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truth? Do it in there. Do not embellish or make up crazy claims that you were a district attorney."

"Got it," he said. "This is going to be a breeze."

If by breeze he meant fast, then he was right. He emerged from the office door five minutes later.

"I don't suppose," I said, once we were in the car, "that she just gave you the job based on looks alone?"

Adrian had been staring off but now flashed me a big smile. "Why, Sage, you sweet talker."

"That's not what I meant! What happened?"

He shrugged. "I told the truth."

"Adrian!"

"I'm serious. She asked me what my greatest strength was. I said getting along with people."

"That's not bad," I admitted.

"Then she asked what my greatest weakness was. And I said, 'Where should I start?'"

"Adrian!"

"Stop saying my name like that. I told her the truth. By the time I was on the fourth one, she told me I could go."

I groaned and resisted the urge to beat my head on the steering wheel. "I should've coached you. That's a standard trick question. You're supposed to answer with things like 'I get too devoted to my work' or 'I'm a perfectionist.'"

He snorted and crossed his arms. "That's total bullshit. Who'd say something like that?"

"People who get jobs."

Since we had extra time now, I did my best to prep him with answers before the next interview. It was actually at Spencer's, and I'd gotten Trey to pull a few strings. While Adrian was interviewing in the back, I got a table and some coffee. Trey came to visit me after about fifteen minutes.

"Is that really your brother?" he demanded.

"Yes," I said, hoping I sounded convincing.

"When you said he was looking for a job, I pictured a male version of you. I figured he'd want to color code the cups or something."

"What's your point?" I asked.

Trey shook his head. "My point is that you'd better keep looking. I was just back there and overhead him talking with my manager. She was explaining the cleanup he would have to do each night. Then he said something about his hands and manual labor."

I wasn't the swearing type, but in that moment, I wished I was.

The last interview was at a trendy bar downtown. I'd taken it on faith that Adrian probably knew every drink in the world and had made up a fake credential for the resume, claiming he'd taken a bartending class. I stayed in the car for this one and sent him in alone, figuring he had the best chance here. At the very least, his outfit would be appropriate. When he came out in ten minutes, I was aghast.

"How?" I demanded. "How could you have screwed this one up?"

"When I got in, they said the manager was on the phone and would be a few minutes. So, I sat down and ordered a drink."

This time, I did lean my forehead against the steering wheel. "What did you order?"

"A martini."

"A martini." I lifted my head. "You ordered a martini before a job interview."

"It's a bar, Sage. I figured they'd be cool with it."

"No, you didn't!" I exclaimed. The volume of my voice surprised both of us, and he cringed a little. "You aren't stupid, no matter how much you pretend to be! You know you can't do that. You did it to screw around with them. You did it to screw around with me! That's what this has all been about. You haven't taken any of this seriously. You wasted these people's time and mine, just because you had nothing better to do!"

"That's not true," he said, though he sounded uncertain. "I do want a job... just not these jobs."

"You're in no position to pick and choose. You want out of Clarence's? These were your tickets. You should've been able to get any of them if you'd just put in a little effort. You're charming when you want to be. You could've talked yourself into a job." I started the car. "I'm done with this."

"You don't understand," he said.

"I understand that you're going through a tough time. I understand that you're hurting." I refused to look at him and gave all my attention to the road. "But that doesn't give you the right to play around with other people's lives. Try taking care of your own for a change."

He made no response until we were back at Clarence's, and even then, I didn't want to hear it.

"Sage - " he began.

"Get out," I said.

He hesitated like he might disagree but