Inked

by Mia Ford

  What the…?

  At first, I assume that I must be dreaming. This feels like one of those nightmares when you suddenly realize that you have no clothes on, but a quick pinch to the arm proves that I am in fact awake. Very awake and facing hell. Because the face smirking back at me is all too familiar, and one that I hoped I would never have to see again. Especially not here, like this. Now I have absolutely no chance of getting this job. Not after I was so rude at our first meeting. Oh, why the hell do I have to speak my mind all the time?

  “It’s you.”

  Chapter Six

  Isaac

  I’m bored. Seriously, bored as fuck. This is a terrible idea. I thought that I would make it more interesting for myself by only having women come in, but honestly, all of them are dull as dish water. Perfect for the job in their own way, but of no interest to me. I know that I should be sensible and hire someone who doesn’t interest me, considering all the trouble that I’ve got in before, but I don’t want boring. I just want someone to have fun with. Someone who can bring some life into this dull place. Screw getting things running smoothly.

  I sigh heavily, tossing the resumes on my desk. I know that eventually I’ll have to just pick one, but by this point I don’t give a fuck who it is. I could pick out a random one and it would be okay.

  “How many more can there be?” I ask myself, staring out the window, needing a way out. It has to be done soon, surely this can’t last forever. “How many more of these fucking bullshit things can I survive?”

  I glance at my watch, seeing that it isn’t as late as I was hoping it would be, and huff. If it wasn’t for Charlie and the look he gave me, the lack of trust that he has in me, and the fear of my father coming down and interviewing me, I wouldn’t bother being here. I would just kick up shit and just go.

  The door swings open, and I don’t even bother to look around to see who it is. It’s just going to be another clone, another one of those women with the same suit on, the same perfect answers, the same boring tone of voice that will drive me crazy. It’s alright being full of work experience and a great education, but what about personality? You need to have one of those to get by, don’t you? I don’t even know if I will turn around. I might keep staring out of the window and ask the questions this way. I have no motivation left to speak to anyone. Not until I hear a voice. An all too familiar voice that makes my heart arise from its dead place.

  “It’s you.”

  I don’t know what to expect with this. It’s clearly someone I know, but who? It’s someone who creates life within me once more. I could assume that it’s just a one night stand, come back to cause trouble for me, but my gut instinct tells me that isn’t the case. My gut instinct has always been right.

  “Oh wow.” I was looking for something interesting and that’s what I’ve been given. A woman who definitely isn’t in the same suit as everyone else, and isn’t a clone. The bright red hair, tattoos, and the fierce expression on her face is completely different than all the other people who have come in here. “And it’s you.”

  The rude red head from the bar, the one who’s boring date I trashed, yet she still didn’t see fit to come home with me. I didn’t think that I would ever get to see her again, but here she is. She’s back, sparking flames all the way through me. I feel like I’m back to me again. It’s been a dull day so far, but I’m back on top. And I know that this is someone who I can have fun with. She’s sparky, I can push her buttons, just like I did in that restaurant. I can wind her up and make her snap.

  “So, you want to come and work for me, do you?” I lean forward on the desk. “That’s interesting.”

  Her face pales and she takes little steps towards me. The fire isn’t there today, she looks freaked out, like she doesn’t know how to react. I suppose I should tone in down a little bit, just to ease her in. This is a different situation. That night, she was on the same level as me, today I have all the power.

  “I know that I don’t have the experience that others do,” she half whispers. “But I will work hard.”

  “Hard working, huh?” I wiggle my eyebrows. “That’s good to know.”

  She huffs, blowing angry breath out her nose. “Look, if I didn’t really need this job, I would leave.”

  “You would? You wouldn’t stick around to see what I might think of you?”

  “I think you’ve already made it clear that you aren’t keen on me.”

  “Huh?” As her eyes fall to the floor, I wonder what impression I gave. “I didn’t say that. I thought that we had a good night the other night. It was a laugh, wasn’t it? I made your bad date a funny one.”

  I can tell that she wants to react, but she’s doing everything that she can to keep it inside. That’s a shame. I would prefer her to bite back. To give me a load of shit for a laugh.

  “I don’t think that it’s important to talk about the other night. I think we should focus on the interview. This is a job that I want, that I really need, and I want to show you how I can help you.”

  It doesn’t matter how much she tries to turn this into something professional, it doesn’t do anything to dampen my mood. There’s something about this woman that fires me up and excites me.

  “Okay, that’s fine. We will do this interview properly. I’m sorry for trying to turn it into something else.”

  Her shoulders roll forward and she immediately relaxes. That’s good. As she nods, I realize that this is the right thing to do. I can start off sensible and then turn it into what I want.

  “Okay, so I have seen your work experience is mostly in waitressing…”

  “I know.” She bolts up straighter. “And I get why that will put me behind all the other women. I’m not stupid, I’ve been sitting with them for a while now, I get that I’m not the ideal option. But at the same time, I am willing to work. I will put in more effort than other women to make sure that I know what you need of me.”

  “You’re saying that you can be molded to meet my expectations?”

