“Yes. We can’t really change the name because it would be confusing. Sorry about that. But if you insist on it, we could go with something like Kelexrea or whatever.”
“I don’t insist on it,” I stop him. Then I repeat, “You want me to become a partner.”
Kevin chuckles. “Yes.”
I turn to Lex, wondering how long he’s been keeping that from me. There are three offices being built, it’s on the floor plan, it was asked of the architect… It has to have been going on formonths.
“Was this your idea?” I ask my half-fiancé.
“No, it was Kevin’s suggestion. But I very much agreed with it.”
I let out a breathyuh. “So, I sleep with one of the bosses, get amazing opportunities, don’t show up to work for literalmonths, and when I come back, I make partner? Talk about being fast-tracked. People will gossip.”
“Again, it was Kevin’s idea. And as far as I know, you never slept with him.”
“It was just that one time,” Kevin jokes.
Lex sends him a dangerous glare, then his focus returns to me. “Do you want to become a partner, Andrea?”
“A three-way with us,” Kev insists.
Again, I don’t answer right away, thinking about everything it implies. I’d be the nerds’ boss. I’d beeveryone’sboss. Am I even boss material? I’m not sure. But then, these two are, so they could do the boss things, and I’d hang out with the guys in the Troll’s Lair when my south-facing office feels too lonely. Jesus, am I really considering this? Joining Lex and Kev, becoming an equal partner with them?
“If it helps with the internal battle you’re waging,” Kev says, “just know the revenue from your app bought this floor and the construction. And it’ll pay for the fourth floor, too. Just a thought.”
Yeah, okay. Maybe I deserve this partnership thing. It’s not like I need the revenue from it. I have plenty of my own money, and I’ll end up being married to a literal billionaire one day. It’s more for the… posterity.
“IfI were to become an equal partner,” I say carefully. They practically drink my words, hanging on them. “If that happens, Kevin can never call it a three-way again.”
Lex smiles, already knowing what this means, while Kev thinks about my demand for a moment. About ten seconds in, the latter gives in. “Yeah, okay. No more three-ways.”
“Does this mean you’re in?” Lex asks.
“It means I’m very strongly considering it. I’ll need to see some paperwork, know the exact terms of our partnership, some insurances… And I’ll probably have a thousand questions.”
“But you’re in,” Lex insists.
“I think I am, yes.”
Kevin lets out a joyful, “Hell yeah!” while Lex walks up the few feet that separate us to take me in his arms. He gives me a long andproud kiss, then releases me. Kevin doesn’t fail to hug me, too, but his kiss lands on my flushed cheek.
Once the effusion has died down, I ask, “What if I’d said no? You’d have an extra office for nothing.”
“I knew you’d say yes.”
“You did?”
“Well, Lex knew he could convince you to say yes.”
I look up at Lex with a questioning glance. “We’ve already established I can’t say no to you,” he explains, “but I’m pretty sure you can’t say no to me if I ask nicely enough.”
“That’s probably true,” I chuckle. My eyes travel to the third office, the one that’ll be mine, next to Lex’s. “Until all this is finished, how do we organize? Where do I work from?”
“You can settle anywhere you want, you can be a free electron and move desks all the time, anything, really,” Kevin answers. “You’re literally the boss.”
“Or you can come work in my office for now,” Lex suggests. “Like old times.”
Okay, I like that. A mix of that and downstairs, with the nerds.
