Suspend My Disbelief

[hadleyfraser]

Hadley was nervous. She had left a note for Kit at the bar that afternoon on her way into work at Sunshine's Too, asking him to meet her there on her break so she could make the big reveal. She didn't even know if he'd gotten the note, but she was almost through her break, and he hadn't come by yet. All the note had said was "come by Sunshine's Too between five and five fifteen so we can chat." That sounded vague and non-threatening, right? Hadley had thought so.

Hadley, at a mere twelve weeks into her pregnancy, was already showing too much to hide her baby bump any longer. Dressed in a white scoop neck tee and black slacks, with her apron ties around her hips, she definitely looked like a mother-to-be. Someone had even told her she was glowing. That had been weird.

"Hey Jo?" Hadley called into the office, looking for her boss and friend. "Has anyone come in asking for me? I was in the bathroom. Again." She shrugged and grinned a little; ever since she had found out she was expecting, Hadley had been in the bathroom every half hour to pee. Not one of the perks, but whatever.

At that moment Hadley heard the bell over the door chime, and she slid deftly back into the main room of the tea shop, but it was only an elderly lady on a walker. Damn. She was losing her damn mind, waiting for Kit to show up. She didn't even know what she was going to tell him.

See this bump? It's your fault. No, that wouldn't work. She paced back and forth behind the counter, looking up every four seconds to see if someone had come in, even though the door hadn't chimed. She gave into exhaustion at last, resting her head in her hands on the counter and not even bothering to stifle a yawn.

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words; I don't count...
muse; Ghost
outfit; White t-shirt, black slacks, apron, baby bump
credits; zie @ CAUTION!
lyrics by fun.!

[/center]

[JORDANNA HAILE GARCIA]

Sometimes Jo really missed Caleb. Sure, he was obnoxious and, yeah, he did sort of steal her boyfriend, who was actually gay and not really her boyfriend, but damn could that kid crunch numbers. She hated doing the number for the store, but at least he'd taught her everything she knew before running off to college. that had been so many years ago... the girl sighed, not wanting to do all this cruddy math, but the program she was using was a good one and it did a lot of the work for her. What it didn't she knew how to do.

Then a thought struck her which made her groan. "Shit.." She grumbled, realizing she had forgot t place the order for the lavender. She was nearly out. she lowered the tab for the numbers and opened the site that she ordered the lavender from and started the order.

"Hey Jo?" she looked up at the sudden distraction, not sure if she was grateful for it or frustrated by it. "Has anyone come in asking for me? I was in the bathroom. Again." Hadley was a sweet girl and a decent worker. She blinked at her, though. She had been in the office for the better part of the day. Why would Hadley be asking her? Then she wondered if maybe she was trying to draw attention to the fact she'd been in the bathroom. And who would come looking for her at work?

"Sorry, no.." She told her slowly, watching as Hadley jumped to see who came into the store when the familiar bell chimed. "Is everything alright?" She asked, her tone kind as she waved towards the chair in the tiny closet sized office, but Hadley was gone.

Jo bit her lip for a moment before getting up and following her employee. She put a gentle hand on her shoulder. "If you need to leave, you can." She offered gently. "And my doors open if you need to talk." she pulled her hand away, unsure if it was welcome or not, but Jo cared for the well being of her employees. She always had.

[KIT RATHBONE]

Kit had been in a crummy mood that day. The shipment of liquor was delayed due to the roads being too slippery from a previous rainstorm. When didn't it rain in this damn city?! After spending half an hour on the phone calling the manager who was in charge of the shipment from the company he ordered from every name in the book he slammed the phone down to find that the drains were backed up again behind the bar. The floor behind the bar had drains every few feet for any booze that was spilled so that they didn't have to worry about trying to mop it up. They'd just throw some water down to make sure it didn't get sticky and it would all go down the drains. Except that one too many glasses had been broken and the shards were caught and a disgusting stench was coming from the drains, not to mention they were beginning to overflow. That was another thing he'd have to take care of. To top it off he'd received a note to go to Sunshine's Too at a certain time frame. Did these people think he had all this time on his hands?! He tossed the note in the trash and forgot about it most of the day. It wasn't until he'd gotten a plumber in to snake the drains, received a wrong shipment and ran to the bank that he remembered the note.

Sunshine's Too was on the way from the bank and he knew he'd pass it anyway so he might as well pop in. It was just lucky that it was almost half past five and not later in the day when he opened up the door and heard the stupid jingle of the bell. Jo really needed to get rid of that damn thing. At least she got rid of the 'NO KITS ALLOWED' signs that she'd hung a few months back. Whenever he pissed her off she hung them up.

