Blast From The Past 2 Read Online Free Page A

party—how’d she live that down in the office?”
    Julie shook her head in concurrence, signaling that she thought I’d asked a good question.
    “And, second,” I went on, “how many freakin’ people at rEcore have you hooked up with?”
    Julie shook her head in concurrence with this question too.

~ Chapter 5 ~
     
    J.R. looked at me as if I’d just done something terrible. He looked mad, sad, and offended in every way possible, and it actually made me regret asking my second question. But I nonetheless wondered, How many people has he hooked up with at rEcore? There’s me, Gretchen… and who else?
    “I’ll answer your questions in order,” J.R. said, moving away from the window. “It took a while for Gigi to live things down in the office… but, she did. She remained very serious about her work and started bringing the axe down whenever things went wrong. Everyone eventually got the point not to mess with her, in any way, and talk of that night just faded.”
    “Come to think of it though,” J.R. said, shifting focus, “there was a lot of turnover during the last year or so. Like I said, Gigi really brought the axe down, so it wasn’t anything to raise concern… But now, I can’t help but wonder.”
    “Maybe she was using the axe to wipe her slate clean,” Julie noted. “Maybe that’s how she was able to live her embarrassment down.”
    “Maybe,” J.R. said, scratching his head. “And, as far as your second question… I could ask you the same thing.”
    “What the hell’s that supposed to mean?” I asked, growing defensive.
    “Well, there’s obviously one person you’ve slept with at rEcore,” J.R. said with disdain. “Are there any more?”
    “You’ve got two on your list, J.R.,” I spat back at him.
    “No, I don’t,” he shouted back. “I didn’t sleep with Gigi.”
    “But you would have!” I yelled.
    “But I didn’t!” he yelled back.
    “But you would—”
    “Look, guys,” Julie interrupted, shouting louder than either one of us. J.R. and I both stopped yelling and looked at her, as instructed.
    “It’s getting late, and I really don’t want to be here for this conversation,” she said. “So I’m just gonna duck out of here and let you two have at it.”
    With that, Julie collected her things, gave me a hug, and made her way to the door.
    “Try not to kill each other,” she said on the way out. “We’ve still got a mystery to solve, Scooby.”
    “All right, Velma,” I said, closing the door behind her. “I’ll do my best.”
    As I locked up, I heard her say, “Velma? No way… I’m Daphne.” J.R. must have heard her say it too, because he chuckled and smiled—and, in that moment, it was as if the tiny little fight we’d just had never happened.
    “I’m sorry to have jumped at you like that,” I said, taking responsibility for my words. “It just shocked me to hear about you and Gigi. I’m still getting over running into you how I did… When I came to work at rEcore, I had no idea that you were J.R. Marley. I know that may sound unbelievable to you, but it’s true, and I’m still reeling from the discovery.”
    “I believe you,” J.R. said, sitting on the couch. He looked not only approachable, but also endearing. “I never expected to run into you either. That night was so long ago.”
    “And what are we supposed to do now?” I asked. Again, I was being more aggressive than usual, and I had no explanation for it. “Are we supposed to move on like you and Gigi did, and just forget about it and pretend it never happened?”
    “I don’t know if that’s possible,” J.R. said, looking at me, then looking away. “That night was so long ago, and I haven’t been able to forget about it for more than six years—so I doubt I’ll be able to forget about it now, especially not with you here to remind me.”
    My heart fluttered a little when J.R. said that, and some previously unawake, unaware part of my spirit was lifted—but, no sooner