  “I am saying that I can be molded. You can do whatever you need to make sure I’m what you need.”

  I can’t stop my lips from twisting up into a smirk. Does she even know what’s going on? What she’s saying? What she’s doing to me? My God, I feel like I’m going freaking insane.

  “Great, that’s awesome. That sounds like what I’m looking for here.”

  “You are?” She cocks her head curiously to one side. “Really?”

  “Yeah, I don’t need someone who has been there and done that. That isn’t good for business because they think that they know exactly what to do all the time, and that isn’t the case.”

  I can see from her eyes that she doesn’t know if I’m telling the truth or not. I don’t know if I am either, I’m just saying these words to make her feel better. But maybe that’s the case. Although I’m not sure if that would be a good thing, because it would mean some baby sitting on my behalf. Although, to be fair, this woman doesn’t seem like the sort of person who needs someone to hold her hand…

  “You know what, I just realized something. We have had all these interactions – and I know that we aren’t talking about them, that makes sense – but I don’t even know your name. Isn’t that crazy? I’m Isaac.”

  I hold out my hand for her to shake it. She doesn’t take it, but she nods. “I know, I’m Lexi.”

  “Ah, you know what, it does say that at the top of your resume.”

  “You don’t look like you’ve exactly read through all of the resumes.”

  She can see right through me. I need to play it off. “I don’t usually pay much attention to them. I spend time with the people and get to know them instead. I prefer to have a personality that works… and you have buckets of personality, which is perfect.” I smile reassuringly at her. “It works well in your favor.”

  Even though she isn’t the same spunky woman I met in that restaurant, she’s holding herself back, I can see the flames flickering behind her gaze. That fun is s
till there somewhere.

  “Don’t get my hopes up,” she insists. “If there is any hope, I will cling to it more than you know. I honestly don’t think that you can even begin to understand how much is riding on this for me. I would much prefer to know that I’m not going to get this so I can continue on with my journey to find a new job.”

  “Straight talking… I like that. I want someone who can tell me how it is. You can surely do that.”

  Her lips twist up into a hesitant smile. “Yeah, well if that’s what you need, that’s what I can do.”

  “Great. I also assume that you can answer the phone. Be polite where necessary and politely tell people where to go when that’s needed to?” She nods. “And you can keep a diary? Deal with emails? Filing?”

  “Yep, I sure can. I can also head into meetings with you, make coffee, whatever you need.”

  I nod at her. “Good, that sounds great. That’s a lot of what the job is.”

  “You’re giving me hope. I don’t like the hope with no solution.”

  I lean back in my chair and smile at her. “Okay, how about we make a deal?” She gives me a curious look. She has no idea what I’m about to do here and honestly, nor do I. “You could come and work here, I will train you up and make sure that you know exactly what you need to do…”

  She leans forward, almost perching on the edge of her chair. Anxiety zig zags in her face, I can tell that I’m really winding her up. I might be able to make her explode, to cause her to be that woman she was before. I’m already getting all fired up about it, remembering how it felt to have her yelling at me.

  “The money seems important to you, is that right? I assume that is why you want to leave the waitressing job. I imagine you’re comfortable there. More than you would be here, so there has to be a reason you want this job.” She purses her lips tightly together, not giving too much away. That’s okay, she’s giving me more than I need to know with what she isn’t saying. “So, how about I double the salary offered in the job description. Make it a little more of an appealing offer for you?”

  “You would do that? Why the hell would you do that?”

  “There will be something in it for me.” I can’t stop myself from smirking. “I might want sexual favors in return.”

  Her face changes, her expression drops, I can see it coming. Any minute now, she will flip out and give me what I’m angling for. My pulse races with excitement as the anticipation builds…

  “Okay.”

  “Okay?” I furrow my eyebrows in confusion as I stare at her stern face. “Did you just say okay?”

  “Like I said, I need the money. So, okay. For double the money, that’s okay.”

  Wow… I wasn’t expecting that. Things just got interesting.

  Chapter Seven

  Lexi

  “Jane, you look fab today.” I smile widely. “Your hair looks incredible.”

  “Oh, don’t you dare lie to me. It looks like crap. I just managed to brush it, that’s all. You’re just so used to it being a bush, that’s all it is.” She runs her fingers through her smooth hair. “But thanks. Not that there’s any reason to dress up in here. It isn’t like anyone will see me, is it?”

  “I don’t know,” I tease. “Doctor Brady is quite cute, isn’t he?”

  Jane laughs. “Don’t be crazy. He’s far too old for me. Have you lost your damn mind? Should I be the one finding older men that I wouldn’t normally like strangely attractive because I haven’t seen anyone for so long?”

  “Yeah, well… maybe I like an older man. You don’t know, do you?”

  We laugh for a little while longer, and it feels amazing. Having a happy time with Jane is all I want. I know we need these memories to treasure. Hopefully for the future when she’s out of here and we can look back and recall that it wasn’t all utterly terrible while she was sick.

