“You know. We can work our way up to you coming over. I almost told Carly about you this morning and then held off. I won’t wait much longer.”
She smiled. “That’s sweet. So, what funny stories did you hear at work since I told you my funny peanut butter cookie one?”
“I hear a lot of complaining mostly. People’s jobs, which is hard because I love mine.”
“Beats being a doctor,” she said. “Not all those student loans and responsibilities. I know you probably think I’m nuts, but I’m not sure I could handle the pressure of having someone’s life in my hands.”
He laughed.
He couldn’t comment on the loans.
But the pressure and responsibility. Yep, not for him.
“I just didn’t want that. I don’t care how smart you are, people shouldn’t tell you how to live your life. It’s about what makes you happy, not miserable. And being at other people’s beck and call would drive me nuts. I hate all the rules and regulations with a bar, but it’s not the same thing.”
“Not at all. I think there are many people out there who want to be their own boss. It has appeal, but then I ask myself, I’ve got no fallback plan. And I like to have a plan.”
“Having a plan helps until things don’t go the way they should in that plan.”
“Like having a kid?” she asked.
This could be his chance to talk about that.
“Yeah. You want to know things. I know you do. Just ask.”
“How much time do you have?” She picked his wrist up and looked at his watch.
“Someone else is opening. I can get there a little later if I want.”
He really wasn’t scheduled until one but he showed up when he wanted.
Once he knew Carly was taking Jonah out for the day, he had no plans on sitting at home.
“I’ll start small. Where is your family from? You never said where your sister flew in from.”
He hadn’t? He was so used to keeping his life private. Even his staff were shocked to meet Willow. He’d threatened herto keep her mouth shut about their background. At least she listened to him on that front.
“The Big Apple,” he said. No use saying originally Manhattan. That was close enough.
“That’s a far cry from the lifestyle here.”
“It is.”
“I went to Cornell. There isn’t much around that area. I’ve got to imagine New York City compared to Albany was like me going there. But I liked it.”
Ivy League. He shouldn’t have been shocked at all. Should he say that he attended Columbia? No, he couldn’t. That would raise a lot of flags. Wouldn’t it?
“So what brought you here? Did you go to college?”
Shit, now he’d have to tell her. He wouldn’t lie. He couldn’t just be vague about his college like where he grew up.
“You know how I said it was expected that I’d be a doctor?”
“Yeah?”
“I was on a scholarship to Columbia.”
Her mouth opened and then hung there. He wasn’t lying about the scholarship, so maybe she wouldn’t think anything about money or wealth.
