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Elle was talking animatedly about a client that she’d been battling for payment. They’d paid the upfront deposit but refused to pay them the rest. They had cited some excuse about there being no gluten-free food, but they never actually requested any. Today she’d finally managed to get the rest of the payment out of them.
“Glad to hear it. You guys have been messing with them for a year now, right?” he asked. He vaguely remembered hearing about it from Deacon some time ago.
“Almost a year,” Elle grumbled. “Cheap asses just didn’t want to pay. I’m so glad we’re done with them!”
“Understandable,” he said. “You guys work hard. You deserve every penny. Probably more.”
He saw her eyes twinkle as she said, “I’ll remember that next time we bill you.”
Laughing, he said, “Forget I said that.”
“Nope. I totally heard it.”
A smile curving his lips he said, “Speaking of work. What do you have planned for Saturday night?”
“Uh,” Elle said, thinking. “Nothing work related. Why?”
“I have a cocktail party that I’m supposed to go to. I wanted to know if you’d go with me.”
“Well, gee,” Elle said, “since you made it sound so great, I’d love to.”
Reaching across the table, he picked up her hand and said, “Sorry. It’ll probably be boring. Lots of fake people and air kisses. If you go with me, there will be at least one person at the party I want to be around.”
She squeezed his hand and said, “Sure. I’ll go with you. How fancy?”
He winced and said, “Formal cocktail party. I’m wearing a suit.”
Elle said. “I can’t remember the last time I went to a formal event that I didn’t cater. Maybe my senior prom?”
Smiling now, Jim said, “You won’t have to make any of the food. I promise.”
“Fair enough, then. It sounds delightful,” Elle said.
Jim felt a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. Realizing he still held her hand, he brought her knuckles up to his lips and pressed a kiss there. He saw her answering smile and the flush that crept across her cheeks.
The waiter arrived at that moment to drop off their meals. The spell effectively broken, they both turned their attention to dinner. Their light banter continued throughout the meal. Elle asked him more about his trip tomorrow and then they talked about some of the jobs she had coming up.
When dinner was over, he paid the check and escorted her to her car. He managed to talk her into coming back to his place. Admittedly he hadn’t needed to try that hard. She seemed to want him as much as he wanted her. Since she’d brought her own car, she had to follow him back to his house. It gave him time to think.
Jim realized his instincts about Elle had been completely right. She was a pleasure to talk with. When he said something, she listened. She asked intelligent questions and seemed genuinely interested in hearing the answers. She had relevant, interesting things to say. She was smart, beautiful, and a caring person. He had a sneaking suspicion that he was falling for her. He had no idea what to do with that knowledge.
Chapter Nine
When Elle pulled into Jim’s driveway, her eyes were wide as saucers. Sara had mentioned that Jim had money, but she hadn’t realized it was this kind of money! She took in the two-story stone-faced home with double garage in awe. If she had to guess, she’d say it probably had a pool in the backyard, too.
Getting out of the car, she brought the squirrel feeder with her. When he got out of his
vehicle, she passed it to him and said, “Jeez. Your house is massive! Your yard too. I’m going to have to tell my mother you need several more of these.”
“Please don’t,” he said, grinning. A moment later he said, “When you speak to her next, please thank her for me.”
“I will,” she said.
She watched as he pulled it from the bag and looked at it. He turned to her and asked, “You think the little guys would like sunflower seeds?”
Looking at him oddly, she said, “Probably. I don’t think they’re picky. Are you really going to use it?”
“Yeah,” he said. “She was nice enough to get me a gift. Of course I’ll use it.”
