Filed to story: Can’t Get Enough Of You
Austin grumbled something else, but told me he would do it, and that was all I cared about. I was going to pull some strings and make this work.
When I looked up at Carey again, she was in the elevator. I caught one last look at her before the doors closed.
I stared at the elevator in a daze for a long moment after she’d left.
“Okay, I’m headed up,” Austin said.
“Up?”
“To do the interviews,” Austin said, looking at me like I’d lost my mind.
“You’re doing them? Yourself?”
Austin laughed. “Sometimes I think you don’t know what I do in this company. Yeah, I’m doing them. Myself. I like being a part of the process, vetting them to be sure we get the right ones on board. You’re the one always striving for excellence and you pay me a hell of a lot of money, so you best know I’m going to give you excellence.”
I snorted. Excellence was all well and good. But right now, the only thing I cared about was in that elevator, riding her way up to the interview that was going to change her life. My life.
“Carey,” I said, grabbing Austin’s arm when he started walking away.
“Who?”
“Carey. She’ll be on your list. Hire her.”
“Okay…” he hesitated. “Right away? Without going through the process?”
“Right away.”
“And the rest of them?”
“Tell them the position’s been filled.”
Austin narrowed his eyes at me. “What’s gotten into you? What if she’s no good?”
“Then I’ll handle it.” I was sure Carey would be good. She would be better than good. She was perfect.
It’s just the Carey in your mind, I reminded myself. It was hard to find flaws in the memory of a woman who had rocked my world for long enough that I would never forget it, and disappeared before she could show me any downfalls of knowing her. But I wanted another taste. I wanted to see her again.
I knew it would burst the bubble I had of her. No one was perfect. That was why I never dated, why I didn’t settle down with anyone. I liked the bubble, the dream. And I didn’t like getting to know someone that would end up being less than perfect.
With Carey, it was different. I wanted to see her again, bursting bubble be damned. I knew she couldn’t be perfect. But to me, she still was.
“Let me know when you’re talking to her,” I said.
Austin nodded, wriggled free of my grip, and proceeded to the elevator. I stared at him just long enough to see him shaking his head.
Was I acting like a fool? Absolutely. But Izzy had driven me crazy the night I’d met her. And now, over five years later, she was still driving me crazy. I needed her to work here. I had to have her around me.
I needed Austin to make it work.
Otherwise, I would walk in there and hand her the job myself.
Carey
I swallowed hard and tried not to squirm in my seat. I’d slipped away from work, telling my manager I needed to run to the store for something, and my time was running out. The man opposite me seemed more interested in his phone than in me.
“Mr. Shannon?” I asked.
He glanced up at me from his phone.
“Is there anything else you would like to ask me?”
“Yeah,” he said, but he didn’t put the phone down. “Tell me about yourself.”
“Oh,” I said. “Well, I’m an artist at heart, and I believe my passion for creativity will shine through in all my work here. I’m someone who understands dedication and commitment. I understand going the extra mile and working for long-term goals, but I also focus on the details of the here and now because they’re just as important.”
Austin Shannon made an “mm-hmm” sound as I talked. I got the feeling he wasn’t really paying attention.
God, it wasn’t going well at all, was it? I was nervous.
No, I was downright panicked.
It was the first time in a long time I had no idea if anything was going to work out. Until now, I’d been determined to make it work, no matter what. And despite obstacles, I’d managed to land on my feet every time.
Like a cat.
I held onto that idea as if it was a lifeline. No matter what happened in this interview, I was going to make it through.
I always did.
Besides, Liam needed me to make it. I had to make ends meet for him, to give him the life he deserved.
Mr. Shannon didn’t ask me more questions. He typed on his phone with a grin, and looked like he’d forgotten I was here at all. My heart sank.
I wasn’t going to get this job, was I?
I’d been so happy when they’d called me this morning, asking me to come in for an interview right away. I’d sent out a bunch of resumes in a panic and it had been like a lifeline, something that had appeared from the darkness to pull me up and save me from drowning in my mess. It wasn’t my ideal job, but it would be stable hours, better pay, and I would be able to give Liam some stability and my poor mother a break.