"I have to...quit?" Jade asked. "Like, quit my job?"

Beck looked like a deer caught in headlights. "I actually said that out loud, didn't I?"

"Yeah, you did." Jade sat down and crossed her arms over her chest. "And I'm really confused."

"Jade-"

"I screwed up, didn't I?" Jade groaned and put her head in her hands. "My mom and Tori are always saying I can be wildly inappropriate at times, and I come on way too strong. Going out with you on Friday wasn't my brightest idea."

Beck shook his head, "It's not that."

"Then I don't understand. I know we got off to a horrible start, but we work well together. Or at least, I thought we did."

"We do."

"And I'm pretty sure my skills as an assistant have gotten better."

"They have."

"So what's the problem?"

Beck looked down at Jade's face. There was a look of genuine confusion etched onto her face. She was under the assumption that everything was going fine.

"There is no problem." Beck said, hoping to drop the subject. "Let's just forget I said anything, okay?"

"No, it's not okay. You were asking me to quit my job."

"But now I'm retracting my statement." Beck moved around Jade and opened his office door.

"You sound like a lawyer."

The pair moved outside the office, "I'm a Jack of all trades, Miss West. I know a little bit of everything."

"We aren't done talking!"

Beck sighed and turned around, "Yes, we are. You still have a job."

"I would like to know why I was even being considered for a firing in the first place."

Before Beck could even answer, Jill walked over to them. "Beck, your dad wants you in his office."

Beck smiled, "Thank you Jill. And Jade?"

"Yes?"

"Run to the store and get me some Advil for the headache you're giving me, some Fiji Water, and some pens. Ballpoint. Preferably black ink."

Jade glared at Beck and frowned, "Yes, Mr. Oliver."

"Thank you." Beck turned around quickly walked into his father's office, extremely thankful for the interruption. "Hey, dad."

Beck's dad, James, looked up from the paper he was reading. "Hey, son."

"Jill said you wanted to see me."

"That's true."

"Is everything okay?"

"Everything is fine. Why would you think something wasn't?"

Beck shrugged, "I don't know."

"You get that high-strung personality trait from your mother." James said.

"I am not high-strung."

"Are you sure about that? You look like you are on the verge on a panic attack right now."

"Sorry. I just have a lot on my mind."

"Is everything okay with you and Diana?" James asked.

Beck bit the inside of his cheek, "I don't know. Kind of."

"Isn't she in Europe?"

"Yes."

"Just apologize and get her some very expensive jewelry when she returns. I've been doing that for over thirty-five years with your mother and it works."

"Diana isn't lacking in the jewelry department of our closet. She has enough."

James shook his head, "Try telling that to her. Jewelry to women is like golf clubs, or exotic cars to us. You can never have too much."

"Got it." Beck shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "Did you want to see me for something?"

"You want to go get some breakfast?"

"Yes!" Beck said, a little too quickly.

"Someone really wants breakfast."

"Or I just really want to get out of this building."

"You just got in." James pointed out. He checked his watch. "Less than ten minutes ago."

"Yeah, and I am ready to leave. Something came up."

"Are you and Jade butting heads again?"

"Why would you think that?"

James grabbed his coat and slung it over his arm. "You two are always bickering, so I just assumed that was the problem. Is it?"

"We aren't bickering."

"Good. You can't keep hiring new assistants, Beck." James teased. "Try to keep this one around for a bit."

"I'll try, dad."

The father and son duo walked out of James' office. The spotted Jade leaning over Jill's desk, the two in the middle of a conversation.

James pointed to Jill, "Jill, Beck and I are going to get some breakfast. We'll be back in about an hour. Please hold our calls."

Jill gave James a thumbs up, "You got it, boss."

"What would we do without you?"

"This place would fall apart."

James smiled, "I don't doubt it for a second."

Jill smiled and watched as her bosses walked off, "He's so chill. Thank goodness Beck is so serious, or nothing would ever get done here."

"Yeah, speaking of Beck, is he okay?"

"What do you mean, Jade?"

"He's acting so weird today." Jade replied. "Have you noticed?"

"I did notice. He told me he just missed Diana." Jade scoffed. "What's wrong?"

"Beck asked me to quit my job."

"What? You're quitting? But you are the only female I like on this entire studio lot."

Jade shook her head, "I'm not quitting. He took back what he said, but it was really odd."

"Is that what you two were fussing about before I interrupted?"

"Yes."

"Yeah, he was acting a bit strange, but Beck is such a private person, he'd probably never tell us anything."

"But I deserve to know. He obviously feels some type of way about me. He told me to quit."

"He took it back." Jill pointed out.

"But-"

"No buts. You still work here. Beck is obviously just having an off day. Let's let it go."

Jade bit her lip and mulled over the situation. It wasn't in her nature to be passive and "let it go". She didn't do that.

She pushed herself off of Jill's desk, "I have to go. See you in a few, Jill."

"What is going on with you?" André asked, picking up the tumbler Beck sat down on the table. "We are drinking scotch at," he looked at his watch, "3:28 in the afternoon."

"Why does something have to be wrong with me?"

"Day drinking at work is enough cause for concern? And besides, you look as if you've seen a ghost."

"I may have a bit of a problem." Beck admitted, sitting down.

"A drinking problem?"

"No, not a drinking problem. A work-slash-personal life problem."

"You're getting sick of working with your father, aren't you?" André guessed.

"What?"

"I knew this day would come." André continued. "You just don't mix family and work. That's part of the reason I've never signed Trina to my record label. Partially because she is my sister-in-law, but partially because she has zero talent, but she's family! You cannot work with family."

"That's not the problem."

"Really?"

"Yeah, you are way off base."

"Are you sure?"

"I am positive, André. I love working with my dad."

"Oh." André sighed, "Then what's the problem?"

