Hero Worship by Phoenix Emrys

Author:Phoenix Emrys
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

ROUGHLY THREE hours limp by—time I put to no productive purpose whatsoever, preferring to exercise my prerogative as the boss to take a self-pity sabbatical. Swilling Pepsi while brooding about the one that got away. Thus engaged, imagine my surprise at the unexpected return of my prodigal employee. Yeah, I know she said she intended to come back after lunch and work the rest of the day, but I didn’t believe her. But there she is, although obviously her idea of how long the lunch break actually is and mine don’t quite agree. This is not news.

But wait, she’s not alone. She’s got the idiot savant she’s hanging out with in tow.

Brody. Oh joy.

To be fair, there’s nothing actually wrong with the boy a brain transplant wouldn’t fix. Not his fault he’s not only not the sharpest tool in the garden shed but wouldn’t be able to find it with a roadmap tattooed on the inside of his eyelids. Jennifer can do so much better than Boy Dumbo, here, but she seems to see something in the big daft buffoon. Once again I’m looking at living proof there’s truly no accounting for taste, and you know what, I gave up trying to understand the whole romantic chemistry thing years ago. Bottom line, it’s none of my damn business, so I’ll shut up and let her get on with the heady delight of throwing away her youth on whomever she pleases.

Have fun, kids. But please don’t have anything to name after me.

Cap’n Duh grunts a greeting at me. “Hey, Mister Fisher, Jenny said someone towed your car.”

I take back every kind thought I’ve ever had about this kid. I hope the next time he blows his nose he accidently kills himself. “Why yes, Brody, thanks for dredging up that unfortunate memory. I hadn’t thought about my car in the last, oh, ten minutes or so.”

Thanks also for reminding me since I’m still carless and too cheap to call a cab I’ve got a nice long walk ahead of me. That is, unless Mel shows up with my car in the next—um—ten minutes. Almost time to close up. Really? How did this happen?

Jennifer hisses at Brody, firing her elbow fiercely into his ribs. A “shut up and let me do the talking” move if ever I saw one.

Interesting.

“Gee, King, that sucks.” The veneer of Jennifer’s huge smile shimmers with an edge of slightly less than credible. She’s up to something.

The boy, I am sure, is just along for the ride.

After all, he’s the one with the truck.

I nod noncommittally at her. “Yeah, it does, kinda.”

Normally such obvious duplicity on her part would pique my interest, but I’m ready to punt this day into the circular file and forget it ever happened.

In other words? Too cranky to give a crap.

Jennifer and her brain-dead boy toy exchange glances.

“Hey, boss, would you like a ride home?”

Sounds harmless enough. Sure, why not.

Beats walking.

On second thought, going home without my car is too much like admitting I got beat.

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