Worth Any Cost

by Brenna Aubrey

  April followed me to the ladies' room and turned to me expectantly once we got in there.

  "Did you find out if there's anything going on between Jordan and Adam?" I asked.

  April grimaced. "Yeah, Jordan's being tightlipped. But there is definitely something. Whenever Adam's name comes up, he gets all tense and starts swearing."

  My brows shot up. "That's almost the same reaction on the other end. I think I'm going to bite the bullet and ask him tonight. I was ninety-nine percent sure he was going to ask Jordan to be his best man, but he hasn't and was evasive about it when I asked him. I'll report back if I hear something. These crazy kids need to kiss and make up."

  April looked off to the side, giggling and then, suddenly, blushing furiously.

  I frowned at her. "What?"

  "I was picturing them kissing and making up. It was...um, kinda hot." We both laughed.

  Once we returned to the table, I was grilled about my wedding dress. I passed around the same fitting picture I'd shown April weeks before. Kat had already seen it, too.

  "I'd love one of those new ombre-style wedding gowns with all the dark colors around the skirt," Jenna chimed. "I'd get it in shades of green--or purple."

  "I'd love to do something with those 3-D lace floral appliques and the tiny crystal beads. Have you seen those? They are to die for," April cooed.

  "Shall I let William and Jordan know that you two have your gowns all picked out?" I snarked, glancing up from my phone after having sent off a text. "I'm sure they'd love to hear it."

  April's big eyes grew impossibly bigger, and Jenna gave me a smartass smirk.

  "Oh, I know...I'll make sure to get two bouquets, and now I know exactly who to throw them to. Won't that make your men freak out?"

  "Speaking of freaking out...have you told Adam you want to keep your maiden name yet?" Kat asked, nibbling on a piece of smoked salmon on toast.

  Before I could answer, Alex piped up. "You're going to keep your maiden name? You can't do that. Unless you want to add his name, too. That's okay. But you want to have the same last name as your kids, right?"

  I let go of a shaky breath, with no desire to go there, especially with Alex. I wasn't going to base such a decision such an uncertainty. "I've lived my entire life with this last name. I've accomplished some wonderful things with this last name. It's the last name on my college degree. Why would I get rid of it? Besides, I've always envisioned myself as one day being called Dr. Strong, you know? Dr. Drake sounds weird. We won't even discuss Strong-Drake with a hyphen... That one is off the table."

  Jenna laughed. "Yeah, that one sounds a bit ridiculous."

  I cocked an eyebrow at her. "Drake's gonna be your last name, too, someday, so don't diss it."

  She blushed furiously. "Back to you and your wedding..."

  "You know what a lot of women in business do?" April offered, her fork poised in the air like a lecture pointer. "They take both names legally and use their maiden name for business and their married name socially. So you could be Dr. Strong at work and Mrs. Drake when accepting invitations to social galas and the like."

  Because we knew I'd be attending so many of those in between lectures, labs, and exams. But it was a good idea. "That's a perfect solution. I will be bringing that up with Mr. Type A himself tonight."

  April smiled wide at me, clearly happy to have been useful.

  We finally got down to business and talked about the shower. Since we weren't going to have a massive local affair for the wedding, the shower would stand in for a nice luncheon with great food and live entertainment at a beachside restaurant. The girls all happily took to the planning of it. More power to them.

  Finally, we made our way home. Or rather, a driver took us. Someone had made a good call and organized that, considering all the breakfast cocktails.

  A fun time was had by all. Now to stop procrastinating and get to the bottom of this Jordan and Adam business.

  Chapter 9

  Adam

  "Jordan would like to meet with you sometime today," my assistant, Maggie, stated during our usual late morning check-in.

  I rubbed my head, fearing the beginning of a migraine. I felt like shit, and I knew that lack of sleep was catching up with me. But after my morning workout, that general crappy feeling was joined by a sharp pain in my shoulder. Great. I must have pulled a muscle or agitated an old injury.

  And it was Monday. And I had the week from hell laid out in front of me--including yet another board meeting. My lawyer had not delivered good news where that was concerned, but I was not giving up, pursuing multiple opinions.

