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“Which will be today.” I check my watch and want to cry. “Shit, that’s in an hour. I’d better get home and change so I’m not late.”
“Do you think it’ll really matter if you’re a few minutes late, given that you’re not even supposed to be there today?”
“You know what I mean.” I hurry to her and hug her close. “Thanks for the advice. I think that I panicked.”
“Understandable. Don’t get in a wreck on your way home.”
“I’m on foot. I don’t have my car because I took Ryan’s Aston Martin home this morning, and it was blocking my garage with my car inside, so I just walked.”
Summer smirks. “Oh, you took the Aston Martin.”
“Shut up.” I turn and walk away, pausing while she unlocks the door for me. “See you later!”
“Good luck!”
Ryan: I’m headed to town for a bit. I can pick up the car, if you’d like?
I grin as I rush out of my house, changed and ready to go to the shop for the day, coffee in hand.
I sit in the car and get situated and then return his text.
Me: Yes! Please take this car back before I do something horrible to it. I’m too clumsy to be responsible for it. I’m headed to work, so you can pick it up in front of the shop.
I sip my coffee and wait while that little bubble bounces as he replies.
Ryan: You’re not clumsy, but I’ll pick it up at the shop. Why are you working? Thought you were taking a few more days?
Me: Seems there were some issues while I was away, so I need to go in. My vacation is over. I guess that’s what happens when you’re the boss. I hope you are able to take today off!
More bouncing bubbles, and then,
Ryan: I’m sorry to hear that. I’ll pop my head in when I get there. See you soon!
With that settled, I start the car and drive the short distance downtown, parking in front of my store. When I reach for my coffee, it slips in my hand, the lid pops off, and half of it spills all over this amazing vehicle, drowning my phone.
“You have got to be fucking kidding me!” I groan, paralyzed. What do I do first?
I decide that first, I say fuck about seven more times, and then I whip my shirt over my head—there’s no time to run in for towels—and sop up most of the coffee.
My phone won’t even turn on at this point, so I think it might have given up the ghost. I look around, make sure no one is looking this way, and then I rush into the shop. They opened twenty minutes ago, so the door is unlocked.
“I’ll be right there,” Melissa calls out from the back, and I frown. Melissa and Jessica should be here until Katie gets here after school.
I rush over and pull a green T-shirt in my size off of the table and yank it over my head, then pair it with a cute, white button-down shirt to go over it.
I’ve just finished tucking the tee into my jeans when Melissa comes around the corner, and her face immediately goes white as snow.
“Oh.” Her mouth bobs open and closed. “Hi, uh, Polly. Welcome back.”
“Thanks.” For the first time since walking in here, I look around and feel my anger from earlier fill me up all over again. “Melissa?”
“Yes?”
“What in the actual fuck?”
“I know it’s a little messy, and I planned to have it cleaned up before you got back, but with Grace quitting—oh, she quit, by the way—and now Jessica’s out, too?—”
“Why is Jessica out?”
