“How are things on your end?” I asked cautiously, unsure whether he wanted to talk about it or not. “You’re on the field again. Is that a good thing?”
He grabbed another handful of pretzels as he thought about my question. “It is a good thing. The field, the road, the guys . . . they’re all good distractions for me.”
“I bet.” I thought carefully about what I was going to say next, knowing that as a healthy, twenty-seven-year-old man, he’d have to deal with this question eventually. “You ready to start dating again?”
His head snapped up; his eyes locked on mine. “Not even close. Not even a little close.”
Justin and I were in very similar spots in our lives, but for very different reasons.
CHAPTER 10
Danicka
I walked from my bathroom to my bedroom and back again three different times before I remembered what I was looking for. Plucking my favorite lipstick from my purse, I returned to my bathroom feeling frazzled, something I absolutely hated. All this job offer stuff with Andy happened so damn fast and unofficially that I had no time to even think straight. When he’d asked when I could start, instead of telling him that I needed two weeks like a normal responsible person would do, I blurted out that I could start that Monday. I’d never started a job under circumstances like this before, but I was ready. I just had to do one thing first . . .
I’d spent Sunday evening sitting with my laptop and a giant smile as I crafted the most professional “Fuck you, I quit” letter that I could come up with, minus the actual fuck you part. I printed out two copies—one for each of the Leighton brothers—and carried those, along with an empty box, down to my car and headed over to empty my office.
As the elevator climbed up to my floor, I closed my eyes and said a small prayer for a nice, quiet exit. The elevator dinged, and I held my breath.
The lights were still off when the doors opened, and I exhaled in relief. I ducked into my quiet little corner, closed my door, and started downloading everything that I could onto my flash drive. I pulled some old files out of my drawers, not even looking at them as I stacked them in the box, figuring I would just reorganize everything on the other end. I was desperate to get out of that building. In a perfect world, I would load up my few things, leave the notes, and be on my way over to Shaw Management before Jack or John even got in.
As I squatted down and pulled folders from my bottom drawer, I heard the elevator ding out in the hallway. My heart thumped loudly in my ear as I stilled, listening to see if I could tell who it was. The familiar noise of a garbage can on wheels rolled by my office, and I breathed a sigh of relief, willing my body to move faster and faster. Just a few minutes later, all of my files, frames, and random personal junk were tucked safely in my box.
I took one more glance around the room and smiled to myself. It felt so good to leave that damn place behind, and I was more than ready for a fresh start. I threw my purse over my shoulder, breezed into John’s and Jack’s offices, where I dropped the notes on their desks, and practically skipped back to the elevator. Just as my finger was about to push the button, the elevator dinged, and my mouth fell open, letting out a small gasp.
Shit. So close.
“Good morning, Dani—” John greeted as he stepped out of the elevator, freezing midstride when he noticed my box. “What’s that?”
“Uh . . .” I cleared my throat, mustering up all the courage I had in my whole body. “It’s my stuff, John. From my office. I cleaned it out, and I’m leaving.”
He frowned and pushed his glasses back up on his nose. “Excuse me?”
Courage, Dani. Courage. Remember how they treated you.
“John, things have been really uncomfortable for us since last month when everything went down with Cole, we both know that. I’m doing us both a favor and bowing out quietly.”
He cocked his hip to the side as he put his hands on them. “What the hell are you thinking?”
“Excuse me?”
He closed his eyes, rubbing his temples with his fingertips. “I really have no idea what you’re thinking. Your clients aren’t going to be too happy that you’re abandoning them, and there’s no way any other agency is going to take you on now. You’re dumber than I thought you were.”
“First of all”—I stood up as tall as I could, lifting my chin—“I’ve already been hired at another agency. Second, every single one of my clients knows that I’m leaving. They also know why I’m leaving. Not only do they all support me, they’re going with me, so I’m pretty sure you’re the dumb one here.” As my confidence grew, my knees shook less and less. It was an overwhelmingly freeing feeling to know that once I stepped into that elevator, I would never have to take it back up to that office again.