Page 2 of The Shapeshifter’s Secretary (Charmed Away Temp Agency #3)

CHAPTER TWO

Tony grimaced, rubbing his leg to ease the discomfort. He took this temp job because he needed the money, but there was too much standing around. His prosthetic wasn’t comfortable most days, but long periods of standing made it so much worse.

“Oye! Human! Get back to work!”

He sighed, biting back the grimace of pain as he turned toward the assembly line again. It wasn’t a demanding job, just watching to make sure the products looked right and recycling the ones that weren’t up to snuff. If he could sit down, he could probably do it for hours, but when he requested the accommodation, they weren’t happy about it. They thought sitting around made the company look bad. Never mind Tony’s file said he needed accommodations for his injury. They hinted very heavily that they’d find someone else if he couldn’t handle it. He couldn’t afford to argue with them. It was hard enough for Morana to find him work that would accept humans, made even harder because he was injured and couldn’t do half of what his fellow temp coworkers could do.

Another hour of standing and he was starting to sweat from the pain. He glanced at the clock. He was barely into his first shift. He couldn’t just walk away. But maybe a short break would help. Just a few minutes to rest.

He leaned heavily on his cane, shuffling toward the hall where the bathrooms and breakroom were hidden. It was a maze in here, probably not OSHA compliant given how difficult it was to maneuver, and it took time just to get from his station to the main walkway. Pain radiated up his leg through his entire right side. He might need to be a little more insistent on the chair if he wanted to get through the two weeks they needed him.

Edging past a pile of boxes, he didn’t see the ogre stomping down the main walkway until it was too late. He twisted to avoid being trampled, taking out the boxes next to him as he tripped over his cane and stumbled. He bit back a shout when he caught his weight on his right hand, thankful that he’d not tried to land on his knees, too. That would’ve probably made him pass out.

“Oh, uh, sorry,” the ogre grumbled above him. Giant hands pulled him to his feet, steadying him as he leaned heavily against the conveyor hanger. He waved the guy away, grimacing when he anxiously brushed Tony’s clothes off. The ogre wasn’t trying to hurt him, but he was heavy-handed, as most ogres tended to be, and Tony’s injuries were now screaming at him.

“M’Alright,” Tony murmured, waving him off.

“What happened?” a nasally voice demanded. The draconian foreman had smoke spilling from his nose, and his eyes narrowed as he took in the mess Tony made during his fall. Products spilled out of the crushed boxes, more than one of them probably broken from where he fell on them. The foreman whipped his head around, glaring at the ogre and Tony both.

“Who did this?”

The ogre shifted from foot to foot, anxiety written all over his face. “I didn’t see ‘im–”

“It was my fault,” Tony interrupted. He was only a temp. The ogre didn’t need to get into trouble. If Tony hadn’t been injured, he would’ve been able to avoid the ogre easily. “I tripped. I’m sorry.”

Wide eyes swung his way, the ogre shooting him a grateful look. He didn’t say anything, though, for which Tony was grateful. No need to make things more difficult by trying to explain in more detail.

The draconian growled, snapping at the workers who’d stopped to gawk. “Get back to work. Louie, clean this up,” he hissed at the ogre. Swinging his beady eyed gaze to Tony again, he scowled. “Come with me.”

Here we go. Tony should’ve known this was coming. It almost always did. If he wasn’t careful, he’d end up back on his brother’s couch. He’d just gotten enough steady work to afford a little studio apartment. He couldn’t afford to go any longer without making some money.

The foreman didn’t wait for Tony to follow, storming for his office. He eventually realized how far ahead he’d gotten and stood in a huff, his arms crossed and his foot tapping as Tony hobbled after him. He tried going faster, but he couldn’t handle it. He needed to sit down somewhere.

They made it to the foreman’s office eventually, and Tony eyed the chair in front of his desk. It was stacked with files, which meant Tony couldn’t sit down. He almost wanted to cry from the frustration.

“I think we may need to reconsider the contract,” the foreman said, cutting through Tony’s turmoil and drawing his attention. For a moment, he looked apologetic, but he shook his head when Tony opened his mouth to protest. “I’m sorry, but we need someone who can work this job without struggling. You’re costing us more than you’re making us by causing that kind of trouble. I’ll call your boss and tell them it didn’t work out, but I can’t have you causing more damage to my products. You understand.”

Tony’s shoulders sank, defeat weighing heavily on him. “I can do the job. I just need to sit–”

“We can’t allow that,” the foreman interrupted. “It’s not safe, and it reflects poorly on us. We also don’t want our new hires thinking that kind of thing is normal here. I’m sorry, but it's just not going to work out. I’ll make sure you’re paid for the hours you worked. I hope you find something better suited to your needs.”

The dismissal was obvious, so Tony nodded and shuffled his way back out. He couldn’t argue with the draconian. He needed work that could better accommodate him, and the assembly line just wasn’t working. He just hoped he figured something out before he couldn’t afford his rent anymore.

