by Claire Adams
"Yes, but I need to get the job first."
"You need to go to the interview. Call them back."
"They didn't leave a number." I turned back to the desk and realized I'd cut off the message in the middle of it playing. "Wait. I think I cut it off early."
I replayed it and motioned for Casey to get me a pen and a piece of paper. I jotted down the number as excitement rushed through me. I needed to tell Easton what I'd done, but I'd rather do it face to face.
"Call them back!" She wrapped her arms around my shoulder and squeezed. "How exciting, Viv. Your first interview for your dream job."
"Yeah. It is." I smiled and read the number a few times before letting out a long breath and calling. The woman was professional and nice, and the interview was able to be scheduled for later that day.
*****
I sat in my car for twenty minutes, trying to still my racing heart as I sat outside of Wilmington and Branch's main office on Times Square.
"Just stick to the script. You've gone through your education and know the ins and outs of it. You can tell them that you know Easton, just to keep things on the up and up. He's a good friend. No, he's my boyfriend." I growled. They would get the wrong impression possibly if I told them that Easton and I were dating, but I couldn't lie. I hated liars.
Getting out of the car, I worked to still my thoughts and pulled out my phone, deciding to text Easton and wish him a safe flight home. I told him to call me the minute he got in, and that I missed him horribly.
Some part of me was still a little angry and wanting to be reserved, but Casey was right. The scale was vastly tilted in favor of my being a jerk, and yet he'd still called the minute he'd got back into New York from Miami and taken me to a beautiful dinner.
I smiled as I walked into the building and stopped at the front desk. "Hi. I'm here to see Jon Williams of Wilmington and Branch."
"Of course. Take the elevator to the twelfth floor and his assistant, Sherry Jackson, will help you out." The woman smiled brightly.
"Thanks." I turned and walked to the elevator as I smoothed down my dark blue business suit. My hands wouldn't quit shaking no matter what I did, so I was just going to have to go with it. I could lay out a disclaimer to the guy that I was scared to death. Hopefully he would remember his first real job interview and go easy on me.
I rode the elevator up with a crowd of people and got off on the twelfth floor to find a motherly-looking secretary who stood as I walked toward her.
"You must be Vivian Hall?" She extended her hand. "I'm Sherry Jackson. Nice to meet you. Jon's ready when you are. Just knock once before going in."
I swallowed hard and turned, gripping my portfolio under my arm as if it might fly away any minute. I glanced back at her and she gave me a slight nod.
"Just knock. He's a great guy. You'll love him. We all do."
"Okay," I whispered and knocked on the door.
"Come on in." A loud boisterous voice responded.
I walked in and gave the handsome older man a curt nod and extended my hand. "I'm Vivian Hall. I appreciate you seeing me on such short notice."
"Of course. After reading your submission, I'm not sure I had much of a choice." He shook my hand and motioned for me to move to a small table in the middle of the room. "Come have a seat and let's talk. You should know ahead of time that I brought your résumé and several others to my top reviewer in the company, and he was more than impressed with you."
"Oh. Do I know him?" I had an inkling that he was talking about Easton, but I let him continue. It would be nice to see what Easton referred to me as with his boss. I was grateful that if nothing else, it just saved me from having to figure out whether he was a friend versus being my boyfriend. Here he was saving me again without even trying.
"I should hope so. He said that the two of you were dating." A smile played on the side of Jon's mouth.
"Easton." I smiled and let out a short chuckle. "He's a dream."
"I agree, but don't tell him I said that. Alright. Let's talk about you, Missy. Your submission was the best I've read in years. Makes my top ten list. Tell me about your studies, your history, and then your demands for a possible employer."
My nervousness dissipated as Jon and I continued to talk, and I could see why Easton loved working for Wilmington and Branch. I answered all of Jon's questions and gave him my thoughts and desires on everything.
"Well, that's all very doable, and I like what I've seen thus far. Anything else before we move on to round two of the interview?"
I lifted my eyebrow, wondering what round two included. "Just one thing, and it might be a total no-go, but I have to try."
"Shoot for the moon, honey. The stars will catch you if you fall. Good place to be." He gave me a smile that should have been on the big screen.
"I'm not sure where my relationship with Easton is going, but I want it to go far. I'd like to be paired up with him as my mentor and hope that we could be assigned the same areas as often as possible. I'm very professional, and he is too, but it would be nice, should I get the job, to spend our down time together." I pressed my hands into my thighs as my nervousness reared to life again.
"Something that I would consider, no doubt. The second part of the interview is hands on. I'll send you to a restaurant if you have time, and you'll critique two dishes for me, create a write-up, and I'll review them. Should they impress me as much as your last one did, the job is yours. The man that you'll be interviewing with next is a great guy too. You'll like him, and most likely we'll pair you up with him for training. He's just a better fit, I think."
"Excellent." I stood and extended my hand. "Thank you again for the opportunity to interview."
"Absolutely. It was a pleasure meeting you. I'm glad to see you're just as intriguing in person as you are on paper. Stop by and get the restaurant location from Sherry before you go, and good luck, Vivian."