  But then Jane’s face turns serious. “Speaking of Doctor Brady… I see he spoke to you about some stuff?”

  I can almost feel the color draining from my skin. “He talked to you, did he?”

  I already knew that this was coming, there was no way that I could get away without facing this, but I was hoping that it would be me who could control the conversation. Now it could easily spiral out of hand.

  “Yes. He has been talking to me about a treatment plan that I already turned down.”

  “I… yes, well he talked to me about the treatment as well. I don’t think he wants you to turn it down…”

  “I’ve turned it down because I have to. I can’t pay for it.”

  “But what about me?” I touch her hand gently. “You didn’t even give me a chance to know about it.”

  “Because I am already a burden on you. I don’t want to be more.”

  I gasp, shocked. “I can’t believe you’re even thinking about that. You are not a burden to me. You’re my sister. I want to help, you aren’t even giving me a chance. Wouldn’t you want to help me?”

  “And wouldn’t you try to stop me if you thought that it would be a nightmare?”

  I narrow my eyes angrily. “Jane, this isn’t fair. You can’t ask me that question. I couldn’t help Mom. You couldn’t either, we weren’t old enough. Didn’t you find that frustrating? Now, I can help you…”

  “You can’t, Lexi. You don’t have the money to help me, you can’t afford it…”

  “Jane, this could save you. It could help you get a better life.” I don’t tell her that it can save her life, but the meaning is there. “Jane, you need this. You have to. It would be crazy not to.”

  She rolls her eyes almost to the back of her head. “It doesn’t matter how much it could help me. None of it matters. It’s completely unaffordable. I am not putting that much pressure on you.”

  “But Doctor Brady told you, right? I have already sorted it.”

  “He said that you have set up a payment plan, but I told him to cancel it.”

  “Jane, don’t be stubborn. I have done it. It isn’t to be worried about anymore. And this isn’t a burden, I have a new job. The pay is really good. I can afford it now.”

  “New job? Why didn’t you tell me about it?”

  “I only just got it, that’s why.” I shrug. “I had the interview yesterday and I start tomorrow.”

  “Wow, that’s great.” Jane sits up straighter in the bed. “So, what is the job?”

  I can’t tell her that there might be some sexual favors, that it could essentially be prostitution because she will freak out. It would crush her to know what I’m doing – even if she finds out that it’s the guy she suggested could be ‘a lot of fun’ when she heard about the date ruining nightmare – but that still won’t stop me. I’m going to do whatever I can to make sure that there is a glimmer of hope. I can’t just sit aside and let Jane wilt away in here, knowing that there’s something I could have done to help her. Even if it means acting completely out of character. It doesn’t matter when there’s a way I can make Jane better.

  “It’s a personal assistant job at a marketing company.”

  “And it pays that well? Must be one hell of a company. It sounds like the job will be really hard.”

  My guard rises high, I don’t want to get too deep into this conversation. I can’t let her ask me too many questions because it’s difficult for me to keep this inside. My eyes dart all around the room, I can look at anything but at Jane. I’m sure she knows that I’m avoiding her for a reason, I just hope she doesn’t push it.

  “So, this is good, right?” Jane asks curiously. “You’re doing something good.”

  “I am. And you need to do something good as well, you need to do this treatment for me.”

  She doesn’t look convinced, but eventually she bobs her head in a nod. “Maybe I will.”

  She will, I’m going to make sure of it. I won’t let her get away with not doing this. We need to have this moment of hope, give us something to strive towards. I smile at Jane and she half smiles back, not totally convinced. I hold her hand tigh
ter, reassuring her in silence, allowing her to ponder this. We will make this work.

  Oh God. My heart is hammering, racing hard against my rib cage. This is even worse than the interview. Now I’m here to start the job, it’s somehow way scarier. Before I knew that I wouldn’t fit in, but now this time, I’m going to have to try to at least find my place in this scary world that I know nothing about.

  All eyes are on me as I walk into the building. Or at least I feel that way. I’m shyer than I have ever been, but I need to pull it together. For Jane. I just hope that the sexual favors part of the job doesn’t start today. It’s overwhelming enough that I need to do a job that I don’t really know anything about.

  “Ah, Lexi, you are here.” Isaac’s voice is surprisingly welcome. “Good, please come with me.”

  I follow him towards a giant room that quickly becomes clear it’s an office. His office, I presume, not the interview room I was in before, the last time I was here. It’s posh, slick, and it’s clearly there to show importance. I try not to let that intimidate me.

  “So, you’re here.” He smiles at me. “I wasn’t totally sure that you would be, if I’m honest.”

  “You didn’t think that I would come?” He shakes his head. “So, I am.”

  “I know. That’s good news. I’m happy about that. It’s good to have some spice here.”

  I can’t get sucked into whatever this little game is that he’s trying to pull, so I just ignore him. “So, where do I get started? What do you need me to do? I didn’t come here to just stand around.”

  My pulse races, I half expect him to whip his cock out, telling me to touch it. I guess I will have to, the money is so good that I can’t turn it down. But he doesn’t, he points towards the filing cabinet.