  I planned on bringing him to my next meeting regardless. It was time to ready for battle. I'd even made a note to pull out my favorite book and reread it. The Art of War may not have served me well when applied to personal relationships, but it was absolutely applicable to business.

  And since I expected an ultimatum soon, it was time. He will win who, prepared himself, waits to take the enemy unprepared.

  "I don't have time." I sighed.

  "He's getting testy. He complained that you canceled on him twice already."

  "Please inform him that the position of CEO of this company is rather time-consuming," I snarled.

  She shook her head. "How about you send him an email?"

  "And what do I pay you for?" I asked with a lopsided smile.

  She sighed heavily, punctuated with her own smile. "Fine. I'll send him the email. But he listens better when it comes from you."

  Maggie and Jordan didn't see eye to eye very often, so I assumed it would be no sweat to her to put him off. If he was getting bitchy about it...not my problem.

  "Make sure and mention that I'm doing a review of IT performance again today. That should keep him away."

  "Can I at least mollify him with a slot tomorrow or anytime later this week?"

  Only if you warn me so I can cancel it beforehand. I almost said it. Instead, I nodded to placate her--which I cared more about doing than appeasing Jordan.

  "Friday afternoon," I stated. "Late afternoon." That should send him the message. I had no fucks to give him.

  This issue, along with the ongoing drama in IT with my slacker director, was enough to be migraine-inducing. But, of course, the onslaught of wedding plans continued. Work was turning into drudgery. I generally loved my job--a lot--but nowadays, everything was starting to feel empty and pointless.

  This sucked. And every day sucked harder.

  Maggie was watching me with narrowed eyes. "Are you feeling okay? You don't look so good."

  My breath escaped with a hiss. "I'm fine. We're done here, right?" I reached over and opened my laptop.

  "Yeah, we're done. Apparently, I have some emails to write." She got up to go then turned back toward me before leaving the office. "Drink some water, Adam, and maybe catch a nap? You don't want to get sick..."

  I waved her off, already engrossed in my laptop.

  Later that day, I found myself in play testing, remembering that I hadn't gotten to the bottom of that surprise quest. Emilia had asked me about it again last night. The devs were on a deadline, and I usually stayed away from their neck of the woods during that time. They got punchy when they saw me lurking around and found it hard to concentrate on their work.

  But the play testers knew about every quest in the game, thus, I could easily get to the bottom of this mystery here.

  Except that when I walked into their section--nicknamed the Den--it was half empty.

  "What--" I scanned the room, noting the half-dozen empty stations that were normally filled with heavily caffeinated game testers.

  A tall, skinny kid--Lucas, my lead play tester--jumped out of his seat and trotted up with a smile. "Hey, Adam. What brings you to our cavernous wasteland?"

  "Hey, man. I was in the neighborhood, actually. How's it going?" I reached out and bumped a fist with him. "Everybody out on a taco run today? I thought that was on Fridays."

  A few people sat at their co
nsoles wearing headphones and testing software and equipment. Since they were busy, none of them had noticed me enter, though I recognized the bright red hair of Katya--our friend and, for the past year, my employee.

  "Most of the group is on that field trip to the new backup server facility," Lucas explained. "It's on the calendar for today. Wasn't that your idea?"

  Nodding, I rubbed my forehead, noting the beginning of what was going to be an ass-kicking headache. "Yeah, forgot that was today."

  He paused, waiting while I tried to clear my head then rubbed at the pain in my shoulder. Jesus, I was a goddamn mess. Maybe I'd give in and take a sleeping pill tonight. The two-and three-hour nights were finally catching up to me.

  After a long and awkward pause where I imitated some cranky grandpa with my aches and pains, he asked, "Anything I can help you with?"

  "Yes. There's a new quest in the game, and I don't recall any discussion on the implementation."

  He hesitated. "The devs would be able to help with that."

  "I'm well aware, but as you guys run through every quest, you would know, too."

  Lucas nodded toward his workstation, and I followed him over to the table where he'd been working. He sat and logged into the database. "Is it live?"

