“No, and you don’t need another investigation for harassment.”
Jensen pointed at him, his anger kicking up. “I still maintain that was retaliation for my very valid complaint. Lance is in his forties and shouldn’t be using Axe body spray in the bathroom like it’s a middle school locker room. He was creating a toxic work environment. Literally.” Looking down at the table, he straightened his napkin and silverware. “But you’re right. There is something going on recently. My relationship with the man I met at the conference has progressed, and I’ve been taking his calls after he finishes his shifts.”
A choking sound had Jensen looking up. Wyatt’s eyebrows were halfway up his forehead, a heaping dose of disbelief in his wide eyes. It wasn’t an attractive look on the otherwise fairly attractive man. “You’re still talking to the prostitute?”
“His name is Daniel,” Jensen answered rather aggressively.
Wyatt chuckled and shook his head, a sly smile taking over his expression. “When did you become more interesting than me? Okay, so you’re still talking to Daniel?”
Jensen nodded.
“Is he charging you for the conversations?”
Jensen shook his head even harder. “No. He hasn’t asked for any money. And our conversations aren’t exactly platonic anymore. Like I said, we’ve progressed.”
“Holy shit. You’re dating a sex worker,” Wyatt said under his breath like he was trying to make himself believe it. “Is it weird? You know, with his job?”
The sleeve of Jensen’s shirt was suddenly very interesting, enough that it demanded his entire attention. He didn’t know why he still had the damned shirt; the length of the arms bugged him every time he wore it. Too much of his wrist was on display for his liking. Pulling his shoulders in, he tugged on the cuffs to cover the exposed flesh. God, he needed to get rid of the shirt before rumors started up that he couldn’t shop for himself.
Wyatt loudly cleared his throat. He knew Jensen hated the noise and predictably didn’t stop until Jensen looked up at him. He let out a long exhale at Wyatt’s expression, realizing he wasn’t going to get out of the conversation.
If only they hadn’t put in their order yet, so he could run out without inconveniencing the restaurant. It was one of his favorite places to eat lunch, and he did not need the staff here hating him for any reason.
“Fine. We haven’t talked about it. He’s been working at the bar within the hotel instead of doing you know what. I don’t know how I feel about him returning to his regular job in the next couple days. It is weird for me, but I don’t know if it’s too weird.”
“What do you mean?”
Jensen chewed on the inside of his cheek. “Would it be a deal-breaker for you? Don’t answer that.” He took off his glasses and used the bottom of his tie to clean off the smudges. “I don’t know, Wyatt. I really like him, and it appears he likes me too. Wejust click. Do you know how rare that is for me? I could count on one hand the people I would willingly spend time with, and he’s now one of them. I feel happy when we’re texting about humidity levels or podcasts I’ve never listened to or the different flavors of protein cookies available at grocery stores. He makes me want things I haven’t wanted in a very long time.”
Wyatt took a sip of his water, digesting Jensen’s words. “Like what? A committed relationship?”
“More than that.” Jensen put his glasses back on and finally made eye contact. “I was asked to do some consulting work for a firm in Sevier—which you are not allowed to tell Mendes about—and the implication that there might be more projects was less than subtle.”
“I’m sorry, what? You’re going to quit? Why didn’t you tell me about this?”
He shrugged. “I haven’t wanted to talk about it yet; I needed to work through it in my head first. And it’s not even a for-sure thing. Erik Larsson read my book and wanted me to consult on a historic restoration project. Every time he calls for an update, he spends a half hour trying to tactlessly convince me to move. If this happened before I met Daniel, I would have said no.”
“Because you don’t like change,” Wyatt said with understanding.
“Right. But now …” Jensen trailed off. “I feel like I belong in his orbit. I can’t describe it, but everything is quieter when I’m talking to him. My heart, it feels like it’s trying to crawl back to him every time I hang up the phone. It hurts being so far away.”
It was too soon to have these thoughts. It was definitely not the right time or place to voice these cognitions to his assistant. He wasn’t going to deny them or brush them off though. That had never been his style. No matter how uncool or inappropriate it was, Jensen was always going to be himself. Somehow, in a few short weeks, he had transformed into a man that was fallinghard for someone that lived thousands of miles away. But he couldn’t help it.
Jensen felt naked when he was talking to Daniel. Not in the public humiliation way. No, he felt unburdened. Seen. There was no pretense or masking between them. Daniel knew he was an awkward and fidgety person who was worse than Darlene Hancock when talking about his passions.
In return, Jensen knew Daniel didn’t dwell on negativity, choosing forward thinking over moping. He knew Daniel was serious about his baths and essentially performed a witch’s ritual with all the concoctions he put in the water and the candles that lined the tub. He had a huge heart and cared about the people in his life more than he tried to let on. He was also so incredibly perceptive, picking up on Jensen’s thoughts before he even knew what he was thinking. Maybe that was due to Daniel occupying his mind like he had a lien on his attention. Either way, they complemented each other so well.
Jensen knew they had something special. He couldn’t explain it and would even admit it was too soon, but goddamn it, heknewthey belonged together. He just wasn’t sure how to get to the famed happy ending he felt in reach. Jensen could plan every structural detail of a skyscraper to make sure it stood strong, but he didn’t know the first thing about building a good relationship. They had good bones though; Jensen could sense it in his soul.
Jensen swallowed roughly and adjusted his tie. “And change isn’t so bad. I got a different brand of paper towels for my house, and that’s been going well. So this might go well too?”
“That’s a big decision to make for a guy you barely know.” Wyatt slumped back in his seat and scrubbed a hand through his hair. “You should at least give it some time to make sure you’re okay with his job. Really okay with it, Jensen. If you can only tolerate what he does or if you’re only fine if you don’t think about it, it’s not going to work out. You two definitely needto spend some more time together before you move across the country. And I’m not saying this because I like working with you and don’t want to see you go.”
Squirming in his seat, Jensen averted his eyes and ignored the compliment. Jensen knew he was a difficult man to work with, let alone work for. Wyatt really got the short end of the stick when Jensen was hired.
“Spend more time together, get comfortable with his choice of employment, and give it time. I can do that. How much time do you think? A few more weeks? Realistically, I’ll have to give a two-week notice before quitting, maybe longer. Is that time included?”
Wyatt’s lips split into a smile. “Oh, you got it bad.”
