Just Kidding (SWAT Generation 2.0 1)

Her eyes evil, she said, “You know, Macy has some hair products that would work wonders on your hair.”

Macy, hearing her chance to pitch a sale, jumped at the chance.

“I’ve heard a lot of good things about this hair product,” Rachel, my other co-worker who’d shown up at one point while I was at the bar, said.

I blinked, surprised.

I hadn’t actually heard anything about it except from these ladies.

In fact, the only thing that I’d heard at all was the name.

Macy was also making a ton of money selling it.

Yet I hadn’t heard one positive review outside of Macy since she’d started selling it.

One would think that if a product really was that great, then someone somewhere would’ve been talking it up.

But they weren’t.

Sadly, Macy had a really good sales pitch, and I couldn’t stop myself.

Thanks, Shondra.

Which was how I offered to buy shampoo and conditioner from her.

“You’ll love it. I promise!” Macy clapped her hands in excitement.

Shondra rolled her eyes.

“Oh, okay,” I said, blinking. “Yeah, sure.”

Macy stood up to clap, her eyes lit with excitement.

“I’ll go get…”

“No, I can go get it.” Shondra stood up, looking considerate. “I have to run out to the car for my wallet anyway.”

Macy easily handed over her keys, and fifteen minutes later, I was the new owner of shampoo and conditioner that cost me fifty-seven bucks per bottle. A bottle that was so small in size that I was curious if it’d even last me past ten washes.

Because Jesus, I had a shit ton of hair, and the bottles sure were small.

“Thanks,” I said, eyeing the bottles. “I appreciate it.”

The rest of the night went a little like the first half.

Shondra rolled her eyes a lot and monopolized Theo’s time. Theo kept glancing at me consideringly.

The rest of the office ladies talked back and forth with each other.

And I texted back and forth with my sister until it was time to leave.

I would’ve snuck out completely, too, had Theo not walked out at some point behind me without me knowing it.

I was almost to my car, keys in my hand, when Theo’s dark voice stopped me.

“You’re not going to say goodbye?”

I swallowed hard and tried not to get pissed.

Instead, I waved my phone in the air and said, “Sorry, gotta return a call from my sister. Have a good one.”

With that, I bleeped the car unlocked, got in, and tried to slam the door.

Only Theo’s hand on the door’s metal frame stopped me.

I gritted my teeth and placed the call to Katy.

“You’re never going to guess where I have my hand right now!” Katy cried out excitedly.

Thank God I had her on speakerphone so she could hear my side.

“Have a good one, Theo,” I said through gritted teeth.

“Hello, Katy,” Theo said.

“Oh, who’s that?” Katy said. “Hey, did you guess where I had my hand yet, Row?”

I loved my sister. I loved her to death.

“Theo,” I answered.

I wasn’t sure if I was saying ‘Theo’ to Katy or to Theo, but either way, it worked on both accounts.

Theo let go of my door and stepped back, a look of surprise on his face at my anger.

I finally closed and locked it, then started it before Katy said, “Are you ever going to guess?”

“In a dead person’s rectum,” I guessed.

Katy snorted. “No, silly. Down her throat!”

I rolled my eyes heavenward.

“Damn, Katy,” I said. “That’s morbid.”

Katy was a medical examiner. She’d graduated from school and had decided that dead people were her jam and hadn’t looked back ever since.

“It’s not morbid,” she said. “There was a note down the woman’s throat. I had to see if I could get it without causing much damage. I did. Thank God I have long fingers.”

“Was she killed?” I asked curiously.

“No,” she said. “Well, not that I’m aware of. She killed herself. She swallowed her suicide note accidentally when she hung herself.”

That was sad.

Really, really sad.

“Damn,” I said. “That’s sucky.”

“Yeah.” Katy sounded distracted. “What the hell was Theo doing there?”

I gave her an instant replay of my night, ending with how he’d followed me outside.

In fact, as I turned to survey the parking lot, I saw him leaning against his department-issued vehicle just staring at me.

I put the car into drive and drove off, happy when he was no longer in my line of sight.

“I’m done, Katy-did,” I said softly. “I’m not going to swim in that particular pool anymore.”

Katy snorted. “Theo’s a good guy, but I’ve been telling you for a while that he’s a bit of a dick. I never realized it before, but holy shit. Logan’s really shown me what it’s like to love someone unconditionally. I didn’t even feel a single bit of that when Theo and I went on our first couple of dates.” She paused. “When Logan took me out, I had these butterflies. They just filled my stomach so completely whenever he looked at me or was near.”