* * *

Morana’s smile was understanding when he eventually made it back to the agency. She beckoned him to her office and nudged him onto the couch against one wall. He muffled a groan when he sat, stomach churning from the pain. Today had been a heck of a day, and it wasn’t even over yet.

“I’m sorry, Tony. I thought it would be a simple job for you. Sitting and checking products shouldn’t have made things worse for you.”

He shook his head, grimacing as the muscles strained from the effort. “They said it wasn’t safe to sit. I asked.”

Her eyes widened, incredulous, but there was no point arguing about it. They wouldn’t bring him back in, and he desperately needed to get paid this week.

“It’s fine. Please tell me you’ve got something else for me? I’ll do anything.” Anything he could handle, anyway.

It looked like she wanted to argue, but she swallowed down the urge and turned to her screen, clicking a few times as she went through the list again. If it was the same one as last week, then he was screwed. Every job that needed filling required heavy lifting or standing and walking around. Not something he could handle, even short term.

Before she could give him more bad news, her desk phone rang.

“Excuse me just a moment,” she said, picking up the receiver and tucking it between her shoulder and her ear. “This is Morana.”

Tony didn’t mind her taking the call. It gave him more time to rest. His entire right side was throbbing. He wished he made enough to afford better health insurance. There were things that were supposed to help him get better, therapies and that kind of thing. But he couldn’t afford the good health insurance. Charmed Away offered some, but the deductibles alone would make him homeless. Unfortunately, human health insurance was abysmal and expensive no matter where you worked. He just had to deal with things the way they were.

“Again?” Morana sounded exasperated, but there was a softness in her tone. Whoever she was talking to, she liked them enough not to lose her cool at the bad news. “This would be the fourth one, Avery.” She listened, nodding along, keeping the phone tucked against her ear as she stood and snagged a bottle of cold water from a mini fridge against one wall. He swallowed around a dry spot he hadn’t noticed until the moment he saw the water, and smiled gratefully when she handed it to him. “Uh huh. What exactly was the problem this time?”

Tony basically inhaled half the bottle without taking a breath. Once his parched throat was soothed, he rubbed the cold bottle against his forehead, cooling his sweaty skin. It didn’t take the edge off the pain, or do anything about the anxiety of not finding work again this week, but at least it was cold. Little positives.

“I don’t think–” Morana paused and Tony’s eyes opened to find her looking straight at him. He blinked at her, confused. Had he done something?

“Does the job require any heavy lifting? Standing around?” she suddenly asked. Tony perked up, straining to listen to the other half of the phone call. But of course, he was human, not a supe, and he didn't have that ability. He stared at Morana, trying to get even a hint of what the speaker said on her face.

“I might have someone who fits that description, but there’s a caveat. He’s disabled and needs accommodations. No standing for long periods. No heavy lifting. He doesn’t have a lot of experience as an assistant, which is why I didn’t offer him sooner, but he’s more patient than I would be dealing with absolute shitheads.”

Tony’s eyebrows flew up, and he gaped at the medusa. She winked at him, but kept her focus on the speaker.

“Yes. I think he can handle that. Honestly, that works out perfectly. When do you need him by?”

Please say tomorrow. Or right now. Now would be good.

“He’ll be there tomorrow then. The name is Tony Decker. Yes.” She chuckled, her voice more upbeat now. “A signed copy of your book would be nice. I’ve bragged to a couple of my friends that you used to work for me and none of them believe me.”

It took a few more minutes for her to end the conversation. Tony didn't want to rush her, she was obviously friends with this person, but he was anxious to figure out what she pulled off. He sat forward when she hung up, holding his breath.

“You’re starting as an assistant tomorrow at Spellbound Corps. Full accommodations, no standing or running around. Avery was actually insistent that you don’t chase the man you’ll be working for.”

Tony frowned. “Uh, what?”

She waved a hand dismissively. “He’ll explain everything tomorrow. For today, go home. You look pale. You obviously need a break. I’ll send you the paperwork via email so you can do it from your desk. He said the job isn’t strenuous, just tedious, so I’m sure you’ll do fine.”

Absolutely. Tony could handle tedious. Monotonous. It didn’t matter. As long as he could sit down and take breaks, he’d do whatever job he could get his hands on.

“Thank you, Morana. I really appreciate it.”

She pressed her lips together, giving him a sympathetic look. “I’m sorry today went so poorly. I’ll make sure in the future that you’re better accommodated. And I’ll definitely be looking into the company to see if we want to work with them in the future. Not allowing you to sit is just ridiculous.”

He nodded his appreciation and pushed to his feet. It hurt, and he’d probably be feeling today for the rest of the night, but he’d dealt with worse. And at least he had something to look forward to tomorrow.

Morana’s voice caught him just as he was hobbling out of her office. “You don’t have to make yourself suffer for any job I assign you, Tony. Your needs are important. If this doesn’t work out, you let me know. I’ll find something better.”

Tony gave her a sincere smile before he left. Not that there would be much that would turn him away from a job. It’d take divine intervention to get him to turn down work at this point. If they wanted him, he wasn’t going anywhere.