Minuteslater…
Arabella:Girl, you had me thinking that Jaxson was either giving you some hot lovin’ or he kidnappedyou.
Ilaugh.
Me:Nope. Neither. But I did have a nice time withhim.
Arabella:Hownice?
Me:Just dinner and nice conversation. I shared stuff and he sharedstuff.
Arabella:Nokisses?
Me:Almost. We got interrupted. Maybe we are suited to be justfriends.
Arabella:Friends toLovers…
I shake my head, freeing it from the thought of me and Jaxson becoming more than friends. When he held me last night, part of me wanted so badly for him to finish kissing me. My head resting in the plane of his muscular chest, taking in the smell of his cologne; it was like I belonged with him. But between Simon standing me up, and all of my past relationship fails, maybe friends is just better. Safer. Even though being close to him last night brought back all the feelings that stirred inside me that day I first laid my eyes on his eyes at the airport.Desire.
Me:Not so sure friends to lovers will happen.Anyway, I hope you have a great day, sweetie. Chatlater?
Arabella:You bet, luv.XO
I finish my toast, pour myself a second cup of coffee, then call the office to check and see how the morning has started. And to check on André to make sure he is handling Daniella’s first day on the job properly—managing to keep his fanboy tendencies incheck.
“Hey, boss. We miss you here. You never work from home; is everythingokay?”
“Good morning, and yes, all is well. I just need to give my brain a break after losing sleep and all over the pitch toLa Boutique. Is everything going as planned withDaniella?
“Everything is fab, boss, she’s”—he lowers his voice to a whisper—“she is so damn beautiful. You two could be sisters.Seriously.”
I chuckle. “Well, I hope she likes working with us. Did you give her the information I prepared for her about the launch of the magazine, outlining her role andresponsibilities?”
“Yep. And she seems giddy, boss. She’s super nice and asked lots of questions—all of them I was able to answer, of course. She did mention something about her husband wanting to speak with you about the launch of his new men’s underwear line. So I took the liberty of scheduling in a conference with him tomorrow morning, 10a.m.”
“Lovely. And thanks André. Be sure to call me if you need anything. I’ll be in tomorrow morning my usualtime.”
“See you tomorrow,boss.”
I hang up, toss my phone onto the coffee table, and plunge into the couch’s soft cushion. This working from home stuff feels more like playing hooky. I think I’ll even stay in my pajamas all day. I sip on my coffee as I mentally plan the rest of my work / hooky day. A sound in the hallway outside my door catches myattention.
It’s probably Jules and Truffles making an early return. Sometimes Truffles can be quite the boy diva, barely having enough stamina to walk around the block without me having to pick himup.
I get up, make my way to the front door, swinging it open, fully expecting to see Jules stringing along a worn out, full-on-pantingTruffles.
But no, it’s not Jules orTruffles.
It’s Simon. Simonstand-women-upGrant.
