Magnetic (28 page)

The room went silent. Alana stood unsteadily, watching David and Layne as they stared out into space in deep contemplation.

“You’re right,” David said finally. “I want the woman who used to spend all her weekends working with me. I do acknowledge that I haven’t allowed her much of a personal life, which could be the reason she and Olivia broke up.” He jumped to his feet. “I can work with this. We can make changes right here and now that will make things easier on all of us.”

Layne put a hand to her brow. “More changes, God help me.”

“No, wait.” David moved to Layne’s side and smiled. “Alana, you’ve shown a lot of dedication, and you and Layne work well together.”

“Oh, hold up now.” Alana looked concerned. “Let’s not be rash. We’re all drinking…well, I am.”

David waved her off. “I think we have several strong people on our team. One of them can fill your shoes, Alana. The company is growing after all, and you’re totally right,” David said excitedly as his plan came together in his mind. “Layne can’t physically head every team anymore, so you’ll rotate. This will give you both time at home.”

“She does deserve a raise. She’s been working her ass off for years,” Layne said. “You are talking about a promotion in job and salary, right?”

“Yes,” David said begrudgingly, then forced a smile. “Alana, we’ll talk figures when we get back to New Orleans.”

Alana looked sadly at her empty glass. “As I said, this is rash and a decision made purely on emotion. Maybe we should all sober up and think about this before any commitments are made.” A raise sounded good, but added responsibilities would cut into her playtime on the nights she was out of town. She paled at the thought of spending her evenings alone going over data as Layne did.

David draped an arm around Layne’s shoulders and pulled Alana close. “This is going to work for all of us,” he said excitedly.

Alana raised her glass and shook the cubes. “Yippee
ki
aye,” she said listlessly.

Chapter 32

It was around nine when Layne finally found some alone time in her hotel room. She, David, and Alana spent a couple of hours hammering out details and dividing responsibilities. Alana seemed to come around and embrace the change as a positive thing, but Layne figured she was still drunk.

Are you awake?
Layne sent the text and waited, hoping that Stacy would be.

I am.

Layne grinned.
Are you alone?

Unfortunately
.

Layne pressed send on her phone, and seconds later, she heard Stacy’s voice. The charge upon hearing it lent credence to what Alana had claimed earlier. “What are you doing?”

“Painting.”

One of Layne’s brows shot up as she recalled another thing Alana had said:
Stacy paints away her pain.

“I’m lonely,” Stacy said playfully.

“I hope to remedy that tomorrow. I’m leaving on the first flight in the morning.”

“Aw, shucks, I’m not finished going through all your mail and trying on your clothes.”

Layne laughed. “I’d like to see you in my jeans.”

“I’d like to be in your jeans.”

“Ditto, honey,” Layne said with a sigh. “What’s your schedule this week? I get in around noon tomorrow.”

“I have to work till six, but I could be on your doorstep at two seconds after.”

“No, I don’t want you flying on that bike. Five after is fine.”

Stacy laughed, then cleared her throat. “I have something to tell you.”

“Did you really riffle through my things because your cousin has a peeking problem? She spies on my texts, and now I’m wondering if that’s hereditary.”

“No, it’s not. I know all about her propensity to snoop. I’ve found evidence she’s been in my room. She tends to leave a cookie crumb trail. I…got an offer to take the night shifts on weekends. I’m really excited, because that means a lot more money. I’ll have my own place soon despite Alana’s attempts to keep me here,” Stacy said with a chuckle.

Layne bit her lip. With her schedule even scaled back, her time with Stacy was limited. All they would have together was a few weeknights. She wasn’t willing to lose another minute. “This is in addition to the shifts you already work?”

“Yes,” Stacy replied a little less enthusiastically.

Layne changed the subject quickly, afraid she was coming off as a wet blanket, but she could not muster excitement over Stacy’s news. “Your cousin got a promotion today too. I feel no guilt in ruining her surprise since she’s nosey.”

“Is that so? I’m almost afraid to ask…promoted to what?”

“My position has been split between us,” Layne said with a smile. “It’ll mean less travel for us both.”

“I’m really excited to hear that on one hand because I’ll get to see you more often, not so much about Alana, though. That means she’ll be here when you’re gone. She sings badly and does it a lot. I’m going to have to invest in earplugs.”

“I’m so glad to hear you say that. David thinks she sounds fine, but I’m fairly certain he’s tone deaf. There are times when we’re all in a car together that I’d chew through the floorboard to get away from that…painful yowling.”

“You’re being too kind, I’m sure. Would you like me to pick up dinner tomorrow night so you don’t have to worry about cooking while you get settled in?”

“No, I’ve got that covered. What’s your favorite Chinese dish?”

“Pineapple or cashew chicken.”

“It’ll be there waiting on you along with me.”

“I look forward to that,” Stacy said, and Layne could tell she was smiling.

“See you soon.”

“Okay.”

“Bye.”

