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“Well, well. I’m free right now. Meet you in thirty minutes?”
He gives me the address of a coffee shop, probably in the same block as his apartment, likely in the hope that he can get me up there for some nooky.
Which will never happen.
I jump in a cab, which I use the company credit card for, and am there in ten minutes.
Of course Julius is already there and waves frantically at me from a table he snagged in a corner.
“I’m just gonna grab a tea, okay, Julius?”
He nods happily, and I get in line not so much for tea but for another minute to collect my thoughts.
My deal with Levi was to get Julius off his back. We both know, realistically, that might not be possible. But as long as I can prove that I tried, like really tried, that will be okay.
Right?
I mean, if Julius is going to be a total dick and keep going after Levi’s work, I can’t really stop him.
Unless I push him in front of a cab or something.
“Nice to see your pretty face,” he says as I take my seat.
I stop myself from grimacing. “Oh, Julius,” I say, feigning embarrassment.
“To what do I owe this pleasure?” he asks, squirming in his seat.
Ew.
“Well,” I say, scooting closer. “I got a look at what Levi Maverick is working on next.”
So. Many. Lies.
Julius’s eyes widen. I’ve got him hooked on gossip about a book that doesn’t even exist.
He’s so easy, he has no idea.
I tap my fingers to my chin like I’m thinking. “It’s pretty good, Julius. I think you will like this one.”
He turns his nose up. “What makes you thinkthat?”
C’mon Amalia. Work your magic.
“It’s different…” I say, trying to remain as vague as possible. “The usual... pretentiousness that bugs you so much is gone. Like he’s maturing as a writer.”
May God forgive me for spewing so much bullshit.
Julius looks out the window at the passersby.
All people who probably have great jobs and nice bosses.
“I’ve only seen some preliminary pages. Nothing I can share yet. But I knew you’d want to know. Ya know, since you’ve always followed his career so closely.”
He looks back at me. “Thank you, Amalia. I appreciate your sharing this with me. Very interesting. I like your take on things. I think we have similar tastes. Even if you are in the romance division.”
Ouch.
I let that roll off my back. Now is not the time to dig into defending my career choice. I’ll save that shit for later.
