“I’m so glad to hear you say that,” Calvin laughed lightly. “I was afraid you wouldn’t want to take the job even if he offered it.”
“Well we can look through the paperwork together tonight, and we will make a decision together,” Veronica said, knowing those were the words that would make him the happiest.
“Wow, I honesty just can’t believe you’re being so open,” Calvin said. “I know we still have to go through the paperwork and everything, but I just want to say again that I’m already so happy with your giving all this a go in the first place.”
“Well whatever it takes to make you happy,” Veronica said, and she hoped he didn’t hear the hint of sarcasm in her voice.
“Well I really appreciate that,” Calvin said, and Veronica felt a little guilty again.
“Alright, well you get back to work,” Veronica said. “I’m going to start getting ready for work.”
“Okay babe,” Calvin said nicely. “I’ll see you when I get home tonight.”
“See you,” Veronica said monotonously. “Bye.”
Veronica set the phone back on the coffee table with a sigh. She knew she couldn’t ever tell Calvin about how attracted she was to Davenport, but a part of her felt like concealing that fact was deceptive. At the end of the day, she was only concealing it to spare his feelings, and that would have to be enough.
Besides, it wasn’t as if anything would ever come of her attraction to Frank Davenport. He was likely the object of attraction for many women, and surely nothing ever came of it. After all, he was hiring her as his babysitter, so there was likely already another woman in his life.
Veronica shook her head and decided to focus on the job she had at hand. This was a particularly good group of kids, and all she would have to do was watch them for a couple of hours before their parents got home from work.
Veronica changed into a pair of jeans and a flannel shirt, then gathered up her purse and left the house, being sure to bring her wallet and phone charger with her just in case.
It didn’t take her long to arrive at the house, just before the kids got there. She liked working with them. The oldest, a girl, liked to sit and read, and the younger one liked to talk to her about whatever had happened throughout his day. The hours passed quickly, and before long their parents were home.
By the time she returned home, it was about six thirty at night. She was already mentally preparing herself for the dinner she would have to cook, and to read over the paperwork Davenport had given her. She turned her key in the lock and stepped into the house, only to be taken completely by surprise.
Calvin stood by her chair at the dining table, which was decorated by a red tablecloth, and had a candle burning in the center. On the plates was her favorite dish, chicken parmesan, as well as a large bowl of salad. She looked up at him surprise, and his face broke out in a smile.
“This is…” Veronica started, and struggled to find words. “Wow.”
“I wanted to surprise you!” Calvin laughed, and moved to take her purse from her shoulder, setting it by the hall tree. He then led her over to the table, pulling out a chair for her and helping her to sit down.
“Well I’m definitely surprised,” Veronica said, giving him a soft smile.
“I am just really happy for you,” Calvin said, leaning down to give her a kiss. “And I can’t wait to look through all this paperwork with you so that we can decide if you actually want to take the job!”
> Veronica nodded, and began to help herself to the salad he had prepared for her.
“I mean, whatever you decide,” Calvin waved a fork in the air as he spoke. “I’m happy you even went to the interview and that you impressed him enough that he offered you the job.”
Veronica felt a little deceitful. If Calvin had seen the relaxed, almost too personal nature of the interview, he would likely not have been half as impressed. Still, she had not seen Calvin so excited or even remotely happy in months, and she didn’t want to lose the atmosphere of the moment.
“Well maybe we can celebrate a little after we look through all the paperwork,” Veronica suggested, allowing her voice to take on a darker inflection.
Calvin looked up at her and blinked, obviously taken aback by the suggestion.
“Oh, well I mean yeah, we’ll have to see!” he said, and Veronica couldn’t help but be a little disappointed by his lack of enthusiasm. Still, he had done all this for her, and to pressure him into having sex wouldn’t exactly be very fair of her.
Veronica allowed them to settle into a comfortable silence. She did her best to enjoy her meal, but she could feel that Calvin was practically itching to just clear the table and break out the paperwork. So, as much as she would have liked to relax and savor this meal, she hurried up for his sake.
When they were finished, they both worked together to clear the table and clean the dishes. Then, without prompting, Veronica moved to retrieve her briefcase. She moved over to the couch in front of the coffee table, and spread out the papers along its surface.
Calvin was at her side in almost an instant, eagerly looking over the multiple sheets of paper.
“Okay, we can take turns reading all the papers, and when we are both finished,” she said calmly. “We can discuss the contents. Deal?”
“Deal,” Calvin said eagerly, and immediately snatched up the thickest stack of papers.