He caught the phone against his chest and scowled. “It was still charging when I left this morning--”
“And just where did you go, anyway?” I asked, shoving the keys in my front pocket. We both had a set to the Camaro, even if the car was technically Jasper's.
“Somewhere.”
“Don't get cute. Where were you?”
“I don't want to talk about it.”
“Judging by your sour mood, something happened,” I insisted.
“I said, I don't want to talk about it.” He flipped a hand dismissively, as if that was the end of the subject. “What's wrong with Asia's car?”
“It's the starter. And she doesn't have the money right now to fix it, considering she got fired from her job while I was standing right there. Unless she postpones paying her half of the divorce.” I watched Jasper's face to see what other changes might appear. His eyes narrowed further, as if he thought I might be playing a trick on him.
“That's a slippery slope, isn't it?” he said. “Once you start that, it escalates and then bills never get paid.”
“How ironic this is,” I replied, vocalizing what had been on my mind earlier, “that I'm the one helping your wife. She's in a bind, Jasper. What else was I supposed to do?” I didn't mention my offer to ask Ramsey about a job for Asia. Things were too volatile for that right now.
“I didn't say I didn't want to help, or that she doesn't deserve help. I've just been in her shoes, that's all. And since I don't know whether you're going to leave me or not over this, then I'd rather get the divorce sooner than later.” He set his phone on the coffee table.
Jasper had a way of getting to the heart of a matter with pinpoint precision. “If I would have decided to leave, I mean really leave, then I would have done it before now. I told you already—I'm not going to run away from the problem. It doesn't fix anything.” It felt like a giant leap forward in maturity, though I kind of wanted to strangle him for his black mood, too, which would effectively wipe out the giant leap. I said, “What's wrong?”
“I got fired,” he said, nostrils flaring. A muscle flexed in his jaw.
My mouth fell open in shock. “What? Did everyone get fired today but me?”
Jasper didn't look happy. “You never know. You're due in to work next.”
“Wait—you were at Olympus this morning.” The details just dawned on me. “Why? Your shift doesn't start until this evening.”
Jasper said nothing.
I knew what that meant: he'd done something I wouldn't approve of. He had a stubborn set to his mouth and belligerence gleaming in his eyes. Suddenly, I knew.
“You went to Olympus and confronted Adrian, didn't you?” I put both my hands on my hips, indignant.
Jasper's continued silence vindicated my accusation.
“I should throttle you. I told you not to say anything to Adrian! That's who you went to, right? Because he was the one who heckled me.”
Nothing. Jasper stared at the far wall. He rubbed his hands together like he wished he had something—or someone—to punch.
“I don't believe this. I'm the only one with a job.” And for the next two weeks, it wasn't a job I wanted to do at all. “Did you hit him?”
“No.”
“Did he hit you?”
“No.”
“Jasper...” I warned him of my growing impatience and irritation with one simple word. His name.
“Don't worry about it.”
“Someone has to worry. We have rent to pay and other bills that are going to start piling up. We can't use all our savings on that.”
“You act like I'm not going to get another job tomorrow. We live in Vegas, remember? There are a hundred jobs I'm qualified for.”
“Yes, and so are about a thousand other people, all of whom will be jockeying for the same position. There might be a ton of jobs here, but there are also a ton of people looking.” Jasper had gotten a pay raise, too, when he'd come to Olympus. It would probably be difficult for him to match that at another casino. At first, anyway.
“Ramsey will give me a good recommendation.”
“I think you should go down there, with a cooler head, and politely ask for your job back.”
“I'm not sucking up to that ass,” Jasper said with a derisive snort. “Adrian was just looking for any excuse. He was pissed when Ramsey gave me the job.”
“Tell me what happened.”
Once again, Jasper waved a hand, indicating he wasn't going to give me any real details.
“You got in a fight, didn't you?”
“I just told you I didn't.”
“Pull up your shirt.”
“I'm not pulling up my shirt.” He scowled at me.
“I'm not sure I believe you.”
