Emergencies
“James, you’re not quite the f**k up, I thought you’d be.”
“Thank you.” Anne beamed, accepting it as the hard won compliment Stevie intended it to be. This late night was worth it, to hear that.
“We’re hearing a pitch next week. If you keep your mouth shut and…” The phone rang before Stevie could finish that promising statement. She answered with a blunt ‘Carr.’ Silence. Anne squirmed, knowing better than to leave. “Yes.” “When?” The woman’s beautiful face crumpled. A scary thing to see. Stevie careful never to show a weak emotion like grief. A few more one word questions and answers and the receiver was replaced. Stevie stared into space, eyes unfocussed.
“Go get that jacka$$.” Her voice cracked.
Anne hustled. That Stevie would ask for Eric said it all. It was an emergency.
“Eric, Stevie,” she huffed, hanging onto the doorframe, not knowing what to say.
It didn’t matter. One look at Anne’s face and Eric ran. Anne followed at a slower pace. Would Stevie need her? She should… Anne stepped into Stevie’s office. Eric sat on the desk, back to the door, blocking any view of her boss.
“Stevie?”
A wet sound, suspiciously like a sob.
“Something has come up. I’ll be covering Stevie’s projects for the next week or so, James.” Eric didn’t even turn his head.
“No.” A strangled protest.
“Yes.” A coo from Eric. “I’ll tell them you’re working on a special project. No one will know. If anything, you’ll garner more respect.” Something Anne couldn’t make out. The man bent forward. “Let me do this for you, Stevie.”
“I’ll help.” Anne didn’t know what was happening but she’d do what she could.
Eric chuckled. “See that, James will help too. And I promise not to get her fired.” Anne heard a ‘f**k’. “You don’t have to do this alone, sweetheart.”
Well manicured hands reached around the back of Eric’s jacket, clenching the fabric. Anne backed out of the office, closing the door behind them.
Find Out What Happened To Stevie October 29th
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