–aj–
I endthe call and lean back in my leather chair, beyond pleased with the outcome. After my disastrous phone call this morning, I needed this. Dylan already knows the outcome is positive from listening to my side of the conversation, but he sits opposite me with his eyebrows raised and an expectant look.
“We got it!”
He jumps out of his chair, pumping his fist in the air. “Fuck yeah!” He wraps his hand around my bicep, pulling me to my feet, and we embrace in celebration. “I knew we had it in the bag, but I don’t like to celebrate until the deal is sealed.”
I chuckle at his enthusiasm. “This is an incredible opportunity for us. We’d better not fuck it up.”
“We won’t. We’ve got this. Everything we’ve done up until now has led us to this point. We’re ready.” He’s always supremely confident in our abilities. I know he’s right, but I hope we haven’t taken on more than we can handle. It is only the two of us after all, and this is a big deal—it’s the biggest contract we’ve ever had. The company,booknow.com,is listed in the top twenty tech companies in the US. If we can impress them, who knows where it might lead?
“Mr. Noble’s going to send over the final contract for our lawyer to look at, then we can sign on the dotted line. This is huge for us.” Excitement bubbles inside me. This is the break we’ve been working toward. Taking smaller jobs and edging our way closer to the bigger companies that will put us on the map has finally paid off. “He said he wants to keep the project between the three of us. He’s even using his personal lawyer, so no one in the company knows what’s going to happen.Hedoesn’t even want to know when we’re going to take the company down.”
Dylan raises his eyebrows. “Makes sense to do a stealth attack.” I nod in agreement as he claps his hands together. “This calls for a celebration.”
“Yep, it sure does. Let’s try outClub Rumors. It’s a new club for the over-thirties crowd.” I’m sick of the younger chicks. Most of them have nothing going on upstairs, relying solely on their looks. Dylan doesn’t mind the lack of conversation because he’s only looking to get laid, but I need more than a wet pussy.
He screws up his nose. “We’re only thirty, man. I’m not sure I want to age up just yet.”
I slap him on the back. “Haven’t you heard how horny women are in their thirties?”
His eyes light up. “Oh yeah?” I knew that would pique his interest. “Okay. I’m down for that. Let’s grab dinner first.”
“Sure. We’ll meet atCristo’sat seven-thirty. I’ll book us a table.”
“Cool. See you there.”
The door closes behind him and I make a booking at our favorite Greek restaurant. As I end the call, my phone lights up with my sister’s name.
“Unca AJ!” Colton, my three-year-old nephew, squeals down the line.
“Colton, my man.” This isn’t the first time he’s picked up my sister’s phone and called me. “How are you doing, buddy?”
“I good. I love you, Unca—” His words stop abruptly, and I’m guessing my sister’s discovered him using her phone again.
“AJ? Is that you?”
I chuckle. “Yeah, it’s me. I’m guessing you need to find a new hiding place for your phone?”
“Yeah. How’d you guess?” Hayley laughs. “I’m running out of places. I had it on top of the damn fridge! He pulled a chair over to the counter, climbed up, and then used a wooden spoon to drag the damn phone within his reach,” she huffs out.
My heart races. “Shit! Lucky he didn’t fall.”
“I know. We can’t take our eyes off him for a second. Lisa’s not home from work yet, and I was in the bathroom.” She sounds frustrated, and I can imagine her running her fingers through her dark-brown curls. I hear her draw in a deep breath. “Anyway, I was going to call you. How did your call go? Did you get the contract?”
“Yep!”
“Woohoo!” she sings across the line. “I knew you would. I’m so damn proud of you and Dylan! You’ve done incredible to build your reputation as quickly as you have.”
Her praise means the world to me since she and Lisa run their own successful business creating and designing educational games. Lisa’s an ex-teacher and Hayley is a game designer. That’s how they met. Lisa had an idea for an educational game to help teach kids grammar, so she contacted Hayley. They started working together on the project and one thing led to another and they’ve been together ever since. From that initial project, the two have created a whole slew of educational resources which are being used worldwide. What they’ve built over a short time period is truly inspiring. It also allows them the flexibility to work from home or in the office, which means they can take turns being home with their son.
I hear Colton squeal in the background. “Hey, I’ve gotta go. Lisa’s home. Congratulations again. We’ll have you over for dinner to celebrate.”
“Sure. Bye, Sis.” The call disconnects and I check the clock on the wall. I’ve got time for a quick workout before I need to get ready for dinner.
* * *
“ID please.” The woman at the door holds out her hand, a bored expression on her face.