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sp; “You cleared all that with Ellen?” she asked.
“Yep. I’m not needed until the meetings this afternoon,” I said. “What’s on your agenda?”
“I should get these interviews up and going again,” I said.
“Did you postpone them for some reason?”
I poked my head out of the bathroom and watched Hailey freeze. I could tell she was debating on what to say. I drew in a deep breath and sighed as she wiggled out from underneath the covers, her eyes still cloudy with sleep.
“Hailey. Is there a reason you stopped the interviews?” I asked.
“They’re a little more exhausting than I imagined they would be. Everyone’s so qualified, and I know people are going to be upset if I don’t choose them.”
I could tell she was only partially telling me the truth, and it hurt that she couldn’t be more truthful with me than that.
“That’s the price of owning a company,” I said. “I’ve had to do it many times before. It doesn’t get any easier, but hiring the best will make your company the better for it.”
“Thanks,” she said flatly.
“Anytime,” I said.
She groaned as she got off the bed, and we started our little morning dance, washing our faces and brushing our teeth, interchanging shower times and drip drying as we stood at the closet. I loved the dance we did in the mornings. It was a natural rhythm for us. It only served to confirm every single morning that we were made for one another.
But I could tell something was occupying Hailey’s mind now.
“Let me know what Drew says, okay?” she asked. “I’m assuming you’re going to bring up the dinner?”
“I was actually thinking we could be upfront with them about a double date,” I said.
“Why?” she asked. “We might run the risk of them saying no.”
“Look, we can’t force them to get back together. Maybe there’s stuff that happened that we don’t know about. But if they agree to a double date and still want them to have a true date together, then we could still back out and have the two of them have dinner. I don’t think we should lie to them about all of it,” I said.
“I guess you’re right,” Hailey said. “But tell me how Drew responds first. If I’m going to be upfront with Anna, she’s going to want to know how Drew reacted before she reacts.”
“Women are so weird,” I said.
“Damn straight. And if you really want this child to be a girl, you better get used to it,” Hailey said, winking.
“I’ll love our child, no matter what,” I said.
Hailey and I grabbed a quick breakfast before we went our separate ways. I ran by the house to make sure everyone was okay after the trauma that happened yesterday, and I saw my injured worker there. He wasn’t on a ladder, but he was helping measure and cut the carpet being laid down. I talked to him for a few minutes and made sure there was nothing he needed before I headed over to Drew’s tattoo parlor.
It was now or never.
“Hey, Bryan! What brings you around?” Drew asked.
“You not open on Mondays?” I asked.
“Nope. It’s been consistently our slowest day, so I implemented new hours. Mondays, we’re closed unless someone books an appointment and prepays half of it upfront,” he said.
“Sounds like a good policy. So why are you here if you’re closed?” I asked.
“The down day gives me time to catch up on shit. Right now, I’m ordering new supplies. Come on in, dude. You sound like you wanna talk about something.”
“I do,” I said, “and I want you to be upfront with me.”