Chapter 17
CHAPTER 17
LOGAN
T he next morning, I go to Elliot’s office. I won’t tell him I know about his relationship with Ruby. It’s not my place. I think Piper only mentioned it to me so we’d feel less guilty about what we’re doing. Or maybe it’s natural for her to share her news with her boyfriend.
As I knock on his door, a dark mood tries to grip me. Boyfriend . It’s like we’re playing roles, pretending to be in a proper relationship, that this can have a happily ever after.
Elliot is sitting behind his desk when he calls for me to come in. He’s got bags under his eyes.
“Have you slept?” I ask, concerned for him.
“Not much,” he admits. “It’s hard to with everything going on.”
“Yeah, I get that,” I mutter. “Sal came to see me again yesterday.”
“Was that before or after he vandalized The Clam?”
“After,” I tell him. “He admitted to that, tried to use it to scare me.”
“Tried,” Elliot mutters. “I’m guessing it didn’t work.”
“After everything I’ve been through, I refuse to let him intimidate me,” I growl. “I refuse to give him the company I – no, we worked so hard to build.”
Elliot shrugs. “I’ve tried to make you see sense. I don’t know what else you want me to say.”
“I want you to get some goddamn fire in your belly,” I snarl. “ We can win this . There’s a way out that doesn’t involve selling our souls.”
“I wish that was true.”
“It is true,” I tell him.
He shakes his head.
“I know about the loan,” I say.
“Sal told you, did he?” Elliot snaps.
“More or less. Is that all he has on you, or is there anything else?”
“It’s not about what he has on me. It’s about him being a violent thug who’s going to make our lives miserable if we don’t do what he wants.”
“I’m arranging security for you, your sister, and… anyone else who needs it,” I tell him. “I’ve sent you the details via email. I’m going to keep us safe.”
“What about you?” Elliot asks.
“I don’t care about me. Let him come. He’ll regret it.”
“Logan…” Elliot tilts his head. “You need to think.”
“I’m thinking of the company,” I snarl. “Check your email. And remember this, okay? We’re on the same side. ”
I leave his office, return to mine, and lose myself in tedious admin-style tasks for a couple of hours. I usually hate stuff like this, but with everything going on, it’s almost a relief not to have to think.
The prototype phone lights up with a pink notification window, the text reading, Your one and only has sent you a photo. How sweet is that? I grin, picking it up. So, they’re working on the copy, then.
As I open the phone, the world suddenly seems less bleak when I see the selfie of Piper sitting at her desk. She’s holding a notebook and a pen, her eyes lightly shaded with liner, making her look dark, mysterious, and alluring.
Piper: Keeping it old school. Pretty neat, right?
I press down on the microphone icon, ringed with hearts. “Do you find working with pen and paper to have advantages over the computer?”
A moment later, she streams a live video to me. She’s propped her phone on her desk, angling it so I can see what she’s writing.
She writes out for me to see.
Yes, it forces me to slow down and think deeply about everything I’m doing.
“Is that a hint?” I say into the microphone. “Do you think I need to slow down? Think more deeply?”
I stand and switch on the live stream option, putting it on a selfie cam. When she texts this time, it appears at the bottom of the screen, hearts floating away.
Piper: I wouldn’t presume to tell you what to do, Mr. Boss.
My grin gets wider. With everything going on, most people would think I’d be crippled with anxiety. It’s there, don’t get me wrong. There’s a hum of panic beneath everything, but it’s easy to ignore when I’m bantering with Piper.
“You’ve all been busy,” I say as I walk to the door.
Piper: Where are you going?
“I just had an idea. I need your advice on something. This is very, very important.”
Piper: Okay…
“Are you wearing headphones?” I ask.
Piper: LOL. How did you guess?
“You don’t want people to know you’re talking with Mr. Boss.” I say nothing as I leave my office and walk to the elevator. Inside the elevator, alone again, I say, “It’s far too easy to have fun with you, you know that? It’s like you split me right down the middle. One half: terrified of what might happen. The other: knowing we’re going to make it through this.”
She sends an eye roll emoji.
Piper:
Piper: How can you know a thing like that?
“Maybe I’m just crazy in general as I am crazy about you, Hardcover.”
Piper: I think Hardcover applies more to you now, Logan. You’re hard on the outside, soft on the inside.
“I’m not soft,” I growl. “Not when you’re around.”
She sends a sweating emoji.
Piper:
Piper: Don’t get me all excited at work. It was bad enough in the restaurant.
“If that restaurant hadn’t been so busy, I would’ve…” I trail off, letting out a shaky laugh. “You’re right. I need to relax. If I don’t stop, I’m liable to charge into the office and claim you right there, and I won’t give a damn who sees.”
Piper: You can’t seem to control yourself around a certain curvy girl.
In the small selfie screen in the corner, I watch my features tighten. It’s like there are twin fires in my eyes, burning when she talks about herself like this. “You have no idea how hot it is when you talk confidently about your body…”
Text appears at the bottom of the screen.
Piper: But that’s the thing, Logan. I’m not TALKING confidently about my body. That would be one step too far. Things are far, far easier through text. If being with you has taught me anything, it’s that.
“So that’s all I’ve taught you, huh? That texting can be an effective shield?”
Piper: No, you’ve also taught me it’s possible to feel crazy intense emotion crazy fast.
“Ditto, Hardcover,” I say, the doors opening onto the roof.
I walk onto the roof, the wind whipping at me, over to the helipad, then turn so that the company’s helicopter is in the frame behind me. “I’ve been trying to find somebody to take on a helicopter date for some time now… But I haven’t found the right person. Do you have any ideas?”
Piper: You’re playing with me, Logan. Are you seriously asking me on a HELICOPTER date?
Piper:
Laughing and heart emojis fill the screen.
“We’ve got some time before the end of the workday; that’s plenty of time for me to dream up something romantic. I’m sure I can look in my dark heart and dredge something up.”
Piper: Dark heart? Are you kidding? You’re the warmest guy I know.
“Only with you. What do you think?”
Piper: That it’s probably a bad idea.
“That doesn’t sound like a no.”
Piper: It’s a ‘maybe.’
“A ‘maybe’ is good enough to start making plans.”