The Spiral Down (The Fall Up #2)(18)

He quirked an eyebrow and pushed his coffee toward me for a refill. “Hate to break it to you, but I’m pretty sure my grandma drunk-dials me after her weekly book club. It’s not exactly something you outgrow with age.”

I was digging through my cabinet for some ibuprofen when my phone started vibrating on the counter. It was Jackson again. I quickly ended it. I was in no mood for his shit and in even less of a mood to have to say no to a flight when I could really use the money.

After swallowing two pills and washing them down with a bottle of water, I tossed the medicine Scott’s way. “Well, thanks for keeping me from calling Nikki, but you’re a dick for breaking my phone. And, for the record, I wasn’t bullshitting. I really did fly Henry Alexander the other day.”

“No shit.” He swallowed the pills as I topped his coffee off.

“Yep. Nice enough guy—” I was quickly interrupted.

“Scared to fly. Just on takeoff and landing though. Can be a real dick. But he at least has the decency to apologize for it. Drinks bloody marys like f*cking water. Doesn’t know shit about eighties cartoons. His only saving grace was that he at least seemed knowledgeable on Star Trek.” He stopped, and his eyes danced with humor as he smiled wide.

My face heated in embarrassment.

“Yeah. You may have mentioned something about the guy.”

“See? Yet another reason we can’t do that bullshit anymore. I’m pretty sure I signed a nondisclosure when I started working for Jackson.”

“Roth, don’t worry. Your twelve-year-old fangirl secrets are safe with me.” He pushed off the stool and stretched, groaning as he cracked his neck. “I need to get the hell out of here. I’m gonna jump in the shower.” He lifted his chin toward my phone. “And give you a minute to call back whoever’s blowing up your phone.”

I sighed. “It’s my boss. But I can’t fly today. He’s gonna be livid.”

“Wow. Maybe I was wrong. Your cock must have turned into a * a while ago.”

I laughed and hurled my empty water bottle at him.

He easily batted it away, but I followed it up with a sponge from my sink. It hit him on the chest with a loud slap.

“Son of a bitch,” he grumbled, rubbing the red mark.

I arched an eyebrow. “What were you saying about a *?”

“I’m not the bitch too afraid to answer a call from my boss.” Scott moved down the hall to the guest room. “Just tell him you started your period. After last night, it’s not far from the truth!”

“Dick!” I shouted back only to wince when the loud noise felt like a knife to the skull.

Jesus, I really had to stop drinking. What the hell else had I said to him last night?

My phone began ringing again, and I finally decided to stop being such a bitch. It’s not like Jackson could fire me for turning one flight down. I wasn’t even on call. I was, after all, part time—however, if Craig was still out, he was probably hoping I’d be available to pick up some of the slack. Hell, I had been hoping that too.

Which made me wonder… Maybe Henry was scheduled for another flight.

“Hello.”

“I’ve been calling you for hours.”

“Good morning to you too.”

“It’s noon, Evan. My morning started at four a.m. It’s practically dinnertime for me right now.”

And he was in a shit mood. Awesome.

“Right. Sorry,” I replied curtly.

“Why the hell didn’t you tell me you and Nikki broke up?”

Ugh. Fantastic. More Nikki questions. Could this morning get any better?

“Because I didn’t realize we were sorority sisters who shared our feelings,” I smarted. I immediately bit my lip, hoping he’d laugh and not…say…fire me.

“You know the only reason I hired you is because your stepdad and I go way back. I respect the shit out of him, and he was willing to vouch for you. I gave you every flight I possibly could. But let’s be clear here. I have virtually no use for a part-timer.”

Shit.

“Jackson, I’m sorry. Yeah, Nikki and I broke up a few days ago. It wasn’t exactly a good thing.”

“Well, no shit. I figured that out this morning when I had a very awkward conversation with her about you. Her number is still listed on your contact sheet. For f*ck’s sake, Roth, she was two seconds away from crying. I was on a Goddamn landline and had to fake static just to get off the phone with her.”

If it hadn’t been for the idea of her crying, I would have laughed. Instead, my stomach wrenched with guilt.

“I’m sorry.”

“You should be. But you should be more sorry for ducking my calls because your ass is hungover.”

My back shot ramrod straight. “Uh…”

“Anyway, good news is I don’t need you to fly today. Bad news is you’re fired.”

My entire body tensed. “What? No! Jackson, wait—”

“Sorry, son. I lost a client this morning. As much as you know I’d like to, I can’t afford to keep you anymore.”

I pinched the bridge of my nose as my head pounded almost as loud as my heart. This morning had just gotten a hell of a lot worse. Just what I f*cking needed.

“Come on, man. Is Craig back? Why don’t you let me fill in for him for a while? I can’t afford to be unemployed right now.”