Page 5 of The Swap After Hours
Maybe one day he’d find someone who made him want to settle down, but as he often said, he was too busy with his career to deal with the kind of entanglements that came with being in a relationship.
For now, he preferred to focus on his catering business which not only made decent money, but was helping him build his culinary reputation around the city. When he finally opened his restaurant—and I knew he would—he’d already have a good customer base of people who loved his cuisine.
When I finished with my last client I headed back to the office to hand in my notice. My supervisor was disappointed but nice about it, promising that I would always have a job with them if I wanted to return. I didn’t bother telling him I hoped that never happened.
Feeling lighter than I had in years, I hopped on a bus, eager to get home. When I got to my neighborhood, I made a quick pit stop at our favorite pizza place and ordered a large supreme. It was a bit of a splurge, but tonight called for a celebration.
“Lucy, I’m home,” I called out in my best Ricky Ricardo impersonation as I walked through the door.
“Oh, Ricky! You brought dinner!” Doug sang as he came out of his room, batting his eyelashes dramatically like Lucille Ball.
I laughed, handing him the box. “Here, take this please. I need to go scrub off the public transportation grime real quick before we eat.”
His eyebrows scrunched together. “Public transportation? What happened to Trixie?”
I shook my head. “I’ve got so much to catch you up on. But first…shower.”
Doug chuckled. “Okay, okay. Go get cleaned up. I’ll get dinner ready. What do you want to drink?”
“A glass of wine, please. On second thought, bring the whole bottle. We have a lot to talk about,” I said, purposefully sounding mysterious.
“You’re killing me. You know that, right?”
“Yeah, I know.”
“You little shit!” Doug swatted at me with his hand, but I danced out of the way, laughing as I hurried off to the bathroom.
I was still grinning as I emerged from my bedroom a short while later, having showered and changed into a comfy pair of sweats and an old concert tee. It felt good to be home.
Our apartment was tiny, even by New York City standards, with a small kitchenette in the corner of the living room, a bathroom that wasn’t much bigger than a broom closet, and two bedrooms that barely had enough space for our queen-size beds. It was cramped and we were constantly having to shuffle around each other, but somehow it worked.
We’d made it as homey as we could, painting the walls a light, cheery blue. The beautiful, framed landscape photos we’d bought at a local craft fair provided a better view than any window in the city. Well…maybe not the view from Mr. Marshall’s office because let’s face it, that had been impressive as hell.
Colorful throw pillows helped spruce up the ratty old couch we’d bought from a second-hand store, and the brightly designed area rug I’d managed to nab on sale a few years back kept our feet from getting too cold during the harsh winters.
Doug was waiting for me on the couch, the pizza and a tossed salad sitting on the coffee table. I sat on the other end of the couch, pulling my legs up under me.
It was quiet for several minutes as we dug into our food. The salad tasted delicious with Doug’s own raspberry vinaigrette and perfectly crusted homemade croutons. The pizza was gooey and cheesy, and I wiggled in my seat, humming happily as I chewed.
Doug snorted a laugh. “Someone’s in a good mood. Are you finally going to tell me what all of this is about?”
“Correction. I’m in a great mood.”
I went for another slice, but he snatched the box up and held it out of reach, shaking his head at me. “Uh-uh. Not until you spill. What’s this news you have?”
With a laugh, I began telling him about my day beginning with Trixie’s final ride. We took a moment to mourn the loss and appreciate the ending of an era before I continued. I explained the rest of what happened, including the identity mix-up and ending with the amazing job offer.
He stared at me incredulously. “So, let me get this straight. You show up there to do one job, get mistaken for someone else, and somehow end up with a completely new job? One that pays three times what you’ve been making?”
“That pretty much sums it up.” No longer interested in the pizza, I set my empty plate aside. I took a sip of my wine and relaxed against the arm of the couch.
He mirrored my pose, leaning back with his legs stretched out towards me. I shifted, making room for him to tuck his feet in beside me then grabbed the quilt off the back of the couch and spread it across our laps.
It was cozy and warm and not for the first time, I thought how lucky I was to have a friend to come home to. I couldn’t imagine being all alone in the city, like so many other people.
Doug’s expression was serious. “This sounds like a great opportunity, but are you sure it isn’t a little too good to be true? I mean, what do you even know about this guy? Or about being a PA for that matter?”
I knew he wasn’t saying it to be a buzzkill, he was just worried about me, and I suppose to someone who hadn’t been there, it did sound a little sketchy. Even I had had to pinch myself to be sure it was real.