An old woman with a walker was slowly making her way further into the store but at that time was pretty much blocking the way so he couldn't go further than the threshold and just stood there glaring at the old hag. Sometimes he swore these people were placed there just to annoy him. Losing patience he squeezed his way between two tables. At first he hadn't realized who had written the note and it took a second for him to figure out who it was. It had been some time since he'd seen the girl who had drunkenly crashed in his apartment one moon ago.

"I didn't know you worked here. Does the wicked witch allow you visitors?" Kit asked when he finally made it to the counter and gave a cocky little chuckle at his joke. He'd known Jo a long time.. too long in his opinion. He didn't know why this girl wanted to see him and he didn't usually make these kinds of visits but he'd been in the neighborhood otherwise he would have just dismissed it. That, and because he knew it would give him the opportunity to mess with Jo.

"So what did you need?" Kit tried not to sound like a total ass but sometimes he just came off that way. Of course he was a total ass. He tapped his knuckles against the surface of the counter almost as if he were being impatient. He didn't have much time and he had left that idiot Joey in charge when he'd left. He didn't need that moron blowing the place up.

[hadleyfraser]

Hadley looked up at Jo and smiled, nodding at Jo's sweet offer of a listening ear. "Thanks. I may take you up on that." Hadley liked her boss, and was beginning to consider her an actual friend. It was nice, having a place to work that was laid back, with an employer who cut her some slack now and then. Yep, she genuinely liked Jordanna.

When Hadley turned around again to face the door and ask the elderly woman what she wanted to order, she straightened up only to come face to face with Kit. "Oh," she said, quite surprised at his presence. She'd just assumed he wasn't coming, and she didn't really fault him for it. She knew he probably had a million things going on. In fact, she'd kind of hoped he wouldn't turn up. But he had, and so now she had to tell him.

"Uh... hi," she opened lamely. "I'm sorry to have just dropped a note this afternoon, but the guy at the bar said you weren't gonna be in for a while... so, yeah." Smooth, Haddey-Waddles. Doing great so far. Keep it up.

"I didn't know you worked here. Does the wicked witch allow you visitors?"

Hadley wrinkled her nose. "The wicked- Who? You know what, never mind. I'm glad you're here." She was panicking internally, and she was feeling nauseated again. She wasn't sure if it was morning sickness or nerves. but either way. she had a short window of time to get the news out.

"So... what did you need?"

Oh. Clearly he wasn't all that jazzed to be here. That didn't make things any easier. Shit.

"Oh. Umm... Look, I know you're a busy guy, so let me preface this by saying I don't really... I mean... Gah. Okay. Shit."

Yeah, this was not going well at all. Hadley took a deep breath and stood up from her perch leaning over the counter, not thinking for a second that doing so would expose her just-starting-to-show bump. She brought a hand to her forehead and closed her eyes, trying to gather her thoughts. Finally she just broke down and put both hands on the counter, leaning forward to look straight at Kit.

"Look. What happened that night was a mistake, and don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about, because if you didn't remember, you wouldn't be here. All that to say, I'm pregnant, it's yours, and I'm due in six months. So... I guess the ball's in your court. I'm not gonna ask you to stick around if you don't want to, because I don't see any point in screwing up two lives over this, and I'm rambling, so I'm just going to can it right now and pray that the floor opens up and swallows me and this baby whole right this second."

Hadley had said all of this in one breath, and when she was done, she held her breath and waited for Kit to say something. Anything.

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___________________________________________________[/color]

words; I don't count...
muse; Ghost
outfit; White t-shirt, black slacks, apron, baby bump
credits; zie @ CAUTION!
lyrics by fun.!

[/center]

[JORDANNA HAILE GARCIA]

Jo nodded and gave Hadley her warmest smile and backed off. It was clear she wasn't interested in talking about it. "Well I'll be in the back." She slipped away and went back to the little office. Next shop? Bigger office. She was tired of those microscopic spaces. The store in Vegas had the same deal. She bit her lip thinking about it. Maybe she should go visit? See her aunt and uncle, check up on the old store and maybe even see all of her old friends for a bit. They'd all been posting on her Facebook saying she needed to visit. Maybe she would! The thought excited her and she wondered if it was even plausible at this point. Were her employees capable enough to run the store without her for a few days? Maybe she would shut down. If Kit didn't have his own stupid bar she knew she could count on him. Yeah, he was a prick, and he wouldn't do the best job, but he'd been around her stores long enough to know how things were supposed to run.