"Thank you, Sir." I turned and walked from the room on cloud nine. Nothing could top the emotional high I was riding. Well, seeing Easton maybe, but nothing else.
Chapter 31
Easton
Excitement and nervousness raged through my stomach, each fighting for dominance as I waited for Vivian to show up to the restaurant. Her text from earlier in the day played past my mind's eye over and over. She missed me.
"Not nearly as much as I missed you, baby," I spoke softly to the empty room, wanting so fucking bad to call her and spill everything.
Jon was willing to make my part of the interview a surprise by letting me conduct a portion of it, but now that I was waiting to hear from either of them, I was going nuts. He should have been done with the question and answer portion, but he often got long-winded. I ran my fingers through the tulips that I'd picked up for her and smiled. I wasn't sure what type of flowers she enjoyed best, but tulips reminded me too much of her not to pick them up. They had a tough exterior, and yet were beautiful beyond imagination.
My phone buzzed and I pulled it from my pocket, almost losing my grip on it as I fumbled to get it to my ear.
"This is Easton."
"Hey buddy. She just left here. With traffic, she should be with you in ten minutes tops." Jon sounded exceptionally happy.
"Awesome. So? Did you like her?" I held my breath in anticipation of his response.
"Nope."
I let out a sigh. "Really? Why? She's perfect for this, Jon."
"I loved her. She's every bit the talent that you said she was, and damn... Can I just say you are one lucky bastard? She's a classic beauty. I tried hard not to stare at her too much. She's breathtaking, though." He cleared his throat. "She's quite into you from what I could tell. Tread lightly, my friend."
I chuckled as relief flooded me. "Tread lightly? Fuck that. I'm going all in with this girl. I'll conduct the interview in a professional manner, but then I'm telling her everything. She needs to know how crazy she makes me feel."
"Yeah, she does. She seemed like the kind of chick that could ha
ndle you calling ten times a day with your needy ass, by the way." He laughed again. "I'll let you go. She's in if the second part of the interview goes well. Give me a write-up and recommendation."
"Can we travel together, Jon? I promise to keep things completely professional.”
"Yeah, buddy. She's already asked. It's part of the stipulation to hire her. She's your travel partner and you're her trainer, but I expect nothing but the best from both of you."
"And that's what you'll get. Thanks, boss." My cheeks hurt from the smile on my face. I was glad that no one was around to see me cheesing it.
"No, thank you. Great job. You saved the company a huge headache with Kevin, and you've helped me possibly replace him with a great writer, who's quite capable of stealing the readers’ hearts like it seems she stolen yours."
"She has. I'll check in tomorrow. Night, Jon."
"Night, buddy."
I hung up the phone and pulled a mint out of my pocket as a million emotions rolled through me. I wanted to call my mom and scream into the phone that everything was most likely going to work out, but I didn't want Vivian to walk in to me losing my shit with my parents. She would know soon enough just how important they both were to me. The only person that would take a place above them would most likely be her.
"Right this way ma'am." The door behind me opened, and I turned to greet my guest.
"Thank you." She stopped short by the door, her eyes widening a little. "Easton."
"Hi, baby. I'm sorry for not calling. Jon made me promise not to until he worked out everything with you. He's all about appearing objective. Forgive me?" I took a few steps toward her as she moved toward me and slid into my arms, pressing her lips tightly to mine.
I moved my hand into her long silky hair and brushed my tongue over the crease of her lips, pushing a little as she opened up to me. Tightening my hands in her hair, I rubbed softly as my tongue rolled by hers, licking at her flavor and drinking her in deeply.
"Damn, I've missed you so much." I pressed my forehead to hers and smiled. "But, right now is about your interview. Let's get on with it and then we'll enjoy the rest of the night, just the two of us. That sound okay?"
"Sounds like bliss." She kissed me once more and moved to the table, sitting down and pulling her phone from her purse. "Mind if I record this and then I can type it up?"
"Not at all." I sat down across from her and took her in. "You're so fucking beautiful."
"That's not professional in the slightest, Mr. Parks." She lifted her eyebrow playfully.
"Yeah, neither is my raging desire to crawl beneath this table and lick every inch of you." I licked at my lips as her face grew flush.
"Get on with the interview. I have plans to make this handsome guy I know scream my name." She shrugged as if we were talking about the weather.
"Oh yeah? I'm almost jealous of him. I usually like my women pressed to something, crying out for more. A man screaming seems a little much, no?" I motioned for the server to come and save us from ourselves.
"Tease," she whispered and picked up the menu. "Do I get to choose what dishes I'm critiquing?"
"Yes, but the house favorites and new additions to the menu will always be at the top of the list. Choose those and two additional dishes. If you like the restaurant or are keen on helping support them, then you choose items that they wish they were selling more of but aren't currently." I picked up the bottle of red wine between us and poured us each a glass. "Order for us."
"How do you know what the house favorites are or the items that they're trying to sell?" She glanced up at me, her playful sex-kitten expression all but gone.
"You ask your friendly, neighborhood server." I sat back as she had a quick but pleasant conversation with the server.
She finished up, ordered a handful of items and turned her attention back to me. "That all sound good to you?"
