37. Jeremiah
Jeremiah
This morning was… easy.
Honestly, I felt more at ease than I have been in a long, long time.
His adoring face looking down at me was one hell of a way to wake up. Being around him makes me feel…lighter. Not just happier but…more free?
Driving to work with him now, stealing moments with my hand resting on his thigh, makes me say something so out of character I shock myself.
“What would you do if I just kept driving? Took us somewhere completely new?” I ask, stealing a glance at the smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
“I’d blast some road-trip tunes and scout out the best spot for some road jerky.”
I narrow my eyes at him and he mimics my expression.
“The packaged dried meat. Man, get your head out of the gutter.” He snickers, pushing me in the shoulder.
A grin pulls at my lips as I laugh. “I blame you. Dirtied up my brain. It’s not my fault.”
Chuckling, he lifts my hand to his mouth and bites lightly at my knuckle before pressing a kiss over it.
We continue to joke around and tease each other all the way into work.
“Good morning, Boss. Morning, Chase,” Bailey beams as soon as we walk in.
“Morning, Bailey,” I smile as we pass her desk.
“Morning. Oh, by the way, you’re coming tomorrow night for karaoke,” Chase adds, pointing back at her as he heads down the hall.
Bailey slumps in her chair, folding her arms.
“You both are,” Chase turns his head, flashing his charming, sinful grin at me.
I groan, sipping from my coffee cup.
“Come on. The investors will love it.” Chase shrugs. “Plus, you’ll get to see my awesome air guitar again. I know how much you loved it the last time.” He bites his bottom lip, pretending to strum a tune.
“Oh please, put it away.” I shake my head sarcastically. He’s probably right. If I was still trying to impress David, which I’m not, it’s actually a pretty smart idea.
“Ouch. That hurts,” he says dramatically, clutching his chest before handing Mia her coffee.
I give her a small wave hello and Chase a nod goodbye. Just before I turn away, he flashes me a subtle wink.
I bite back a smile as I lift my coffee to my lips. I’ll be sure to catch up with him later.
Unfortunately, I spot David and Theo waiting inside my office as I walk up.
Theo’s seated, arms crossed, while David paces behind him like a shark in a suit.
My steps falter. This can’t be good.
“Hey,” I greet cautiously as I enter.
Theo gives me a tight-lipped smile while David lights up like it’s Christmas morning.
“Jeremiah! Glad you could make it. Come on in!” He gestures for me to my chair.
Never mind the fact that this is my office. But sure, go ahead and invite me in.
I round my desk and sit. Chase’s belt digs into my stomach, the buttons snug across my chest—but honestly, the snug fit just makes me think about him more.
David claps his hands. “So. You’ll notice Heather’s not here.
“I did notice that, yes.”
“Right, right. Well, honestly, I’ve been thinking about what’s being presented in front of me and…” David tilts his head and clicks his tongue. “I’m not one hundred percent convinced.”
My mouth parts as I sit up in my seat. “No?”
“Eh. I’m not completely psyched about the idea but, I think I could make it work with the right tweaking.
Of course, I want to swing it past the guys,” David says excitedly, gripping Theo’s chair.
Theo looks at me with half-lidded eyes and a tensed jaw.
Whatever David is about to say is obviously not Theo’s idea.
Damn, I have no clue how I didn’t pick up on his disdain until this.
It’s so clear now. “WingMate needs a WingFlip– if you know what I mean.” He winks.
I shake my head slowly. “No, I really don’t.”
David snorts, striding over to the window of my office, looking out at the city bustling below us.
“WingMate’s spent too much time trying to be everything to everyone. All this ‘inclusivity’ stuff? It’s not selling anymore. People are tired of it. We need to ditch all that and swap it out for what sells. Hot women.”
My mouth drops open. He did not. “I’d have to disagree strongly on that.”
Theo sits back in his chair, leaning his chin in his hand. He gives me a slight head shake like I shouldn’t entertain him but I can’t help it.
“WingMate has always been about inclusivity and community and banning together. Wherever you’re going with this–”
David frowns, turning toward me. “Listen to me, kid. I’ll stop you right there. I’m telling you. I’ve been in this field for much longer than you have. Scrap community, scrap the group date idea, and let’s bring it back to one on one dating. We’ve got to pull it back to win the big bucks.”
"Community is the entire point of WingMate." My jaw tightens. "You take that away and it's just another dating app."
David sighs, clasping his hands together. “You’re not understanding. It’s not about scrapping,” David drawls on, waving his hands. “It’s about evolving. It’s time to make WingMate sexy.”
Theo rubs his hands down his face, clearly exasperated.
My fists open and close. “David… you realize how offensive this all sounds, right?”
David squares his shoulders, folding his hands behind his back. “Are you sure you’re willing to sacrifice what it takes for a business? Because it’s not sounding like you are.”
I’m about two seconds away from calling this meeting, and telling David where he can shove his misogynistic, homophobic, idiotic take before Theo sits up suddenly.
“Okay, you know what? This is a lot to dump on Jeremiah first thing in the morning. Let’s give him some time to… digest.” He stands and pats David’s shoulder. “Come on, let’s go explore the city a little more, yeah?”
David gives me a wink as Theo leads him out.
Theo zips back inside and shuts the door behind him.
“What an asshole,” I exhale. “How in the hell do you even stand to work with a guy like him?”
“Yeah, right? I told you.”
“I fucking hate people like that.” I stand up from my chair. “We need to say something. He can’t get away with saying shit like that unchecked,” I bite.
Theo sighs, scratching the back of his neck. “He’s pitching it to us first because he knows damn well, Heather would never go for it.”
“That can’t happen,” I pace.
"Okay..." Theo rubs a hand over his mouth. "Then we need this plan to work."
"Nothing would piss David off more than watching us pull this off."
I breathe in and out, trying to steady my fumes. “Down with David.”
“Down with David.” Theo’s lips twitch into a grin. “I’ll come find you after lunch? We’ll go over some numbers and tighten things up.”
Relief spreads through my chest as I sit back down in my chair. “Now that I like the sound of.”
I take another sip of coffee, wiggling my computer mouse to wake up the screen.
*Blip.*
A Slack notification appears on my screen.
Chase [Marketing Manager] : As soon as I saw you come on the screen, so did I…
A laugh bursts from my mouth— and coffee goes down the wrong pipe.
Chase [Marketing Manager] : Too much? LOL
“You good?” Theo laughs, watching me nearly die.
“Yeah. Wrong tube.” I pound on my chest with my fist. I swear, Chase is trying to kill me.
Theo chuckles as he heads for the door. “Alright, I’ll catch you later.”
I nod, waiting until the coast is clear before I sit back at my desk.
Me: You asshole. I almost choked.
Chase [Marketing Manager] : You picturing my ass, Blackwood?
My jaw drops.
Me: Stop saying these things on the work computer!!!!
I look over my screen to see Chase typing away on his computer, like a goddamn hacker.
Chase [Marketing Manager] : Your hair looks nice today. I like the no product look.
I glance at the glass wall across from me, catching my own reflection. My hair’s falling loose, a little messy, a little soft. A lot like his.
Chase [Marketing Manager] : I knew you’d check like a good boy
Heat floods my chest. I click out of Slack before I combust in my desk chair.
This man is absolutely going to get me into trouble.