The phone suddenly rang, pulling her from her little reverie. "Welcome to Sunshine's Too, Jo speaking, how may I help you?" She chirped into the receiver. "Again?" She asked, her brows raising. "No.. no, Dana it's fine. Just get some rest." She sighed. This was the second time in a row the girl called out. She probably actually was sick, and if Hadley had been in the bathroom twice she was probably coming down with the bug, too. She hung up and reached for some hand sanitizer, getting up from her desk now to warn Hadley of the sickness apparently spreading through her store. She was NEVER going to get this order and bookkeeping done!

She made her way back into the main room, pausing when she saw Kit. Didn't he have his own business to run? Why the hell was he stalking around hers hitting on her employees! Strange how she had just been thinking about him, not that it was a rare occurrence. Jo still had feelings for Kit. She didn't let them show and she still thought he was a giant asshole, but she still liked him. And when he occasionally popped by at strange hours of the night, she had difficulty turning him away. Usually he passed out in her bed or on the couch before he could get far with her, but she could never turn him away. He was like heroin.

She started making her way to the counter to tell him to quit picking on Hadley, when she caught wind of what she was saying to Kit, making her freeze, all blood draining from her face. "...I'm pregnant, it's yours, and I'm due in six months. So... I guess the ball's in your court. I'm not gonna ask you to stick around if you don't want to, because I don't see any point in screwing up two lives over this, and I'm rambling, so I'm just going to can it right now and pray that the floor opens up and swallows me and this baby whole right this second."

Her jaw went slack and all she could do was stare. Pregnant? With Kit's baby? She felt ill. All Jo could do was look between them both shocked and horrified. What she would give to be pregnant with that son of a bitches bastard child. "Are you fucking kidding me?" She said without even thinking. She glared at Kit suddenly. "What, is it your damn goal to screw everyone who works here or something?" She then turned to Hadley, pointing an accusing finger. "And why the hell are you bringing your baby mama drama into my store? Next time some bartender knocks you up, don't confront him here." She all but hissed turning back to Kit and pursing her lips. She wanted nothing more than to slap him. "I can't even fucking believe you." The words were pained and she turned, not even caring about the scene she had just made. It was HER store! She can make a scene if she damn well pleased. She went to the back and slammed her office door shut, sitting down in the chair next to it, frowning, but the frown soon screwed up her face and the tears welled.

How could he?!

[KIT RATHBONE]

Kit had assumed when he saw Hadley that she wanted to ask him to go on a date. Or ask why he never tried to contact her. Kit didn't date. He didn't do the girlfriend thing. He'd tried it and it crashed and burned so hard that he had decided never again. He wasn't the kind of guy who would ever want to settle down with one woman. He liked living alone and having that independence that other men didn't have when they were tied down. And if that was what Hadley was going to ask then he'd come up with one of his generic excuses. Might cause him to get a slap but he'd live.

Except that wasn't the reason Hadley wanted to see him.

"...I'm pregnant, it's yours, and I'm due in six months. So... I guess the ball's in your court. I'm not gonna ask you to stick around if you don't want to, because I don't see any point in screwing up two lives over this, and I'm rambling, so I'm just going to can it right now and pray that the floor opens up and swallows me and this baby whole right this second."

At first Kit thought it was a joke. When she said she was pregnant and it was his he began to crack a bit of a smile, ready for the punch line. Except it never came. And she kept on talking and the more she spoke the more Kit's face fell. All color faded from his face as he froze. He felt like he was going to be sick. Kit couldn't possibly have gotten her knocked up! They used protection! Or at least he thought they did.. it wasn't like it happened just yesterday!

He began to doubt what she said, going into denial. He was about to shake his head until he heard a familiar voice that he really didn't want to hear in that moment. "Are you fucking kidding me?" I'm going to be sick. He thought to himself as his eyes panned over to none other than Jo. He hadn't even seen her standing there! And naturally Jo flew off the handle, screaming at him and the pregnant chick before storming off and slamming the door.

The silence that fell over the store only made matters worse. His lips began to move to say something but then he couldn't seem to articulate the words and he had to stop for a second. When he got a grip he shook his head and practically glared at Hadley. "Are you sure? You came on to me pretty easy that night. You can't tell me you haven't been screwing around with other guys." He accused her and took a step sideways, slowly making his way around the counter. Kit couldn't be a father. He could hardly take care of himself!

