Every time I was with him, I was in awe. His gentle spirit, warm smile, and sparkling eyes always reminded me of why I liked him so much. He was the kind of guy that someone could take home to meet their parents and feel proud to be with.
We finished playing golf and he drove me home. He was quiet but his hands were shaking as he clenched the steering wheel. I felt a knot in my stomach as he took a deep breath when we pulled up to my house.
"Look, I don't want you to think I'm a player so being upfront. I travel a lot for work. But I like you. There's no rush for anything."
He held my hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. His gaze turned away, his eyes focused on something in the distance. "When you're ready to take the next step, then I'll be ready," he said, his voice deep and commanding. He paused and looked back at me with a reassuring smile. "Don't feel like me bringing you home means you need to consider inviting me in.”
He paused for a minute which made me smile. He was being genuine about the situation. I moved closer, and leaned in for a kiss. He opened his mouth, inviting me in, and needless to say he’s a wonderful kisser which only led me to imagine how hewould be in bed. I sighed thinking about all the things I’d love to do with him once we get there.
“Again tomorrow?”
“Same time.” I smiled, wiping my lips.
Chapter Eight
ALEXANDER
Today, I had a couple conference calls about the hotel chains that we opened up recently. Investors wanted an update on how they were doing. I spent my morning looking through numbers and profits. The hotels have been doing phenomenal, so much so, we planned on opening six new locations next year.
I opened my Skype and joined the conference call.
“Hi, everyone!” I waited to see who all was already on the call. “Aaron, you’re going to be amazed at the results today.”
He just laughed. “Well, I hope so. With six kids, birthdays and Christmas are expensive.”
Aaron was one of our first investors when we opened our doors. We couldn’t have started the company without his support. We’d made a lot of money together since then. As long as we stayed smart, big things were going to happen.
“Hey, Shawn. Thanks for joining us today.”
“Hey, Aaron. How are the kids?” Shawn asked.
“Getting big. As usual. Going by too fast. Hoping I can retire early and enjoy it before they become adults. We’ll see.”
We were waiting on two other investors, Sarah and Josh, to join. A husband and wife duo that invested in all of our business ventures.
“We got a couple more people that should be joining. So Alexander will just tell you a little about our vision for next year.”
“So, next year will be a great year for all of us. Because of this year’s success, we plan on opening up more hotels and a couple restaurants. We already decided where and have a projected date to open.”
“Sarah. Josh. Thanks for joining.” Shawn stopped to greet them.
“Where at, Alexander?” they asked.
“Well, the hotels will open in Chicago, Los Angeles, Orlando, and Cleveland,” I replied, pausing to let that sink in. “The restaurants will open in Houston and Atlanta.”
“Well, that sounds great. Since we’re all here, let’s talk about the current projects.” I turned on my slideshow. “As you can see, since the open date, the hotels have already netted quite a profit. Twelve million to be exact. Next year’s projected profit is point six million.” It was like crickets on this call. I don’t think any of them thought the hotel would take off this good.
“How much do we need to open the new ventures next year?” Aaron asked.
“Around twelve million is all we’re lacking. That means only six million from each of you. As you can see, you’ll receive your investment back in a short period of time based on the projected profit.” I knew this was a huge selling point. Investors liked to hear that they would get their money back fast. Every investment came with risk, but this wouldn’t fail. Not with me and Shawn overseeing it.
Chapter Nine
ELLA
After an exhausting day at work, I kicked off my work shoes and trudged to the bathroom. I started the bath, cranking the knob until the water was steaming hot, and added a generous scoop of bath salts. As I sank into the warmth, I thought about all the hours I was getting this week. Adulting sucks; if I could only go back to preschool when we got to take naps.
I grabbed a book and enjoyed about an hour of pure silence. When I got out of the bath, my muscles felt like Jell-O. We had another date tonight, although I thought about canceling so I could stay home and relax. Honestly, I just wanted to lounge around in my pajamas.