by Linda Wright
The blogging world can be quite tedious so the first rule is to love what you are blogging about. It will take a very long time a blog to be hit. So many people have tried to replicate the success that Paige has had. They come up short every time. Paige started off blogging about interesting places she has visited. Before long, Let Paige Tell It, the blog site she established caught the eye of a few businesses who wanted to advertise and just like that she was off. Once she realized the potential for revenue, she formulated a plan and quickly enacted it. Six months later she was quitting her hateful job and blogging fulltime. She had become a hit. Paige can still vividly remember that lazy afternoon in 2009 when she discovered WordPress. Back then, the platform was just a few years old and no one was really talking about it. She quickly went from testing the waters to falling in love with WordPress. Between writing for other outlets and bringing in other contributors to widen her base, she found herself at the helm of a great enterprise. As a fairly young woman, she was thrilled.
Along with a growing business, Paige had also stumbled into love. Paige sometimes describes her finding love as not but a reward for hard. “When you focus on yourself and improve every day, love will find you”. Leo Jefferson was an executive at a record label/management company that was one of the first companies to sign on as one of Paige’s sponsors. From their first business meeting there had been a spark and from there, Paige and Leo became nearly inseparable. It was like they were made for each other in every aspect of life. Paige would describe the situation by saying “They were finishing each other sentences”. Their relationship moved very quickly, but Leo said from the beginning that he was looking for a wife so he was ready to commit very soon in the relationship. Leo grew up in a very traditional home were his mother and father were together and made whatever situation work. Paige had been incredibly happy. In a world where men are no longer serious about relationships. Paige’s single friends have all complained about men just wanting to hook up. When they do decide to settle down, they go for the young vibrant girls leaving women in their late 20 and 30’s in the dust.
Leo spoke often about his commitment to Paige, yet there was very little movement in their relationship. They did not live together, she met very few of his friends, and none of his family, who he claimed to live out of state, and aside from a promise ring, he did not seem in any rush to marry her. But Paige loved him, so she decided to be patient. You can imagine how nerve racking it is to be in love with someone and they are slow when it comes to moving forward with long term commitment. “Men become so complacent sometimes” is what Paige would say to her friends when complaining.
As her blog grew into a larger media company, Paige decided to upgrade the website and design an app for it. This level of success is extremely rare in the blogging world. And Paige is a young impendent woman who is at the forefront of it all. Her best friend Deanna told her about one of her brother’s friends who was a web designer and did freelance work. Paige had her set up a meeting between the two of them to discuss working with him. It was a welcome distraction from her growing doubts in her relationship with Leo.
On a Tuesday afternoon, Paige and the guy were to meet up for lunch. Paige came in from her new office to meet with the guy, who was named Jeremy. That was the only name she had been given. She hoped that he was legit and not just some guy trying to hustle and pretending like he knew what he was doing.
Paige got to the restaurant first, so she chose a table on the patio and sat down to wait. She was really hungry so she considered ordering her food, but decided not to be rude. Technically she was a bit early so she hoped that Jeremy would be on time. As she sat there looking over the menu she heard a deep voice saying, “Excuse me, Paige? I’m Jeremy.” Paige looked up to see a tall, gorgeous, tall man. He had the most incredibly soulful light blue eyes, full lips, and chiseled features. She looked him over, down to his light blue collared shirt, his exquisitely pressed pants, and his shiny light blue casual shoes. She was completely caught off guard and felt like her mouth had probably dropped open.
She tried to collect herself and got up from her chair to shake his hand and greet him properly. She put on a dazzling smile and answered, “Yes, I am Paige. Hello, Jeremy. It is very nice to meet you.” He took her hand, shook it lightly and moved around to the other chair at the table. He took a seat and said, “Pleased to meet you as well.”
Paige didn’t know what she had expected, but she was certainly surprised at what she saw. She definitely was not expecting such a fine young man. It took a while for Paige to gather thoughts, mainly because she has never heard of Jeremy. “How could it be that they move around in the same circles and they never crossed paths” she thought . She tried to think why she had never seen Jeremy before. She and Deanna had been best friends for years, more like family, and she was very close with her brother Martin. Yet she had never met this friend of his. She was positive that she would have remembered. Perhaps he was a new friend. She wished that she had met him sooner. She could not believe she just thought of that. That feeling of wanting to have met Jeremey sooner is not right when you are in a relationship” she thought.
Her brain is now racing back and forth from business to un-pure thoughts. What made this situation even worst for Paige is that she is always in control. Only this one time things are kind of falling apart in her mind. Paige immediately began to feel guilty. She was in a committed relationship and yet she was thinking some very un-pure thoughts about this man. She dropped her eyes back down to the menu and tried to redirect her thoughts. This was a business meeting, not a date. She loved Leo. Besides, she still had to determine whether Jeremy was legitimate. She decided to take on her business demeanor and make sure that this man was not here to play her.
