5
BODI
“Goodmorning,Mr.McKay, how are you today?”
“Good morning, Sheila,” I answer through the phone with a smile while I press the button for the elevator to ride up to the top. “I’m good. However, something tells me you’re about to ruin my day.”
I keep the corners of my mouth high even though I know I don’t get calls from the Peartree unless something is up.
“Well, your father is okay, but I just wanted to inform you with the results of the latest observation, like we discussed. His state has severely deteriorated. We are trying to keep his day as structured as possible, but the clear days are becoming less frequent. He’s having a hard time voicing his wants and needs, and he can’t seem to dress himself anymore. We’re discussing the option of moving your father to a closed floor for his own safety.” She pauses while I process her words. A heavy feeling unravels in my stomach, and I push the air out of my lungs.
“I understand. Can you just give it a few days first?” The closed floor is something you don’t wish upon anyone. The people who are stuck there are nothing more than trapped souls in a vessel that doesn’t work for them anymore. No one will get better from that.
I’ve been preparing myself for the natural course of my father’s deterioration, but every time his nurse calls me with an update, it still feels like I’m hit by a ton of bricks. It physically hurts knowing he’s sitting there, slowly fading away, and there is nothing I can do about it. Not unless I suddenly have the ability to bring back the dead like some Australian god.
“Thank you for telling me, Sheila.”
“No problem, Mr. McKay.”
“You can tell him I’m stopping by in the afternoon.”
She stays quiet for a brief moment until I hear the tone of voice that always comes with a kind smile. “He’ll love that. I’ll see you later today.”
The elevator doors open, and I step outside with big strides. “See you later, Sheila.”
My brows arch, my feet coming to an abrupt halt when my eyes lock with a set of baby blues that hit me in the chest like a damn arrow. Her chocolate brown hair shines from the sun glistening through the windows, while her beaming smile almost knocks me off my feet.
“Kayla?” I ask, confused. My eyes move to the pastel pink suitcase standing beside her. “What are you doing here?”
She tilts her head with a thrown expression.
“Err, Rae said you offered me a job.”
Stunned, I blink. “I-I offered you... well, that’s one way to put it.”
“I’m sorry. Were you not expecting me?” The disappointment washes her face, and I feel like an asshat. But no, I wasn’t expecting her.
“Oh, damn. I’m going to kill her,” she mutters. “That lying little witch.”
“No, she didn’t lie.” I quickly stride forward, closing the distance between us while tucking my phone back into my pocket. “I told her you could work here.”
Her smile slides back into place. It’s a smile that lights up the room. A smile that has the ability to make the clouds disappear on a bad day and make you forget all about your sorrows.
“Oh, so you were expecting me?”
When I get closer, a whiff of honey attacks my nose, making it hard for me to respond with words. “Rae called me yesterday,” I explain with a brooding tone.
“Right.” She drags the word out, as if she’s not following.
I sigh, my shoulders slumping and my head tilting toward her as I give her a critical look.
“I was thinking next week, next month, or something like, we’ll work out the details later. I wasn’t expecting you to be standing in my office with a suitcase first thing in the morning. When did you get to Atlanta, anyway?”
“This morning. First flight at five am.” When she notices my eyes growing wide, she shrugs her shoulders. “What? I had to leave those two. They were sucking face every single minute they were home. It was disgusting.”
She pulls a face, and a chuckle leaves my lips.
“Do they even know you’re here?”
“I left a note.” There is a carelessness in her voice that both annoys me and amuses me, loving how she still sees the world at nineteen, yet hating how she seems to feel no responsibility.
My eyes rake down her body, taking her in with a feeling of lust that has me forgetting I’m at work. She’s wearing a white shirt with high-waist jeans that bring out the swells of her hips. Her V-neck gives me a slight glance of her cleavage, reminding me of how perfectly her breasts fit in the palm of my hand. When I move my gaze up, she’s blinking at me, amused, a smile tugging on the corner of her pink lips.
I want to kiss her.
And she knows it.
The sound of the elevator door snaps me out of my carnal thoughts, and I turn around, watching Agnes walk in. “Good morning, sir.”
“Morning,” I mumble when I twist my body back to Kayla. She’s standing there, awkwardly glancing at Agnes while the woman moves behind her desk.
When Agnes notices the suitcase next to her, she gives me a confused expression before she offers Kayla a comforting smile, like the classy woman she is.
“Who’s this?”
“This is Kayla,” I explain, bracing myself for the judging frown I’ve grown familiar with from my office manager. She rarely speaks out, but she’s a master at giving me looks that make me feel like shit whenever there is another girl walking in here, thinking they are my girlfriend. To be honest, there have been a few in the past few months, so I can’t blame her suspicion.
“She’s my new PA.”
Her mouth forms an O as she nods, then presses her lips together, though I can see the grin that’s dying to come out. “I didn’t know you needed a PA.”
“Neither did I,” I mutter, a little annoyed.
Kayla rolls her eyes, folding her arms in front of her chest. “Look, I’m grateful for the opportunity, but if you’re going to be a dick to me, I’m just going to find another job, Bodi,” she sasses. “I’m sure there are a few more publishers in this town who are willing to take a chance on me. Or maybe I’ll just work in a bookstore or something.”
“No,” I bark, way quicker than I would’ve liked. “I told Rae you can work here, so you can work here. You can help me with the foundation for now. We have a charity ball coming up.”
“Charity ball?” Her brows knit together.
“Mr. McKay is organizing a fundraiser for the Ava McKay Foundation. He doesn’t just spend all his money on shoes.” A proud look travels on Agnes’s face, warming my chest. It reminds me of how my mother used to look at me when I was little.
Kayla turns her head back to me, playfully shoving my belly like we’re friends.
“You have your own charity?”
“I do. It’s named after my mother,” I say with pride. The death of my mother is a glum memory, but I take comfort out of the foundation that my dad and I created in her honor. We couldn’t help my mother with her drug addiction, but at least maybe we can help others.
Her face turns serious, giving me a tentative look. “Yeah, Rae told me about her. I’m sure she would be proud of you.”
“Thank you.” I don’t know why, but her compliment feels good. “I like to help wherever I can.”
“I didn’t know you were such a do-gooder?”
“I’m really not.” I dip my chin, my eyes narrowing as they tangle with hers. She bites her lip, and the tension rises between us. Red flags pop into my head, telling me to fucking get it together and act professional.
Fuck, if this is how it’s going to go while she’s working for me, this is going to be a pain.
Kayla startles when Agnes eventually clears her throat, and I slowly twist my head to the scowling gray-haired woman.
”Is Kayla going to be sleeping in your office?” She glances at the suitcase.
“Right. Where are you staying?”
Kayla looks at me with big eyes, offering me an innocent smile that I’m not buying. She’s cute, but this little sassball does not get away with sweet glances and fluttery eyes. I’ve already witnessed the mouth she has on her, and there is nothing sweet about her.
Not that I mind.
“I don’t know?”