"You're wrong. There's no way!" He practically shouted in his deep voice as he began to grow angry. He was a flood of emotions right now and realized that this must have been how women felt on a daily basis. They were always emotional and going from one extreme to another! He felt himself getting upset now as he finally got behind the counter.

"We only did it once!"

[hadleyfraser]

Hadley watched as Kit's face turned about four different colors before settling on white. She hadn't known what to expect, but he wasn't shouting, so that was good, right? Shock was acceptable. Expected, even. This was going well.

And then Hadley heard Jo's voice. "Are you fucking kidding me?" Oh, boy. Hadley got the distinct impression that Jo was not merely upset because one of her employees was expecting. No, Hadley was fairly certain, judging by the way Jo was looking from Hadley to Kit that there was a story there that she didn't know yet. "What, is it your damn goal to screw everyone who works here or something?" So it was Kit Jo was angry with, not Hadley. Until... "And why the hell are you bringing your baby mama drama into my store? Next time some bartender knocks you up, don't confront him here."

What?! Next time? Oh Jesu Christe, this was not going well at all. What had she expected, though? Things like this never went off without a hitch. And apparently, this week's hitch was that Hadley's boss was, from what she would see, in a relationship with her baby daddy. Peachy fucking keen.

Jo disappeared back into the office, and Hadley was pretty sure she was crying. That's exactly what Hadley wanted to do, too, so she could hardly fault Jo in that department.

"Are you sure?" It was Kit speaking this time, and he sounded like he was waiting for her to yell "you've been Punk'd!"

"Of course I'm sure," Hadley said, stepping back from the counter and gesturing to her faintly swollen belly. "It's been three months, I'm pretty certain that-"

"You came on to me pretty easy that night. You can't tell me you haven't been screwing around with other guys."

Hadley reeled as though she'd been slapped. Did he just call her a slut? Hadley blinked a few times, giving her sleepy brain time to process what Kit had just said.

"I don't exactly throw myself at men every night, Kit. That was a very rare occasion, and clearly my attentions were directed at the wrong guy." Hadley wasn't angry, just hurt by Kit's words. But Kit was angry now.

"You're wrong," he said, his voice practically a shout now. "There's no way!" He looked like he was going to throw a chair across the room or something soon. "We only did it once!"

"Kit, you're shouting," Hadley said, her voice very quiet by contrast. She didn't need her business spread all over the place, and here was Kit, screaming about their very brief but passionate lovemaking. She tried to place a gentle hand on his arm to calm him down. "I just thought... I just thought it would be more fair if you knew, that's all," she said, holding back humiliated tears.

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___________________________________________________[/color]

words; I don't count...
muse; Ghost
outfit; White t-shirt, black slacks, apron, baby bump
credits; zie @ CAUTION!
lyrics by fun.!

[/center]

[KIT RATHBONE]

Kit swore he could hear Jo on the other side of the office door now that he was behind the counter. His eyes drifted to it, wondering why the hell she would be so upset. It wasn't as if they'd ever worked out together! Sure he'd come onto her whenever he wanted someone around but it wasn't too often and they never put a label on what they had - or didn't have.

"I don't exactly throw myself at men every night, Kit. That was a very rare occasion, and clearly my attentions were directed at the wrong guy."

"Clearly!" Kit snapped at her and shook his head, his hand finding its way up to cover his eyes. He needed a moment. He had to think. He wasn't fit to raise a kid, although she had even said that she wasn't expecting anything from him. But could he really do that? Could he let her raise his kid alone?

He thought he could hear the hurt in her voice when she said she thought he ought to know and removed his hand from his face so he could look at her. What the hell was he going to do? "You can't keep it." Kit said, and knew that he sounded like a total dick saying that. "You're not going to have it are you?" It was almost like he was accusing her of something awful. To him it was awful.

[hadleyfraser]

"You can't keep it. You're not going to have it, are you?"

Hadley blanched, shock apparent on her face. Of course she was going to have the baby. The thought of doing anything else had never entered her mind. Yes, she'd considered putting the baby up for adoption, but she hadn't made up her mind on that yet. At least, she hadn't- until now.

"Yes, I'm keeping the baby," she said firmly, accenting the last two words, differentiating her words from Kit's use of "it." Her baby - their baby - wasn't an it. He or she was a person, even though Hadley wasn't sure if the baby was a girl or a boy yet. She'd just been referring to the growing child as Peanut.

