Policy Reminder about Time Management.
“I knew it.” I laugh out loud and then delete it without bothering to read it.
He’ll definitely come around.Eventually. Though what that means for all of us, I’m not sure.
Chapter 20
Caleb
Everything is off in this office. There is so much tension, and Adrian is being more of a recluse than ever, hiding away in his office and sending stupid, nitpicky emails about everything to everyone.
And apparently, despite being his partner and equal owner, I’m getting them, too.
I stare at the most recent one pulled up on my screen, only to be interrupted by a knock on the door.
“Yeah?” I call out, not hiding my annoyance.
Adrian steps into my office and closes the door behind him. “We need those projections by the end of the evening, and the software keeps glitching. How do we fix that?”
I let out a frustrated sigh. “I don’t know.” I turn my chair to him. “Maybe we should consult with IT, like I suggested before.”
He clenches his jaw and I can tell he’s on the verge of saying something, but instead, he just shakes his head. “IT doesn’t know the software as well as you do. I’d prefer you be the one who does it.”
My shoulders fall. “I don’t have time to handle everything for the 32 million dollar Apex expansionandhandle the stupidfucking software, Adrian. You know that.” My tone is clipped and he raises his brows at me.
“What’s your deal?” he demands, folding his arms across his chest. “You’re never in this kind of mood.”
Yeah, and I’ve never been so caught up over one of our assistants, either.
“Sorry,” I manage to mutter. “There’s just a lot going on. Plus, my mom’s been bugging me to come and see her. It’s been a while. And she doesn’t have anyone else.”
Adrian’s stone-cold expression suddenly softens. He’s one of the few people who know I grew up with just my mom. “If you need to take time off, you know you can.”
I shift uncomfortably in my chair. “She knows I work a lot and it’s hard for me to get home to see her. I keep telling her to move to the city, but she hates the traffic.”
Adrian chuckles. “She’s not the only one. I hate it as well. Maybe someday I’ll move out of the city.”
“Ha,” I snort. “Yeah, right.” I lean back in my chair. “What’s going on with you by the way? You’ve been in your head. I can tell.”
He falls into silence, his lips pursing. “Yeah, it’s just something I have to get over. I got involved with something I shouldn’t have.”
I raise my brows. “That development company out in Boston?”
Adrian gives me a weird look. “Why does everyone always assume that my whole life revolves around this place?”
“Because it does,” I laugh, and Adrian lets out a pained sigh and then drops a file onto my desk.
“Here are the reports on the Apex expansion.” His voice goes back to being all business. “I really need them before the end of the day because I’m dealing with the legal implications of afucked-up permit. I’ll have Maddy order in for lunch so you can eat at your desk.”
I wince, wishing he could just chill out every now and then. “Like I said, I don’t know if I can get it doneandfix the software.”
“You never miss deadlines,” Adrian says, turning to leave. “I’m sure you can get it done.” He pauses at the doorframe, rolling his knuckles against it. “You’ve never let me down before. I can’t say that about everyone else around here.”
He’s totally beefing with Beck.I raise my brows, but before I can question him about that, he slips away, the door closing softly behind him. I stare at the folder, my chest constricting.
The last time I let a deadline fall, I was nineteen, still waiting tables at this beat up diner, and the thing due was a term paper on municipal zoning. I got an A-minus, but only because I bribed the professor with my mom’s apple pie and a promise not to correct him in class ever again.
This is so much more serious.
