Chapter Fifteen
DAN
On Wednesday, I lean over the desk to Kallen, tapping away at his keyboard. He’s wearing a little more stubble on his face than usual today, and I can’t deny that the minor ruggedness looks good on him. ‘Hey,’ I say after gazing far too long. ‘Do you ever get emails from Melissa at Growth PR?’
Kallen’s eyes swell. He flinches slightly, as if the mention of Melissa – who’s been flooding my inbox with pitch emails all week – has him in a state of impending doom.
‘Did no one warn you about Melissa?’ Kallen asks, rather stern but not overly serious.
I cut a blank. ‘Uh. Nope.’
‘Do not engage with Growth PR,’ Blake chimes in.
Lisa turns to Blake. ‘Hey, they’ve had a few pitches that we’ve accepted. Very rare occurrence, as we know. Their clients just aren’t interesting enough to make it past editorial meetings when there’s so much competition for coverage.’
‘I’ve been copping it from her,’ I say. ‘And she’ll send a follow-up email on the same day.’
Kallen lets out a short laugh, then seems annoyed when he say s, ‘Yep. They do that. They’re more ruthless than the rest because they know their clients are less likely to get coverage from us.’
‘Right. Noted.’ I return my gaze to the computer screen. ‘I’ll let her know to contact you from now on.’
From the corner of my eye, I see Kallen scowl at me as he suddenly outbursts, ‘You will do no such thing!’, which has everyone in the office turning toward us.
He’s cute when he’s annoyed. Ten points to yours truly, I guess.
*
The next morning, during our editorial meeting, we’re talking about animals making weird noises.
It’s an article idea Blake put in the sheet for pitching, and it quickly gets approved by Lisa, granted it’s something that won’t be piggybacked on as part of the daily news cycle. Also high on the clickbait scale.
‘I already can’t wait to read this article, to be quite honest with you,’ Lisa says.
Kallen raises his eyebrows at me. ‘Should’ve recorded your cat for inclusion, Dan.’
I feel my face run hot, and I see Blake snigger from the corner of my eye. Think of a quippy reply, Dan. Don’t shut down with shyness now.
‘First of all, Salem isn’t ready for that kind of publicity,’ I spill. ‘And second of all, I’m sure if someone started recording audio in your apartment these days, Kallen, we could put those sounds in the article too.’
Blake guffaws, which I take in my stride. Cherry looks puzzle d, and Kallen shakes his head, his face bordering on pink, eyes almost slits.
‘And this is why coworkers shouldn’t live so close to each other.’ Lisa grimaces. She then raises her voice. ‘Okay, let’s move on. Dan, what shoots have you got on this week again? We’re swimming in them lately.’
I look from Kallen – who now appears all flustered – to Lisa.
‘Uh, got bottomless tacos in the Valley tonight, then that Italian lunch spritz thing, also in the Valley, with Kallen tomorrow.’ The thought of spending a lunch just Kallen and me offers both a generous dose of anxiety and something to look forward to this week, other than hearing more about Jean’s story over the weekend, of course.
*
‘A work lunch hey,’ Ruby teases when I tell her about the meal Kallen and I will be sharing tomorrow.
Ruby, Jake, Chloe and I are at a Mexican restaurant for bottomless taco Thursdays, the air filled with spice and indistinct chatter from a full house of diners.
‘Yes, a work lunch,’ I re-iterate, nursing my glass of water. My attention diverts to the Aztec skull-shaped lights hanging in rows from the ceiling. ‘Kallen’s dating someone now, anyway.’
‘So, him and that guy are seeing each other, huh?’ Chloe shoots me a look, eyebrows knitted together.
‘Sounds like it,’ I say, wanting to not think about it. I meet Ruby’s gaze. ‘Can I get a little shot of you dipping your taco in that birria?’
‘Babe, you just scored us free dinner. It’s the least I can do.’ Ruby picks up a beef taco as I film on my phone. She submerges it in the brown birria sauce with a food porn-worthy drip.
‘Yep, that was great,’ I commend her, putting my phone down.
Even though we’re here on a media shoot, I don’t want to be on my phone the whole time. Have to keep at least some of the experience natural.
‘Yeah, honestly, Dan, I’ll accompany you to any free restaurant visits,’ Jake says, twisting to face me.
‘Me too,’ Chloe echoes.
‘Well, I’ll message in the group chat whenever I get an invite,’ I say with a slight grin, taking a bite of chicken taco, the chipotle mayonnaise warming the insides of my mouth.
There’s something about now being in a group chat that makes me feel as if I’m part of their friend circle – or rather triangle that’s perhaps transformed into a square.
I don’t want to get my hopes up, though.
These three have been friends for years.
Not sure if I can compete with their level of closeness.
It’s a start, however, into not feeling alone in this River City.
Well, alone, aside from Salem, which means I’m not really alone.
‘It’s usually good to have a group of four at these dining invites,’ I continue on. ‘Because most of the time, they like to bring out all their best dishes to try.’
‘Consider me a full-blown foodie then,’ Ruby says, closing her eyes with satisfaction as she pops the last bit of birria taco into her mouth. ‘So, guys, what’s everyone’s plans this weekend?’
‘Wifey and I are going to the Sunny Coast to visit her family,’ Chloe is quick to say. ‘The beach has been calling for a while, and even though it is winter, I am keen.’
‘I’m working the whole weekend,’ Jake says.
Ruby looks to me. ‘What about you, Dan?’
‘I’ve got plans on Sunday, but nothing Saturday.’
‘Oh my God, should we go for a hike on Saturday then? To the Scenic Rim. We can de-brief after your not-date with office boy.’
‘It’s not a date,’ I sing-song, but by the look on Ruby’s face – that obvious smirk – she’s not convinced in the slightest.