SEVENTEEN 5 страница

Jess snorted out a laugh. “Are those the criteria these days? ”

“Oh, honey. Don’t let the age of men with good circulation pass you by. Trust me. ” She sat on the edge of the coffee table across from her daughter, resting a hand on Jess’s leg, and the whiff of genuine camaraderie made Jess’s heart lean forward. “How are you? ” Jamie asked. “How’s your writer friend? She is so funny. ”

“I’m fine. You know, working. And Fizzy, ” Jess said with a small laugh. “Fizzy is always fine. ”

“Are you dating anyone? ”

Uninvited, River’s voice rammed into Jess’s mind.

And the timing couldn’t be better for launch.

“Definitely not dating. ”

Jamie’s disappointment was palpable. “Are you just going to be single forever? I haven’t met a boyfriend of yours since Juno’s daddy. It’s your birthday. You should be out! ”

“It’s a school night, and Juno is asleep down the hall. ”

Jamie pointed like Jess might be catching on. “So she wouldn’t even know you were gone. ”

Jess’s heart settled back into its familiar cramp, and she said with patient finality: “I don’t want to go out, Mom. ”

Holding her hands up in defensive surrender, Jamie groaned out, “Fine, fine. ”

Jess yawned again. “Listen, it’s l—”

“Did I tell you about my new gig? ”

Her abruptly bright tone set off warning bells. “Your new what? ”

“My new job. ” Jamie sat up. “Okay … don’t say anything to your grandparents, because you know they’re old-fashioned and never understand how exciting these opportunities are, but you are looking at Skin Glow Incorporated’s newest team member. ”

Jess searched her brain but no recognition flared. “Who are they? ”

“You’re kidding. ” Jamie shook her head in disbelief. “Their commercials are everywhere, Jess. They do in-home facials. God, I want to say it’s a good company, but it’s more than that, it’s a whole lifestyle. A way of empowering women. I get a cut of every facial I do and—”

Jess couldn’t keep the edge from her voice. “A cut? ”

“Well, yeah—I mean, to start. Eventually I’ll have girls working for me and I’ll make some of everything they make, and the people they bring on board. ”

“So, like a pyramid scheme. ”

“Like an entrepreneur. ” Jamie’s words were sharp with offense. “I am capable of more than waiting tables, you know. ”

“I’m sorry, Mom. I didn’t mean it like that. ”

“Well, this is a really rare opportunity. Maureen said the lady who got her into it is already making six figures! And it’s only three hundred dollars to start. ”

Of course. “You need money. ”

“Just a loan. ” Jamie waved a casual hand. “I’ll pay you back with my first paycheck. ”

“Mom, no good job requires you to pay to get started. ”

Jamie’s expression darkened. “Why do you always make me feel like this? Can’t I ever dig out of the hole with you? ” She stood up and bent to grab her purse. “I’ve been clean for eighteen months! ”

“It’s not about you— Wait. ” Jess was on the verge of telling Jamie that she had her own money problems to worry about. Jamie sat back down on the couch, and the silence stretched between them. “Did you stop at Nana and Pops’s? ” she asked instead. “They’re probably still up. ”

Jamie half rolled her eyes, and Jess found herself wondering, again, when she’d become the parent and Jamie had become the child. “They don’t want to see me. ”

“You know that’s not true. If you’ve got a new job and you’re clean, they’d love to see you. They love you, Mom. ”

Jamie kept her eyes on the wall. “Well. They know where to find me. ”

It was astonishing that someone like Jamie came from Joanne and Ronald Davis. At only three, Jess had been spending most nights over at Nana and Pops’s house. By the time she was six, Jamie had given up all pretense of trying, and Jess was permanently living with her grandparents. Jamie had been around, generally speaking, but she was never steady. Whereas Nana and Pops were involved in every aspect of Jess’s life from birth to this very moment, she learned early on that Jamie would pick drugs and men over family, every time.

As much as she tried not to repeat any of her mother’s patterns, Jess did take after her in one way: she’d gotten pregnant young. But hopefully that was where the similarities ended. Jess had graduated from college, gotten a job, and tried to save a little every time a check came. She took her kid to the dentist. She tried to put Juno first every day.

Jess tried to think what Jamie would do now if their positions were reversed. Would Jamie give me the money?

No. Jamie would tell her she needed to grow up, stop expecting handouts, and take responsibility for her own goddamned self.

