" Okay," Quinn heard Henry's deep raspy voice which was so much like his own, mutter.
Claire opened the door wider to let Quinn pass her. Quinn entered Henry's large office and glanced around. Quinn heard the door click shut behind him. He glanced back at it before turning to look at Henry, who hadn't glanced up yet from the paper he was looking at.
Quinn waited. After a moment, Henry glanced up. He did a double take when he spotted Quinn. Quinn felt the one side of his mouth curl up. Yeah...Henry was surprised to see him here. Quinn had never visited him at work before. Henry - looking spiffy in his navy blue suit - stood and skirted the desk, a small smile playing across this lips.
" Quinn. What's up, brother?" Henry greeted him, clasping his hand and giving him a manly shoulder bump.
Henry knew about Quinn's squeamishness to being touched. So Henry always kept it to a minimum with him. But Henry gave Sebastian and Christian big bear hugs since they didn't mind. Henry pulled back and clapped Quinn on the shoulder.
" Have a seat," Henry said, sitting down in one of the two chairs in front of his desk.
Quinn lowered himself into the other one. " Thanks," he said quietly.
" What brings you here?" Henry asked curiously.
" I need to talk to someone," Quinn sighed.
Henry's smile fell as he regarded Quinn more seriously. " Okay...I'm all ears."
Henry had always been a great listener. He had always listened when Quinn had a problem while they were growing up. He was an awesome big brother. Still is.
Quinn took a deep breath before starting. " Okay...so Peter hired a new architect - a woman - from France."
" Ooh la la," Henry joked.
Quinn found himself smiling again. He shook his head and continued. " Peter put us together on a really big project and stuck her in my office so we can work together easier."
" Okay, sounds reasonable," Henry nodded.
" Yeah, and it wouldn't be a problem if she wasn't annoying as shit. Henry, you know how much I value my quiet. This woman is anything but quiet. She taps her pencil constantly, she hums, she pops her gum and god forbid someone calls her cell phone because then she starts jabbering in rapid French. I'm about to loose my fucking mind, man"
Henry chuckled and shook his head. " Did you say something to her?"
" Yes, many times, she just tells me that it's impossible for her to stay still."
Henry sighed. " Oh man. What about Peter? Did you tell him?"
" I just left his office before coming here. We argued. He said that there are no empty offices and he won't put her in someone else's office because we're working on the same project. He won't put her in a conference room either. I thought he would be a little more understanding but he pulled the boss card on me and said he won't tolerate my insubordination."
Henry winced. " Ouch."
" I know, right," Quinn sighed, rubbing his face with one hand.
Henry tapped his chin as he thought over the situation.
" I mean...am I completely wrong here?" Quinn asked.
Henry shook his head. " No, you're not wrong. It's not exactly fair to force you to put up with someone who irritates you as bad as this woman does. But I can understand Peter's side of it too. I can see why he wants you two together and it really wouldn't be nice to put her in a conference room."
Quinn sighed. " I guess not."
" Is she ugly?" Henry asked, completely serious.
Quinn snorted. " Far from it. Why?"
" So you can look at her all day, just not listen to her, right?" Henry asked.
" Yeah," Quinn said slowly.
A slow devilish smile spread across Henry's face. " I think I can help you," he said then stood and walked around his desk.
He rooted through his draws until he pulled out a small box and tossed it at Quinn. Quinn caught it and looked down at it. The bark of laughter that followed surprised him. " Foam earplugs?" Quinn asked. He looked up at Henry to find him grinning smugly behind his desk, arms folded over his broad chest.
" They'll work like a charm. You won’t be able to hear a damn thing with those in your ears," Henry stated.
Quinn smiled up at his brother. " Thanks."
" You're welcome," Henry said with a nod.
Quinn stood and put the earplugs in his pocket. " I better head back."
" I'll walk you out," Henry said and followed Quinn to the door.
Henry walked Quinn out to the reception area. They said their goodbyes and Quinn headed back to his office building. He stepped off the elevator into the lobby area and started towards his office. Peter was standing in his office doorway, hands on his hips. He watched Quinn, his face tight. Quinn was still pissed at him, so he just glared at Peter as he walked by him. This was their first fight. In their five years of friendship, they had never fought about anything.