Always so damn dramatic, I swear.
Once we’re in his office, he gestures for me to close the door, then sits. I take the chair across from him, legs crossed, completely annoyed by his tense silence.
“So,” I begin, “What’s your deal?”
“The new apartment complex,” Adrian says, not even remotely bothered by my tone. “I’m worried about it. With the discount we’re offering the tenants, it’s bringing in a lot of people. But I don’t know if the deal is going to be profitable in the end.”
“Of course, it is,” I counter, shaking my head. “Even if everyone stays at the discounted rate, the place will be paid off in less than a year.”
Adrian sighs, running his hand over his face. “We could do better.”
I raise my brows. “Are you beating yourself up for not being greedier? Because there’s no way we would have seen the move-in rates that we are right now, if we hadn’t done the promo.” I don’t usually argue with Adrian, because it’s about the equivalent of trying to reason with a brick wall, but still…
This is ridiculous.
“I’m just not sure about it, that’s all I’m saying.”
I narrow my gaze, seeing insecurity flicker in his face.This is new.“What’s really bothering you?”
“Nothing. I just…” Adrian hesitates, and for a split second, there’s a tell in his face. Just the tiniest twitch. “Never mind. It’s not important.”
I lean forward, elbows on my knees. “Bullshit. You always know exactly what you’re doing. So, what’s got you spinning, man?”
He just sits there, staring out at the city, like he’s expecting to find the answer to some deep question. For a moment, I think he’s going to double-down on the iciness, but then he sighs likeI’m his therapist and not his business partner. “I just don’t feel like I’m thinking clearly.”
I can’t hide my grin. “Would that happen to have something to do with the new assistant?”
He glares at me like I’m the biggest fucking dumbass. “Absolutely not. She’s just another one that will probably be gone in a few months, like the rest.”
“Have you ever considered this as a sign that maybe you harass the assistants too much?”
“Or maybe it’s just a problem with this generation,” Adrian snaps. “Maybe it’s the fact that no one wants toactuallywork hard. I think Maddy is smarter than most though.”
I can’t help it. I keep poking the beast.
“So, you’re scared to lose her then?”
He narrows his eyes, letting the silence settle for a few moments. “I wouldn’t say that. I’m notscaredof losing anyone.”
He’s so full of shit. “Sure, but you’re thinking about it. That’s already a problem,” I tell him, and even though my tone is joking, I see the way his fingers flex against the top of his desk.
He twitches an eyebrow. “You’re one to talk. You’ve been floating around the office like a lost puppy ever since she started here. You want to tell me what’s up with that?”
I almost laugh. “I’m just being nice. You know, the thing humans are supposed to do with other humans.” But he’s looking at me like he has no idea what I’m talking about.
I mean, I guess Icoulddisclose that I fucked her. But does it really matter? Because once again, I don’t even know if she remembers.
And if shedoesn’t remember, then it doesn’t count, right?
Adrian opens his mouth to say something. But before he gets a chance, there’s a sharp knock on the door. I peer over, just as it opens, and there’s Maddy, in all her glory.
Though, something is off.
“Is something wrong, Maddy?” Adrian beats me to the punch.
She nods, holding up a thermometer. “I’m running over a one-hundred-degree temp… I think I might need to go home for the day.”
Man, women keep the weirdest things in their purses.