Standing, Jess walked to the counter. She opened her phone’s bank app, wincing as she typed in $300 to transfer the money to Jamie’s account.

I am not my mother, she reminded herself. I am not my mother.

SEVEN

BRIGHT AND EARLY Monday morning, Fizzy walked into Twiggs. She marched to their usual table, set her laptop down, and even though she’d been told what she would see, still did a double take at Jess standing behind the counter.

“This new situation, ” Fizzy said, dropping her purse onto her chair, “is going to take some getting used to. ”

Jess smiled, swiping a cloth across the counter before pointing to a steaming vanilla latte at the end of the bar. “If it sucks, lie to me. ”

Fizzy leaned an elbow on the counter and picked up the cup. “I feel like I should have made you a little boxed lunch or something. How’s your first day? ”

“The steamer is terrifying, and I didn’t have the lid on the blender all the way during the morning rush, but not too bad. ”

Fizzy blew across the top of her drink and tasted it. Her brows lifted in surprised approval.

“I guess third time really is a charm, ” Jess said.

Fizzy looked around the quiet coffee shop. “Is this where we stand and gossip from now on? ”

From where he was wiping tables, Daniel uttered a simple “No, ” but Fizzy ignored him, leaning in closer.

“Listen, Jess, I know you want to think this compatibility score thing is bullshit, but Ralph was good. What I’m saying is, if I graphed these compatibility scores relative to my sexual satisfaction, like you nerds might, there would be a definite up-slope to the line. ”

It took a beat for Jess to connect the dots before she remembered Ralph, the Silver Match. Unease was an index finger jabbing her shoulder, whispering, Don’t ask. But curiosity overruled discomfort. With a guilty glance at Daniel over Fizzy’s shoulder, she stepped farther down the bar to get some privacy. “Oh yeah? ”

Fizzy followed on the other side of the counter. “We had dinner at Bali Hai. ”

Jess hummed enviously.

“He was super easy to talk to. We each probably had one too many mai tais, but it wasn’t a problem because we both took Lyfts there and shared a Lyft home …” Fizzy grinned. “Incidentally, he has a cute place in PB. ”

An unexpected kernel of angst pinged Jess’s lungs, and she cleared it with a cough and started wiping the bar in front of her. “So, more compatible than with Aiden or Antonio? ”

“Without a doubt. ”

“Do you think you’ll see him again? ”

“Unfortunately, I get the sense that he’s too busy to really get serious with anyone. ” Fizzy frowned. “Why would he sign up for the DNADuo during their soft launch if he just wanted to mess around? ”

Laughing, Jess said, “I think I remember asking you that exact question only a handful of days ago. Look at you, ready to commit after a single night of mai tais and good sex. ”

From nowhere, Daniel materialized, tapping Jess’s shoulder and pointing to the cash register. “You have a customer. ”

“Oops, sorry. ” She swatted after him with her cleaning cloth. Jess jogged the few feet to the register before looking up into the gorgeous yet despicable face of none other than Dr. River Peñ a.

In fairness, Jess shouldn’t have been surprised; if she’d looked at the clock, she would have known that it was 8: 24 and River was right on time. But somehow her brain had dropped the ball on reminding her that she might actually have to wait on him during her very first shift as a Twiggs barista. And this was the first time she was seeing him after their non-goodbye at the curb four days ago. Although Jess didn’t expect to exhale actual fire the next time they came face-to-face, she couldn’t account for the transfusion of warmth that hit her bloodstream, either. For a few seconds, she stared dumbly up at him, clocking the same shock in his expression.

He broke his stunned gaze from hers to look down the counter at Daniel, standing behind the La Marzocco. Then, with that trademark unhurried way of his, River looked at Jess again. “What are you doing back there? ” His eyes took a leisurely perusal down the length of her body. “In an apron? ”

“Oh, right. ” She gave an awkward curtsy. “I work here now. ” When he didn’t say anything else, she offered an artificially perky “What can I get for you, sir? ”

He frowned, and his dark brows came together; glimmering bright eyes regarded her with skepticism. “You work here? Since when? I thought you worked for …” He glanced over to the table where Fizzy now sat alone, watching them hawkishly. Jess raised an eyebrow in amusement as he turned back to her and seemed to be putting the puzzle together in his head. Finally, he managed only, “I thought you worked … somewhere else. ”

Inwardly, she groaned. Why wasn’t he just ordering, paying, and stepping to the side to stare at his phone? Had he forgotten that he was too busy to converse with plebeians?

