AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Is that another way of saying I’m dressed like a slob?” I look down at my rumpled khaki shorts, gray tee, and unbuttoned chambray shirt.
“If slob is another way of saying you could have stepped out of a Patagonia ad, then yes, definitely. How about if we both agree to say what we mean and not mince words?” she proposes. Once again, her candor surprises me.
It must show on my face because she lobs back, “What?”
“Just…very few people are interested in saying what they mean when it comes to me. I…let’s just say I work around a lot of people who tell me what they think I want to hear.”
She laughs. “And how often are they right?”
I shake my head. “Rarely.”
“Fuck those people.”
I choke out a laugh, surprised that she doesn’t self-censor, especially given that her world at one of the country’s biggest wineries can’t be that different from mine. “Don’t you have to deal with a lot of those people too?”
She shrugs and pulls her keys from her bag. “I learned a long time ago not to worry about what those people think. It’s theonly way I can do my job. Then again, I’m not the public face of the company, and I didn’t build it from the ground up. I'm sure you have a whole different set of issues to deal with.”
“Maybe so.”
Tipping my head toward the cottage, which I haven’t yet set foot in, I make an offer I’m not sure I can support. “Assuming this place doesn’t have any new tenants, you want to check out my patio? I’m told it’s a nice place to sit and have a drink.”
She flinches at the words, and I immediately wish I could take them back. Of course, she doesn’t want to babysit me again tonight. It’s not her job just because she lives next door to where I’m staying.
“I’m sorry. I’m sure you have your own plans and stuff to do—” I can’t let her off the hook fast enough, but she holds up a hand before I’ve rambled through the apologies I have teed up.
“No. It’s good. I have no plans.”
I wait for a “but,” and then I wait some more. She doesn’t say anything, and it finally dawns on me that she’s agreeing to hang out with me.
I don’t know why, but it feels like a victory. Same rush of adrenaline as the day I took my company public. Different circumstances, obviously. Different stakes, I guess. But maybe not.
Who’s to say that the stakes of connecting with another person are any less important than the largest financial transaction I’ll ever make in my life?
Standing in front of PJ Corbett, it feels like no contest. If anything, maybe being here is the more important decision.
That both thrills me and scares the hell out of me.
I open the door to the fresh scent of candles burning and see PJ’s face relax. “So glad they cleaned.”
She peeks inside past me before taking a bold step through the door. I wait for her approval before following her inside. Notbecause I’m afraid of what I might find, but because she seems to have more at stake in this place being clean since it belongs to her family.
“Looks good,” she says after scanning the various rooms. “You’d never know what took place here last night.”
“Hey, it could be a lot worse. A family of humans having a party could do a lot more damage.” I carry my overnight bag into the cottage and toss it on the bed.
Taking a fresh look around the place, I nod my approval. “This is exactly what I need. Simple digs, no fancy turndown service or people changing my towels. No people in my face.” I’m more talking to myself than to her, confirming why I needed to get away in the first place.
When I turn to look at her, I catch her squinting at me. She either needs glasses or I’m confusing her. And I know she won’t hesitate to tell me which it is.
But she doesn’t. She just stares at me.
“What?” I ask, finally.
“You just…” She shakes her head. “I guess…you’re not the way the media portrays you.”
I huff a laugh at the irony. “Imagine that. I assume you’re aware that what the media prints isn’t always true.”
She’s walking through the cottage, checking the rooms to make sure they’re okay, which takes about a minute. When she returns, she looks no less confused. “I mean, of course, I know that. But have you seen Archer’s house? He’s got three guest rooms and a home gym. Why wouldn’t you want to stay there?”
