Too Close to Touch Read Online Free PDF

personal shit to work, God damn it.”
    “I know.”
    “My responsibility is the stuff that directly affects Emerson.”
    “I know.”
    “Gretchen Fucking Kaiser’s ofÞ ce trinkets do not fall into that category.”
    • 31 •
    GEORGIA BEERS
    “I know.”
    “She didn’t have to be such a bitch about it.”
    “I know.”
    “It’s hard for me to stay on a rampage when all you keep saying is ‘I know.’”
    “I know.”
    Mick didn’t want to smile, but she couldn’t help it. Kylie was always able to defuse her anger just by letting her vent. It was one of the best aspects of their friendship: how well they knew one another.
    Mick sighed. “She just really pissed me off.”
    “How come?”
    “What do you mean, ‘how come?’ You were there.”
    “Yeah, but you’ve had people be less than courteous with you before and you usually don’t give a crap. Why did Gretchen get under your skin so badly? She really just told you where to put the boxes. I mean, she could have been friendlier, but I’ve seen you treated worse than that and it didn’t faze you.”
    Mick hesitated, surprised by the quick spurt of indignation she felt at Kylie defending Gretchen. She hadn’t planned on telling Kylie about Saturday night; she was a Þ rm believer in not outing people who were obviously trying to stay in the closet, whether or not she agreed with them. But she was not about to sit by and let Kylie think she’d overreacted.
    “I went to the Widow Saturday night.”
    “Yeah. So?”
    “So did your boss.”
    “What?” The disbelief was clear in Kylie’s voice.
    “You heard me. Apparently, it was her birthday, so we bought her a lot of drinks. And she doesn’t drink the cheap stuff.”
    “Gretchen was at the Black Widow?”
    “That’s what I said. Don’t let the panty hose and heels fool you.
    She’s as gay as I am. She was inches from picking up Christy when I left.”
    “Wow. I’m…wow.”
    Mick felt annoyance prickling the back of her neck, so she honked at a minivan that cut in front of her. “Fucking soccer moms,” she grumbled.
    “I work for a lesbian?” Kylie asked.
    “Apparently.” Mick rolled her eyes at the awe in Kylie’s tone.
    • 32 •
    TOO CLOSE TO TOUCH
    “I’ve never worked for a lesbian before.”
    “Yeah, well she’s a bitchy lesbian, so maybe it’s not such a good thing.”
    “Come on, Mick. It was her Þ rst day. She was probably stressed out. She doesn’t know yet how conservative the company might be so she’s decided to keep quiet about her sexual preferences, and then you come strolling in. You, a person who knows what her sexual preferences are. And you, a person who works for the same company she does. She probably panicked, that’s all.”
    “What the hell for?”
    “Some people don’t like their sexuality to be common knowledge.
    Not everybody wants it broadcast all over the place. Some people keep that stuff private.”
    “Which is just ridiculous.”
    Kylie tried to keep her sigh silent, but was sure Mick picked up on it. They’d had this same discussion countless times.
    “It’s ridiculous to you.” Kylie sounded a little defensive. “But not everybody is as comfortable in their own skin as you are.”
    Kylie herself wasn’t completely out at work. Mick didn’t consider her closeted, but she wasn’t terribly free with the information, as Mick was. She often told Mick she wished she had half the courage Mick did when it came to the subject.
    “Maybe so. I still don’t like her.”
    Kylie let out a frustrated breath, a sign that she knew she wasn’t changing Mick’s mind anytime soon. “Okay.”
    Mick mentally gave herself a point and decided to change the subject. They’d talk about it another day, she knew. “What’s for dinner?”
    If Kylie was startled by the shifting of gears, she didn’t sound it.
    “I think my mom’s making stew tonight. I’m going to go over there for a bit. Want to come?”
    Mick knew the truth. Kylie didn’t