“From one nanny job to the next,” Katie muttered, typing a reply and heading back to the bedroom.
Addison had grabbed her laptop and now had it balanced on her thighs, black-rimmed glasses framing her eyes. The scene felt oddly intimate somehow, and Katie did a little stutter step in the doorway before continuing across the room. “Did you take your meds?” she asked, by way of distraction.
“No.”
“Where are they?”
“Bathroom.” Addison pointed to a door in the wall, eyes still focused on her laptop.
Katie went into the master bath and tried not to marvel at the sheer size of the bathtub, tried not to imagine herself soaking in it, completely submerged up to her neck because there was ample room to do just that. On the double-sink vanity, she found a pill bottle and brought it into the bedroom.
Without looking up, Addison patted the bed next to her. “Come here. I want to show you this.”
Crawling across the bed of the person she worked for was a new and surreal experience for Katie, and she kept her jaw clamped shut to prevent a nervous laugh from escaping. Once settled next to Addison, she handed her the pill bottle.
With a half-frown, Addison took it, opened it, and shook a pill into her hand. She downed it with a mouthful of wine.
“I’m sitting here contemplating the wisdom of washing down drugs with alcohol,” Katie said, unable to keep from looking amused.
Addison shrugged. “Gets the job done.”
“True.”
For the next hour, they sat together, Addison’s laptop balanced on her right thigh and Katie’s left, as she told Katie about some upcoming changes she wanted to make to the overall functioning of Fairchild Rentals. Katie listened to Addison’s ideas, was drawn to her voice and the unexpected excitement in it. She wasn’t sure if it was because Addison didn’t feel well and her defenses were down or if it was the super-casual location, but for the first time since she’d started working for her the previous week, Katie saw what she felt was a little slice of “below the surface” Addison. The actual human part. It was nice. In addition, her cell rang several times, and Katie was shocked when she made a half-hearted swipe for it and Addison let her have it. Katie spoke to people, told them Addison was unavailable, and took messages. She piled the notes on her right side and laughed when Addison reached over her to try and grab them.
“No way. I’ve met you. You’ll decide every one of them is urgent.”
“Maybe they all are,” Addison said, her voice uncharacteristically childlike.
“They’re not. I promise.”
Again, Addison surprised her by letting her win.
It was weirdly unexpected.
Addison started to slow down, Katie noticed, around four. Her voice got softer, her descriptions less enthusiastic, and Katie caught her wincing subtly as she rubbed her stomach.
“Are you okay?” Katie asked gently. “Maybe we should call it a day.”
Addison tipped her head to one side, then the other, stretching her neck muscles. “I’m fine. I still need to answer email.” She pulled off her glasses and pinched the bridge of her nose, then scratched her neck.
“Stop that,” Katie said softly as she surprised them both by closing her own hand over Addison’s and then pulling it away from the angry red marks she was leaving. “Nervous habit of yours.” Katie took the laptop, slid it fully onto her own lap, and opened up Addison’s email window. “Let’s go through them, one at a time. You lay your head back and close your eyes and just recite to me what you want to reply. I’ll type it and send it while you give your eyes and head a rest. Okay?”
There was a brief moment of hesitation and Katie did her best to leave it alone, not to poke at it, not try to convince her. She knew that, as simple as her suggestion was, it still involved Addison giving up some control, which Katie was learning was very difficult for her. So she waited, let Addison roll it around in her head. When she finally sighed, Katie gave herself a mental point.
“Okay.”
“Excellent.” Katie hit some keys. “All right. The first one is from Ed Hayes.”
“He’s my head of maintenance.”
“He says he’s got a lot of applicants for the opening Kyle left?” Katie turned to Addison, whose head was back against the pillows, eyes closed, and watched as she nodded.
“Good. Tell him to set up interviews for next week and keep me posted on possible good fits.”
