I Won’t Be In On Monday (The Annoying Hot Bosses Club #3)

Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

R emington

For the first time in my life, I am absolutely, positively out of my element. I stare at the ceiling and wonder if I'm ever going to experience life in the same way again. I wonder what Canyon is thinking. If my daughter is a little psychopath.

She fell asleep quite easily once we got home, and for that, I was grateful. A part of me had been nervous that she was going to cry or ask for her mom, but she seemed to be enjoying the experience of being with me, though I can't say I felt the same. I pick up the phone to call Max because, even though he's not a father, I know he knows what it's like to worry about sudden changes in his life. His little sister, Maria, is pregnant and unmarried, and we've had many a conversation where he's talked about how nervous he is for her to be a single mother.

"Hey, everything okay?" he asks as he answers the phone. He knows that I’m navigating unknown territory.

"I don't even know what to say to that," I respond, and he chuckles lightly. "This is your first night with Canyon, isn't it?" he says. I take a deep breath and let out a low growl.

"I'm going crazy here, Max. I don't know what I'm doing. I was not made to be a father."

"Well, I could say you should have thought about that, but I won't."

"Thanks. That's really helpful."

"How's it going? Does she like you, or does she hate you? What did you do?"

"I don't know. She's seven, and I can’t read her. First she demanded sushi and a hundred dollars. And so I bartered with her. She ended up with a burger. I gave her a burger, and she smiled. She was happy when I gave her twenty dollars. I don't know how she's going to be tomorrow."

“Why did you give her twenty dollars?”

“Don’t even ask.” I sigh.

"I understand that this is going to be difficult, Remington," he says. "You're doing everything you can do. It’s not like you knew you had a kid." He pauses. "You didn't know, right?"

"No, I didn't know. What sort of scumbag do you think I am? If I knew that I had a kid, I would have stepped up to the plate. I would have—” I pause. "Fine. I don't know what I would have done at that moment, but I know I'm a dad now, and she’s here with me, and I'm freaking out."

"Where is she sleeping? Did you get a bed already?"

"I offered her my bed, but she wanted to take the couch so she could be in front of the TV.” I laugh. "I guess she does take after her father in that way.”

“You always did love watching TV. Kind of like Lila does.” He pauses. "Hey, can you hold on one second? Lila just got home."

"It's fine," I say. "I'm going to let you go. I know it's late at night. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Sounds good," he says, and we hang up. I lie there in the bed, somehow not feeling any better than I did before I called him. Before I realize what I'm doing, I dial Juniper's number.

"Hello?" She yawns into the phone. "Mr. Parker, is that you?"

"It's me, Juniper, and you don't have to call me Mr. Parker. I'm Remington."

"I know you're Remington, but you’re also my boss.”

“How was your evening?" I cut her off. I don’t want to think of her as my assistant right now.

"It was fine." She giggles. "It was actually really fun. How was your evening?"

“Fine.”

"Oh, no, is everything okay?” She pauses. “Nothing bad happened?” She sounds nervous now.

“Everything’s fine,” I say quickly to reassure her. “I was just sitting here, and I wanted to thank you for everything you did to help me today."

"You're welcome. It was kind of fun. I mean, not really, but don't worry, I won’t hold it against you.”

“I promise that you'll see a bonus in your paycheck."

"No, it's not about that," she says quickly. "I was happy to help. I know this is a crazy time in your life, and even though you're just my boss, you're kind of like my frenemy a little bit, as well, and, you know..."

"No, what?" I say, picturing her slim face and big glasses. I wonder what she’s wearing. I’m going to ignore the fact that she’s calling me a frenemy, though the comment annoys me.

"Well, you know, I'm a nice person," she says quickly. She hiccups again.

“Are you drunk, Juniper? Where are you?”

“I had drinks with the girls. I just got back to my apartment, and I’m about to shower and go to bed.”

“Shower, huh?” I say in my teasing voice, and the other end of the line is silent. "I'm just joking, Juniper. No need to panic. I'm not asking you to turn on the video and show me that you’re showering or anything like that." She gasps. "Sorry, I didn't even mean to bring that up.”

“It's fine. I know you're not asking me that, Mr. Parker."

