I was wondering if the opportunity in South Carolina was still available?”
Dick chuckles as if he were expecting me to come running back. The thought makes me want to tell him where he can shove his name so I can get the hell out of this confined room that smells like tuna. “I had a feeling you’d be back.” Like I thought.
“I should have told you I needed the night to consider my options. It was foolish of me to walk out before doing so,” I tell him.
“Agreed. Unfortunately, I offered the position to Darrel last night, and he jumped at the opportunity,” Dick says.
“Darrel? As in Darrel who works one shift a week and always shows up at least an hour late and leaves an hour early?” That man made me look like employee of the year.
“Management told me to offer it to you, and if you didn’t want it, to check with Darrel. There’s not much I can do at this point. My hands are tied, Scarlett.” Are they? Because they sort of look like they’re folded so tightly across his chest that a chest hair is now popping through the opening of his dress shirt. If his tie were straight, it would at least be covering that pucker.
“Awesome. Great, well, I’m so glad I came down here for nothing.” Burning bridges again. It’s something I’m just so damn good at.
“What do you want me to tell you, Scarlett?” He unfolds his arms and places his hand on the doorknob, finalizing this useless conversation.
“That you’re going to tell Darrel there is someone more qualified for the position, and unfortunately, he’s going to have to be let go from his one-day-a-week job?”
Dick stares me for a long minute, narrows his eyes, and sighs through his lip twitch. “I was just testing you to see if you truly wanted the position. It’s yours. Darrel was let go two weeks ago.”
Was he? I didn’t happen to notice his name missing on the schedule. It’s obviously because I’m so amazingly detail oriented. Ugh.
“Right.” I’m mortified. “Well, I’m glad the position is still available.”
“I think you’ll do fine there. Life is a bit slower, and everyone takes extra time to get where they’re going. You’ll fit in well.”
I can’t figure out if that’s an insult to me or the state of South Carolina. Just because everyone in Boston has to act like they’re on speed doesn’t mean the rest of the country should have to keep up.
“I’m looking forward to starting the new position,” I offer, quietly, due to being out of breath from the thoughts racing through my head.
“I will have our travel department book you a flight for Sunday afternoon. There are villas on-site, so we’re going to offer you room and board for one year in addition to your compensation. Look at it as a bonus for transferring.” Well, that was unexpected.
Sunday.