Katie typed quickly, efficiently, and sent the email off. “Okay, next…”
They worked like this for the next ninety minutes, Katie a bit surprised by the amount of email Addison had received just in the short few hours they’d been at her loft. No wonder she always acted like she couldn’t keep up. Maybe she actually couldn’t.
Katie finished typing a response and turned to Addison. “Next is…” She let her voice trail off as she realized Addison had fallen asleep, her full lips slightly parted, her hands relaxed in her lap. Katie smiled, took some time and studied her face…the creamy complexion that was less gray by the day, the expertly applied makeup that made it look almost like she wasn’t wearing any, the wisps of reddish-brown hair that curled in front of her ear. Addison really was a stunningly beautiful woman, and for a moment, Katie was awed by the idea of seeing her fully healthy. Soon, she hoped. For a moment, she thought it would be nice to just stay there, to sit and look at her for a while. Which was silly. Of course. With a smile, Katie quietly closed the laptop and carefully slid off the bed, not wanting to wake her. Being as silent as possible, she bent to gather her things together from the floor at the foot of the bed where she’d left them, aside from her jacket, and stood.
And stood.
And stood.
This was like looking at a different person. A person who was relaxed and unburdened. Addison looked peaceful, the corners of her mouth raised ever so slightly, making her appear softer and happier than Katie had seen before. And there was one other thing that Katie didn’t really want to think about but couldn’t seem to help.
Addison looked gorgeous. Strikingly so.
Katie swallowed hard as an almost irresistible urge to walk over to the side of the bed and brush some of Addison’s hair off her forehead coursed hotly through her veins. Like liquid fire. She literally held herself in place, forced herself not to move until that urge passed. Then she blew out a long, slow breath and left the room, quickly and quietly and trying her best not to dwell on anything that had just occurred to her.
It wasn’t until she was outside that she realized they’d driven Addison’s car to the loft and that her own was still parked at the offices of Fairchild Rentals.
“Damn,” she said quietly, standing on the street in front of Addison’s building. She thought about calling Samantha but knew that could take a while. She didn’t want to spend the money, but there was an Uber three minutes away, so she punched in her information and waited. The whole thing took less than ten minutes from pickup to drop-off, and soon Katie was in her own car, heading home.
It was later than usual, close to seven, before she arrived at the front door, and she had a quick flash of guilt for not letting her mother know she’d be late. That flash grew into a small trash fire when she walked in and saw the scene before her.
“I’m sorry, Mom,” she said immediately, shedding her jacket, dropping her things inside the door, and hurrying into the kitchen where her mother was on her hands and knees, cleaning up what looked to be chili all over the floor. “What happened?”
Without looking up, Liz said, “Your father decided he doesn’t like chili anymore.”
“Where is he?”
“Upstairs. Will you go check on him, make sure he changed his shirt?”
“Would you rather I clean up?” Katie asked, uncertain but wanting to do what was best for her mother.
Liz stopped cleaning and looked up at her daughter. Her cheeks were blazing red and her eyes flashed with frustrated anger and unshed tears. It was an expression
that showed up on her face more and more often lately, and it made Katie feel slightly nauseous while squeezing her heart at the same time. “No. I really need some time away from him right now.”
Katie gave one nod and turned to head up the stairs, walking slowly enough to brace herself. It was something she often needed to do when about to deal with her ill father, as she rarely knew which one of his many moods she was about to get.
“Dad?” she called quietly as she pushed the door to his room open. Liz had decided to move him into his own room several months ago when it became clear that his middle-of-the-night wanderings were going to be a regular thing. That had been hard on her, Katie knew. She was sure her mother had never planned on being in a separate bedroom from her husband, but if she didn’t now, she’d never get any sleep.
