While I worked at my own meal, he had paused to remove a document from a folder he had set to the side and pushed it on the table toward me. I recognized the title at the top: Nondisclosure Agreement.
“This is the NDA?”
“Yes. If you would please sign it, then we can begin to discuss the intimate details of the job.”
I normally would have read through it, but I knew I was going to take the job whether I did or not. I picked up the pen he had laid on top of the document and signed the bottom on the line. I slid the paper back and resumed eating.
“You didn’t read it.”
“I want the job regardless.”
He sighed but didn’t complain and tucked the document carefully away. “This next part will require a monumental amount of trust more than anything. The NDA was to protect my company’s secrets and information rather than hold you to keeping a secret for me.”
He had my attention. I quickly finished up my food so I could focus on him. “I don’t think I understand. I thought you needed someone to keep house.”
He sighed. “That’s only part of it. I didn’t put out a formal job advertisement because I need someone who I can mold into the person I need to fit my needs. Of course, there are the physical household and employee matters that you might be organizing and tending to, but then you’ll also be attending dinner parties and perhaps even hosting them. You will be a head of the household in a sense, but that house is still my house at the end of the day. What you say goes, but what I say is law.”
My head felt heavy with fog. Dinner parties? I had never even attended one let alone hosted one. My self-doubt began to rear her ugly head and grin maliciously at me.
“I don’t know if I’m the right person for that, honestly. Why don’t you just hire a socialite? Or even someone who was brought up with that kind of money? I don’t think that’s a role I even know how to fill.”
He set his fork down and used his napkin to wipe at his mouth. “I’ve considered what you’re saying. However, affluent upbringing would only add a level of drama to what I want to achieve. Women of that caliber want more than what I can offer. They want access to large amounts of my money, and they want families to secure their role in my life. I need someone who understands that our relationship is professional, yet who will be able to bring a relationship-esque touch to the parts of my professional life when in the public eye. Does that make sense at all?”
I tried to work through what he was implying. I thought I had a good idea of what he was saying, but I wasn’t completely sure just yet. “You want me to be your fake girlfriend?”
He took a drink from his water glass and set it back down into its place. “If that’s the way you perceive it. I’m merely looking for an employee. I’m not looking for emotional attachment neither offering it, so I suppose that would be a fair label for it.”
“Does this mean I won’t be allowed to date anyone outside of your… er, arrangement?” I wasn’t interested in anyone, nor was anyone really interested in me. I just needed to know the boundaries.
He nodded. “I won’t be either if you are hired. Like I said, image.”
I thought back to the news article I had read earlier yesterday. “So, let me get this straight. You want someone who will basically run your household, cater to your work friends and clients, who will spend time with you and learn all kinds of intimate details, but no lovey dovey during off scenes?”
“Precisely.”
“Oh.” I shrugged. “Well, that sounds doable.”
He took a bite of his food. “I wasn’t sure if you were the right fit for this if I’m being honest. The first interview was a bit of a wash, and then yesterday you revealed something you had been keeping from me. But I think you would be a refreshing take on that aspect of my life, a different direction that could improve my image with your accomplishments. If I can trust you, I think we might be able to make this work. What are your thoughts so far?”
I swallowed. Of course, I was flattered by what he had to say. He thought a little more highly of me than I probably deserved.
I began to wring my hands in my lap. “Honestly, I’m intimidated by all of it. I’m curious, though, and I think I can do it. There’s just going to be a bit of a learning curve. I think I can be your girl if you can have enough patience with me.”
ELIJAH
‘Be your girl’ hit me in a different way than I had expected it to. My first instinct was aversion, but then I briefly considered Avery in a different light. I shook those thoughts from my mind and focused on my goals. I was impressed with how she was handling this conversation. She brought a level of maturity and understanding I had hoped for, but not expected. I wanted her for this job.
I gave her my best smile. “Definitely not the answer I was expecting, but I do like what I hear. Although aren’t you worried that I’ll mold you into someone you wouldn’t like to be? That’s a lot of responsibility to entrust a stranger.”
“I don’t worry too much.”
I couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled up my throat. “That’s reassuring.”
She shook her head. “No, what I mean to say is that I already know who I am.”
I fingered the rim of my glass and narrowed my gaze on her. She fidgeted slightly but this time didn’t balk under my scrutiny. I cleared my throat. “And who are you, then?”