“Yeah, well, that's nothing new lately, is it.”
“Maybe if you hadn't lied to begin with, it wouldn't be a problem.” I had no qualms about throwing the barbs back at Jasper. We'd known each other long enough, had lived together long enough, that we could be this blunt and this abrupt without damaging our friendship.
What effect it might have on a relationship, I couldn't say.
“Don't you go talk to Ramsey, I mean it.”
“That didn't work at all with you, when I asked you not to go talk to Adrian. Why is it okay for you and not for me?” I wanted to know.
“Just don't do it.”
“You can't dictate all my actions. Sorry, I don't work that way and you know it.” Jasper would have scoffed at any other man trying to yank my chain this way.
“Yet you didn't hesitate to try and dictate mine,” he pointed out, arching his brows.
“It's not the same thing.”
“It's exactly the same thing.”
“You're just being typical, stubborn Jasper.”
“Look who's talking about being stubborn.”
“This whole thing is about me. I have a right to know what you said to Adrian.”
He said nothing more.
Spinning away, I went into the master bedroom and started stripping out of my clothes. I had an hour to get ready for work and a load of grease to get off my skin.
Somehow, some way, I had to get Jasper's job back.
If I hadn't lost my own with his asinine stunt.
Chapter Eight
In truth, Jasper going to bat for me was a little bit of a turn on. He didn't like people messing with me, and didn't like Adrian at all to begin with, which exacerbated the problem. I should probably be thanking my lucky stars that Jasper hadn't ended up in jail.
Sitting in the Camaro outside the employee entrance to the casino, I looked across the car to Jasper's profile. There hadn't been time to catch a bus, and now that Jasper had no conflicting schedule, he was free to take and pick me up from work. I leaned on him to do it after our squabble, refusing to drive myself. It forced us to be in closed confines where conversation was more likely to occur.
“What are you going to do?” I asked.
“Go to Asia's and see about fixing her car. We've got that money saved to open the shop, and though I know we shouldn't use it for the starter, I'm going to do it anyway. Then I'll pay for her half of the divorce and give her the papers.” He didn't look across the car, preferring to stare out the front windshield.
“All right.” I didn't argue. Wouldn't throw a jealous fit after I was the one who told him about the starter in the first place. I wanted to help Asia, whether it was me or Jasper doing the helping and fixing. He could replace the starter in less time than I could anyway.
“I'll pick you up after your shift. Text me if Adrian goes off on you.” That time, he shot a dark look my way. Not at me, but at the idea of Adrian taking the argument out on me.
“I will. And if he fires me before I can even start my shift, I'll blip your phone. Come back and get me.” Despite loathing the costumes and routines, I hated the thought of losing my job.
Jasper grunted. “He better not. I'll see you later.”
“Bye.” Usually we kissed
before I got out of the car. Today, we didn't. I put it down to Jasper's mood and my own, along with the awkward tension still existing between us over Asia and Adrian. Closing the door to the Camaro, I watched Jasper drive away.
Taking a deep breath, I entered through the employee door and made my way along the hallways to the block of elevators that would take me up to Ramsey's office. I knew the secret code that would allow me access to the executive floor thanks to having dated Ramsey last year. The only glitch might be if they'd changed the code since then.
Turned out, they hadn't.
When I got off on the right floor, I noted that Ramsey's office door was closed. He might be in a meeting or on an important call.
“Can I help you, Finley?” Ramsey's secretary asked. She was a young brunette woman with glasses and a red smile.
“Yeah, do you know when Ramsey will be free?” I wanted to talk to him before my shift, rather than after. Sometimes Ramsey wasn't at the casino that late at night.
“Oh, I'm sorry dear,” the secretary said. “He's in Venice right now and isn't due back for another three days. How about Adrian? He's in his office.”
I bit back a snarky retort when she mentioned Adrian. He was the problem, not the solution. Schooling my voice, I said, “It's Ramsey I need to see, thanks anyway.”
