Damn it. This place fucking sucked.
I wasn’t used to being this stationary. Corrine called me about a mark. I went, took them out, got paid, and then moved on. I didn’t do this bullshit detective work. I’d been here a week and a half, and the farthest I’d gotten was a call to Tully.
I shoved my headphones back in my ear and pushed the little green phone icon on my screen.
“Long time no call,” she quipped.
“How did you do this for so long without anyone to talk to?” I asked.
“Music, lots of music. Sometimes I go and watch movies. Other times I sketch.”
“You’re pretty good,” I admitted. “The heart.”
We talked for another hour. We were in the middle of a debate about which vampire movie was the best when suddenly she cut me off mid-sentence.
“Let The Right One In is an underrated—”
“Ooh! Arsenio’s calling. Got to go,” instantly, the line went dead.
It took me a second to register what had just happened, and when it finally did, I lost it.
I slammed my phone down on my desk and stood. She didn’t even say goodbye or apologize. She just dropped me like I was old news. Pacing, I fumed over what she had done. I had never been treated so rudely before. What was her problem? She spent the entire night talking with me, borderline flirting at times, and then without even a second thought, I was tossed away the moment Arsenio called.
Not even five minutes later, I heard her coming down the hall. I went to my door and quickly locked it.
Fuck her.
I wasn’t second-best. I didn’t want her leftovers. She chose him over me. She could fucking have him.
She called my phone after she tried the locked door. I ignored her. I let it ring. I knew she could hear it going off, but I wanted her to hear it. To know I wasn’t anyone’s second choice.
We only had an hour left of the shift, so I wallowed, paced, and tried to decide what to do. Did I say anything? Or did I just clock out and go home? I could just leave now. Arsenio didn’t give a fuck.
No, I wouldn’t give Scout the satisfaction of running from her face. I’d clock out like normal.
I grabbed my coat when our shift was done and started out toward the time clock. I tried my hardest not to move too fast. I was determined to not show how pissed I was.
I was there first. She joined me a minute later. We didn’t say anything for a long moment. I refused to break the silence. Instead, I focused hard on the little black machine bolted to the wall.
“Are you mad at me?” she asked, finally.
I clenched my jaw and said nothing. I raised my arm, held my badge, and rested it against the machine.
“Seriously? What did I do?” She snapped.
I turned then and glared down at her. “It’s rude to cut someone off in the middle of a conversation.”
“I didn’t think we were really—” she started to protest, but then the clock turned, and I swiped my card. I left quickly, taking oversized steps to get to my car as fast as possible.
Once inside, I looked around and saw her still standing by the doors, watching me with eyes that I could only describe as…hurt.
The feeling was mutual.
7
Pulling into my apartment, I saw Arsenio’s car in the parking lot. He was waiting for me. Guilt swelled inside my chest. I had already felt like shit because of what Desi had said to me, and now, seeing the source of the argument made me feel worse.
Arsenio climbed out of his car as soon as he saw me park. He looked perfect, as usual. Wearing a white dress shirt and dark slacks. Everything about him oozed rich, handsome, and powerful.
