Page 25 of Open for Negotiation
“Is that you admitting you feel some kind of brotherly love toward me?” I joke.
“I’ll never admit it out loud. You’re my mortal enemy. That’s what we want others to think.”
I don’t talk to him about Scarlett, even though that’s all I want to do. I want to shout from the rooftops that I had a beautiful, smart, wonderful human being in my presence last night, but I can’t do that. Not with Jackson starting work with Fortress this week.
“Let’s leave this shit on the table and move on to something that will create some positive juju or something.” I thank our waitress after she refills my coffee. “Are you ready to meet the staff on Monday?”
“You mean, am I ready to turn on my charm and woo everyone in the room? Hell yeah, I am.”
“I’m going to regret this, aren’t I?”
“Probably,” he chuckles.
Making the decision to have Jackson move to Atlanta to work with me at Fortress was a no-brainer. The only reason we didn’t make this happen sooner was the fact that he was hung up on some girl in Seattle. He was reluctant to leave, but once that was no longer a factor, he couldn’t get here fast enough.
I’m not happy that he had to hurt in order to make the move, but I’m happy nonetheless.
“How many houses is the realtor taking us to today?”
He wipes his mouth with a napkin, then answers, “Two or three, I think. I told her the areas I want to focus on, places to avoid. She said I’ll love what she’s picked out.”
“You know this market is shit, right? Especially in the greater Atlanta area. You could be waiting awhile before any kind of deal goes through.”
“I’m not in a hurry.”
“Then why are you insisting on staying in a hotel instead of my house with me? I have more than enough room for you.”
“Yeah, I don’t want Big Bro cramping my style, and I’d prefer our extracurricular activities to not mix.”
“I would rather be completely in the dark about your extracurricular activities.”
“Then a hotel is the better choice.”
“You’ve been in town less than a week. How in the hell have you already met people?”
“Because I’m a fucking catch.”
This man is absolutely exhausting.
Scarlett
I’m trying my best to find my zen today.
I’ve tried aromatherapy, meditation, tarot cards, yoga, read a smutty romance novel, and I even did a class on my Pelaton bike. Nothing is giving me that relaxation and peace that I’m looking for.
I’ve resigned to lying in in the middle of my living room floor with some indie, coffeehouse music playing from my phone beside my head.
But no matter what I do, all I can think about is Max fucking Duke.
Being with him outside of work, seeing him, the real him, without all of the shit the office brings to the table was nice. Too nice, honestly, because now I’ve got butterflies in my stomach. I’ve tried to fight those off for a long time.
I roll to my stomach when my music stops, being replaced by the ringing of an incoming call, and slide my finger across the screen to answer.
“Hello?” I say with my forehead on the carpet.
“Did you forget that I demanded to hear every sordid detail of your date?” Eden asks.
I sigh heavily then lift my head, only to let it thump back onto the carpet. “Why are you the way you are?”
