Page 28 of Maid For Each Other

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Page 28 of Maid For Each Other

“And keep the fictional stories about me to a minimum.”

“Donezo,” she said around a laugh.

“But I’m not paying until it’s over.”

Her smile disappeared in an instant. “Wait a second.”

“I’d say that’s fair.”

“No, no, not that,” she said. “That’s totally fair. But how do I know you’re going to pay? You could easily stiff me and there would be nothing I could do about it.”

“I’m not going to stiff you,” I said. If she wasn’t such a question mark, I’d just give her the money now, but I’d yet to really figure her out.

And I’d be damned if I’d set myself up to be swindled out of that much money.

“I don’t think you will, but here’s the thing. You’ve got all the money and power here and you technicallycoulddo whatever you wanted in this situation.” She bit down on her lower lip, like she was thinking. “Would you be willing to write me a promissory note and have it notarized?”

I was impressed. Abi Mariano was a quick thinker.

I pulled out my phone, slid into my contacts, then raised the phone to my ear while it rang.

“Is that a yes? Or are you having me thrown out?” she asked, her eyebrows furrowed. “What does this phone call mean?”

“Carl here,” I heard in my ear as Abi continued to ramble while looking at me likeIwas the erratic one.

“Hey, Carl. Can you come up and notarize something for me?”

She stopped talking.

“Of course, Mr. Powell. I have to finish one other thing, and then I’ll be right up. Five minutes or less.”

I disconnected the call and took a minute to enjoy the expression on her face and the fact that I’d actually managed to render her speechless.

“Shall I write up the promissory note,” I said, “or would you prefer to do the honors?”

“I’ll do it.” She jumped up from the couch and said, “I have a notebook in the other room. Give me two seconds.”

“No problem,” I said, watching her run into the other room.

“So, like,” she yelled as it sounded like she was riffling through a bag, “what do you want everyone to think we are?”

Before I could answer she reappeared with a notebook and pen in her hands.

“Are we casually dating, or very serious?” she asked.

That was easy. “If we’re doing this, let’s make it count. Let’s go withveryserious.”

“Ooh,” she said, grinning, as she set the notebook on the table and started writing. “Well, I can totally turn it on, then, if you want. I’ll bring the I’m-head-over-heels-in-love-with-this-man-and-want-to-have-his-babies attitude, if you think you can handle it.”

She looked like a mischievous child, grinning while furiously writing in a notebook whose page she could barely see because her hair was in her face, and I realized that what I’d said to her earlier was the truth.

I really didn’tnotlike her.

“Oh, I can handle it, Mariano,” I said as I heard Carl’s knock. “I can’t wait to see what forty thousand dollars of love energy looks like.”

“Oh, Dexxie,” she said, raising her eyes to mine and using my nickname without sarcasm for the very first time. “Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.”

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