Kit looked to Hadley like he was going to throw up. She felt like she might, but she chalked that up to morning sickness. Thankfully, she was almost through her first trimester, so that part was almost gone. She hoped.

"I told you already, you don't have to do anything unless you just want to. Which, it would seem, you don't. So if you don't mind, I should probably get back to work, unless Jo has fired me in the past three minutes."

Hadley was mad, and she was fighting herself to keep from showing it. She didn't want Kit, who was, in her opinion, being a total asshole and completely unsympathetic to the fact that it was him who'd knocked her up, to know how emotionally connected to the baby she already was.

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___________________________________________________[/color]

words; I don't count...
muse; Ghost
outfit; White t-shirt, black slacks, apron, baby bump
credits; zie @ CAUTION!
lyrics by fun.!

[/center]

[KIT RATHBONE]

There was a part of Kit that thought about just pushing Hadley down a flight of stairs. That got rid of things growing inside them, right? But in all his life he'd never intentionally hurt a woman physically. He could be mentally abusive at times but never did he raise a hand to a woman. He was against physical abuse in any shape or form. Then again calling them a name didn't leave a visible bruise.

"So I guess what you're trying to tell me is I either am in or out of its life, is that what you're saying? I don't get a choice of whether or not its even born?" His voice was rougher than usual and his temper was rising although his voice didn't. He didn't want to cause any more attention than they already had, and a part of him wanted to go talk to Jo. But knowing Jo she probably had a shotgun stashed in that back office, loaded and ready for when he made his next mistake. And this was clearly a mistake.

Kit did not want any kind of spawn running around that looked like him. Then he realized something else and his expression changed completely. He never told her what he was. Their one night of drunk passion he'd found out that she wasn't human, and of course he didn't care then because he wasn't exactly a model citizen himself. But things have changed.

"You can't have it. It's not normal." Kit said without an explanation. He was going to have to tell her what he was and Kit definitely didn't like that idea.

[JORDANNA HAILE GARCIA]

It had taken some deep breathing exercises she had learned from her old friend Silvia to get her to finally calm down. She needed a cup of tea. Hell, she needed a freaking Xanax! The thought of Kit having a child played through her mind over and over. He would make a terrible father! She knew this yet, she would have loved to have a baby with him. She would have loved for things to work with him, though she knew they never could. Kit wasn't the type to settle down and he would always put his dear old friend Jack before anything else.

She knew she should be glad it wasn't her raising his bastard child. If it turned out anything like him it would be hell raising the little demon, but god would it be beautiful. She squeezed her eyes shut tight, willing herself to keep cool. They broke up. This, if nothing else, was a wake up call. She needed to move on. She needed to get Kit out of her life for good.

Having gained some amount of composure, she stood and exited her office. She needed to get back to work. She had a business to run, after all, but when she got back into the store she saw that Kit and Hadley were STILL talking! Rage filled her again, but she moved to them slowly, each move planned so carefully, though she was seething.

"You can't have it. It's not normal." She heard Kit say and she moved between them, glaring at them both.

"Enough." She growled in a low dangerous voice. Her dark eyes turned to Kit. "I want you out of my store. Now. Or I will call the police and have you escorted from the premises." Her eyes then moved to Hadley. "You; take the rest of the day." There was disgust and malice in her voice. "If you care to keep your job you'll be here at six in the morning tomorrow to clean up before we open." Her eyes moved between them, disgust clearly etched in every forehead wrinkle before looking back at Hadley. "And if you ever bring your private affairs here again, you'll be out of a job. I hope that's clear."

She knew she was being fair by not firing her, but truth be told she didn't have a just cause. This was Hadley's one and final warning. She turned on her heel and headed away towards the register, forcing a smile on her face as she helped a customer.

[hadleyfraser]

Hadley was just staring at Kit, dumbfounded. What did he mean, not normal? Obviously the baby wasn't going to be "normal-" she had wings, for crying out loud! But that's not what stuck out to her- he wanted her to have an abortion. That's what he was saying, wasn't it? Hadley's eyes went wide as the thought sunk in.

"I don't really care what you think," she said, her voice hardening. "My body, my choice. I'm having this baby, and I'm keeping him or her, and if you want to be involved, excellent. But you better be prepared to be the one to explain where babies come from when the time comes."

It was at that moment that Jo walked back out of the office, looking furious and like she could spit fire. She ordered Kit out of the store, threatening to call the police if he did not comply, and then turned on Hadley.