"It's me and Jade."

"What did Jade do? Did she physically assault you again?"

"No, she has kept her hands to herself. Kind of. And all hot beverages."

André took a sip of his drink, "You are talking so much. I feel like this story is going to be really long and you don't seem to be getting to the point any time soon, so...can we speed it up? I have to meet Tori and she gets really, really pissed when I show up late. And I don't want to sleep in my bed tonight, not on the couch."

"Sorry. I just am really confused right now and rambling and drinking is kind of my coping mechanism."

"Continue."

Beck put his left ring finger in front of Andre's face. He pointed to his wedding band. "You see that? You see that wedding band?"

"Yes, I see it." André pointed to his own ring. "I have one as well. Married men wear these."

"Exactly! I am married. I am married, and I have been for three years. And it's been a pretty good three years. And all of a sudden, bam! Your wife convinces me to hire her friend. And she's pretty, and she's extremely opinionated, and she is lively and fun, and she calls me out of my shit, and tells me when I'm being an asshole, which is about seventy-five percent of the time."

"Get. To. The. Point. Please."

"It's me and Jade."

"You guys are sleeping with each other?" André asked, his eyes getting huge.

"What? No! Absolutely not!"

"Oh good. That would have been a recipe for disaster."

"Exactly."

"But you want to?"

Beck downed his drink, "Want to, what?"

"Sleep with Jade. At least, that's what I picked up from what you were saying."

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Sleeping with Jade has not crossed my mind."

"I think you're lying to me."

"I think you are taking this much further than it needs to go."

"But it's obvious that you have a thing for her."

"A thing?" Beck scrunched up his nose. "Are we in high school again?"

André rolled his eyes, "Sorry, I don't have more mature terminology. Is attraction more appropriate?"

Beck shrugged, "Sure."

"What are you going to do?"

"I don't know. I told Jade to quit and-"

"Are you crazy? You can't fire her."

"That's why I asked her to quit. The last thing we needed was a lawsuit for wrongful termination."

"You aren't going to be able to get rid of her, so a new plan will be needed."

"Like what? She's my assistant. It's not like I can avoid her."

"Well, what do you want me to do? I don't have this problem with my assistant. He wears clothes that don't fit, he and sweats a lot."

Beck put his head down and groaned. André was being no help. "Why don't we forget I said anything, André, because you aren't helping me."

"You aren't the first married man to think someone other than his wife is attractive, and trust me, you won't be the last. What's the big deal? You aren't acting on it."

"Yeah, but-"

"So take a deep breath. And stop beating yourself up. You are still a nice, faithful husand. You aren't doing anything wrong."

"Yeah." Beck nodded, still feeling a bit skeptical. "Nothing wrong at all."

Jade walked into Beck's office carrying a tray of coffee. "This is my fourth coffee run of the day. How much more coffee am I going to have to get for you?"

"I don't know." Beck grabbed his coffee cup. "I'm on a coffee binge right now."

"Anything else you need?"

"Actually, yes." Beck said. "Can you go get my dry cleaning and then go get pick up allergy medicine?"

"Sure. I just have one thing to say to you first."

"Say it."

"Is there any reason why you are sending me all over Los Angeles for no relevant reason?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You know exactly what I am talking about. You are sending me out of this office every chance you get."

"No, I'm not."

"Yes, you are. You are acting so weird towards me and I have no idea what's going on."

"I'm not-"

"Yes, you are." Jade argued. "What's going on? You and I had fun on Friday, we were hanging on, and today you have done a complete one-eighty. Did I do something? Did I say something?"

"No, you didn't do anything wrong."

"It was the whole thing with my dad, right? I know it gets really annoying when people start talking about why they're so fucked up, but something about my dad is just like a domino effect, or a floodgate, or something else that just spirals out of control and I don't know how to stop myself."

Beck gripped Jade's shoulder and squeezed it. "Take a deep breath, okay."

"Sorry."

"You didn't do anything wrong. You didn't say anything wrong."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm positive." Beck removed his hand from Jade's shoulder and it fell limply to his side.

Jade scoffed and sat down in the seat behind her, "Then, I must be going insane or you want to give me whiplash."

"Why are we still dwelling on this? I thought this was over when we talked this morning."

"Because I am a dweller. I don't move on from things, and you, Mr. Oliver, you have piqued my interest."

Beck sat down on his side of the desk and clasped his hands together. "We're friends, or at least we're friendly acquaintances, right?"

Jade nodded, "Right."

"And if you and I are going to work in such a close proximity, we should just stay like this."

"Friends?"

"Platonic friends." Beck corrected.

The wheels in Jade's head started to turn. Finally the pieces were starting to be put together. This is why Beck was keeping her away. Beck was freaking out because he thought there was a possibility of them becoming something else. Interesting.

Jade smirked. She got out of her seat leaned and got closer to Beck so her lips were nearly touching his ear. "Beck Oliver, do I scare you? Does...this scare you?"

Beck cleared his throat unevenly but didn't move away, despite the fact that he was shaking on the inside. "Hypothetically speaking, what would you do if I said yes?"

"I'd probably say something like," Jade slowly moved her face to the right, so that her lips were practically centimeters away from Beck's. Before they did, she took a small step back, "good."

There was definitely a power shift in the office. Beck knew it, and so did Jade. She was now holding all the cards in the relationship.

"You probably should be scared of me." Jade moved away from Beck and towards his door. Before she touched the doorknob, she turned to face Beck again. "See you bright and early tomorrow, Mr. Oliver."

Once Jade was gone, Beck let out a breath he didn't know he was holding in. He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to stop the headache he could feel coming on.

This was nothing more than a snowball effect. And that snowball was turning into an avalanche right before his eyes. And it was only a matter of time before he got swept up in it.