Haze by Andrea Wolfe (best motivational books for students txt) 📕

I shook my head and continued eating, polishing off more food than he did. I was really surprised at how hungry sadness could make you.

Dinner behind us, he tidied up the enormous walnut dining table—if we had been a dozen people instead of two, the huge table still would have been adequate—and dumped the dishes in the kitchen. We ended up sitting on the couch near the window, the blinds open and the visuals of the city pouring into our eyes.

I was calm and relaxed for the first time in days, my emotions neutral, numb in a way. I was apathetic, just taking a break from the turmoil inside my body. Jack seemed to understand, our tacit agreement to just be exactly what I needed. The usual flourishes of desire were silent tonight—and he seemed to be okay with that as well.

We eventually moved to the bedroom, our bodies curling up until he was spooning with me. His arm around my waist, I fell asleep peacefully, ready to face the uncertainty of the next day.

Chapter 20

Buzz!

I shot awake, my eyes staring in every possible direction until I found the source of the sound. There was an incoming call—and I couldn't read the full number. I didn't recognize it anyway, so I guess the cracked screen didn't really matter.

"Hello?" I cleared my throat after my voice cracked, trying sound as if that I hadn't woken up seconds ago.

"Hi, is this Miss Jacobs?"

"Yes." What was this about? The voice sounded professional; then again, so did most telemarketers these days.

"Miss Jacobs, my name is Ryan Hiller and I work in the HR department at MCI Records. Currently, we're investigating a number of allegations against Sam Beckermann. We'd received word that you had been dismissed in the midst of our investigation, and we wanted to invite you in to ask you some questions about your experience."

"What?" I blurted out. "Is Sam there right now?"

"He's been suspended without pay for the time being. You won't need to interact with him at all. Would you be willing to stop by our offices this afternoon? At one?"

"Y-yes," I said. "Okay."

"All right, Miss Jacobs. We're on the fourth floor, conference room forty-five. We'll see you then."

By the time I set down my phone, Jack's head popped in the room, tie wrapped loosely around his unbuttoned collar. "Who was that?" he asked curiously.

"None of your business!" I said. I felt bad immediately since his face appeared to suggest that I had offended him. "I'm just kidding. It was MCI."

"MCI?" He looked initially worried, but it faded fast. "What the hell do they want? If it's Sam, you just tell him—"

"They are investigating charges against him." I shifted in the bed and sat up proudly against the pillow.

"What kind of charges?"

"I don't really know. They are just building a case against him. Or maybe it's more."

"Well, go do your thing," he said. "It'll help you gain some closure. Hit him where it hurts."

I liked that idea. I imagined myself in a boxing ring with Sam, the flashbulbs going off as I stood above him, his body crumpled up on the ground. A real knockout by Jacobs!

"I will."

"I made some more eggs and coffee if you want some. It's all waiting in the kitchen."

"Okay." I said. After the performance last night, eggs made by Jack sounded just fine.

"Are you gonna stay in Manhattan until the meeting? I have to go meet with an international distributor. Lexy's album is getting close to finished and so we've got to, uh, put it in people's hands."

I nodded and smiled. "I get it, Jack. Y'know, how selling a product works."

"You're such a smartass—and I love that." He walked toward me on the bed, leaning down and kissing me, his kiss harmonizing with the slow crawl of his fingers through my hair until they were gently massaging the nape of my neck.

Once again, I was feeling invincible.

"I've gotta go though," he said into my mouth, mid-kiss. "We can get something to eat after the meeting. Call me—well, if you can. We'll get your phone taken care of after we eat."

I smiled again. "Okay, Jack. See you later, then."

His tie tied, his shirt crisp and unwrinkled, his posture impeccable, his looks beyond sexy, Jack headed toward the door. "I left you an extra key in the kitchen," he called. "It's by the coffee. I thought you'd actually notice it if it was there."

"Thank you!" I shouted back.

The door opened and closed and then he was gone.

I took a deep breath and relaxed; I wasn't going to get moving just yet. This afternoon was going to be interesting, so I needed to prepare myself mentally.

***

The fourth floor seemed so scary for some reason. I walked up the stairs quickly, sprinting past my usual floor as quickly as I could and then resuming my previous slower pace. I didn't want to see it or even remember how it looked at that moment. Too many memories. I was resolute about the decision and I didn't want anything to affect that.

I got to the long hallway, the fourth floor very different from the one I was used to. There were more individual offices, administrative sort of stuff. There were some boardrooms, but mostly just offices belonging to people with exclusive titles.

Room 45 popped into view, a boardroom with glass on both sides of the door. There were opened blinds that could be closed to quickly provide privacy if needed. Given my interactions with Sam, I hoped they would close them while I was here.

I knocked on the door and waited. It swung open slowly. There was an older gentleman there, his full head of black hair dotted with patches of grey. "Miss Jacobs?" he asked.

"Yes." I extended my hand and shook his. "Mr. Hiller?"

"Right," he said. "Do come in."

He introduced me to the other members of the HR department, a man younger than him named Michael and a woman around