“What? We’re celebrating here.” She cuts another piece of her rib eye and sticks it in her mouth. I have no idea where she puts all this food. Her workouts must really work.
“So, dish. Who do we hate and who do we like?”
I laugh and give her a rundown of how my first day went. It was actually a lot easier and smoother than I thought it would be. I enjoyed everyone for the most part. Eric was a little odd and liked to stare a bit too long, but Skyler was cool. I could see myself easily getting along with her. Eric, I would have to keep an eye on. He seems like the type that would try to take credit for your work or throw you under the bus to save his own ass.
“I knew it’d be easy for you. Shit like that always is.” She picks up her beer and polishes it off. I play with my pasta, pushing it around the plate, not really that hungry. I’m energized and excited about everything that’s happening. Today went better than I could have imagined and I have plans with Oz tomorrow.
“What about you? Anything on the job front?”
A smile breaks across her face. “Actually yes. I was waiting to tell you, but I applied for a job at Osbourne Corp.”
“Really?” The surprise is clear in my voice. I honestly had no idea what Paige was going to do. She got a degree in criminal justice and a minor in cybercrime. She’d talked about doing security, but I had no idea what that entailed. For some reason, I kept picturing her in a car parked outside someone’s house, taking pictures and turning in cheating spouses. Maybe giving them an ass-kicking afterward. She’s incredible, though, so I know she’ll be great at whatever she does.
“They had an opening, so I went in and applied. Got the job right on the spot. Obviously,” she says, making me snort.
“Obviously,” I agree, smiling at her. “What will you be doing?”
“They’re going to train me in different areas and see what works best. I’m hoping to guard one of the higher-ups.”
“Like a bodyguard? That interests you?”
“I think it’s what I’d be best at,” she says, beaming. I can tell she’s super excited, which makes me excited, too.
Paige is always well aware of her surroundings, and she remembers everything. She has a photographic memory. It’s freaky sometimes, the things she remembers, but she doesn’t like people to know that either. It wasn’t until we were living together for two years that I finally busted her on it.
“Does that mean I’ll get to see you around? Have lunch together sometimes? Even walk to work together?”
I love the idea of us getting to work together. It might not be together-together, but I’ll take it. I don’t know anyone here, and I’d like having her at work with me, too. Almost like a comfort. We might be becoming codependent.
“That would be pretty kick-ass. I guess we’ll find out soon enough.”
The waiter stops at our table, dropping off another beer for Paige. I lift my wineglass and hold it out to her.
“To us. Adulting,” I say as we clink glasses and take a sip.
“This definitely calls for dessert,” she adds, unsurprisingly.
“When doesn’t it call for dessert?”
“Touché, but we aren’t splitting this time.” She says it like we do that all the time.
“We haven’t split a dessert since the snack bar incident, freshman year,” I shoot back, giving her a hard look.
“You’re never going to let that go, are you? It’s been almost four years and you’re still hanging on to that. I pity the guy who marries you. You’ll never let anything go.” She shakes her head like she can’t believe me, her auburn hair bouncing.
“You bit my finger.” I can’t even say it without laughing. When it first happened, I wondered who in the world I ended up rooming with and was a little scared. Now it’s just funny.
“Well, don’t grab things off people’s plates without asking and your fingers will be safe.” Her tone implies it’s common knowledge that people will bite your finger if you come near their plate.
The waiter comes by again, picking up her empty dish, and Paige immediately requests a dessert menu.
“You done with that?” She doesn’t wait for an answer, using her fork to pick bites of my pasta. The law of not taking food clearly doesn’t apply to her. Knowing Paige, though, she’d risk a finger bite for food.
I reach for my phone, wanting to see if I have any missed messages, but before I can check, I hear his voice.
“Mallory.” The sound rolls over my skin, making goose bumps rise on my skin. “I’m going to pretend you were looking to see if I texted you.” Turning my head, I stare up at him.