“I’m a freelance statistician, ” she said, maintaining the polite smile. “But I lost a big account the other day. Given that I have a kid and lots of bills …” She held her arms out to say, Voilà.

Jess would gladly take sixteen hours a week at minimum wage and the hit to the pride from serving River Peñ a if it meant Juno could keep taking ballet with Ms. Mia.

Without subtlety, River’s eyes darted down to her left hand. Was she imagining the way his brow relaxed? Had he been looking for a wedding band?

“One kid, ” she confirmed quietly, “no husband. ” For a brief second, she let herself be amused by this potential scenario. “Wow, that would have been an awkward press release for GeneticAlly: ‘Founder’s Soulmate Is Already Married. ’”

“Married people tend to not submit DNA samples, ” River replied with an amused twinkle in his eye. “And I hear they prefer to cheat using apps with fewer intake forms. ”

Self-preservation welled up hot in her throat, and she could see the twin realization pass through him: this exchange felt suspiciously like nerdy flirting.

“What can I get for you? ” Jess asked again.

His expression shuttered. “Sorry, I would have—” He held her gaze and the contact felt like a swarm of bees in her chest. “I thought you called me ‘Americano’ the other day, ” he said.

Holy duh, Jessica.

Scribbling the drink order on a cup, she moved to hand it to Daniel, who gave her a blank look. “I already got it, Jess. ”

Of course he had. Daniel smiled apologetically on behalf of his new employee, handing the drink to River. Silence fell as they watched her struggle to find the correct entry for Americano on the screen.

“It’s under espresso drinks, ” Daniel prompted quietly.

River, hulking, leaned over to peer upside down at the screen. “It’s over on the—”

His finger landed on the touch screen just as Jess’s did, their hands briefly coming together.

“I got it, ” she said, humiliated. He pulled away, and she tapped the button, flustered by the contact that she could somehow feel all the way up her arm. No doubt her cheeks looked like she’d been slapped. “That’ll be three eighty-five. ”

He hesitated, and Jess realized her mistake. She upsized to large. “Sorry. Four seventy-four. ”

Their shared discomfort shoved between them, a loud, uninvited guest at the awkward party for two. Jess took his money, counted out his change. But what really wrecked her was that, after the tiniest hesitation, he dropped all of it—including the five-dollar bill—into the tip jar.

FIZZY SIDLED UP to the counter fifteen minutes later when she seemed to assess Jess was done being mortified.

“Hey. ” She offered a little best-friend-simpatico smile and reached across the counter to offer a fist bump.

“Hey. ” Jess cleared her throat, meeting Fizzy’s knuckles. “I bet an ending like that never made it into a romance novel. ”

Fizzy laughed. “Are you kidding? That would be the start of an amazing love story. ”

“Not my story. ”

Jess felt her best friend studying her while she pretended to be very engrossed in rearranging the pastry case. Fizzy had been uncharacteristically mum on the subject of River. After hearing of their DNADuo result, the rundown on the disastrous GeneticAlly meeting, and Jess’s theory that the statistics were completely bogus and most likely invalidated their entire business plan, Fizzy had stared at her in silence for a few beats before saying only “I get it. ”

“You okay? ” she asked now.

Daniel decided this moment was a good one to join the conversation, setting two sealed bags of beans down at the espresso bar. He frowned. “What’s wrong? ”

“Nothing, ” Jess mumbled just as Fizzy practically shouted, “Did you not see that awkward run-in with Americano? ”

“Why was it awkward? ” Daniel took a beat to recollect, then said, “Oh, about the drink? Eh, don’t worry about that. It’s your first day. ”

“No, Dan, ” Fizzy said, exasperated with him for no good reason. “Because they matched. ”

It felt like the entire coffee shop went silent in response.

Jess groaned. “Fizzy, I swear to God, I will barehand—”

“What level? ” Daniel asked.

“What do you mean ‘what level’? ” Jess gaped at him.