“You're not banging my cousin behind Jasper's back now, are you?” Adrian said from somewhere behind me.
Really, it was all I could do not to punch him right in the mouth. Turning away from the wide-eyed secretary, I faced Adrian. He'd discarded his suit coat and wore a midnight shirt with dark gray slacks. Any tie he'd left home with that morning was also gone, leaving the shirt open at the throat. Brown haired and brown eyed, Adrian resembled his cousin Ramsey only by the general shape of his face. Ramsey's jaw was sharper, the angles leaner. Adrian's hair licked into curls if it got too long and he forever tried to tame the waves by using a decadent amount of gel.
“No, Adrian, I'm not 'banging' Ramsey behind Jasper's back. Not that it's any of your business,” I said. Up here, in the executive hallways and offices, the décor was as lavish as it was downstairs, where the marble floors shined and the gilt walls resembled a palace more than not. I'd never been inside Adrian's office, though I glimpsed a sliver of the opulence past Adrian's shoulder. He probably had a fireplace, too, like Ramsey did in his office, with tall book cases and an enormous desk big enough to seat four people.
“Are you here to quit, or demand Jasper's job back?” Adrian asked. His eyes glittered knowingly.
“Actually, since Ramsey's not available for another few days, I would like to talk to you about Jasper's job. He mentioned what happened.” I lifted my chin. No one was going to tell me what and what not to do. If I wanted to talk to Ramsey or Adrian, then I would. Jasper would kill me for sure, but that was beside the point.
“He's lucky he's not in jail, that's what,” Adrian retorted.
I didn't think I could like Adrian any less than I already did. And that was saying a lot. “Can we at least discuss it?”
“No.” Adrian rocked back on his heels and slid his hands into his pockets. “I don't have time to stand here and listen to you snivel in his defense, either.”
The man was impossible. If I didn't want and need my job so bad, I would have cut into him with an unforgiving tirade. That would solve nothing, however, so I strove to take the high road.
“All right.” I declined to tell Adrian that he apparently had time to stand there and sneer, though, and instead turned toward the elevators. Arguing with him would only end badly. Remembering Asia, and my promise to talk to someone on her behalf, I paused. Then went forward again, deciding it wasn't worth asking Adrian for anything. He would torture me some more before I either exploded or walked out. Might as well leave now.
“Did you need something else, Miss Carson?” Adrian asked.
“I thought you didn't have time?” I said, and kept walking. So much for watching my mouth. At the elevators, I punched the button and stared at the light, wishing the car would hurry.
“Not for sniveling and whining, but if you have something legitimate to say, then by all means, I can spare a few minutes,” Adrian said near my ear.
I hadn't heard him cross the floor.
“I don't. Never mind.” Subjecting Asia to this ass would be the worst thing I could do. She didn't deserve his attitude anymore than I did.
“So there is something. What is it? Your performance? The show?”
The light flashed and the cabin door whooshed open. I stepped inside the elevator and jabbed the button to the main floor. Adrian followed me inside, hands still in his pockets.
He was really testing my patience today. Sometimes I thought Adrian tried to get people to argue back with him, just to give him more ammunition later on.
“Why did you want Ramsey, if it was nothing?” Adrian asked, pressing the issue.
“I said it's nothing. I'd rather talk to him about it.”
“If you think he'll get you off the show, or that he'll go over my head and hire your insolent boyfriend back--”
Facing Adrian, I used my index finger to poke his chest. Hard. Suddenly, I'd had enough. “You're lucky I'm not a man. Because I'd beat you senseless.”
Adrian laughed. “That's what I like about you, Carson. You don't pull punches. If only more people said it like it is, instead of saying what you want to hear. Right?”
Disgusted, I snatched my finger back and faced forward. “Don't pretend to have a conscience, I know better.”
“On the contrary, Miss Carson, you don't know the first thing about me.”
The heaviness of Adrian's statement brought my gaze around. I fixed on his face, surprised to find a lack of condescending mockery. I'm not sure what made me say what I said next. Desperation to unearth something human within Adrian, perhaps.
