Page 17 of Hot Mess Christmas Express

Chapter Ten

Caleb tappedthe volume button on his keyboard, cranking up his “good mood” playlist—the one that was filled with songs that he couldn’t help but sing along to. He had the whole office to himself, since the practice was closed until after the new year, giving him the perfect excuse to do his best Steve Perry impression. After all, everyone was either a small town girl or a city boy, when “Don’t Stop Believin’” came on.

Usually, a deserted office and one of his favorite playlists was more than enough to help him focus, but today it didn’t seem to matter what he did. His mind was just not on the paperwork sitting on his desk, even if the case study in front of him was one that normally would have piqued his interest. His mind was elsewhere.

It was with a certain copper-haired siren back on Somerset Island.

So much had changed over the last couple of days. When he’d arrived on the island he’d been dreading the whole event. Not that he wasn’t honored to stand next to his best friend on the happiest day of the man’s life, but the entire event seemed to bring out every ounce of loneliness that he had buried down deep after his father passed. The loneliness that made him a grump on the best of days.

Sienna had changed that. She and her family had welcomed him with open arms, helping him forget just how much he’d been dreading the holiday. Part of him had even considered staying on the island longer, extending his time with Sienna, but his pre-Christmas miracle self had left a pile of paperwork that wasn’t going to do itself. So back to Savannah he’d slogged, with the promise of New Year’s Eve kisses waiting for him.

“Yo!”

Gregory’s voice reverberated through the office over the sounds of Journey, startling Caleb out of his semi-focused state. He had no idea what his buddy was doing here. It wasn’t totally abnormal to see him in the office, since the orthopedic practice he worked in was down the hall, but Caleb was almost positive they closed during this week as well. Most of the practices in their building did.

“What are you doing here?” Caleb asked, turning his music down.

“Suzanne came in to catch up on filing or something and locked herself out. I live the closest, so I got the call,” he explained, referring to his longtime office manager. “Anyway, Bob Sargent was knocking on your door. Says he wants to chat with you. Should I tell him you’re not here?”

“Who?”

“Bob Sargent. Tall, lanky, weird seventies porno-stache. He’s the regional guy for Cosmas.”

The Cosmas regional manager was here? As in Sienna’s boss? Caleb took a moment to try and figure out why the man would be visiting two days after Christmas. He couldn’t remember the last time that they’d gotten a visit from any kind of manager. Usually it was just the reps themselves. Not that he would know, since he had been refusing to see Sienna.

“Ummm, sure, I can meet with him.”

“You sure? I’ll tell him to pound sand.”

“No, no. It’s fine.”

Gregory shrugged, turning to head back toward the lobby, not saying another word. Caleb shuffled the papers on his desk, trying to put them in some kind of order that didn’t make it look like a tornado had blown through the office, while also trying not to lose his place. More than anything, he hoped he’d just be able to remember his train of thought after this guy left.

“Dr. Winters?” a voice asked from the doorway.

Caleb looked up to find a man who was exactly what Gregory had described—tall, thin, and with a mustache that had gone out of style decades prior to Caleb’s birth. He was dressed in a dark blue suit that was not only way too big on his slim frame but looked old and faded as well.

“Mr. Sargent, please have a seat.”

“Thank you. I’m sorry to disturb you while your office is closed, but I called last week and you were out, so when I saw the light on, I thought I’d try.”

“No problem,” Caleb answered, still very unsure about why he was here. “What can I help you with?”

“I’m here to talk about Sienna Sloan.”

Sienna.

Hearing her name in Bob’s nasally tone caught him off guard. Everything about the way he said it was weird, but Caleb couldn’t quite place why. Of course, nothing about this man seemed normal, so maybe that’s all it was.

“What about her?”

“It’s the end of the year, and I’m working on her review. We rate our sales representatives not only on their numbers but their relationships with the doctors they interact with. This job is about trust, and if that isn’t there, then all the sales in the world don’t mean much.”

“So, what do you need from me?”

“Oh, not much. Just tell me about your relationship with Miss Sloan. Do you like working with her? Is she helpful? That kind of thing.”

Caleb blinked hard, trying to make sure he understood exactly what he was hearing. Sienna needed a reference? No, that couldn’t be right. There was no way that of all the doctors on her route, he was the best choice to give a reference for her. Hell, they hadn’t spoken to each other in two years until a couple of days ago.