“I told you—I’m staying here until you agree to meet with Heidi. I’m a man of my word, Autumn.”
“Completely crazy, but yes, a man of your word. I can’t believe you wasted a whole day here.”
“Actually, I got quite a lot of work done. I may have to get a booth like this for my office.”
I couldn’t help chuckling over that mental image. “You’re insane. You know that right?”
“Insane enough to do this again tomorrow if you don’t agree to meet with Heidi,” he said, and the direct look he gave me left me in no doubt that he meant it.
Stymied, I sank down into the seat across from him, something I’d never done in all the time I’d worked here. “Seriously, Ford. Why are you doing this?”
His eyes looked darker, more intense now that he was staring across at me instead of up at me. “A better question is why aren’t you doing this. Why won’t you meet with Heidi?”
For a moment, I was silent. I felt exhausted. Weary of being on my feet all day, tired of wondering what he was thinking, what he was doing, and why he was doing it.
When I didn’t answer right away, he changed tactics. “Let’s engage in a little sideways thinking,” he said. “Do you know what I do for a living?”
“No.” How would I?
“Do you know how well I do it?” I shook my head. “Then take a guess. What do you think I’m like when I’m at work? When I’m not temporarily staging a dining room filibuster, that is.”
Looking at him, I thought about it. “Focused,” I said. It was the first word that came to mind. “And driven, too. Confident. Maybe a little bit arrogant,” I said, eyeing him critically.
He grinned, not denying it, but motioned for me to go on, so I tried to see him as others would. He was obviously in some kind of position of authority. He had to be someone’s boss besides Jason’s. Those people who’d been in earlier, the woman and the notary, had been respectful. And he certainly looked like he did well for himself. “And successful.”
“Do you know those things for sure? I could be some rich asshole who’s never done an honest day’s work in his life but likes to pretend he’s necessary at the office.”
“But you’re not,” I said. “Well, not a useless ass who plays at being the boss. The rich part seems pretty damned true, though.”
He grinned faintly at that before doubling down on his point. “You’ve formed an opinion of me. Why is it so hard to believe I’ve formed an opinion—a very favorable one—of you?”
“But based on what?” I leaned toward him, lowering my voice. “My ability to pretend to be in the throes of passion while knitting a scarf?”
Now he did laugh, but his eyes were still firmly on mine. “Our calls weren’t like that. We talked. Really talked. And I guarantee you weren’t knitting when you were talking to me.”
I shrugged, conceding his point. We had talked about real stuff. Maybe not specifics, but enough for me to feel like I knew him. Why else would I have felt comfortable enough to tell him my address when those men broke in?
“I know you’re bright. Quick-witted. A good conversationalist. And equal partner for my sparring. And I know you work your ass off at two different jobs to make a life for your sister. I know how you support her and encourage her. And I know that she is a delightful young woman, not a bit like the sarcastic, foul-mouthed teen I used to be. You work hard to make her life better. And from what I’ve seen, you have. If you think that every decent manager is going to discount an intelligent, hard-working, talented young woman solely because she didn’t go to college, then you’re not giving other people enough credit.”
Blinking away the extra moisture that had suddenly formed behind my eyelids, I stared at him. Even though the world as of late had produced many examples people who would judge me for my lack of a university degree, his words still filled me with hope.
“We haven’t known each other for all that long, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know you, Autumn. I know enough to like what I see even though I feel I’ve barely scratched the surface. So some of what I’m saying is an educated guess, but there’s one thing I’m hundred percent certain about. And that’s your voice. Outside of your sister, I doubt there’s anyone in this world who knows your voice as well as I do. From the moment I first heard it, I just couldn’t get enough of it. It can be playful, teasing. It can be sharp and sarcastic. It can be sweet music to my ears. And it can be sexy. It can make me yearn. It can make me desire. It can make me hard.”
His eyes bore into mine as I held my breath, mesmerized by his words. “You have a powerful instrument there, as much an instrument as a violin or oboe or flute. You control it, and you know how to use it. So why not see what you can do with it? Once you meet Heidi, you’ll see. If she thinks you’re wrong for the job, she’ll tell you so. She’s a friend, but she’s worked her butt off to get her company up and running. She’s not about to do anything to jeopardize it, but she is looking for ways to make it stronger. You have absolutely nothing to lose save an hour or two of wages here. I can’t force you to go, but I’m asking you—again—to trust me. Trust that I know what I’m doing. Trust that others might see the same strength in you I do. And trust that I won’t give up until you recognize that strength, too.”
Wow. No one had ever spoken to me that way in my entire life. I felt elated, brow-beaten, scolded, embarrassed, and pleased all at the same time. And still exhausted, but now it was a different kind of exhaustion. Ford had worn me down. If he truly believed in me that much… maybe I should take the chance. Numbly, I nodded. “Okay. I’ll ask my manager about taking off early tomorrow.”
“Good,” he said simply. Then he snapped his laptop shut. “Check, please.”
