269
Tony
I went to lunch a little later than most of the office. I had taken to doing so to avoid the rush and running into too many people. I was hoping for a smoother afternoon. My phone hadn't rang all day, thankfully. I hoped that meant that Quillan was settling into the daycare well and that the rest of Blue Moon had gotten the message that they would just have to deal with the nonsense that they'd taken on for themselves.
As I entered the coffee room, planning to get an afternoon cup, a man I vaguely recognized from around the office looked up at me. His jaw was set. He eyed me with suspicion as he set the coffee pot back down, empty. He was dressed in slacks and a button-down shirt. His badge was clipped to his belt, but there was something vaguely familiar about him that I couldn't place.
The way he looked at me made it obvious that he wasn't thrilled to see me, though I nodded in acknowledgment of his presence all the same. It felt like he was sizing me up, though there was no way he could think of starting a fight.
He was half a head shorter than me, and I easily had fifty pounds on him. Besides that, he was completely human.
"Jake, right?" I said. "I didn't get a chance to speak to you when I came on board."
Jake took a long drink, still just looking at me before he spoke.
"Yeah. I meant for it to be that way."
Then, he turned and walked out without another word. The tension hung in the air as he left, muttering under his breath.
"...fucking better than me? Bullshit."
I went to the coffee pot, grimacing at it as I emptied it, and then I heard another voice, Bethany, I thought. I was sure it was her when the scent of her perfume hit my nose, a gentle floral scent.
"Really, Jake? You always do this!" I turned around. She stood in the doorway, hissing down the hall. She was dressed as impeccably as ever, in a bright pink dress today and heels that were almost the same color as her dark skin. "It's impolite as hell!"
She scowled and came in, carrying her own mug just as I dumped out the coffee grounds and started to make a fresh pot.
"Ugh, he always takes the last cup and leaves it to clean up," Bethany grumbled. "Eats the last pastry and doesn't bother to throw away the box... Just wait. I'm going to find something to fix him. It's going to be diabolical."
"Are you supposed to tell me that?"
She beamed. "You're not my direct supervisor... yet. I've heard about the shuffling going on."
I chuckled. "Your secret is safe with me, and I haven't gotten that far into the personnel records yet. Are you opposed to being shuffled?"
She hummed. "If it comes with lateral pay and lateral work or better pay and commiserate work, then now."
I snickered. "What an answer. Bethany, right?"
She beamed at me. "That's me."
"Do you have a moment?" Tony asked.
"Sure. What's up?" Bethany asked as the coffee pot started to gurgle.
I considered the question.
"Jake."
She winced. "Yeah..."
I tilted my head. "By his own admission, we've never even spoken before."
Bethany sighed. "Jake interviewed for your position. Obviously, he wasn't thrilled when he got rejected."
"Would you happen to know if he's qualified?"
She scoffed. "He's full of hot air, and he's been here a long time. That's all I know for sure."
I nodded. "I'll talk to HR to see if there's a way to clear the air."
"Good luck with that. Jake's not one to easily let things go," Bethany rolled her eyes. "I swear, he acts like the whole world is against him. Just because he's related to the owner doesn't mean he gets to skate through his work and be a jerk."
I cocked an eyebrow. "Related how?"
She blinked. "You don't know?"
I shook my head.
"Jake is Mr. D'Amico's son."
Oh, for fuck's sake...
Just as I was trying to distance myself from my own father and his insanity, I stepped right into another father-son issue.
I considered it and sighed. "I don't suppose you have an insider knowledge about their relationship?"
Bethany grinned. "If you tell Mr. D'Amico that his son is being a jackass, you'll make his co-worker's day."
I snorted. "I'll keep that in my back pocket."
I made a cup of coffee and let her make hers before heading back to my office to clock in. I sent Mr. D'Amico a request for a quick meeting and got a reply a few moments later.
Come on up.
I took some of the documents I needed clarification on and headed up, wondering how to broach the subject. I knocked on Mr. D'Amico's office door, waiting for his invitation to enter.
"Come in."
I stepped in and found him behind his desk, engrossed in paperwork. He glanced up, his sharp eyes fixing on me.
"Something tells me that you're not up here because of the documents in your hand."
I closed the door behind me. "It's part of it."
"And the other part?"
I took the seat across from him and decided there was no good way to bring this up.
"Jake."
He blinked. His expression remained neutral, but there was a glint in his eyes that hinted at amusement. "Go on."
I wasn't sure what to make of his amusement, so I carried on.
"I ran into Jake in the coffee room, and other than his terrible break room manners, I got the sense that he will likely intentionally cause problems out of spite."
His lips twitched into half a smile. "And so?"
"I'm asking what you want me to do."
"About Jake?" He smiled. "You think he could be useful enough under you?"
I blinked. "I hadn't gotten to his file, but it came to mind if he applied for my position."
He snorted. "Sure. Applied."
"I'm missing something clearly."
He grinned. "I really appreciate how forthright you are. Honestly, I had hoped to poach you as soon as your father decided to take the reigns."
He looked down at the papers on his desk.
"Then, you applied for the position I wanted to put you in, like a gift from the universe."
I swallowed. My stomach fluttered with flattery.
"All that to say, I didn't hire you to play nice with my son," Mr. D'Amico grinned. "If you find that he could be useful to you, he's yours, and if he steps out of line, cut his head off."
I blinked at him. "Just like that?"
He smirked. "I'm a businessman, Tony. I don't have time for nepotism when it doesn't serve me. Part of me considered making him a part of your team as a good kick in the ass, but given the state of the companies and your track record, I can't afford to have you wasting time whipping my son into shape. Though, if you could manage it, it would be a favor."
He chuckled to himself. "And his mother might end up loving you by the end of all this."
I nodded, amused and curious about why he would say that.
"I'm willing to work with Jake if he has a useful skill set, but I won't give him preferential treatment just because he's your son."
"Then, you're doing exactly what I hired you for. I appreciate it." Mr. D'Amico leaned back with a sigh and eyed the pages in my hand warily. "Now that HR matters are handled, what's in your hand?"
I handed the pages over. "A tentative plan for Green Corp that I need clarity on and some information on Height Inc."
He looked at the pages and frowned. "What's on your mind?"
"Height Inc. is in the tech industry. They've got a solid product, but their marketing and sales strategies need a major overhaul. I'm thinking of revamping their online presence and repositioning the product in the market." I sighed. "Since it's a human tech company, things are a little different, but I wanted to pitch the idea of developing a supernatural arm to your company overall."
He cocked an eyebrow but didn't look up. "Sounds like more money. You've got my interest. Put it on a future docket. And Green Corp.?"
"Their production costs are too high, and they're not optimizing their supply chain or their R&D potential as much as I can glean from what I've received. I plan to streamline their operations, renegotiate contracts with suppliers, and so on. I think most of the plan will simply make it stop bleeding money, which will put it in the black, but it won't make the ROI you want on it quickly enough."
He tilted his head left then right as he flipped before his eyebrows shot up.
"You want to compete with the witches on potions?"
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