After straightening into a proper upright position and clearing her face of all emotion, she decided to begin the meeting. She ignored the dull growling of her stomach, cleared her throat and began, “So Jeremy. Is that the name you typically use?” Jeremy brought his eyes up to meet hers and she felt a chill run down her spine. It felt like he was staring deep into her soul and could see everything she was thinking. She cleared her mind immediately. There was something unnerving about that stare.
Jeremy, in a very serious, business tone replied, “Actually yes, Jeremy is the name that I use. It is the name that I use all of the time.”
“That’s your name?”
“It is what I prefer to be called.”
“And your last name?”
“Wilson”
“Okay, Mr. Wilson, how long have you been in web design?”
“I have been working in web design for six years now. I started a few years into college with internships and after changing my major to it began designing websites fulltime. I graduated college and immediately began work for a web design firm. After that apps started taking off, so I began developing those as well. I eventually moved into private contract work, which I still do now.”
“So you no longer work for a firm?”
“No. I do freelance and independent contracting. I prefer this kind of work because I want flexibility in my life. At a big organization, I become just another employee with a number attached to them. My friends complain all the time about the politics and bureaucracy that exist in big corporations. I realized early on in my career that it was not for me”
“I see. How much did Deanna tell you about what I needed done?”
“She told me that you need an upgraded website and an app.”
“That is very true. I run a blog site and a media company.”
“She told me that as well. I took a look over the site yesterday.”
“And?”
“It seems to be well designed, but I noted a few things that could use work. I think the site could use some optimization to run more smoothly and quickly, as well as a better interface for better site navigation. My key area of focus is on the user interface. You can have a great product , but you lose out on sales because your site
is not user friendly. ”
“Now before we get into that, how much do you typically charge to design web sites?”
“Depending on the type of website I typically charge between 3000 and 5000 dollars. Possibly less for more basic sites, possibly more for more advanced. For apps, I usually charge around 5000. I don’t see myself charging you more than $10,000 for both. Along with all this, I also run a few focus groups to test the sites capabilities with every users. ”
“You don’t even know what I want yet”
“You’re Deanna’s friend”
“How do you know, Martin, by the way?”
“He went to college with my cousin RJ”
“Oh, you’re RJ’s cousin?”
“Yes”
“Oh okay. Well, Mr. Wilson, everything sounds alright so far. I will need to look over your work to be sure, of course. In the meantime, I brought over some of the ideas I had.”
Paige reached into her bag and pulled out a folder, handing it across the table to Jeremy. The whole time he did not break eye contact with her. Again, she felt that swooping feeling. There was something about this guy that seemed a bit…off. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it. She made a mental note of it. At the same time it had taken everything she had not to become entranced by that deep smooth voice. He spoke very slowly and carefully, as if he measured every word before uttering it. She didn’t know if that was a good or bad thing. Either way she tried to keep her mind on business.
Meanwhile her stomach growled once again. Without looking up from the documents she had just given him, Jeremy asked, “Would you like to order?” She wondered if he had heard her stomach. She shook off the thought and replied, “Yes, actually I would. I’m very hungry.” Paige felt slightly that the business aspect was over, yet she also felt like it would be better if she kept her guard up. She could not get a good read on Jeremy and thought it better that she not be vulnerable.
She flipped through the menu and chose what she thought she might like. When she looked back up, Jeremy was still going over the documents. She hesitated then asked, “Do you know what you would like?” Again, without looking up he replied, “Yeah, I’ve been here before.” In a way she felt relieved that he was no longer staring her in her eyes. In another she was slightly disconcerted that he wasn’t looking at her. She flagged down a waiter.
As soon as the waiter approached Jeremy looked up. They each gave the waiter their food and drink orders and once again they were left alone. Jeremy reached down into his bag and pulled out a tablet. Looking Paige in the eyes once again, he handed her the tablet across the table and said, “You said you wanted to see some of my work. Well here are some of the web pages and apps that I have done.” Jeremy got up and walked to Paige’s side of the table and stood behind her. Crouching low and looking at the tablet over her shoulder, he reached over and clicked on the different apps explaining the different functions that he had installed. He then clicked in the browser and went through some of his websites.
He was not really touching Paige, yet he was close enough for her to feel his body heat. She was looking at his hands. He had big, strong, yet soft looking hands. His nails were clipped and clean. He seemed very well put together. His mustache was clipped to perfection. His hairline was exact and his hair was well put together, yet in place. She began to wonder if he was a vain, pretty boy. Yet he didn’t seem to give off that aura. He did, however, smell amazing. What she saw of his work was very impressive. He did indeed know what he was doing and seemed more than worth the money. She hoped it wouldn’t be awkward to work with him though.