Ten minutes before the end of my shift, I moved through my routine in a daze. Ford had that effect on me even though he’d left a while back. I’d told him the coffee was on the house, planning to pay for it myself, but he’d insisted on paying what he owed. I’d felt like an idiot presenting him with a bill for $2.79, but he thanked me, packed up, paid at the register and left. A quick glimpse in the parking lot had shown him getting into yet another expensive-looking car, this one a dark red sports car. Jason had been at the wheel, his huge familiar shape looking somewhat different with the addition of mirrored sunglasses. He didn’t seem like the type.
After my shift was over, I spoke with Bea, telling her I had a dentist appointment tomorrow that I’d forgotten about. I wasn’t comfortable lying to her, but it’s not like I could tell her I had to leave for a job interview. She agreed readily, making me feel excited and guilty at the same time.
I hung up my apron and was about to head out to the employee parking lot out back when Helen called my name.
“Here, this is for you.” She thrust a twenty dollar bill into my hand. “From the hottie in your section.”
“He tipped twenty dollars? For a cup of coffee?” I stared at the bill in my hand.
“No, he tipped a hundred dollars for a cup of coffee. Sharon at the register said he handed her a hundred bucks plus two singles and seventy-nine cents. Exact change, even. He told her the tip was to be split among all the wait staff. A hundred dollars, can you believe it? Who does that?”
Who indeed but Ford? A hundred dollars. For a cup of coffee. Unbelievable. But generous. And smart, too. He knew, or at least I hoped he did, that I’d never take a huge tip like that from him. So he told Sharon to split it five ways. Which was overly generous of him, but not something I could argue about when my fellow employees could really use the extra cash. So could I, for that matter.
Yes, he was a very smart man indeed. Which was good, because apparently, I was taking career advice from him now. But maybe that was okay. It wasn’t as if I’d been making great strides in my career on my own. I didn’t even have a career, actually. Just jobs. But maybe… maybe there was a chance that this thing at the media company would pan out. It seemed like a long shot at the moment, and no way was I going to take it if it f
elt like charity from him. But maybe he was right. Maybe I would be good at something like that.
Still mulling that over, I headed for my car in the parking lot. And with each step, I could feel my excitement level rise. If nothing else, this would be some interview experience, something I hadn’t had much of. And it would be a chance to see a glimpse of the world of business.
The more I thought about it, the more eager I was to meet with Heidi tomorrow. I had an interview lined up, I’d gotten the time off work—now all that was left was to figure out what to wear. Fortunately, I knew a sixteen-year old who would be more than happy to tell me why the outfit I’d picked out was completely wrong and suggest alternatives. I couldn’t wait to tell her about this when I picked her up from the library tonight.
15
Ford
“Hi, honey, how was your day?” I’d made sure to be the first caller during Autumn’s shift again, though I wasn’t sure how long I could continue doing that. It was difficult to get free of work by the beginning of her shift at five. Not that today had been a typical workday.
“Ford, you have my cell phone number. You do realize you could call me for free any other night of the week, don’t you?” Her normally dulcet tones had a slightly exasperated edge. I didn’t blame her after today. But it didn’t matter what tone she took—somehow, her voice always seemed to enter my ears and travel straight to my loins.
“True,” I said. “How was work?” I tried again to make my voice as innocent as possible.
“Strange,” she said. “We had a really weird customer at the diner. A real nut-job. He just wouldn’t leave.”
“He sounds like a very persistent man,” I said with a low laugh.
“He was a stubborn ass.”
“Oh well. Was he at least good-looking?”
“No comment.”
“That means yes.” Surely she realized that by now?
“Okay, he was… not horribly ugly.”
“Now who’s the flatterer? At any rate, he sounds like a really great guy. Persistent, good-looking, a real all-around charmer. Though he may be thinking about now that in retrospect, he should’ve switched to decaf at some point.”
Now it was her turn to laugh. “It would serve you right if you were up all night.”
“Well, if I can’t sleep at two o’clock in the morning, I’ll bang on your door and drag you down to the lobby to talk to me.”
“Yeah, well, my door’s stronger now if you were thinking of huffing and puffing and blowing it in. Plus, no lobby.”
“What?” I was genuinely confused.
“I’m at my apartment, not the hotel.”
“But I got the hotel room for the week.”
“Which was very generous,” she said. “But we live here, not in the Plaza.”
“It’s a free hotel room.” I’d seen the dump where she’d lived, and I knew the suites at the Plaza. How could anyone pick the former over the latter when they didn’t have to?
“We live here,” she said again. “Our stuff is here. Our clothes are here. Our kitchen is here.”
“You could’ve ordered room service.”
“If it makes you feel any better, Cara has been pulling for us to stay there tomorrow night. Like a sleepover, since I don’t have to work and she won’t be at the library.”
“Like a slumber party?” My mind immediately went to an erotic daydream of Autumn in her purple teddy jumping up and down on the bed and having a full-fledged pillow fight with a bunch of her scantily-clad friends. But then I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to get that tantalizing scene out of my head. Now that we’d actually met in person, I was more determined than ever to differ from the other men who called her.
“Sounds like fun,” I said lightly. “Will you braid each other’s hair and talk about boys? Am I invited?”
“No,” she said, and her little laugh made me remember how lovely she looked when she smiled.
“Am I at least one of the boys you’ll talk about?”
