14. Sloan
Sloan
I haven’t stopped thinking about Cody since he pulled away from my apartment a few days ago. I feel like my head is spinning when it comes to him. I don’t know what I want or how to handle this… except my heart knows exactly what I should do, I just don’t know if I should listen to it.
“Good morning, Sloan. I spoke to Jude this morning. He said you’ve been having trouble with the Bradford’s account?”
“Oh, um…” I trail off, unsure how to respond to Mr. Carpenter. I can’t believe Jude went to his dad after I specifically asked him not to. “They’ve been difficult, but it’s not too much trouble.”
“That’s not what Jude said. He asked me to take the account from you and give you something different. Can you give Jerry all of the Bradford files? I’d like him to spend the weekend going over things so he can figure out the best way to approach their account on Monday.” Mr. Carpenter smiles.
He’s not upset in the least about Jude coming to him or about me wanting a different account to work on. The Bradfords are known to be extremely difficult and it isn’t rare for them to get passed off to different employees.
Me? I'm livid Jude went behind my back after I specifically asked him not to. I didn’t want to get Mr. Carpenter involved. I was simply venting to my boyfriend about work. Something I should be able to do without any issues.
Cody would’ve listened. He wouldn’t have gone behind your back because he’d know how important your job is to you.
The thoughts rush through my head and have me heaving out a long sigh. I can’t think about Cody like that. He made it clear he wants nothing to do with me.
‘You’re a liar’, my brain singsongs.
I shake my head and try to focus on the man standing in front of me, expecting me to respond with something.
“Mr. Carpenter, I never asked Jude to come to you. In fact, I specifically asked him not to. The Bradfords are difficult to deal with and they can be frustrating at times, but it’s nothing I can’t handle.”
He watches me for a moment, examining every option he has. He’s a good boss to deal with and one I typically like and respect. He’s always been fair to me, even before I started dating Jude.
“I understand what you’re saying. I think Jude has a hard time separating you as his coworker from you as his girlfriend.
When he hears you venting about something, he wants to fix it all right away.
” He smiles softly. “Maybe one day he’ll learn to listen and be supportive when his girlfriend talks and realize you don’t always want him to fix things. ”
“I'm glad you understand I wasn’t trying to get out of a difficult account.”
He takes a seat in the chair across from my desk and leans back, crossing one ankle across the opposite knee.
“I want you to gather the things for Jerry.” I open my mouth to object, but he holds his hand up, stopping me.
“I'm not taking the account from you. I want Jerry to look over everything this weekend and on Monday you two can meet and form a game plan. I think some fresh eyes on this account could be good. We should probably have two people on this account anyway.”
“Ok,” I whisper as my shoulders sag. He doesn’t think I can do this alone. I hate that. I don’t want to seem like an employee who can’t handle anything alone.
“Sloan, you’re a good employee. One of the best I have.
I'm not saying you can’t handle them alone, but sometimes a helping hand is nice…
There’s something else I wanted to discuss with you.
” He fidgets uncomfortably in the chair, making my blood pressure rise.
He never fidgets. He’s always laidback and composed.
“Sure, what did you want to talk about?”
“My son. I know the two of you have been dating for a while.”
“Yes, about six months.”
“Right. I just… I want you to know your job here is safe no matter what happens between the two of you.”
“Okay…” My brows furrow as I process what he’s saying. Does he not want me dating Jude?
“Boy, I'm making a mess out of this.” He chuckles as he runs a hand down his face. “I’ve never been in this odd position before. You’re the only woman Jude has dated who also worked for me.
I don’t want there to be problems in the future, so I figured I’d lay all the cards out on the table, so to speak. Am I making you uncomfortable?”
“Not at all.” I wave off his concern.
“You started dating Jude before you knew I was his father. I just want to make sure you understand that your job isn’t connected to Jude.
If at any point you don’t want to date him any longer, I don’t want you looking for a new job.
You’re one of my best employees and I don’t want to lose you if things don’t work out between the two of you. ”
“I appreciate that, Mr. Carpenter.”
My mind spins with his comments. I wonder if he realizes I’ve been questioning my relationship with Jude. Since we went to the first Pythons game, things have been off between us. I don’t like it one bit and it’s making me wonder if our relationship will even go back to normal.
“I hear you know the Robinson twins. Jude hasn’t stopped talking about them.” Mr. Carpenter rolls his eyes.
“I’ve known them since I was in elementary school.” I smile softly, remembering what they were like when I first met them.
Cody was quiet and would smile all the time. Jax always had a devilish grin on his face and he was constantly getting into trouble. They were so much fun to play with.
“Jude said you dated one of them?”
“Yes, I dated Cody for a bit.” I swallow hard, more than uncomfortable with this conversation. “We broke up when my family moved and I hadn’t seen him since.”
Mr. Carpenter opens his mouth to respond, but his ringer fills the air. He glances at the screen and quickly stands.
“Excuse me, I need to take this. If you could get the information together for Jerry by the end of the day, that would be great.” He smiles at me before exiting my office.
I blow out a long breath and sink back into my chair. I can’t believe Jude went behind my back after I asked him not to speak to his father. I'm so frustrated right now. I almost want to take advantage of Mr. Carpenter’s comment and break up with Jude, knowing I won't have to look for a new job.
I shake my head, knowing I can’t do that. Not yet. If I break up with him now, it will look like I only stayed with him for my job. I need to stick it out a few more months, then I can break up with him.
It’s not going to be easy though. Not only because Jude’s been difficult to deal with recently, but also because I can’t stop thinking about what Cody said. I was wrong about him in every way.