  "Yeah, apparently, or at least the first part of it is."

  "What's it called?"

  "Lord Sisyphus's Wedding Quest."

  Lucas frowned, hesitated, and then shot a curious glance up at me. He straightened without having typed anything into the database. "Oh, that one."

  "You know it?"

  "I tested it," he admitted, standing from his chair like he wanted nothing more than to bolt from the room.

  "And...? Can you give me the background on it? Who implemented, when it was implemented? Its status?"

  Lucas shot me a careful look. "It, uh, came down in a batch of orders from development marked important, so I took charge of it and ran all the testing on it."

  "And where did it come from?"

  He shrugged. "Where they all come from. Development."

  It didn't take a rocket scientist--or a computer programmer--to realize that he was being deliberately evasive. I folded my arms over my chest. "Is one of the devs pulling a joke on me with this? What does the quest do?"

  Lucas's eyes widened. "Uh. I'm--I'm not supposed to reveal that information."

  I blinked. "What?"

  Behind me, I heard someone stand up from their console and slowly walk toward us. I was too busy skewering young Lucas with an icy glare.

  Naturally, he appeared increasingly less comfortable. "Yeah, that--um--that came with the order. Confidential."

  Despite my aching head and the general frustration of the day, I smiled. "Come on, enough with the BS, man. You can tell me."

  "Hey, guys," Kat interrupted us. "'Sup, Adam?" She landed a faux punch right on the painful shoulder. Suppressing a wince, even though it hurt like hell, I nodded to her. Then I returned my attention to Lucas.

  "Actually, you're the last person I can tell. I was told the quest was put in there for you," Lucas supplied.

  "For me?"

  Kat darted glances between the two of us, and I hoped she was wise enough to stay out of the conversation.

  Lucas continued, "Maybe it's a wedding present from the devs to you. I tested it myself last week. It's a fun one. You should try it."

  I rolled my eyes, putting my hands on my hips. "And when would I have time for that?"

  "I'm sorry, Adam. I have it on my work order."

  "I'm your boss," I reminded in a deadpan voice. You could have heard a pin drop. Kat shifted on her feet, watching Lucas with an expression that was somewhere between concern and amusement. I folded my arms across my chest, still scrutinizing him. "I'm your boss's boss."

  Lucas visibly paled then cleared his throat. "I think if you--"

  "I'm your boss's boss's boss," I overrode him.

  "Adam, you're going over the top," Kat cut in.

  I turned my glare on her. "I'm your boss, too."

  She, however, was not deterred. "But I'm best friends with your boss--a.k.a. the future wife--so I pwn you." Despite my irritation, I had to admit her usage of the gamer term was well played. Then her nose crinkled up. "You're so cranky today."

  I stared at her, my irritation suddenly dissipating, or maybe I was too tired to maintain it. Plus, it was a stupid thing to alienate an employee over--a dumb quest and a mystery. Especially if I was meant to figure it out myself.

  Kat and I both started laughing at the exact same time.

  Lucas appeared as if he might faint with relief. "This is the awkwardest situation ever." His eyes flitted between us nervously.

  My mouth quirked. "If I fired you, I wouldn't be your boss anymore..."

  His eyes went round and he paled. It'd be shame for him to soil himself because of my joke, so I laughed and put my hand on his shoulder. "Just messing with you, man."

  "You better be. Don't make us rat you out to HR," Kat said. Lucas and Kat exchanged a long gaze, and in that moment, even I noticed some unspoken message pass between them. I had no idea what it was. They appeared to be fairly good friends. Maybe it was an inside joke.

  Once we sobered up, she continued, "You look exhausted. Maybe you need a nap. Or go relax and do the quest. If Jedi Boy says it's good, then it probably is."

  Lucas's face fell, and his eyes narrowed at Kat, but she didn't seem to notice.

  "All right, I'm out, then." I was halfway to the doorway when I turned to face him. "Oh, and Lucas...may the Force be with you." I gave him a thumbs-up and an obnoxious wink.

