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“She’s staying with my friend, but I can’t do that permanently. I can’t expect my friend to watch her for weeks or months on end. Besides, I’ll miss her.”
He frowned. “I can pay her.”
“Him and I’m not giving my cat to Richard.”
He lifted a single eyebrow. “Richard?”
“Don’t start.”
“Fine. How about we leave the cat withhim,just for right now, and see how things go? If you decide you like working for me and everything works out, I can help you find a place to stay, and you and your cat will be together again.”
I felt like I had no other choice. He was willing to pay me a tremendous amount of money to go to California and work for him on a trial basis. I would have free time to work on my novel and pursue other things.
“Okay, I will give it a few weeks. Richard would be willing to look after my cat for a few more weeks anyway.”
“You really are an animal lover, aren’t you?” James scratched his head. “I guess I should maybe take your input more seriously. You said something about a line of accessories that caters to people like you. I tell you what, when we get to California, you do a little research on your own time and get me some information about how costly it will be to do that. I need to see clear data, a concise plan or strategy, and ways to keep the endeavor cost-effective. I will need more than that later, but I am just thinking out loud right now. If there are more people like you who would truly enjoy ethically sourced, vegan accessories, maybe we can find a way to make that happen in a few years.”
James stunned me with his decision to at least let me formulate a plan for creating a new line of accessories. It meant a lot to me and gave me hope for his business and the future.
“Thank you. I will do that when we get to California. I appreciate you letting me do that since I am very passionate about animals and nature, not just cats. But, yes, I love cats too. Cats are so adorable.”
“Well, I have a 3-year-old Rottie named Walter. Hopefully, you’ll like him.”
“You do?”
“Yes, he’s, my buddy. I usually travel with him, but he wasn’t feeling too well, so I sent him to a doggie daycare where they have a veterinarian while I’m gone. He’s probably pretty upset I haven’t returned yet.”
“I didn't take you for an animal lover.”
“Of course, I am. I’m just not partial to cats. They are not very sociable creatures, like dogs. Listen, I have to go. I have to go meet someone.” He looked pressed for time all of a sudden.
“Really? Business? I didn't see anything in the calendar for today.” I pulled out my phone and searched his calendar but came up empty. “Do you need me to do anything?”
“No, it's not business, and no, I don’t need you to do anything.”
He left, and I felt jealous. I tried telling myself it was curiosity and nothing more I couldn’t get him out of my head. I wanted to know who he was with, what they were doing, and where. I forced myself to let all those thoughts go because they would only get me into trouble and focused on my novel instead.
I had writer's block. I couldn't focus, and everything kept coming back to James, the passion between us, and where he was at that moment. It was very frustrating and unsettling to my nerves. Annoyed with myself for getting tangled up with a man that could very well be a player and hurt me in the end, I promised myself there would be no more sex.
However, much time we spent together, I couldn’t continue to lie with him and enjoy the best sex I’d ever had in my lifeandexpect to come out happy, content, and feeling fulfilled. I had to put my foot down now before it was too late, and this trip to California was the perfect time to do it.
I did some exercises, practiced my meditation and yoga, and tried my best to ignore that nagging feeling that kept bringing James' image back into my head.
When his message came through an hour later, I was happy to at least hear from him, even if he didn’t tell me where he was at.
In about an hour, I will be done, and we can go out to dinner. Dress casual, this won’t be anything fancy, but I want us to sit down, have something to eat, and discuss what comes next for you while you’re working for me. And yes, I remember your dietary choices, so we are going Italian. You should be able to find something to eat at my favorite Italian restaurant.
Quickly, I took a shower and changed into something fresh and clean. I tried to be as calm and relaxed as possible, but in reality, I didn't know what to expect. There was no way we were sleeping together now that I worked for him on a longer-term basis. I needed to know what I would be doing in his office, and hopefully, I would find out all the details at dinner.
Punctual as ever, he was at my door knocking an hour later. I opened it after a cleansing breath, hoping my nervousness would go away.
“Hey.”
“Are you ready?”
He looked so handsome, his hair carelessly cascading over his forehead, a lopsided smile on his lips.
“Yes.” I grabbed my purse, finding it hard to not feel like we were on a date, and walked beside him down the hall and out through the lobby of the Made Hotel.