David Cooper was propped up on his bed, the TV remote in his hand, his gaze glued to a hockey game—a sport he’d never watched in his life but that now seemed to engross him. He’d taken to shaving his head years ago when it became clear he was destined to be one of those men with a donut of hair circling his skull. And Katie’d had to admit she liked the look on him, especially when he’d grown in a goatee. He’d looked younger somehow and extremely handsome. Sophisticated. Now his head was covered with stubble, as he wasn’t always in the mood to let his wife shave his head, and she wasn’t about to let him have free rein with a razor. His goatee was still there, but the rest of his beard was growing in around it, some dark, but most of it shockingly gray. Katie had never seen him look so old and small. His white T-shirt was stained with chili, and if she hadn’t already known that, she might have panicked that he’d hurt himself—or somebody else.
Entering the room slowly and crossing to him, she said, “Hey there. How are you?” She sat gently on the edge of the bed.
He turned his gaze to her for a brief moment, and the few beats it took for him to register who she was tugged at her heart like it always did. While she’d initially done her best to prepare herself for not being recognized by her own father, Katie hadn’t been at all ready when it had happened the first time; she’d spent hours afterward sobbing like a child. Now she cleared her throat and did her best to shake it off.
“Hey, how about we get you a clean shirt? This one’s kind of messy. You didn’t get burned, did you?”
He looked down at himself as if noticing for the first time that he was covered with food.
Katie went to the dresser and pulled out a clean white T-shirt. “Do you need me to help you take that off?”
David shook his head, sat forward, and pulled the dirty shirt over his head, leaving remnants of chili clinging to his stubbled chin.
Katie sighed quietly. “Okay, let me go grab a towel. I’ll be right back.” When she returned, she wiped the chili off her father’s face while he kept his eyes glued to the television, barely acknowledging her presence. She helped him on with the clean shirt. “There. Better?” When he didn’t answer, she asked, “Do you need anything, Dad? Something to drink?” She perched on the edge of the bed again. “Want to talk?”
He looked at her then, and for a split second, his blue eyes looked normal, regular, like they did in the morning. Like he knew her and loved her. He lifted his arm and she cuddled in next to him. Cautiously, because she knew it probably wouldn’t last.
For now, though, for now, she’d take it. She inhaled the rugged, male smell of her father, felt his arm settle on her shoulders and they stayed like that, cuddled together like a father and daughter who had no worries, watching a sport neither of them had ever had an interest in.
Yes, for now, Katie would take it. For now.
Chapter Seven
Addison was in her office Wednesday morning by seven. A good ninety minutes before Janie was due at her desk and well before any other employee…except for Ed, her head of maintenance, who’d texted her at 6:15 that he’d be over before 9:00. Getting in that early was no easy feat that day, given that she felt like she’d been run over by a steamroller the night before. Katie had left her sleeping, and Addison was annoyed about that. There was so much to be done and she hadn’t woken up until after ten, her bedroom dark, her neck stiff from the sitting position she’d been in.
The fact that her body had obviously needed the rest was deemed unimportant in her mind. Much less important than the fact that she’d lost several hours in which she could have gotten things done. She was also irritated when she went to listen to her voice mail and realized she had a dozen messages from yesterday afternoon. How had she missed them? She squinted into her quiet office and remembered that Katie’d taken her cell phone the previous afternoon. She must have turned it off when Addison wasn’t paying attention.
Damn it. How did I not notice that?
Without her permission, her brain replayed bits and pieces of yesterday, of working together on Addison’s bed, of Katie’s warm and soothing voice reading emails to her and herself, eyes closed as she relaxed against the headboard, dictating responses. It felt like they’d gotten so much done; they made a good team. So how was there still so much to do today? Pursed lips, face wrinkled into a mask of annoyance, she grabbed a piece of paper and jotted a bunch of things down. Then she listened to every message, took down notes, and then began the arduous task of returning the calls that needed returning, sending emails to those people who didn’t need an actual call, and then it was on to the sixty-seven emails in her inbox.
Addison was submerged, as if underwater. When the knock on her doorjamb came, she was startled to see it was minutes before nine. She’d killed nearly two hours without taking a breath.