He ripped open a bag of espresso beans and poured it into the machine. “If we’re talking about DNADuo, I was one of the original samples, ” he said proudly. “Back in my days at SDSU. When they were still taking … samples. ”

It took a second for that to sink in, and when it did, all a blushing Jess could manage was a quiet “Gross, Dan. ”

“I meant blood. ”

“Didn’t sound like you meant blood. ”

“Anyway, I did it again about a year and a half ago when they put out the call for people to help validate their spit kit. ” He pulled his phone from his back pocket and showed them the screen like they might see a thread of matches lined up there. “But I’ve never gotten anything above a thirty-seven. ”

Fizzy’s interest was piqued. “Did you go out with her? ”

“I did, ” he said. “It was good, but I think we both had this weird expectation that it was nice but statistically unlikely to go anywhere? ”

“I did wonder about that aspect, ” Fizzy said. “I went out with a Silver the other day but, like, if you get anything lower than a Gold, do you just assume it’s most likely not going to work? ”

“Even though, ” Jess cut in quietly, “if you believe their data, the odds are significantly better of finding a lasting relationship with a Silver than with regular dating …”

Fizzy gaped at her. “Says the woman who won’t believe her own score. ”

“What was it? ” Daniel asked again.

Jess laughed. “It doesn’t matter. Fizzy’s right. I don’t believe it. ” She wiped her hands on her apron and looked at Daniel. “What’s next, boss? Dishes? Restocking? ”

He lifted his chin, undeterred. “Was it a Base Match? ”

Fizzy looked at her, one eyebrow pointed sharply skyward. “Yeah, Jess. Was it a Base Match? ”

Jess slid a patient look to her friend. “Are you being a pot-stirrer? ”

“Guilty. ”

Daniel turned to Fizzy, who in turn gave Jess a look that either sought permission or delivered a warning.

Warning, apparently, because a few seconds later, Fizzy said, “It was a Diamond. ”

Jess expected him to explode: How can you ignore that? and If I had a Diamond Match, I’d quit my job and get laid all day long! But just as Fizzy had when Jess told her, Daniel studied Jess very quietly and very intently.

“You’re not curious? ” he asked, at length.

“No. ”

Daniel seemed to be trying to wrap his head around this. “Is River? ”

Jess shrugged. “Who knows? We haven’t really talked since we found out a few days ago. ”

“So, you’re going to, what? Do nothing? ”

She nodded at Daniel. “That’s the plan. ”

Fizzy rolled her eyes and repeated with an exasperated edge: “That’s the plan. The boring, safe plan. ”

Jess gave her friend a look of warning. It wasn’t that Fizzy was wrong, per se, but Jess had more to think about than just herself. She couldn’t throw caution to the wind. That was a luxury childless people had, people with free time and fewer responsibilities. Boring, safe plans hadn’t steered her wrong yet.

EIGHT

BUT THE PLAN, as it were, went up in smoke three days later at about 5: 17 in the evening, when a silver Tesla pulled up beside Jess on her walk home and rolled down a heavily tinted passenger-side window. It was in her nature to ignore all cars rolling up at a curb, but this one wasn’t catcalling. This driver knew her name.

“Jessica. ”

She turned to find Brandon “the Teeth” Butkis in the driver’s seat. His left arm was wrapped around the steering wheel as he leaned toward her, smiling like he had an entire pack of Chiclets he wanted to show off. He was dressed casually in a blue button-down shirt open at the collar. “Do you have a second? ”

“Not really. ” She pointed down two blocks, toward her apartment building. “I need to get dinner started. ”

“Actually, I was wondering if there was someone who could watch your daughter tonight, ” he said, and his smile turned tentative. Despite the intimidating size of his teeth, his eyes were warm and brown, with crinkles at the edges. He did not look like a man who wanted to pull Jess off the street, plug wires into her skin, and turn her into a human battery. Jess registered vaguely that she needed to take it down a notch, imagination-wise.

Approaching the car, she leaned down, resting her forearms on the windowsill. “I’m sure this is frustrating for you, but I’m really not interested in pursuing this. ”

“And we won’t force you to, ” he said quickly. “Our intention isn’t to be intrusive. I know this has been an … odd situation. David and I just wanted to make sure to follow up. ”

Jess had to admit they’d been surprisingly silent given the urgency of the first meeting, the enormity of the finding, and the rushed manner in which she’d fled their headquarters. So far it had been crickets. “You aren’t suggesting another meeting, are you? ”

She must have looked like she’d relish another meeting as much as she would a root canal because Brandon laughed. “No. That meeting was a mistake. Our mistake. And probably the worst way to tell you both. We got overly excited, as scientists—we wanted you to experience that moment of discovery with us, but we should have exhibited more EQ. ” He shifted in his seat. “We were hoping to take you to dinner. ”

“Tonight? ”

He nodded. “Can you get free? ”

She turned and looked down the street again, considering it. Jess wasn’t blind—River was objectively gorgeous—but she couldn’t even say she liked him as a person. Plus, she still couldn’t wrap her logical mind around the number. Her priorities, in order, were her kid, her grandparents, and her bills. She wasn’t going to pursue this no matter what they said tonight.