Layne ended the call longing for home—for Stacy. She would be traveling less, but she’d also be in the office five days a week. When would they find time to be together, a few hours in the evening, maybe a few more on weekend days? All together that would equal little more than one day a week. Layne’s logic kicked in.
If she moves in with me then she doesn’t have to take the extra shifts. Is this crazy?
“Yes it is,” Layne answered aloud.

*******

“Let’s meet first thing in the morning,” David said as they walked through the New Orleans airport toward baggage claim. “I want to make the announcement and start taking internal applications for Alana’s position. Of course, I’ll take your recommendations, but I have to tell you I’m already leaning toward Ryan Farrar for the slot.”

“Farrar has no finesse,” Alana argued.

The conversation faded into the background as Layne followed the bickering pair, wondering if the Chinese restaurant near her home had good pineapple chicken or not. The cashew was okay, but the chicken never really tasted fresh. Now the one on Canal Street, they had good chicken— Layne shook herself as she stepped onto the escalator that descended to baggage claim, shocked at how her mind was working. Her only concern was making sure Stacy had quality meat in her food? When she was certain that questions loomed about whether or not to ask Stacy to move in with her.
The chicken at the place on Canal Street is definitely better.

*******

“Tell me that you’re pregnant. Tell me that you finally murdered one of your colleagues and you need help hiding the body. Tell me something that is going to validate me leaving my office in the middle of the day to rush over here,” Jenny said as she walked in the front door.

Layne wrung her hands nervously. “I’m thinking about asking Stacy to move in with me.”

Jenny pursed her lips. “Okay, yeah, that’s big, too. Kitchen table or couch?”

“Table. Soda or tea?”

“Long Island is preferable, but I’ll take the kind you’re talking about.” Jenny followed Layne into the kitchen. “I guess my first question is why?”

“I work five days a week, sometimes from seven to five. I travel a lot, too, and Stacy’s about to take night shifts on the weekends to earn more money for her own apartment. If she lives with me, she won’t have to worry about trying to pick up more shifts, and we can see each other more often,” Layne explained as she filled two glasses with ice.

Jenny scratched her head. “Are you telling me you’re basing this decision entirely on not being able to see each other as much as you want?”

“That’s the practicality of what I’m considering.” Layne set the glasses on the table and sat down. “There’s…other things, too.”

Jenny pointed to the glasses. “Isn’t there supposed to be tea in these?”

“Oh, yeah.” Layne laughed nervously as she jumped up, grabbed the pitcher and poured the tea.

“Tell me what the other things are before your mind totally slips away and you start drooling.”

As Layne thought about voicing what she was considering, it suddenly sounded silly. “When you tell the story about how you and Molly met, you always said ‘you knew’ the minute you met her.”

“Yes, I did,” Jenny said resolutely. “I had just turned seventeen, and I was really horny. I was also living with my folks, and I could make all the audacious claims I wanted to.”

“What was it you knew exactly?”

Jenny smiled and shook her head. “I can’t explain that. She was just so damn cute with those pom-poms and a mouth full of braces. We had a good start, but it took us a long time to be what we are now, and we didn’t move in together until she graduated college.”

“But if you’d met her ten years later, do you think you’d have felt the same?”

Jenny inhaled deeply and nodded. “Do you really feel this way about Stacy?”

“We’ve been playing house. She’s here whenever I am, and when I’m not, she takes care of everything. Look at my yard. While I was gone, she took all the leftovers out of the fridge and cleaned the containers. My bed is made with fresh linens. My trash can was brought out to the street on garbage day.”

“Stop,” Jenny held up a hand, “I’m falling in love with her, too.”

Layne didn’t crack a smile at the joke. “So am I.” She pinched the bridge of her nose. “I know we haven’t been together for a long time, and it seems premature to confess that. Consider this, though. I dated Olivia six months before we moved in together. Where is she now? At the end of the day, I wasn’t happy with her. I’m happy with Stacy.”

“This is going to sound…” Jenny shook her head, “just wrong, but have you considered that if you do this, you will be in a sense supporting Stacy? Are you going to like knowing that you shoulder the financial burden? Will she?”

“She supports me in other ways. It doesn’t have to be all about the money.”

Jenny’s brows shot skyward. “Not about the money? That came out of your mouth?”

“Don’t make fun of me,” Layne said seriously. “I’ve learned my lesson about that. I do make enough money to support us both. Hetero couples do it all the time, and no one really thinks twice about it. Why is this such a big deal for me?”

“I’m sorry, it’s not. I really can’t refute anything you’ve told me, but will Stacy?”

“That’s what has me worried. I don’t want her to feel like I’m trying to rope and tie her. And she doesn’t strike me as the type that wants to be kept, but again, it’s not like that.”

“This is going to be a big moment in your relationship. Whatever the outcome, you have my support. Molly’s not so much, so prepare yourself for that, too. I wouldn’t put it past her to go by Marie
Laveau’s
House of Voodoo in search of something to break the spell she thinks you’re under. If you find powder around your door, don’t touch it.”