Damage Repaired

Chapter 18

I left Rachel's office feeling nauseated as ever. I knew I had the option to tell her to pick someone else, anyone else, but it had to be me. Out of all the employees working at the foundation, I was the only one with a deep business background, the one who knew the ins and out of corporations and would thrive easily in that setting. None of the employees I had Rachel hire belonged in that stifling environment, and frankly, I don't think anyone—anyone would be able to handle shadowing a man like Nathaniel as I would. He would send them running back here scared shitless, and I didn't have time to deal with that, so sending me was the only logical option. I'd been away for so long I didn't even know he owned a tech company; I thought he was still running Creed Industries, but apparently not.

I was completely out of it the entire time at the Soup Kitchen, half-listening to Emily and Matt chat on about something I didn't catch because my brain was spinning out of control. When Dylan picked me up at the end of the day, he knew something was wrong immediately.

"Spill," he demanded as soon as I slid in the car.

"Geez, can I get comfortable first?" I joked, mustering a smile.

He reached over and buckled my seatbelt, patting my thigh when he finished. "There, now spill."

"I'm going to be shadowing Nathaniel for a couple of months," I blurted, getting straight to the point.

"What the fuck?!" Dylan almost hit the parked car behind us as he pulled out of the parking lot. "You're fucking joking."

"I wish."

He pinched the bridge of his nose, still gripping the steering wheel with his other hand. "Explain."

So I did, and when I finished, he looked like he wanted to rip someone's head off, probably Nathaniel's.

"You're too damn selfless," Dylan told me, shaking his head. "You put everyone and their feelings first, but what about yours?" He asked, a hint of anger in his voice. "What are you going to do when something goes bad, which it eventually will, because Nathaniel fucking Creed can never do anything right, and don't tell me you'll cross that bridge when you get to it."

"I'm more than aware of what I'm getting into, Dylan. I know dealing with him, something's bound to go wrong; trust me, I know that more than anyone, but I can't focus on what might or might not go wrong when I know I'm the only person qualified enough to shadow him. And I know even if I shadow him or not, the kids will get what they need, but I actually see the benefit in it as well and can take the things I learn and apply them in my future business ventures in Africa. The connections I'll make from shadowing him will be life-changing for the people I want to help; that's why I'm doing this."

"God, you're such a good person; I love you," Dylan sighed, the wind from the open window blowing his long blonde hair around. "But I want to make sure you're taking your mental health into consideration. Nothing is more important than your sanity, not the foundation, not the kids, and not that bullshit-ass contract he set up, even if it turns out to be the best thing that ever happened. Promise me you'll take care of yourself."

"I promise," I smiled at my best friend, feeling so damn grateful to have him in my life. I always thought it was crazy how he started off as my scrawny assistant and ended up being my closest confidant. "And I love you too."

After he dropped me off at the hotel, I made my way up to my floor, feeling confident about my decision to shadow Nathaniel. Sure there were cons, but the pros outweighed every con, so I was going to stick with my plan and see it through. Before settling in bed, I checked my laptop and found an email from Phoenix Tech stating how excited they are to have me and that orientation is scheduled for the day after tomorrow. Relief flooded my body when I read the last sentence that said their CEO was currently out of town and would be for the next few weeks, meaning I wouldn't be seeing him right away like I had anticipated.