Stone Cold Fox (49)



“That’s true, but I’m no longer considering your party, Len. Thanks for everything.” I grinned, standing up from my chair. I already had my desk cleaned out, computer and badge ready to submit, so I floated on out of there with my head held high, wearing a short skirt that would have been wildly inappropriate without nylons. Still, it was a subtle invitation for Len and the rest of them, Jessica McCabe included, to kiss my ass.

The Case Company would call to cancel their contract the next day.



* * *



? ? ?

SYL AND I had made plans to take a long lunch together to celebrate my new job. Collin was invited, but he had taken the day off, citing he wasn’t feeling well and needed rest. I’d have to address it later. I was all too ready to toot my own horn. I deserved it. My new office was much closer to the Case Company, a few blocks away, so when Syl asked me to lunch on my first day, I figured it was harmless enough, since I enjoyed her company.

“My boyfriend and I are thinking about moving to Queens,” she shared with me over fast casual sushi. “After we get married, we want to have a baby and I don’t think we could afford Brooklyn anymore. Oh, hold on.” Syl pulled a small brush out of her bag and gave my front tresses a quick once-over, gently grooming me like a mother would a child. “Windy today, just a little knot. I got it.”

“Thanks. Well, what does John do?” I asked, slightly jarred by her touch, but also oddly grateful. “I don’t think you’ve ever told me.” Most of our conversations thus far had revolved around me. I was the more interesting one, bless her.

“He makes pizzas at his family’s restaurant. They’re actually pretty successful, but John is kind of a, uh, wild soul, God love him, so I don’t see the D’Attomos giving him any real responsibility soon. They have other favorite sons, older ones. I’m sure he’ll get a piece, but we won’t be able to rest on our laurels. So we’re relying on my successful climb up the corporate ladder.”

“What were you doing before the Case Company?”

“Retail. I was a manager at H&M.”

“And you didn’t want to climb their ladder?”

Syl popped a piece of a California roll in her mouth, talking as she chewed. “Meh, retail is a thankless job. Everyone treats you like you’re a piece of shit, especially when you’re the manager. So when I heard about this opportunity, it seemed like it might be less of a headache. It’s about the same pay, but better hours and better benefits. And I only have to deal with a few assholes instead of a lot of them.” She snorted and then stopped herself. “Not that Collin’s an asshole! He’s actually a very nice man, Bea. All things considered.”

“What kind of things?”

“You know. I mean, no offense, but you guys are fucking rich people.”

Oh, how I loved hearing her say that, but I still wanted her to be able to relate to me. I wasn’t like them, that had been made abundantly clear, even if I still wanted to join their club. Regardless, I inexplicably wanted Syl to be my friend. Maybe it was the caring, maternal energy she gave off, being a few years older than me, but I found myself liking the way she made me feel. It made me want to share things with her. Not everything, but something. “I guess so,” I said, “but I don’t come from the kind of money that Collin does. Come on, you saw how his family was about our engagement.”

“Pretty cold.”

“Downright subzero,” I said, swallowing some sashimi.

“Where are you from, Bea?” Syl asked me in a way that was so sincere, so genuinely curious. Her voice was soft and she looked me in the eye. She wasn’t just making polite conversation. She really wanted to know.

I gave her the North Carolina spiel. She hung on every word like she was memorizing it. I adored having her full attention. We were bonding, even if it was under false pretenses, at least on my end. I wanted to know more about her, too. She was so pretty and despite the frequent cussing, she was obviously intelligent. So how did she end up in such a humdrum life? Why didn’t she strategize better? Who’d raised her? So many missed opportunities, and the fiancé? Surely she should have dumped him. He wasn’t even fit to inherit a pizza parlor.

“What about you?” I asked her.

“I’m from here, but I was a foster kid,” she told me. “I went into the system as a four-year-old.”

Well, that explained a lot. It endeared her to me even more. She didn’t have anybody. Yes, I had a horrible mother, but at least I had somebody.

“My dad is in prison,” she added, a tinge of embarrassment in her voice. Poor thing. But we all had something, not that I could tell her mine.

“Oh, Syl. I’m sorry to hear that. Do you speak to him?”

“Oh, yeah! He’s great. Like, the best guy I know. I miss him all the time.”

“Is he nearby or anything?”

“Upstate.” I noticed Syl’s responses were getting shorter. I could hear the pain in her voice. The last thing I wanted to do was comfort a woman crying in public about her incarcerated father, no matter how much I was starting to like her, so I changed the subject, bringing it back to number one.

“Families come in all forms, Syl. I miss my parents, too.”

“I bet,” she said, but the tone in her voice had changed. It was cutting. Dark. Different. We locked eyes, but she looked away first, out the window, going somewhere unknown in her mind. I had never recognized a piece of myself in Syl before that moment. I almost reached out to touch her, but thought better of it. I still wanted to take it slow. A few seconds more and she noticed that I noticed the change in her demeanor and ended her thought on a lighter note.

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