"Only until the end of the week. I was on my way out anyway," Rob said. He didn't seem very concerned.
"You won't leave here with a good recommendation from him," Julian pointed out.
"I'll be fine. What about what he just did to you? He was all over you." Rob frowned, some of his anger from before returning.
"I'm on my way out of here too. Starting next week, I'll be telecommuting from my family house out in the country."
"Sounds nice," Rob said.
"Do you have another job lined up?" Julian asked.
"I'll figure something out." Rob tried for a confident smile but it turned into a grimace.
That meant Julian could make his offer. "I might have a job for you, but it would be out of town, I'm afraid. And it would be temporary. It does come with room and board. I'll need help setting up my new office and with work in general. Would something like that interest you?"
"It might. I don't mind a short-term move right now," Rob said. "Where would we be going?"
As he was telling him about it, Julian was pretty sure that Rob wouldn't be thrilled with the work or the living situation. "I'm taking Danny to my family home in Peach Tree. That's my hometown. I'll be working from there. With an assistant to help me, I would be able to spend more time with Danny. Your job might involve running some errands, but it would be mostly helping me in the office. It's a big house, so you would have plenty of privacy."
Though he nodded, Rob didn't look sure. Julian decided they could have a trial run. "If you have time, you can give me a hand with packing for the move. It might help you decide and we can discuss the specifics. How does that sound?"
"That might be a good idea." Just then Rob got a text. "That's Mrs. Lewis. She needs me."
"Contact me about the details," Julian told him and handed over his card.
"OK. Thanks," Rob said.
As Rob was about to go, he poked his head in Julian's office and waved to Danny. "It was nice meeting you, Danny," Rob told him with a smile and Danny waved back.
Going into his office to sit behind his desk, Julian made a few more paper planes while Danny watched closely. Danny then threw them around the office and chased them. A few came Julian's way and he tried to catch them but his mind was elsewhere.
He was thinking about that house on Peach Tree Hill and about Rob working for him. Rob had just left and Julian was already having second thoughts about offering him the job.
On thinking about it, Julian had to wonder how much Danny's reaction to Rob had influenced him to make the offer. The few words the little boy spoke to him sounded to Julian like a ringing endorsement, but he couldn't let that sway him.
It wasn't something to disregard either. Rob's rapport with Danny did matter since he would be living at the house. That was something that Julian had his doubts about as well, and not just because it would be a challenge to have such an incredibly attractive guy under the same roof with him. Julian also questioned if that house was really the right place to take Danny.
It would be more peaceful, much quieter than here where the noise of traffic always reminded Danny of his accident. Still, Julian never planned to go back to Peach Tree. For Danny's sake, he would do anything. The gloomy memories Julian had of the house in Peach Tree shouldn't affect Danny. If Julian could just bury his distaste for the place, everything would be fine.
Of course he would also have a good-looking guy there to distract him. If Julian felt any burgeoning attraction to Rob, he would have to bury that too. He was pretty sure that Ms Dover said that Rob was gay. Considering how dependable and efficient office gossip was, Rob probably knew Julian was gay as well. In any case, Julian saw no reason to bring it up. Neither of their sex lives had anything to do with this job.
Focusing on what did matter, he remembered that Rob was recommended by Upton Investments' clients, Mr. and Mrs. Wells. In order to check his references more thoroughly, Julian called Mrs. Wells.
As soon as Julian brought up Rob's name, she only had good things to say. "You can't go wrong hiring Rob. He is very helpful and responsible. When the triplets were little, he and his sister kept them from destroying the house. They were very good with them. Rob also helped me at the office when Trish, my assistant, was having her baby. He is very hard-working."
"That's good to hear. Thank you," Julian told her.
It all sounded good, but he didn't have to make a final decision until the trial run when Rob helped him pack up. That way he would know if they could work together closely, and he could also see Rob interact with Danny some more in case his positive reaction was just a fluke.
Of course Julian's own reaction was pretty damn positive. The way Rob stepped in when he didn't know how to push back against Thayer without upsetting Danny – that was enough to win over Julian. Add to that his green eyes and his warm smile, and Julian had to wonder why he really wanted to hire Rob.
