Chapter Fourteen #2
“No.” I clear my throat, and glue my gaze to her eyes. What did I come here for again? It certainly wasn’t to walk her back into the room, pin her to the bed, and—
Stop.
“I’m here because I’ve decided I’ll allow you to assist me.”
Fuck, could I sound like a bigger asshole if I tried? Probably, but it’d take effort.
From the way Victoria’s expression turns truly menacing, she shares the sentiment with that voice of reason in my head.
“Excuse me?”
Maybe I should be a bit less of a prick, but… “You’ve been insufferable in trying to help me. I’ll let you.”
Her expression vacillates between indignation and outright fury. Several silent moments pass.
“No.”
She tries to slam the door in my face, again. I stop it, again.
“Why the hell not?”
“I don’t know, maybe because you demean me every chance you get?
Dismiss me? Disregard me? Remind me that I’m a nobody on the team?
” She steps forward. “Perhaps it’s because you got me banned from the pit the last time I tried to help you.
I don’t know, Asher—I can’t choose a single reason, because you’ve given me many. ”
“You’re assigned to me and my car,” I growl. “Do your job.”
“I have been doing nothing but my job since I got here, and you have been nothing but a complete asshole to me!” she shouts.
That’s when I see it. The lines of exhaustion on her face. The shadows of lost sleep under her eyes. And, most of all, the sheer dejection glinting in her eyes.
She’s hurt. I’ve hurt her by being a complete asshole.
Previously, I didn’t pause to think what effect me being a jerk would have on her because she always stands up to me.
For fuck’s sake, her first words to me were an insult.
But now that I’ve seen it, I can’t unsee it…
and a trickle of guilt bunches my shoulders.
On the heels of one realization comes another; I’m here because she’s the only person on the team who has even bothered trying to help me this season. That’s why I chose her, and why I’ve been pushing her away. She’s made herself an easy target by repeatedly attempting to get close.
“I was just testing your mettle,” I manage to say. “I didn’t mean most of what I’ve said.”
As soon as the words are out, I realize they’re true.
She might be the most junior member of the team, but she’s also already shaping up to be the most competent.
I’m not the only one who thinks as much; she’s developed a rapport with Oliver, Declan, and even Ilya.
They might dismiss her, but they allow her to get in their vicinity in the first place—which isn’t usual.
More, it seems like they let her work on her forecasting thing without much supervision, which is huge.
“I don’t want to have this conversation.” Her eyes darken into the shade of clouds foreshadowing a tempest. “It’s late, I’m tired, and I have to be up in two hours to catch a cramped flight back home.”
I swallow. A different sense of urgency grips me—as if this moment is somehow pivotal to my career, and that if I continue screwing it up, I’ll be fucked. I wrack my brain for something that might get to her.
“Let me take you out for a drink when we’re back.” Tomorrow’s a travel day, but everyone will be back in HQ the day after.
“I can’t, I have work. You’re the one who demanded I stay chained to my desk all day and night. Unlike you, I can’t show up whenever and leave whenever.”
“The drink will still be work.” I clench my jaw, realizing I need to say the words. “I… want your help.” When her expression remains unmoved, I force out, “Please.”
She pauses. Her eyes narrow in assessment, and she sweeps a long look over me. Finally, she says, “Fine. But it’ll be a work drink.”
“I’ll put it on the team card,” I say drily.
“And you’ll answer whatever personal questions I ask.”
“No.”
“Then good luck finding someone else willing to help you. You’ve been a complete prick to everyone for much longer than you’ve been a prick to me.”
Fuck, she’s right. My track record on the team isn’t great, and out of all the staff, she’s the one I’ve been a jerk to for the shortest amount of time.
“Only if those personal questions factor into you helping me.”
Why am I pushing this so hard? I could track down any engineer and demand they set aside time to strategize with me.
They would because that’s what they’re paid to do…
but they’d probably half ass it. It’s abundantly clear that the only time of day anyone’s willing to give me will ultimately be to the benefit of Elio.
But it’s more than that. I’m here because I want her help.
“And I want an apology.”
My head jerks back. “For what?”
“For all the shit you’ve given me. For blaming your failures on me, for exiling me from the pit, for being a massive fucking headache for no reason.”
That’s a fair demand, but… “No. That’s a stone too far, sweetheart.” I pause. “If I see improvements, I’ll give you your apology.”
“If you want to improve, you have to work with me. I very much doubt you’ll make it through a single drink before dismissing me, but we’ll see.” She rakes an astute gaze over me. “Go back to whatever cave you crawled out of. I’ll see you at HQ.”