“I assumed that. Why are you asking it?” Gia questioned.
“When I handed you the photo, I could see the wheels begin turning. The excitement in your voice when you spoke about the arrowheads couldn’t be missed either. If that is where your passion lies, in researching old things, why compliance? Seems so—”
“Boring?” she asked and he nodded.
“You don’t have the same expression when you talk about it.”
“I’m good at it.”
“I’m good at a few things myself. Doesn’t mean I want to do them as a career.”
“Some of us don’t have the luxury of doing what we want to do. We need to do what pays the bills.”
Roger didn’t know what it was like to go without. He’d grown up with money. What he hadn’t had was a family around him. “Money isn’t everything.”
“No. But when you’re worried about where the next meal is going to come from, it is. I was lucky. We always had food in the house and a roof over our heads. But my mother cut coupons and only bought what was on sale. Neither of my parents have a retirement fund. I worry about when they get older and can no longer work. I needed to make sure I have a secure job that not only will support me but will allow me to give back to them someday.” Gia frowned. “Of course getting fired wasn’t in my plan.”
“I’m not one who believes in fate, but the timing couldn’t have been better.” We wouldn’t have met if you’d been at work. “You’re not working for that asshole any longer.”
“Not working at all. I mean, besides your little project.”
“Which we’ve never discussed your pay.”
“You’ve taken me out to eat just about every day. I think that—”
“One has nothing to do with the other.”
“How can it not?” Gia asked.
“I might not be a gentleman, but I don’t ask a woman out and expect her to pay.”
“But—”
“Two-thousand dollars.”
Her eyes widened. “For what?”
“Work on the photo.”
“I can’t take any money from you.”
He knew she needed it. So why refuse it? Roger could spot a person dealing drugs in a heartbeat. Yet understanding a woman’s mind was another story all together. “When you hire someone, there’s usually payment associated with it.”
“I understand that. But it wouldn’t be . . . proper taking money any longer.”
Oh. The kiss.It wasn’t as though they had sex or anything. But he could understand how someone like Gia would consider it crossing the line.
“So you know, this technically wasn’t a formal job. It was more like—”
“Roger, no matter what you say, I’m not changing my mind. Consider this lending you a helping hand. Besides, it hasn’t been that hard. Actually, it has been fun.”
He could afford to hire someone to assist him. No one did something for nothing. He’d learned long ago, everyone had an agenda. Looking at Gia and those beautiful green eyes, he might have found the exception. She meant what she said. Gia was a rarity. A gem. “That brings me back to the comment before.”
“Which was what exactly?” Gia asked looking puzzled. “We seem to topic hop a lot. Even for me, it’s getting hard to keep track, and details are my specialty.”
He wasn’t getting sidetracked. “Your research skills amaze me. That is what you should be doing.”
In a soft tone she said, “Roger, I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but I can’t afford to live in a dream world.”