punchline. Woolridge Medical sent over a rep, and she’s a, well, an interesting personality. She wants me to prove myself before she donates the goods.”
“Prove yourself? By having a party?”
Ken fiddled with his tie, realizing he’d done a terrible job tying it that morning. “It sounds crazy—I realize that—but she claims she wants to develop a personal relationship, and I think a party is the way to her heart.”
“A personal relationship, huh?” Simon set his laced hands on the desk. His suggestive tone could only mean one thing.
“Not like that.”
“Are you sure?”
The question irritated Ken more than it should have. “Yes, I’m sure.”
He wasn’t, really. It simply didn’t matter to him. He wasn’t interested in Thea in that way, and he wasn’t sending her signals that could suggest otherwise. At least he didn’t think he was.
“It’s how she does business,” he added.
“Quite the opposite of how you do it.” Simon chuckled.
Ken shrugged. His friend knew him well.
“Anyway,” Ken said, “Adison will do a wonderful job planning the party. Not only does she have the experience, but she has the enthusiasm…as well as a winning personality that should help with planning something last minute.”
“A winning personality.” Simon repeated the words slowly. “That’s quite the compliment.”
Lacing his hands behind his head, Ken leaned back in his chair. “First you think I’m crushing on the client, now you’re suggesting I’m crushing on my new employee? You know, I don’t always need a woman in my life.”
“Don’t I know it. How long has it been since you’ve had a relationship? Or even gone on a date for that matter?”
Ken’s jaw tightened. He hated it when Simon ribbed him for his dating life. Or, more specifically, lack thereof.
For him, dating happened in waves. Short, sporadic waves. The last year, he’d lost most of his interest in it. He knew this was a sharp contrast to how other men in their early thirties lived their lives. Every other guy he knew was either in a committed relationship or going on dates every weekend and juggling multiple women.
Neither of those situations were for him.
He didn’t know exactly what was for him when it came to women, and trying to think it through never yielded results. He was better off focusing on what he did understand: business.
“So you’re not going to answer.” Simon rapped his knuckles on the table. “Understood. In that case, let's talk about—”
“Adison is something special.”
A long silence followed Ken’s statement. Though the claim was true, he wasn’t sure why he’d given breath to it.
Simon’s lips twitched, a sure sign he was fighting a smile. “Tell me about her.”
“I only mean…” Ken ran his palm over his head and glanced at the door. He knew no one was really out there listening, but he felt self-conscious nonetheless. “We’re in an interesting situation.”
“What do you mean? Because of the party?”
“No.” Ken took a deep breath then launched into the story of what had happened at the coffee shop. By the time he finished, Simon was slapping his knee and laughing so hard his face was red.
“Oh, this will be fun,” Simon crowed.
“It was fun for a minute,” Ken corrected. “We’re not actually pretending to be a couple anymore.”
“That’s what you think. What about when she has a party to go to and she needs her boyfriend to join her? Are you really planning on turning her down?”
Ken opened his mouth, thinking he would say “yes,” but he hesitated. No, he wouldn’t turn Adison down. He would be happy to help her.
They had to be careful, though. While he wasn’t a celebrity by any definition, people knew who he was. If it got out that he was in a relationship, someone might start snooping. If they discovered the relationship was a lie, it would be devastating both for his reputation and that of the Montoya Foundation.
“I’ll cross that bridge if and when we come to it,” he decided out loud. “Now what were you about to mention a moment ago?”
“I was circling back to Miami.”
“Right.” Ken dropped his hands from behind his head and rolled his shoulders. Back to business.
They’d been discussing opening a Montoya Foundation office in Miami for a while. It was a big project, and focusing on it was sure to help him get his mind off Adison.
“About Miami…” He cleared his throat and launched into it.
Here and there, he filled his mind with thoughts big enough that they commanded his full attention. Throughout the conversation, though, Adison drifted in.
He wondered how she was