"Take the rest of the day," she said venomously. "If you care to keep your job, you'll be here at six in the morning to clean up before we open. And if you ever bring your private affairs here again, you'll be out of a job. I hope that's clear."

Hadley had to resist the urge to scream. She wanted to punch Kit in the jaw and throw a muffin at Jo, simply because she was being so unsympathetic. This was too much for one person to deal with at once.

"Jo, I know you're mad," Hadley said, keeping her tone calm and professional. "I will take the day, but only because I need time to re-evaluate my priorities. May I call you this evening about keeping my job? If I decide to stay, I'll definitely be here in the morning. But if not, I will at least give my two weeks so you can find my replacement. Does that sound fair?"

She hoped the frustration she was feeling was not evident in her voice or expression. She wanted Jo on her side.

[KIT RATHBONE]

"My body, my choice. I'm having this baby, and I'm keeping him or her, and if you want to be involved, excellent. But you better be prepared to be the one to explain where babies come from when the time comes."

Her body her choice? That was bullshit. Kit didn't find that to be fair at all. Especially when it came to drunken mistakes, he should damn well get a choice in the matter! It was HIS dick! He'd always heard that you didn't stick your dick in crazy, but then again he didn't think that's what she was at the time. He was pissed. How was this fair for him, not having any sort of choice? Whether he liked it or not she was going to have some kid that would come looking for him when he came of age?

"Fine. If this is the way you're going to be then you better know I'm not paying child suppo--"

"I want you out of my store. Now. Or I will call the police and have you escorted from the premises."

What?! "Jo you can't be serious." He said and narrowed his eyes at her but he knew he shouldn't test her right now. She was fired up and when she was like that it was best to just stay out of Jo's way. She had a temper that scared grown men away, Kit included. He just shook his head and turned to head out until he heard Hadley.

"I will take the day, but only because I need time to re-evaluate my priorities. May I call you this evening about keeping my job? If I decide to stay, I'll definitely be here in the morning. But if not, I will at least give my two weeks so you can find my replacement. Does that sound fair?"

There was a part of him that felt bad for Hadley. She was about to get herself into it with Jo, but then another part of him felt satisfied. Her body, her choice? Well talking to Jo when Jo was pissed off was Hadley's choice as well. Kit was smarter than that and he kept heading straight for the door, walking out and realizing that he really needed some air. Maybe it would be best if he tried to cool off before he figured out what the fuck was going to happen now.

[JORDANNA HAILE GARCIA]

Jo was a little surprised but completely glad that Kit didn't need to be told twice. He knew better, she realized. They'd known each other for nearly eleven years and in that time the boy had learned when to and not to test her words. If she wanted him out, he knew he needed to get out. She was grateful for that, because seeing his face and hearing his lip weren't anything she cared for at the moment.

Hadley, on the other hand, didn't have Kit's advantage when it came to not crossing her.


"Jo, I know you're mad," That was an understatement.. "I will take the day, but only because I need time to re-evaluate my priorities. May I call you this evening about keeping my job? If I decide to stay, I'll definitely be here in the morning. But if not, I will at least give my two weeks so you can find my replacement. Does that sound fair?"

Jo was speechless, staring at the young girl in front of her. Surely she had not just seriously said that to her, had she? Jo closed her eyes and took a long deep breath through her nose, filling her lungs to capacity and slowly letting it out through her mouth.

"Mad doesn't even begin to explain what I feel right now." She started icily. "You are taking the day because I want you out of my store, Hadley. Period. This has nothing to do with you evaluating your bullshit, half assed priorities. " Her tone grew colder and more firm, not believing the gall this girl had.

"You bring your drama to my store, while I'm paying you, telling my ex, of all people, that you're having his baby. I was kind to not fire you immediately, and you turn around and tell me you're not leaving because I told you to? That you'll decide this evening if you plan to resign or not?" She raised a brow and shook her head. "I don't need you, Hadley. I built this store from the ground up. I was kind enough to offer you a position in the first place!" How dare she not show more gratitude! The economy sucked, and if she thought she was going to find a job with a bump like that, she was dead wrong. "Don't bother calling me, Hadley. Consider yourself terminated. Best of luck with yours and Kit's child. Trust me, you're in for a hell of a time if it's anything like its daddy. Now take off my apron and evacuate my store now before I threaten to extend the same courtesy I did your sperm donor." She held her hand out for the apron, her eyes cold and uncaring.

She was surprised she didn't attack the girl.