Page 51 of Five

Was that a threat? A very lame one. Because you don’t grow up being unapologetically me without leaving a long trail of pissed-off people behind.

“The egg salad must be another family trait. Woof!” I wave my hand in front of my face to clear the air.

“You’re fired!” Gabe’s abrupt statement makes my body freeze. I slowly turn my head toward him, ready to fire the flame of hell and try to melt the iceberg he has inside his chest, when I realize his eyes are not on me.

“What?” Skid Mark gasps. “You’re firing me? After what he did?”

“Do you have proof, Bart?” Gabe questions him, using his uninterested tone. To be fair, Bart doesn’t need proof, everybody knows it was me. So, why is Gabe defending me? Again?

“Don’t need proof.” Thelawyer, in alawfirm, in front of hisboss, says there’s no need for proof.

“Don’t tell people you’re a lawyer,” Gabe steals the words from my mouth, making me snort and smile at him. It’s as if, for a moment, something passes between us. Camaraderie?

Then he scolds me, “Silence.” The smile falls from my lips, and I roll my eyes so hard, I see the back of my head.

“He has a record!” Skid Mark suddenly declares.

Dear Lords and their horses.This guy is dead from the neck up.

“Public disorderly conduct. I check all my employees before hiring them,” Gabe lets us know, staring intently at Bart’s face. He probably had Rami do it.

“Disorderly conduct, that’s debatable. It was more an act of mercy, peeing on dying flowers in need of some fluids after the drought.”

“In the middle of Lincoln Park?” Gabe interjects. So rude.

“The police agreed with me, that’s why I didn’t pay any fine.” Also I agreed to go out on a date with the insistent copper.

“You-you lied to them, too! You’ll do anything to get out of trouble. You’re a fucking snake.” He advances toward me with his hands balled up, but I don’t back away. I prepare myself, so bloody ready to punch this joker in the mouth. But Gabe suddenly appears between us.

“Call security,” he instructs Medusa, who is at the door, staring at the whole scene like a busybody.

“You’ve lost your goddamn mind!” Bart yells at him, apparently forgetting about me. Bugger! I really wanted to land one on the tosser.

“Oh, keep your hair on!” I huff his way.

Two guys from security arrive. They look like the jock versions of Mario and Luigi, with matching mustaches and a height difference.

“This is not the end! I won’t sign any damn document to cover his ass, like you forced my brother.” Skid Mark looks at me.What is he talking about?“You’ll hear from me again.”

“I hope not, for your sake,” Gabe tells him, but the real meaning is lost on Bart.

The security brothers take a slightly fighting Bart out, and the door closes behind him.

“I helped his brother adjust his face. He should thank me,” I scoff.

“How you elevate your fuming temper to benevolence is masterful.” Gabe hasn’t moved away, and suddenly, the spacious office feels too small for the two of us.

“I just dialed down my temper to an impressive five on a scale of ten,” I counter.

“Everything with you is a confrontation. You can’t follow the simplest code of conduct in a workplace, Lori.” Hearing my name on his lips gives me a small tingling sensation, but his words annoy me.

“Conduct-shmonduct. He’s just like his brother, and all his bones are still intact. I call this a huge show of self-restraint on my part.”

“Did he touch you?” The protective way he utters the question makes the hair stand on my neck. There’s definitely something going on with him. Is it the same thing I’m experiencing?

“No. But he harassed the new intern. I found her crying in the parking garage. I told her to go to HR, but she was afraid to lose her job. So, I took matters into my own hands.” I cross my arms and push my hip out, assuming a challenging pose.

“You should have come to me.”