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“This is what happens when you don’t date, you lose track of days and time.”
Jacee says, with a clicking of her tongue.
“Mom, I don’t date because my job keeps me busy enough, you know this,”I say, sounding like I’m whining.
“I thought Richard was a very nice man, you should give him a call and have him take you out tonight. How long has it been since you saw him?”
“Mom, Richard, and I only went out a couple of times last year. He was a sleazeball who made derogatory, sexual remarks about every female that walked by and didn’t care who was standing next to him. No thanks, I will continue working.”
“Well, not all men are like him. You should give dating another try and not allow work to take over your life.”
“Really, mom? This coming from the woman who worked my entire childhood, always saying, ‘never depend on a man to take care of you, make sure you can always take care of yourself.”
“Maybe I was wrong,”she says with a sigh.
“What’s going on, mom?”I ask, concerned.
“I guess I’m just realizing how much of my life I gave up to my job and everything I missed out on,”she admits.
“Mom, what are you not telling me?”
“I’m just trying to pass down wisdom learned from years of experience or lack thereof,”mom regales.
“Thanks, mom, but I think for now I’ll just wait for Prince Charming to fall off the pages of the books that my authors write,”I tell her sarcastically.
“Ellie, living in a fantasy world is no place for a young lady. There is this new dating site called Date Set ‘N Match, I’ve just signed you up. You get matched by compatibility through the questions you answer, you don’t post your picture at all, you have to get to know the person before any meetings. You should really give it a try.”
“Mom, I’ve done dating sites in the past, in fact that’s how I met Richard, remember?”I say, with disgust in my voice.
“Just give this site a try, what will it hurt?”she pleads with me.
“Fine, mom, send me the link, and I will look it over, but I make no promises,”I tell her adamantly.
“That’s all I ask. I want you to be happy, baby.”
“I am happy, mom. I have a good job, and a really good friend,”I say,thinking about Brianne.
“I know, I want more for you. I love you, Ellie, and I worry about you.”
“Thanks, mom. I love you too, and you don’t need to worry, I’m happy.”
“Okay, hun, well, I’m going to let you get back to work. I miss you, Ellie.”
“I miss you too, mom. Talk to you later,”I say before hanging up the phone and sighing.
I place my head in my hands and shake it. I know my mother means well, but I don’t know if I can deal with any more disappointments. My email dings and I look to see it’s from my mother.
“Wow, she didn’t waste any time, did she?” I mumble sarcastically to myself.
I click on the link to the website, shaking my head again as I continue with the registration process. “I can’t believe I’m going to do this,” I say, as I stare at the first question.
Two hours later, I click the submit button.
“Guess we will see if that was a waste of two hours or not,” I say to myself, as I shut my laptop down. My eyes are burning from the intensity of the screen, and I rub them.
I get up from my desk and walk to the kitchen to grab a bottle of water. I twist off the cap and take a swig. The great part of being a publisher, I can work from home, more than I need to be in the office. Though tomorrow I will need to go in and make sure all the marketing mock-ups for Shayna Lindsy’s release are completed and ready to go for processing before the cover reveal of her new book comes out, and the promoting begins.
I will never tell Brianne, as I never want her to question our friendship and how authentic it is, but she has become the biggest client I have. The fact that she has surpassed all my other clients in a short period of time to become the most sought-after author still blows my mind. I thought it would take her longer to reach the stature that she has, but I can’t deny there is something special about the way she writes and captivates her audience.