"Don't call me Mr. Parker again."

"It's... I know," she says, cutting me off. "It's Remington, but I call you Mr. Parker in the office, so I don't think I should start calling you Remington now. I want to be professional at all times."

"You are always professional, Juniper," I say and lean back against my headboard. "So, tell me about your evening. What did you do? Did you meet any guys?"

She lets out a little giggle.“There was one guy that was kind of flirting with me, and I think he wanted me to go back to his place.”

“Sorry, what?” I sit up and frown. “What guy?”

“No one you know. I mean, I didn't even know him. I'm just saying.”

“You weren't by yourself, right? When this guy was hitting on you?”

“No, I wasn't by myself.”

“This guy came up to you?”

“He came up to the table and asked if he could buy us a drink, and I said, ‘No, thank you. We have drinks.’ And then he said that he thought I looked very pretty.” She pauses. “I mean, I don't think I looked?—”

"You looked fine, I’m sure," I say, cutting her off.

"Well, anyway, he wanted to congratulate me on my poem."

"Your poem?" I frown. "What poem?"

"Oh, I didn't tell you. We went to a poetry slam. Me, Lila, and Skye. And we all got up and created these poems, but mine absolutely sucked. So, when he said mine was great, I knew he just wanted to get me into bed.” She giggles, and the sound makes me smile. There’s a purity and sincerity in her giggles. “I mean, it was nice of him to lie, though.”

“I didn't know you were into poetry. I thought you just wrote books.” Not that I was an expert on her likes and dislikes. Not that I wanted to be either.

“I do. It was just something the girls and I decided to do for fun, you know?”

“No, I don't know.” For some reason, I’m feeling grumpy hearing about Juniper flirting with some random man.

“Anyway, you didn't call me to hear about my poetry slam. How did it go with Canyon?”

“Kids are alien to me," I say honestly. "My own kid is an alien to me. That’s how it went.” I wonder if she thinks I’m a jerk for admitting that. Am I an even worse father for comparing my kid to an alien? Will I ever be a good dad? Somehow, the thought depresses me. I’m used to being good at everything. I analyze situations and move forward with the best strategy possible. I am a king at negotiation. A prince at sales. A duke at charming and finagling. None of those skills are helpful with Canyon, though. The fact doen’t make me happy.

"Oh, boy. Is everything okay?"

“If I'm being honest, not really. I've got this young person in my care, and I don't know what I'm doing. I don't even have anything to make her for breakfast in the morning.”

“You don't have bacon and eggs?”

“I mean, I might have some eggs, but I don't have pancakes, and I don't know how to make Mickey Mouse-shaped waffles.”

“You don't have to do all that to be a good dad, Remy. Trust me,” she says softly. “I'm sure you'll be fine.”

“I don't have any fruit. Aren't kids meant to eat fruit for breakfast? Isn't that what's healthy?” I know I’m making mountains out of molehills, but I can’t stop myself. “Plus, my kid tried to get a hundred dollars out of me. I think she might be playing me, and it freaks me out.”

“If you want, I can go to the grocery store in the morning and bring some stuff over for you,” she offers, and my heart thuds.

“Would you?” I ask quickly, not knowing why the offer makes me feel so settled.

“I mean, if you really want me to and think it would help.”

“That would be really amazing, Juniper,” I say, gratefully. “Just bring some fruit and maybe some chocolate chips if you get some pancake ingredients. You can stay for breakfast, as well.”

“I mean, that wasn't what I had planned.” She pauses. “But, I suppose, I'll be more than happy to help you.” She lets out a low sigh. “Is there anything else you need before I hop in the shower?”

“No, that is all. You have a good shower, and I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”

“Thank you, Mr. Parker. I guess I’ll be seeing you in the morning, then.”

“Night, Juniper,” I say and hang up and turn off my light. I realize that I'm feeling more at ease now. Maybe it's because I know that Juniper will be there in the morning to help me. I don't know why that makes me feel better, but it just does. Juniper is calm, peaceful, and always has a helping hand. I appreciate her more than she knows, and I am once again reminded how lucky I am to have her in my employ. I have to ensure I never do anything to mess that up. I’m not sure what I would do if I didn’t have her in my life.