“Someone I know is in trouble. A woman. A very nice woman. Her child fell ill today and her employer fired her because she couldn't come in for her shift—even though she could have easily called in a replacement. I wanted to ask Ramsey about an interview for her. But I wouldn't dare ask you, because I know all you'll do is brow beat her and make her feel even worse. She needs help, her child needs her attention, and she didn't deserve to lose her job. That's what I was going to talk to Ramsey about.”
Two seconds ticked by in silence. Adrian reached over to punch the Stop button and faced me when the elevator came to a halt. I didn't think I'd ever seen him so serious.
“I might be hard on my employees, Finley, but I'm not a monster. If she needs a job, if she's talented and has skill, then send her in tomorrow. I'll have a talk with her.”
“I don't trust you, Adrian.” I decided to be blunt. He said he preferred it that way, a fact I would remind him of the second he switched back to his typical hard-nosed tactics.
“I'll give her a shot. That's all I can promise. You underestimate my ability to rise to the occasion when I need to. Many people don't earn respect, Miss Carson, they expect it to be handed over on a silver platter and that's not the way I work. You should look in a mirror some time when you're addressing me, or addressing anyone, really. You're a lot harder than you know.”
It was his last statement that threw a wrench into my well oiled gears. True, I knew I could be abrasive and sometimes unkind. Too blunt. But I also knew I had the capacity for compassion, a trait I'd rarely witnessed in Adrian.
“I'll send her in tomorrow. Please, if you never do another thing for me in my life, don't pick on her. Don't be mean. I think she's got enough to deal with right now.” Inwardly, I was baffled over my insistence that Asia be spared Adrian's usual, prickly behavior.
“Do I even get a thank-you?” He quirked his mouth, like he was disappointed in one thing or another, and jabbed the button to put the elevator back in motion.
“Thank you. I mean that. You'll see what I'm talking about when you meet her.” I dreaded to think what Adrian might say if he knew she was actual
ly Jasper's wife. Soon to be ex-wife, I hoped, but that detail wouldn't matter to Adrian and might affect the outcome of the meeting.
“We'll see.” Adrian stepped out ahead of me when the doors opened. He walked briskly away, disappearing around a corner.
All I could hope was that I hadn't just subjected Asia to the same torment and hell Adrian dished out to me. Exiting the elevator, I headed toward the staging area, bracing myself for round two of a night on the stage.
God help me.
*
Later that night, I exited through the back door into a downpour. Rain bounced off the asphalt and pelted the thin tee shirt I wore with my jeans. I'd forgotten all about a jacket thanks to the chaos earlier in the day. With the temperature hovering in the high forties, the rain added another chill layer that penetrated my skin within minutes.
Jasper's Camaro sat by the curb, taillights throwing a red glow over the ground, the engine rumbling like a giant cat. I slid into the passenger's seat, puffing water away from my lips, and banged the door closed on the storm.
“How'd it go?” Jasper asked. He shrugged out of his leather coat and handed it across the car, leaving him in a nondescript tee shirt of the same make as my own.
Taking the coat, I draped it across my chest and hugged the garment to me. More than warmth, I wanted to catch the scent of Jasper's cologne. I missed hugging him, missed being close. This was a poor substitute, but a substitute nevertheless.
“I missed several turns and nearly fell during the ripple. The choreographer almost had a coronary.” I didn't want to think about the show. Or the nightmare that had become my job for the next two weeks. This dancing thing wasn't working out.
“Did Adrian say anything about the routine?” Jasper asked, jaw clenched into a hard line as he pulled the car away from the curb.
“He wasn't there. Just the choreographer.” No way in hell was I going to admit that I'd had the 'forbidden' talk with Adrian before the show. At least not until and unless Jasper's questions cornered me into answers I couldn't avoid. I wouldn't lie, either, so all I could do was hope Jasper didn't ask in the first place.
I'll Do Anything Page 9
