I researched a location right in the heart of the college campus. Connecting her with Joseph Sweets would be a right step. He did business with our foundation and was a solid guy, always helping. It felt weird to be this nervous, but with all my connections, I could’ve done this sooner. If it worked out, they could afford rent for one year, hire part-time employees—probably students—and have enough to invest in some ads.
If only Nora could help them.
Hm.
That was an idea. Social media…marketing…Nora would be excellent as a consultant. Maybe a small fee. It was about a hundred an hour, I learned after some googling, but if she would do it for half that, yes, that would be incredible.
My palms dampened as I pulled open the doors and walked toward their cart. Carla knew I was coming and gave me a huge smile when she saw me.
“Anthony, hello,” she said, shaking my hand with a slight tremble. Her eyes lit up despite her nerves, and I returned her grin.
“Hey, Carla. You ready to meet Joseph?”
She guided us to two lounge chairs in the west window. The business center’s first floor was cafes, shops, all stores geared toward the working people of the tall building. Sounds of people chatting and eating lunch filled the area, and it smelled too much like garlic from the Italian place nearby.
But I liked the chaos.
“This is a bit nerve-racking, huh?” she said, smoothing her hands over her dark jeans.
“Yes. But I’m fairly confident this could work. He’ll come through so you could get started.”
She nodded as I handed over the folder. It had contracts, legal explanations, short-term and long-term goals and plans. I offered to look over her plan when I emailed her, and I combed through it Sunday. It was the perfect distraction after spending the night with Nora becausedamnthat woman was something else.
I cleared my throat and waited as Joseph approached like I asked him too. He was a short guy, with dark-black hair and pale skin. “Joseph, I’d like you to meet Carla.”
“Anthony, hey, thanks for setting this up.” He shook Carla’s hand and jutted his chin toward the folder. “Coffee is a weakness of mine.”
Carla grinned and wiped her hands over her pant legs before she pushed the folder toward him. He clicked his tongue as he looked through the first pages, and I knew I should leave. This wasn’t my place. I set up the connection and made sure Carla was prepared as much as I could. They needed to talk.
But leaving meant going back to the real world. Reluctantly, I got up and held out my hand. “I also know someone who I think would be an excellent marketing consultant for you.”
“Please, that’s one area my partner and I don’t have a lick of sense.” She had the same goofy smile, and she looked from Joseph to me. “Give me a call and we can chat.”
I grinned, and a quick flare of panic danced along my spine. “Oh, one thing.”
“Sure, yeah?”
“I don’t want people knowing I’m involved at all. Not yet anyway.”
“I can respect that.”
I nodded and put my hands in my pocket. It was time to leave, yet I didn’t want to.
This was so damn different from my job, it was tough to go back into the office for the rest of the day and pretend like my mind wasn’t elsewhere. At least I had the thought of Nora to get me through the day.
Comingup with new things for her to try or do became my favorite part of the week. Last night, I took her to get barbeque. Tonight was Taco Tuesday.
“Nora?” I said, knocking on her door with bags of groceries. I had all the ingredients to cook bitching margaritas.
She flung open the door and gave me the biggest smile. “Hi!”
She waved me in, her floral scent clinging to the air, and I took a deep breath. I didn’t take things too far last night. I just kissed her once after dinner. Tonight though. Shit. She wore rainbow earrings on her ears and a stiff white button shirt and a black skirt.
“Damn.” I set the bags on the table and pulled her toward me. She melted against my chest, and I ran my hands up and down her sides before kissing her. “Seeing you look all professional makes me want to mess you up.”
She bit her lip and giggled against me. “I’ve never been called professional in my life.”
“Yeah, you need some dirt on you or something.”
