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I looked up from my computer screen, the glare of fluorescent lights bouncing off the monitor made my eyes ache. It would have been great if Mr. Brooks would have invested in some better lighting before passing away. I added it to my list of things I wanted to bring up to Rocco when I got the guts to actually talk to him.
Imogen’s voice cut through my concentration, and I blinked, pushing my reading glasses up to my forehead.
“Huh?”
Imogen rolled her eyes and settled into the chair across from my desk. With a sense of urgency, she thrust her phone toward me, the screen illuminating her concerned expression.
“Did you get the same message?” she asked, her voice tinged with anxiety.
I squinted at the message displayed on her phone, my heart sinking as I read the words. “I’d like to meet with you and Dorothy tomorrow morning to go over a few things.”
My stomach dropped like a stone, and my jaw fell open in disbelief. This couldn’t be happening, not now, not when everything seemed to be going relatively smoothly.
“You were right!” Imogen exclaimed, her voice trembling with fear. “He’s going to fire us.”
I shook my head, trying to push down the rising panic. “He can’t fire us.”
Imogen’s eyes widened, her desperation evident as she leaned forward. “But why else would he want to meet with us like this? It can’t be good news.”
I took a deep breath, trying to calm the storm of emotions raging inside me. “Let’s not jump to conclusions, Imogen. We don’t know what he wants to talk about yet.”
She ran her fingers through her hair. “But what does it mean, Dorothy? What could he possibly need to discuss with us that can’t wait?”
He technically was waiting. It wasn’t like he was demanding we talk to him right now.
I sighed. “I don’t know, Imogen. But we’ll figure it out together. We always do.”
Imogen let out a heavy groan, the stress evident in every line of her face. “I’m having a baby, Dorothy. And I live above a funeral home. He can’t do this to me.”
I reached out, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Hey, take a deep breath. We don’t know what’s going on yet. Let’s not spiral into worst-case scenarios before we even have all the facts.”
Imogen nodded, her eyes flickering with a mixture of fear and uncertainty. “You’re right. I’m sorry, I’m just... freaking out a little.”
“Yeah, honey, I can see that.” I sat back in my chair. “Did Mace leave this morning?”
Imogen nodded. “Yeah, he had to get back to do biker things, I guess. I would really love it if we could pick up the funeral home and move it to Sacramento—or vice versa. Either way, I’d love the two to be in the same town.”
I had been wondering if the distance between her and Mace was going to be too much. Unfortunately, neither of the things she wanted to move would actually be able to. “Why don’t you go there?” I suggested. “Right now, we don’t have any funerals on the books.”
Imogen flattened her lips. “Uh, did you forget the freak out I just had? I’m pretty sure I shouldn’t be taking time off when my new boss just asked to have a meeting with both of us.”
“Yeah, you might be right,” I laughed. “Maybe wait until after the meeting tomorrow to ask him for some time off.”
Imogen rolled her eyes. “I might not need to ask for time off; I might be fired.”
I had been worried about the same things the past few days, but I had been trying to keep a cap on my anxiety. I didn’t want to stress Imogen out any more than she already was. I held up both of my hands. “We both just need to calm down and stop worrying about this. We know that Rocco can’t fire us because it is in the will or whatever, and we will always have a job here.” I pointed to her phone. “Find somewhere to relax, and call your bad boy biker. I know he can help calm you down.”
Imogen rubbed her stomach. “I just wish tomorrow was over and I knew what he wanted to talk to us about.”
I wished the same thing. “Me, too, honey. Now, just go relax, and don’t think about Rocco.”
She sniffled and wiped her eyes. “Yeah, you’re right. I really wish my hormones would just calm down.” She sighed and pasted a smile on her face.
“I think you’re gonna have to wait for that to happen until you push that baby out.”
“Yeah,” Imogen laughed. “I’ll see you later.” She walked out of the office, and I let out a heavy sigh.
It was killing me that Mr. Brooks dying and Rocco moving to Jackson was causing so much stress for all of us. What we needed to do was just sit down and hash everything out.
