The Secret Arrangement by Vanessa Waltz

Author:Vanessa Waltz [Waltz, Vanessa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Vanessa Waltz Books
Published: 2018-05-19T16:00:00+00:00

8

Saffie

Three.

That’s the number of times Grayson made me come before we dragged our exhausted bodies to the campfire. The man lasts all night long. He was incredible. I’m ready to forget the job search and give the footballer’s-wife strategy a serious effort.

For the rest of the evening, we didn’t communicate except through smiles and winks. This morning I woke in a happy glow until I opened my laptop and read the flood of rejection emails.

Finding a job in my field is like searching for the cup of glory. It’s pointless.

I snap the lid shut and gnaw my thumb. Lawyers aren’t in high demand these days, and my classmates are in the same boat. After I graduated, Dad offered me a place at Pardini & Associates, one of San Francisco’s most prestigious law firms. The job was entry-level. I would’ve started in the mailroom, but I could’ve clawed my way to associate after a few years.

I turned it down. It didn’t feel right. He only gave me the position out of respect for my mother’s memory. After she died, he kept me at arm’s length, like a dog he was obligated to keep but longed to get rid of. He paid for my housing so I wouldn’t have to come home over the summer. Out of sight, out of mind.

It was the worst thing he could’ve done. A thousand hateful voicemails would’ve been better than being ignored by my father. Invitations to family events gradually stopped. My brother was the only reason I’d return for Christmas, but the years apart distanced us, and Dad drove that wedge harder until there was no communication at all.

Never mind. Family drama’s the least of my problems.

I push the laptop away, clutching my head. It’s only been two weeks, but the end of August seems a lot closer than it did at the start of June, and I still can’t find a job.

My stomach clenches with a soft knock. "Can I come in?"

What the hell does Henry want? "Yeah."

The door swings open, and my brother steps through in a pair of black shorts and a light-pink polo. He takes the empty chair by the desk, gazing at my room. "What are you up to?"

His eyes laser through me. Henry hasn’t asked a single question about me the entire two weeks I’ve been here. He wants something.

I play along anyway. "Job hunting. It’s going a little slower than I hoped."

"Good, good," he says.

"What’s up?"

"You were out with Gray late last night."

I freeze. "We took a long walk. The weather was nice."

"I looked for you." His voice lowers. "You weren’t anywhere on that beach. Saffie, I don’t know what you’re doing with him, and frankly, I don’t want to, but you need to tell me what he said." Henry clasps his hands together, a grave expression darkening his face.

"I'm not following."

"About me."

My mouth gapes open. "We never talk about you."

"I find that really hard to believe considering he’s doing everything he can to piss me off."

Once again, I’m seized with curiosity.

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