She did so now, squeezed her eyes shut, then pulled off her glasses so she could focus on Ed Hayes standing uncertainly in her doorway. She gestured him in.
“How’re you feeling?” he asked, as he settled his Santa Claus–like bulk into the chair in front of her desk. “Heard you were under the weather.” Ed was a nice guy. A hard worker, a good boss to his maintenance crew, somebody who listened to what Addison wanted of him and got it done, whether or not he agreed with her decisions. His head was buzzed, leaving only a white fuzz, and his blue eyes were soft and kind. All his bulk was in his stomach, and she’d often wondered if it was simply a genetic trait he’d been forced to grapple with. Despite the extra weight and despite being in his sixties, he was strong and capable—Addison had seen him lift enormously heavy things without so much as a grunt—and he was invaluable to her.
“Fine,” she said, waving off his concern. “No big deal.” She could tell by the look on his face that he wasn’t buying it and she wondered if he’d been talking to her mother. It was likely, as Ed had been hired long before Addison had taken over running Fairchild Rentals.
“Well, just make sure you listen to your body, you know? Stress is nothing to fuck around with.” Despite the profanity, his tone was almost fatherly. He’d known her since she was a teenager, so it wasn’t unexpected.
“I will,” she promised, and they were on to other things. He left her with a stack of ten applicants for the spot left when Kyle Bannon had bailed; Ed had narrowed it down and wanted her to take a look, weed out anybody else she thought might not be able to cut it. She put the pile with the rest of the seven million things she needed to do, just as her phone rang and Ed silently waved his good-byes, then left.
The rest of the morning flew by. The pains in Addison’s stomach were minimal, and for that she was thankful. Which didn’t mean they’d gone away. They hadn’t. But she found that if she kept busy with work, she could take her mind off them for chunks at a time. Though she’d done her best to ease up on the coffee intake, she was very tired and felt like she needed the caffeine boost. It didn’t help her stomach.
If she hadn’t glanced up at the clock at the very same moment Katie walked in, she’d never have noticed her personal assistant was late. Katie’s pace was hurried, her expression slightly frazzled as she dumped her stuff on the round table and tilted her head at Addison.
�
�You were supposed to be at home,” she said, as if this was the most obvious fact in the world. “I rang your doorbell and pounded on the door until your neighbor peeked out and scowled at me.”
Addison blinked at her, a bit surprised by the slightly irked tone of her voice. Katie yanked her charger out of her bag, the white cord dangling like spaghetti as she bent to plug it in, then attached it to her phone. “I forgot to plug my phone in last night and it died at my last job. I couldn’t find my charger, which was right in my bag the whole time, so I couldn’t call you…” Her voice trailed off as she shook her head. Then, as if suddenly remembering she was talking to somebody she worked for, she stopped. Addison heard the audible swallow as Katie backpedaled. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to sound snarky. That was out of line. I just…had a rough night and when I couldn’t get ahold of you, I got worried, decided to try here before going home and making any panicked phone calls from there.” She pulled three tiny bowls out of her bag and crossed the room, set them on the desk. “I read up on ulcers last night and I know you haven’t been eating much.” She pointed at the bowls. “One has almonds and one has some cheddar cheese cubes. The amino acids in them will help with healing. The third one is blackberries, which have high levels of antioxidants to help ease your symptoms.” She paused, took a breath. “I’m sorry I’m late.”
Addison nodded, hid her surprise at the kindness Katie had shown. “It’s fine. No problem.” Aside from the worried expression on her face that made her brown eyes slightly wider than usual and that put a horizontal divot at the top of her nose between her eyebrows, Katie looked terrific today. Her pants were black, her top a design in red and black. Her hair was down, but as soon as she’d plugged in her phone, she used the ever-present elastic on her wrist to pull it up into a messy bun. Addison was learning this was a habit Katie performed when feeling stressed. It left her neck exposed.
Which isn’t a bad thing. Not a bad thing at all.
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