Once he had shown her everything he went back around and sat down. Just then the waiter returned with their food and drinks. For a few moments they ate in silence. Having quelled her hunger a bit, Paige said, “Well, Mr. Wilson, I am very impressed with your work and I think you are the man for the job. I am ready to begin whenever you are.” Jeremy took a bit of time finishing his bite before returning, “Thank you. I will need to come into your office so that we can discuss terms of service and we can go from there.”
“Sounds good. By the way, not to get personal, but why haven’t I seen you at any of RJ’s parties.”
“It’s not my scene.”
“Oh, I guess you’re not a party animal like he is.”
“No. He’s very different.”
Paige was beginning to realize that Jeremy only ever said what was absolutely necessary. He did not make any spare remarks or small talk. He spoke deliberately and scantily. She thought it was very strange. She hoped he wasn’t a weirdo. But she supposed being so incredibly good-looking could affect how you communicate with people. He was downright beautiful. Again, she sought to keep herself in check. She called over the waiter to pay the check.
When the waiter put the check on the table, both she and Jeremy reached for it. She was surprised. It was typical of business meetings that the company representative pays the check. Yet here he was grabbing for it. Without withdrawing her hand she said, “I can pay for it. It is a meeting that I called, so it’s fine.” Jeremy did not withdraw his hand either and replied, “I’ll pay.” Something about the way he said it made her pull back and let it go. There was a wild energy coming from him that told her not to challenge him. She was just ready to go and call her boyfriend.
Once he had paid they both got up from the table and walked together out of the restaurant. He had parked further down the street so after seeing her to her car, they shook hands, planned to meet at the office the following day and parted ways. Paige watched him drive away. She still wasn’t quite sure what to make of him. No sooner than she had sat in the car her best friend Deanna was calling. Paige answered, “Yes Mo.”
“Hey girl! How was your meeting with Jeremy?”
“How did you know it was over?”
“I figure you didn’t have much to talk about.”
“He’s not much of a talker.”
“Nope. Never has been. He’s a man of few words. But girl, isn’t he beautiful?”
“Why didn’t you prepare me?”
“There is no preparing for him.”
“What’s his deal?”
“RJ said he’s always been like that. Apparently he’s been through a lot in his life. RJ said he doesn’t really know a lot about him himself.”
“Well I guess I’ll find out more soon”
“You hired him?”
“Yeah. He’s qualified and he doesn’t charge a ridiculous amount. He’s actually giving me a deal.”
“That’s good. Well if you need me to come by I will. You know, for support.”
“Whatever girl, you are married.”
“Married, but not blind.”
“Bye Deanna”
“Bye girl”
Following this conversation, Paige called Leo and asked him to come over. He said that it was short notice, but he would be there later. Leo showed up, an hour later than he was supposed to. Thankfully, Paige had gone ahead and eaten. After greeting him and sitting on the couch pretending to watch TV for a while, Paige began to kiss him, at first softly and then passionately. Before long they were in her bedroom tearing at each other’s clothes. As they fell over on her bed, Paige realized that she was thinking about Jeremy. Imagining it was his strong hands caressing her body. His lips that she was kissing. She had not called Leo over out of longing for him. She had done so out of longing for Jeremy.
She felt a sense of guilt and yet she told herself that they were only thoughts. She would never cheat on Leo, no matter how incredibly gorgeous and sexy Jeremy was. It was just her imagination. She was particularly energetic that night and made love to Leo like she couldn’t remember making love to him before. She kept hearing Jeremy’s voice in her head. Leo did not seem to notice. Afterwards he rolled over into blissful sleep and Paige lie there awake wondering what it would be like to see Jeremy again. She told herself that she would be fine.
The next day, Jeremy showed up exactly when he was supp
osed to. This time he was in a suit, though he remained tieless. The women in the office almost swooned when he walked in. Paige had to bat them away. One of her gossip bloggers, Chris, was also popping up with questions, giving Jeremy the eye, so she had to tell her assistant to keep everyone away from the conference room.
Once again Jeremy was direct. They went over the terms of their contract and he sat there and typed it up as they spoke. Afterwards he printed it on the laser printer and actually signed it on the spot. Paige looked at the signature and it indeed said Jeremy. Once Paige had added her own signature, they got to business. She began to detail what she would like to see and Jeremy made a rough drawing on paper. After they got down the basic aesthetic, he began doing the actual programing on his laptop.
They had been working nonstop for nearly an hour and a half when Paige received a call that Leo was there to see her. Paige immediately felt guilty, like she was caught. She reminded herself that she had done nothing wrong and left Jeremy in the conference room to go see Leo. She was surprised because Leo rarely came to her office, even less without telling her. She noticed that when she walked up he looked beside her as if he expected her not to be alone. After giving him a hug and kiss on the cheek she asked, “What are you doing here?”