  Due to his name, Lucas Walker--never Luke, he often emphasized--despised Star Wars references. And the more he despised them, the more he was tormented with them. As I was his boss, his boss's boss, and his boss's boss's boss, he didn't dare have a comeback for me.

  But Kat cackled loudly, which was my best reward. "You owe me one, junior," she said to him when I was almost out of earshot.

  With a grin that almost helped me forget that the rest of me was falling apart, I left play testing and returned to my office in time for a scheduled phone conference, which I barely lasted through.

  Maybe Emilia was right. Maybe the abuse I'd been wreaking on my body lately was catching up with me. I made a special note to try to get to bed early tonight. Her shock alone from that might even be worth it.

  Chapter 10

  Mia

  It was another late day with my virology lab and then my infectious diseases study group. Good god, M2 was a barrel of fun.

  And though I wouldn't be home until well after nine, I knew I'd likely beat the significant other there by hours. He always stayed late at the office after being out of town.

  As my medical school schedule had ramped up, he'd taken it as an unspoken cue to go back to his workaholic ways. Our time together suffered greatly as a consequence.

  On my way to the bedroom, I stopped by my study to dump my books and check my email. A reply from my brother awaited me. It still seemed weird to use that term--my brother. I read through it immediately, but hesitated before replying.

  He wanted to meet. Part of me really wanted to, and the other part was way too scared.

  Maybe if Adam came with me. Or my mom.

  Or both.

  It was ridiculous, because he was only a man. What was I scared of? I'd have to think it through, and I was way too tired tonight. I flipped on the light and almost jumped out of my skin when I noticed Adam in bed. Asleep.

  What the...?

  I checked the clock--a few minutes after ten p.m. He never went to bed this early. What was up?

  Quickly, I flipped the lights off again before they would wake him. Then I spent the next half-hour tiptoeing around the room, bumping into things in the dark and swearing under my breath as I got ready for bed.

  Finally, feeling as exhausted as he probably did, I skipped my usual bedtime studying to snuggle up beside him and fall asleep early, too. Adam had go
ne to bed without a shirt on, only sleeping in his underwear. If I wasn't half dead myself, I might have been tempted to wake him up for a booty call.

  Instead, I rolled over and was out like a light. Only to be awakened a few hours later by his tossing and turning. He was still fast asleep, but he'd kicked the sheet and blanket off and was shivering.

  Half-asleep myself, I reached over, grabbed the sheet from where it was tangled in with his legs, and dragged it up over him again. My hand brushed his arm, and I froze.

  He was burning up.

  Like feverishly hot.

  I placed the back of my hand against his forehead, and he jerked away, moaning, still fast asleep.

  "Adam," I said quietly, and he didn't move. So I got out of bed and headed straight for the medicine cabinet in the bathroom, where I grabbed the fancy ear thermometer. I doubted there was even one of these in the house before I had gotten sick. As a typical bachelor with uncommonly good health, Adam had likely never thought to equip his home with first-aid supplies. Naturally, I had taken care of that for him.

  I ran the digital thermometer through a quick test to see if the batteries were working, then returned to the bedroom.

  Adam was now on his side, still shivering. "Adam, I need to take your temp."

  His only reply was incoherent mumbling, so I bent over and stuck the damn thermometer in his ear. He batted my hand away--and not gently. I took hold of his shoulder and shook him, once again noting the heat coming off his skin.

  "Adam, wake up."

  Slowly, his eyes cracked open. When he saw me standing over him with a medical device in my hand, he shot straight up to a sitting position.

  "What?" he barked.

  "You're burning up." I indicated the thermometer in my hand. "I need to take your temperature."

  He rubbed his forehead. "I'm fine."

  But even with that short outburst, I observed how his voice sounded different, hoarse, a little thick. As if his throat was bothering him.

  "You have a virus or something. I'm not making this up. You're feverish. Let me stick this in your ear."

  He took the thermometer and moved it--and my hand--as far away from his head as he could. "You don't stick things in me. It's supposed to be the other way around."

  "Don't be a smartass." I let out a long-suffering sigh and replaced the thermometer near his face. It just figured that Adam would be a patient from hell. How could I even imagine otherwise?