“I have a lot on my plate, ” Jess told him. “I’ve taken on another job; I have a young daughter at home, as you know. I really don’t think I have—”

“I promise, Jessica, ” Brandon cut in gently, and when her attention flew back to his face, he gave another tentative smile. “We won’t waste your time. ”

JESS KNEW AS soon as Brandon pulled up at the valet in front of Addison at the Grand Del Mar that this wasn’t going to be a laid-back kind of dinner. They wouldn’t be eating tacos with their hands or sharing pitchers of beer. A meal at the Addison would cost more than her rent.

She glanced down at her lap, brushing nonexistent lint from the skirt of her dress. Brandon would forever be in the Like column for giving her fifteen minutes to change out of her yoga pants and the you-can-barely-see-the-stain Lululemon top Juno had picked out for her at Goodwill. The blue dress she’d tugged on was stretchy, which was why it still fit.

Brandon grabbed his neatly pressed sports coat from where it hung on a hook in the back seat, beamed a reassuring smile, and gestured for Jess to walk ahead of him.

“Right this way, Mr. Butkis. ” The maî tre d’ nodded, leading them through a stunning circular room lined with arch-capped French doors. Silverware tapped gently against porcelain, ice clinked in highball glasses; all around them, conversation hummed at a low, pleasant murmur. Tables were dotted spaciously throughout the room, framed by low plush chairs upholstered in scarlet and gold.

“Is David meeting us? ”

Brandon looked over his shoulder at her. “They should be here already. ”

They. Jess’s stomach swiftly fell to her knees: they. David and River stood at their arrival at a table on the far end of the room.

Frozen as Brandon held the chair out for her, she felt River watching, carefully taking in her reaction. His mouth drooped in apology. “I thought—well, I assumed you’d realize we’d all be here. ”

“It’s okay, ” she said quietly, taking her seat and struggling to regain her composure. River was seated immediately to her right, and his discomfort over her discomfort was palpable. “I misunderstood. ”

She took a risk, meeting his gaze, and his expression remained largely unreadable except for a small crease in his forehead, the hint of concern in his eyes. If he were a more intuitive person, she might have interpreted his look as a question: Is this okay?

Jess blinked away, setting her napkin on her lap. As they settled, the table fell into a hush. Jess looked up to find the three men watching as she tried to anticipate why they’d invited her to this dinner.

“It’s okay, ” she said again. “Let’s do this. ”

“Let’s take a moment to study the menu first, ” David suggested, “and then maybe River can tell you a little more about the company and our technology. ”

They perused in heavy silence before agreeing on the five-course tasting menu. They ordered cocktails, ordered food, and then the four of them just … sat. It was unbearable.

“River? ” David finally prompted in a fatherly tone.

River cleared his throat, adjusted his napkin. He reached forward to fidget with his water glass. How awkward for him, being put in the position of trying to convince Jess that this was all real when it seemed he didn’t want to believe it, either.

“I think I understand the science, ” she said, before he could launch into whatever pitch he was formulating in that big brain of his. “At least, I understand that you’ve identified a wide variety of genes you believe are involved in emotional and, uh—sexual fulfillment in a relationship. I understand how the algorithm could work, in theory. I guess what I question is whether this particular finding is real. If you’ve never had a score of ninety-eight before, how do we know what it means? ”

“If we were given a score of twenty-two, ” River asked, “would you have believed that? ”

It was exactly the question she’d asked herself only a handful of days ago. “Yes, ” she admitted, “because that would align with my feelings about you in general. A ninety-eight, to me, implies that we would be drawn to each other. That we would have instantaneous chemistry. ”

There was a lull that was mercifully interrupted by the waiter bringing bread and cocktails. When they were alone again, David carefully asked, “And you don’t? ”

“I generally want to commit a felony when I see him, ” Jess said, a butter knife held in front of her. “I’m not sure that’s a sign of romantic compatibility. ”