"Delightful. I haven't had anything here that I didn't like." I licked at my lips absently. Her eyes shifted down to watch me, and my body hardened farther than it already was. "How was the interview with Jon?"
"Great. He seemed like a good guy. I can see why you like working for him." She took a tentative sip of her wine. "What happened to the other food critic that worked alongside you? Kevin, I think you said his name was, right?"
"He was fired. Piss poor judgment in lying about testing out a few dishes while we were in Florida. That and a sense of entitlement. Never bodes well for people like us." I slid my hand toward her, leaving it palm up in hopes that she would press hers to the top of mine.
"I'm not worried about acting rich and famous." She slid her hand on top of mine, the softness of her skin leaving my body to ache for more of her.
"What are you worried about, Viv? Be open with me."
"Is this still the interview?" She smiled and glanced around.
"No. The critique is the interview. You've won me over completely. I don't even need this additional part, but Jon does for the company records. The job is yours if you want it."
"I'm worried about falling so far in love with you that I can't find my way out." She smiled playfully.
"I plan on making that happen." I licked at my lips. "Are you excited about the job opportunity? Do you want the position?"
"Do you want me to have it?" She wrapped her fingers around my palm as she searched my face. "I applied for the job to be closer to you, but then I almost felt silly having done it. It seemed like a stalker-like thing to do."
I smiled. "I mentioned you to Jon the minute I got back into town. I was ready to throw my weight around with him if I had to just to get you an interview, but then I felt silly. You're an independent woman and wouldn't want a man messing around with your future." I wrapped my fingers around hers and squeezed softly. "I would have hated for you to see me as a controlling ass."
"Do you want me to work beside you?"
"More than anything else." I paused and tilted my head. "Wait. I want that second to one thing."
"Which is?" Her eyes misted and I got up, pulling her from her seat and brushing my fingers down the silky skin of her cheek as a tear rolled down slowly.
"Which is to have you with me. We can work together, but if it ever interferes with us being a couple, I'll leave or you can. I want us first, and then this partnership with Wilmington and Branch a distant second."
"Good." She turned her face and kissed my palm softly, captivating me with her soft feminine movements. "I was so hurt that you didn't wake me up on Monday morning, but I understand it a little better now."
"I'll not do that again, then. You only have to tell me when I do something wrong, and I'll correct it." I brushed my thumb over her full bottom lip. "Can we talk about you moving in with me soon?"
She laughed and pulled from me as the first dish arrived and was placed on the table. "Not this soon. I'm graduating in a few months, so even if I do take this job with you and Jon, I can't start until late May."
"That's okay. Stay with me at the penthouse apartment on the weekends when I'm home." I moved to the table and motioned for her to do the same. "We can work it all out. Do you want the job?"
"Hell yes." She awarded me a sexy smile. "It gives me the chance to say that I've tasted the finest foods, slept in the most expensive rooms, and made love to the most handsome man in every country."
"You're not sleeping around while we travel." I picked up my fork and gave her a playful warning look.
"No? Shame. I was hoping to have you explore me in every room we stayed in." She shrugged and sighed. "Too bad really. I'm just starting to get curious about the various ways my body might feel pleasure."
"Tease," I grumbled under my breath and picked up my fork. "Describe the salad and record yourself while you do. I'll hush for a few minutes while you work through this dish, then we can talk a little more."
"Alright." She looked down at the dish and back up at me. "Thank you, Easton."
"For what?" I pressed my fork into a thick slice of tomato, but paused.
"For believing enough in me when you barely knew me. For putting up with my drama in Miami and for giving me a chance at a new life. A life with you." She glanced down and started to recite the various ingredients in the salad.
I sat in stony silence, wanting to say a million things, but knowing better. She was recording, and the cheeky thing timed her sweet words perfectly. I had no choice but to remain silent. I'd get her later for it and offer up my own thank you. She'd opened me up in ways I'd almost forgotten existed. We could spend the night wrapped around each other, but in the morning, I was taking her to meet my parents. If she thought Jon was a great guy, she had a huge surprise coming. My mom and dad would blow her off her feet as they welcomed her into our family.
I love you sat on the tip of my tongue, but it wasn't time just yet. I used the rest of my wine to wash it down and savor it deep inside of me instead.
She would hear it soon enough from me, no doubt. Baby steps would take us all the way to the end of our lives, and we would take each one together.
Epilogue
One Year Later
Vivian
"This is beautiful, Easton." I glanced behind me to give him a smile for his great choice of resorts. Maui was filled with beachgoers that time of the year, and there was little question as to why. The fruits were hanging heavy from the trees, the water cool, and the sun deliciously warm.
"I had hoped that you would like this one." He moved into the room behind me, sliding his hands around my waist and down to cup my sex as he pressed his lips to the soft skin below my ear. "I want to try out the bed, and the shower, and the balcony. Remember that night in Jamaica a while back? I want that all over again."
"Mmmm," I pressed against him and let my eyes take in the sensual feast of the King's Palace room. The floor plan was vast and exquisite. It was a good thing that the company was doing well, and both Easton and I were to thank for that.
