Chapter 8
Reid
––––––––
“That motherfucker neversaid a word.” Jerking my head up from my screen the same time that Jonathan does, we find Sabrina frozen in the doorway, hand still on the doorknob.
“You’re early.” Getting to my feet, I head to the end of the conference table and grab her new company issued laptop and check my watch. “I wasn’t expecting you for another hour and a half.”
The door swings shut behind her as she takes a few steps into the room. “Heard there was a lot to get caught up on,” she states, looking between me and Jonathan. “Looks like I’m not the only one with the idea.”
Jonathan whips his head my way, hastily shoving his fiery hair out of his face. Umber eyes wide with surprise, he silently mouths, ‘You didn’t say she was hot!’
I don’t respond to him or react, the heavy weight of Sabrina’s attention boring into the side of my head, studying me with suspicion. “Sit wherever you like and I’ll get you set up.”
The table could easily sit twenty people, with matching black, padded chairs surrounding it, and takes up the majority of the room. Off to the right is a massive white board mounted to the wall, an empty stretch of space between it and the table, and that’s it. There’s a power strip running beneath the table so that we can keep our chargers plugged in no matter where we’re stationed at the table, but it’s not a remarkable room. While Eric aims for comfort, he doesn’t waste funds on decoration; it’s funneled into tech, parts, amenities, and the employees. Like ninety percent of people here, I’d rather have a nicer computer than hallways lined with artwork that nobody is going to look up from their screens to admire anyway.
“Cinjin couldn’t have given me a heads up?” she reiterates, sliding into the chair across from where I’m set up and placing her purse on the empty seat beside her.
Setting her new laptop and charger in front of her, I point out, “You would've thought that I pulled strings to get you a job.” She opens her mouth to protest, so I hastily offer a partial confession. “All I did was rearrange the stack of applications so that yours was the next Eric would pick up, but if he thought you weren’t a good fit, he never would have called and scheduled an interview. And after he came to tell me who he hired to replace Jenna, Malcolm, and Daniel, I told him that I knew you in case he had any concerns. Which he didn’t.”
Really, I’m not lying. Slade was the one that made sure the other applicant canceled their interview. And it just so happened that Cin was on watch duty to make sure she got here in time.
She sighs, shaking her head, but loses some of the rigid tension in her shoulders. “You didn’t mention you worked here at dinner.”
“Woah, wait,” Jonathan interjects. “Dinner?” Turning to me, he glares in accusation. “You’re dating the hot new hire and you never said a word? Traitor. What else are you holding out on me?”
If you only knew.
“I’m not dating Reid, don’t worry,” Sabrina clarifies, and it’s hard not to toss out a ‘yet’ after her statement. “I’m friends with his sister. And have a date with his brother, though it hasn’t happened yet, so we’ll see how that goes.”
Note to self, affirmation. Bo’s radio silence is making her doubt his interest. Solitary lifestyle by need, not by choice.
Jonathan gives her a toothy grin. “So you’re single then?”
She hesitates and I have to suppress a smile as she deflects. “When’s the rest of the team coming in?”
He spreads his arms wide. “You’re looking at them.”
Wide-eyed, she turns back to me for confirmation. “You said there were other applications in the stack you meddled with, so are we holding down the fort until Eric hires the rest?”
Jonathan and I snort simultaneously as I pull out the free chair beside her. “Those three were dead weight that accomplishedmaybea single committed person’s workload. We both agreed that we’d rather get one qualified replacement than bodies to fill chairs. Group projects are always easier when less people are involved; less chance for error.”
Releasing a long breath, she nods. “No pressure or anything. I suppose we better get started bringing me up to speed, then? What are we working on?”
Jonathan attempts to draw her attention back to him. “There’s a massive holdout on people switching to the latest upgrade, and after as much as the company sunk into pushing Rev Nine, they’re desperate to save face before stocks plummet. So we’re relaunching with a new OS and can’t afford to muck it up, or Byte’s reputation is going to, well, bite.”
Hand covering her mouth, she looks at me with guilt written plain as day across her face. “Shit.”
Chuckling, I angle her laptop long enough to get her signed into our server before turning it back. “So you can see why you’re perfect for the job.”
Jonathan frowns. “What am I missing here?”
Sabrina shifts uncomfortably in her seat. “I may have possibly had a few opinions in the Revenant versus Arc debate when the subject came up.”
He barks out a harsh laugh. “Poor Reid.”
She closes her eyes tightly, wincing. “You were the project lead on it, weren’t you?”