River exhaled, settling back in his chair. “This is a waste of our time. ”

Leaning forward, Brandon engaged her with his grin. “It can be easier to believe bad news than good news. ”

“I’m not a pessimist, ” she said. “I’d believe good news if it was someone telling me I won the lottery. But I’m looking at him—and he’s looking at me—and I’m sure we are both thinking, ‘There is no way. ’”

Brandon turned to River. “Do you find her attractive? ”

“This test isn’t a measure of attraction, ” River said blandly. “It’s a measure of compatibility. ”

Jess set down her bread. “You really just said that. ”

“Jessica, ” David said, redirecting her attention. “Do you? ”

She laughed. “River is attractive. We can all see that. ” She made the mistake of instinctively glancing his way when she said this and noticed a tiny muscle twitching upward at the corner of his lips. It made her feel softer, bending toward him, and self-preservation swelled up in her throat. She hated it. “But speaking to him is like having a conversation with a grouchy calculator. ”

David hid a surprised laugh with a cough, gamely tapping his own chest and reaching for his water. To Jess’s right, River exhaled long and slow.

“Let me try a different tack, ” Brandon said as the waiter brought the first course. “We believe in this science. ” He gestured to the men on either side of him. “I don’t just mean that we hope it works because we stand to make a lot of money. That is true, of course, but that isn’t everything. Yes, the story of the two of you could be very compelling for our launch, but it’s also a scientific curiosity for us. So far, every couple who received scores greater than eighty is still together and scores off the charts on many measures of relationship satisfaction. We have to wonder: How satisfied would a couple be at ninety-eight? ”

“Every match over eighty has been successful? ” she asked, wondering at his wording. “I thought Lisa said three out of four. ”

“Legally we can’t say one hundred percent, because not every Titanium Match has actually connected in person yet. ”

“That must be annoying for you, ” she joked.

This time, David’s laugh was booming. “You have no idea. ”

“You’re both young, attractive, and single, ” Brandon said, rolling with this momentary levity.

“We aren’t asking you to marry him, ” David added.

“I’m sorry, ” River cut in. “Can I join this conversation? ”

“Yes, ” Jess agreed, “where are you with all of this? ”

The food sat neglected on the table in front of them as they all waited for his answer. “Of course I believe in it, ” River said. “I invented it. ”

Do you actually believe our result could be real? That we could be soulmates? she wanted to ask, but the words felt too enormous to push past her lips. She dug into her scallops instead.

“We’re asking the two of you to spend some time together, ” Brandon urged.

“Exactly, ” David said, nodding. “To get to know each other. Give it a little time. ”

“Unfortunately, ” she said, lifting a bite to her mouth. If nothing else, at least she was getting dinner out of it. “Time is what I don’t have to give. I’m not sure River’s mute five minutes in Twiggs every morning will let us dive too deep. ”

“What if we compensated you? ” Brandon asked.

Her hand froze, dinner suddenly forgotten. A hush fell over the table. River looked sharply at Brandon, but David was watching only her. They’d planned for this.

I promise, Jessica. We won’t waste your time.

“I’m sorry, ” she said hoarsely, “what? ”

“What if we compensated you, ” Brandon calmly repeated. “Allowing you to make time in your schedule to get to know River? ”

She carefully placed the knife on the edge of her plate. “You want to pay me to date him? ”

River exhaled sharply, reaching for his whiskey.

“Consider it a stipend for participating in an aspect of a larger experiment, ” David said. “You could quit the coffee shop, have more free time. You’re an important part of our research study, one-half of a score we need to validate—or invalidate—our binning paradigm prior to launch. ”

Jess leaned back in her chair, heart thundering. “So, you need us to … explore this until after launch? ”

Brandon laughed a little at this. “Well, you can explore it until—”

“Assuming we don’t fall for each other, ” she clarified, “what is the duration of the study? ”

“The IPO is May sixth, ” David said matter-of-factly. “Today is January twenty-eighth. So, just over three months. ”

And there was the truth, baldly laid out.

“How much compensation are we talking? ”

David and Brandon exchanged a look. Jess lifted her water glass to her lips with a shaking hand, ice tinkling gently against the glass.

“Ten thousand a month. ”

A watery cough burst from her throat, sharp and urgent. River reached over and laid a hand on her back, rubbing gently.

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