Just For Now (A Flirting With Trouble Novel) Read Free Page B

hasn’t responded. I’m starting to worry, but I’m not going to show it—not until I can at least figure out how to get the rest of the staff here on board with an Owen Marshall takeover.
    “Wendy’s always the voice of reason,” someone says from the doorway. We all look up to see Shannon holding the cordless phone.
    “There’s a call for you on the main line—the guy said something about a grant we applied for.”
    “Really?” I ask, feeling excited. I jump up and motion for her to give me the phone. Jenn and Wendy slip out the door, shutting it quietly behind them, as I school my tone to sound a little less obviously desperate and a little more professional. The truth is that grant money is probably going to be the bread and butter for the BYC before long. I need to remain calm and try not to squeak when I speak.
    “This is Rainey Wallace,” I say, hoping my voice doesn’t actually sound as breathy as it does in my head. “Can I help you?”
    “Rain, it’s me.”
    I don’t recognize the voice. I frown.
    “Excuse me? Who am I speaking with?”
    There’s an audible sigh. “Rainey. Seriously?”
    I sit up straight in my chair. “Remy?”
    There’s silence for a long moment, and then I can hear Remy sniff. Shit. He’s fucking crying.
    Up until now, I was directing all of my emotions into a place within my body that could contain them. Now, though, I can feel them rushing to the surface and flushing my skin.
    “Remy—oh my God. Are you okay? Why didn’t you tell Shannon it was you? We were so worried about you!”
    He sucks in an audible breath. “I didn’t want to talk to anyone but you.”
    “Did you know this was happening? People are freaking the fuck out up in here.”
    There’s a silence, then a sort of snuffling sound. Remy takes another shaky breath.
    “I didn’t know for sure,” he says. He’s practically whispering and I have to strain to hear him. “It wasn’t until I got a call late last night to come into the city headquarters this morning. Kensington and my replacement were already at BYC by the time they sat me down.”
    I roll my eyes, despite being alone in the room. “Yeah—Owen Marshall. He’s . . . different.”
    Part of me doesn’t want to talk too badly about the guy I’m going to have to work with and who, let’s face it, could probably fire me if he really wanted. I’d sort of like to avoid that possibility. If my parents hate hearing about me working here, they’ll really hate hearing about me being unemployed and eating Vienna sausages from the can while I stream Netflix using my neighbor’s Wi-Fi.
    “The head of Baltimore City Parks and Recreation met with someone at the mayor’s office. I guess there was some kind of concern about me.”
    I’d been rocking back and forth on my seen-better-days desk chair. Now, I stop in mid-rock.
    “What? What are you talking about?”
    Remy sighed. “I guess someone lodged a complaint about my influence on the kids or something. I don’t know if it was a parent or a coworker—I honestly have no idea. All I know is that it was something to do with my being gay and my influence on the kids in my care.”
    I thought I’d been mad earlier. Mad at Owen for his snarky comments. Mad at Mr. Kensington for his chickenshit disappearance when things got tough. And maybe I was mad. Maybe that prickle of indignation is what mad really is.
    But that means that now I’m fucking furious.
    “Are you FUCKING KIDDING ME?”
    I yell it. Loudly. I don’t even try not to. I yell it loud enough that Jenn and Shannon and Wendy and Derrick and Thom, a volunteer who missed the meeting and was just folding pool towels by my door a few seconds ago, all make it into my office in the span of ten short seconds.
    “What? What is it? What happened?” Jenn asks, her face almost panicked. I hold up a finger in the universal “hold on” symbol.
    “So are you fired? Are you demoted? What’s the deal?”
    I’m already composing my