“Maybe,” she conceded.
I hoped so. I’d spent so much of the day thinking about her. Watching her. Even in her uniform, which really was on the unflattering side, she’d looked like a golden-haired goddess. She’d moved from table to table, smiling, taking orders, whisking away spills, and even deftly handling a tableful of unruly college-aged guys in a way that seemed to make them like her more for it, not less. She didn’t realize the effect she had on people, and she definitely didn’t realize how much more she could be doing with her skills, her talent, her work ethic.
My work ethic had suffered a little today while I watched her, but I’d still gotten a surprising amount done. Of course, I’d put in four hours at my own workplace before showing up at hers. But all in all, it hadn’t been an unproductive day. It’d been nice to get away from the office with sterile portraits of both board members and family members lining every hall. She was much more fun to look at. And if I’m not mistaken, she spent quite a bit of time looking at me today, too. Every time I caught her at it, it made a beautiful rose blush adorn the fair skin of her face. Oh yes… making her blush was rapidly becoming one of my favorite hobbies. One that was definitely more fun in person, not over the phone.
“Thank you, by the way,” she said, bringing my mind back to the present.
“For what?”
“The list is growing day by day,” she said, sounding a bit rueful. “But I was talking about the tip for me and my coworkers. That was very kind.”
“Consider it my way of paying rent for the office space.” I would’ve left her a thousand-dollar tip, the way you sometimes see in news stories on social media, but I was pretty sure she wouldn’t accept anything like that.
“And for the interview tomorrow.”
“It was my pleasure. I can’t guarantee anything, but I think Heidi’s going to be really pleased to meet you. And then she’ll give you a great job and then you’ll both owe me big time.”
Autumn laughed. “So your philanthropy does have some ulterior motives.”
“Sometimes,” I agreed. “But seriously, I think you’ll do great. Are you nervous?”
“A little. But also excited. I can’t wait to tell Cara about it.”
“She’ll be happy for you. Tell her I said ‘hi’ and to enjoy the slumber party.”
“Will do. Good night, Ford.”
“Good night… and good luck.”
I hung up and looked around my penthouse. Jason had left, and without Autumn’s words in my ear, it felt too quiet here. Too big. Too empty. But how was that different from any other night? If I wanted it to be less quiet, I could’ve invited a woman—or two—over for a slumber party of my own. I’d done so plenty of times in the past. But that wasn’t what I wanted anymore. I knew what I wanted, I just didn’t know how to get it except to keep doing what I was doing. Which was taking it so… fucking… slow.
Well, maybe she didn’t think this was taking it slow, but for me, the pace was agonizing. I had to remind myself that though we’d been talking for a couple of months, we’d only met in person a few days ago. She probably considered that to be the start of our relationship, whereas I’d known how much I wanted her since the first syllable I’d heard her speak. Since before I knew what she looked like or anything about her. I supposed I should give her a chance to catch up.
I padded barefoot to the kitchen and got a beer. Taking a swig, I thought about her description of my character before. Driven, focused, successful, and a little arrogant. If my father had heard that, he wouldn’t have known who the hell she was talking about. Well, except for the arrogant part. His assessment of me would’ve included words like unfocused, playboy, a disappointment, and a complete fuck-up. Would he even recognize the man I was now? Would he see that I’d changed?
It was a damn shame there was no way I’d ever find that out.
16
Autumn
Friday evening, I couldn’t wait to talk to Ford. I’d almost called him the night b
efore after my interview, but I figured since we’d spent so much time on the phone Monday and Wednesday evening, he might be ready for a little break. Instead, I’d told Cara every single detail of the interview, what Heidi had told me about her company, what she needed in a new employee, and how I might fit in.
Like Ford, Heidi had gushed over my voice, but the job was about a lot more than just narration and voice-over work. She said that everyone who worked for her also learned about audio editing, video production, and a bunch of other technical stuff I didn’t know the first thing about. I’d been thrilled when we talked again today. Afterwards, I’d rushed right over to the library to find Cara.
I’d just gotten back here minutes before my shift started. Now I was staring at my laptop, willing it to chime and put me through to Ford, but when it did beep, it indicated a new caller. Nearly groaning with disappointment, I realized that I’d gotten spoiled talking to Ford so much. I hadn’t talked to a new client in over a week—or any client who wasn’t Ford. This new client had chosen #5, the Naughty Nurse. Hastily, I flipped open the manual and then took a few deep breaths to calm myself.
“Good evening. I heard you’re not feeling very well. Tell me what hurts and I’ll kiss it and make it better.”
There was a long pause at the other end of the line, and then a gruff, male voice came on. “I feel okay.”
“That’s good,” I said, still using my most sultry voice. “But maybe I can make you feel even better.”
Silence on the other end of the line. Clearly this man wasn’t much of a talker. That meant extra work for me, but that was my job. “Why don’t you tell me a little bit about what you enjoy?”
“Umm… baseball. NASCAR. Movies.”
He wasn’t making this easy. “What kind of movies? Maybe a sexy movie where a naughty nurse assists the doctor however he wants?”
Charming: A Cinderella Billionaire Story Page 9