She tells me about her trip on our way upstairs, and we come across Tami in the corridor. I quickly introduce them, and we chat for a couple of minutes. Because she was so close to my family growing up, Kate is familiar enough with ASL to carry out a solid conversation.
Then, the two of us continue our journey to my temporary office.
“Wait here,” I urge Kate. “Do not move,” I insist before going in. Lex is still working, forever focused. “Hey, is it okay if I leave for lunch now?” I ask him, gathering my things. “I’ll come back earlier.”
“That’s fine. The meeting starts at two. Just be on time for it.”
This means an extra half hour of break.Awesome.
“This office is amazing,” Kate says from behind me. I whip around, only to find her standing in the middle of the room. I send her a threatening look, which she purposefully ignores.
Lex Looks up from his screen, stands from his chair, and walks up to us. Using her business voice, she introduces herself, “Hello, I’m Katherine Knox, Andy’s best friend and counselor.”
Lex shakes the hand she extends. “I’m Alexander Coleman. Andrea’s boss.”
“Oh, I know. I’ve heard about you.” Once more, she ignores my warning glare.
Lex gazes at me with curious eyes. “Have you, now? I hope it wasn’t all bad.”
“Not all of it, no.” Her tone is way too suggestive for my taste. Elbowing her would only draw more attention to me, but if she doesn’t stop, I’ll commit Kathricide.
“If you’ll excuse us,” I say, eager to leave the room. “We’re going out for lunch.” I take Kate’s wrist and pull her behind me. “I can’t believe this! Five seconds in, and you do this to me!” I protest as soon as we’re out.
“Oh, will you calm down… He already knows you find him hot.”
“Doesn’t mean you should bring it up.”
“Well, trust me, the man is used to women swooning. My God, that jawline… And those eyes! Too bad he has to wear glasses—they hide his smoldering gaze.”
“I like the glasses,” I mumble.
“What was that?”
“He doesn’t always wear them. How about Italian for lunch? There’s a nice place around the corner.”
“Fine by me. I’m craving pizza.”
The place is crowded but they still find a table for us. Despite being in the heart of Seattle’s business area, it has a cozy and authentic vibe I love. Ninety percent of the clients are wearing suits, but the furniture, decoration, and smells make it feel like a traditional family-owned pizzeria. There’s a large window allowing the clients to see the pizzaiolos in action, and every time we come with the guys, we watch them spin and throw the dough around to flatten it, hoping to see one of them fail and let it fall. It’s never happened, but none of us are giving up hope.
As we eat our cheesy dishes, Kate and I talk about her stupid ex, whom she dumped about six weeks ago after finding him cheating. Stefano was a cocky and pompous corporate lawyer I always hated, so it’s great that they’re through. I’ll never understand why she wasted eight months of her lifewith that imbecile.
I have to hold back from rolling my eyes when she explains she’s ready to find a new man. I love her with all my heart, but her constant need to be in a relationship prevents her from finding a genuinely good guy. She always jumps into the arms of the first hot idiot she encounters.
“Maybe you could wait a bit longer,” I suggest. “You need to recenter yourself a little. When was the last time you had something genuinely good going on with a man?” I ask, already knowing the answer. Clarence, over five years ago.
“I guess it was with Clar.”
“There you go. It’s been prick after prick since him. If I were you, I’d wait and see. Maybe something will happen without you even looking for it.”
She shrugs her shoulders, apparently skeptical about my perception of things. “If I were you, I’d try to fuck that sexy boss of yours,” she says nonchalantly.
“That’s because you’re drawn to assholes like a moth to a flame.”
She doesn’t even deny it. On the contrary, she smiles with amusement, ripping a piece of bread from the basket and slipping it between her lips. “I am. Can I try to fuck him, then?”
“No.” I answer that one too fast and too seriously, which she immediately notices. That was clearly a test, and I failed miserably.
“You like him!”
