admitting I was hung-over. Well done Delilah.
He chuckled and looked down at the papers he was holding. "It's that preservative they use and no matter how expensive the wine is, you can still get smacked with it. J and I had a five-hundred dollar bottle at a resort once and the next day it was like we'd been poisoned. Between us we ate all the bacon and fried food that buffet had. I think I saw the chef crying in the kitchen later."
I laughed and then winced as my headache throbbed. Did I have him all wrong? Mr. Stone didn't like him but did that mean I had to dislike him too? And he called Mr. Stone J ?
"Sorry we didn't get to talk much at the party. It's ... ah ..." he trailed off and waved his hand around, "It had nothing to do with you. Years ago one of Jackson's girlfriends decided to tell him she liked me more than him. I'd barely spoken with her and would never anyway but it broke a bit of our friendship. I love the guy like my brother but he gets a little touchy if I'm around a girl he likes."
He looked down at the paper again, almost shyly, and raised his eyebrows before laughing. "Wow, over-sharing much on a Monday morning with a pretty girl who has a hangover. Forget I said anything. I'm embarrassed."
"It's fine," I said and smiled back at him. Pretty girl?
"Okay, to work so I can't say anything else stupid. I was hoping you could help me out. I know you're Jackson's assistant but mine has gone off to have a baby and I haven't got anyone to replace her yet. I just need some contracts and other correspondence and thought that maybe you have time? It's for a meeting tomorrow lunch."
"Mr. Stone has me looking up a lot of contracts right now but I'm sure I can help. Is that what you're looking for?"
Mr. Black handed me the manila folder. It had three sheets of paper in it. I skimmed over them. He wanted contracts between two companies, some correspondence between a certain date range and then contracts between another two companies.
"Should be okay. I'll have something for you later today?"
"You are a life saver. Margueritte usually does this for me but for some reason she just couldn't hold the baby in so she could stay at work. Selfish really."
He grinned at me and I laughed and winced once more.
"Stop telling jokes, my head can't take it," I said, taking another sip of burned coffee.
"Deal. I'll see you later maybe."
With that, Mr. Black went to the elevator which opened when he pressed the button. He smiled once more at me as the doors closed and I sat back in my chair. My head was spinning but this time it wasn't the hangover.
What had just happened?
*
I was halfway th rough Mr. Black's work when the elevator opened and a young delivery guy who looked like a surfer stepped out. He was holding a white paper bag that the moment I saw it, I knew held something fried and greasy.
"Delivery for Delilah? Ha, that's cool. D for D. Man, nice office."
He was pure surfer stoner and laughed at his own joke as he came over. He handed me the bag and then waved away my trying to tip him.
"Dude already tipped me big time. Enjoy!" He walked back to the elevator and hit the call button.
I opened the top of the bag and the delicious scent of bacon and friend hash brown rose up.
"Do you know who ordered this?"
The elevator opened and he stepped inside.
"Um ... sorry dude."
The doors closed and he was gone.
I reached into the bag and pulled out a container. It held crispy bacon, two eggs, two hash browns and some sliced fried tomato. There was also a note that was going see-through from all the oil.
Bacon bacon bacon,
That'll stop your achin'
MB
I took a bite of a bacon strip and felt my stomach rumble. It was so good I nearly moaned aloud. This day had gone from terrible to strange and now it was both delicious and confusing.
I wolfed my way through the meal, feeling my hangover fading with each bite. Once I had some food inside me, I wiped off my fingers on the napkin provided and relaxed back into my