SOUL TIES (The Sánchez Brothers Series, Book 1)

CHAPTER 6 : DEBBIE

"Good day, Miss Rodriguez."

The pretty receptionist greeted me as I trotted into the building. The narrow heels of my stilettos clicked on the tiled floor and created a rhythmic sound that echoed in the reception floor. I stopped at her table.

"Hello, Becky." She seemed taken aback and if my anxiety level wasn't at its peak, I'd have rolled my eyes. I kinda understood why she was shocked, I never smiled at anybody anyways. Not even Madison. I wasn't rude but then I wasn't exactly friendly either. I decided to shock her a little more. "How was your night?"

She blinked unsurely and I resisted the urge to quirk my brow. "Uh, it w-was good. Thanks." Damn, she even stuttered. Who thought it a good idea to keep her in the reception? I wondered how she dealt with the fuming and mentally unstable people that occasionally breezed in and out of WeCare Inc.

I nodded once. "That's nice." She made a small sound when I turned to leave and shrunk back when I stared at her. "Is there something you want to talk about?"

"Y-you weren't present on Saturday. Everyone was worried."

I scrunched my face in thought. "I wouldn't actually say worried. Curious seems like a better fit. You only worry about people you like and they don't like me. But that's only fair, I don't like them either."

She nodded slowly but I saw the twitching at the edges of her lips. She was probably thinking I was a sadistic clown. "Hope you're okay though?"

I shrugged in response. "I guess you heard a few speculations. Some of them were actually creative to be honest. I was mildly impressed."

A chuckle left her lips before she could stop it and she slapped her hand over her mouth. "I'm so sorry."

I shook my head. "You're apologizing for laughing?" What kind of stories had the people working in the building said to Becky's hearing? I drew closer to her and whispered conspiratorially. "Between both of us, I'm not a tyrant. I'm not even a remotely bad person, I just don't like a lot of people. But you seem like a chill type of person and I fuck with that. Heavy." She nodded and offered me a shy smile. "I also think you need to work on your confidence, honey. No shades, I'm just giving you an advice that might help you. This receptionist post is no joke. You need to be mentally prepared."

The receptionist thanked me profusely and I brushed it off with a single nod. In the elevator, I scowled derisively at the irony of the situation. I was giving Becky tips on how to excel in her job when I wasn't even sure I still had mine. What was that? Selflessness? I got out of the elevator and stood at the doors for a couple seconds. Where was I supposed to go at that point? Normally, I'd have gone straight to my office which was a few steps away but that wasn't an option at the moment. Amber's office should be my first stop, she'd be the one to hand me a termination letter anyways. En route to her office, I passed Madison's office door and paused. Maybe I could make a detour.

"Come on in." A familiar high-pitched voice called out from inside the office after my knuckles left the door. "Oh, Dee. How are you doing? Top of the morning to you."

Her reverberating laugh was an indication that my face had an expression of distaste on it. Madison was from North Carolina and like most people from that part, she had a southern twang. It made her words sound longer than they were supposed to, sound a little stupid too. I'd tried severally to imagine how her clients managed to listen to her during therapy sessions without howling in laughter. I for one, could never take her seriously. What the fuck was top of the morning to you? What happened to a simple good morning?

"Good morning, Madison."

"Please, have a seat." She pointed to the seat before her desk and watched me closely as I lowered myself on the leather seat. "I reckon you're healthy now."