Page 29 of One Night in Paris
Looking at him out of the corner of my eye, I tried to figure out where he was going with this. Since I had no idea, I answered him honestly. “Yeah, I do. We had a great time on our date. She’s beautiful, great to talk to, and has an awesome personality.”
“But you asked her to work for you?” Trevor’s mouth was pulled to the side, which made me wonder what he was thinking about.
Shrugging, I said, “I know she’s a hard worker, so it just made sense to offer her the job when I need an assistant.”
Trevor raised an eyebrow. “So are you planning on fucking your assistant? Like in the office or something, man?”
I laughed. “It’s not like that. It won’t be anything inappropriate. Not at work, anyway. She’s a great person, andI’m glad she’s going to be joining our team. What are you trying to say, Trev?”
“I’m not sure yet,” he said, giving me a thoughtful look. Anytime Trevor was mulling over something, I had no idea what to expect. I decided to let him bide his time. When he was ready, he’d come at me hard. Sometimes he had to think things through, but he always said what he thought.
Eventually, we arrived back at our trucks. Dirty and tired, I was ready to get out of here and grab a bite to eat, then maybe go take a nap or zone out in front of the television for a while, something I rarely did. We pulled off our helmets and gloves, grinning at each other in the afterglow of a great ride.
“That was amazing,” Trevor said, dabbing sweat from his forehead. “Even though I wiped out.”
“Totally,” I agreed. “Dude, I thought you were dead.” He chuckled mischievously. “We’ll have to do this again soon.”
“Definitely.” Trevor offered his hand and I slapped him a high-five.
We began to pack our bikes up and were about to say our goodbyes, already planning our next ride. Then Trevor decided to get to the point from earlier.
Standing between our trucks, he scratched his head and said, “Look, I know you think Harper’s cute and all, but I just don’t think it’s a good idea for you to date her. If she’s gonna be working for you.”
This was deep, coming from Trevor. Raising an eyebrow, I asked him, “Why not? I don’t see the problem.”
“Well, for starters, she’s your employee. It could create a conflict of interest and make things awkward at work,” he explained with a shrug.
“How would you know that, bud? You’ve never worked a day in your life.” I felt myself getting slightly defensive, but I also knew he was just looking out for me.
Trevor laughed. “Too shays. Too shays.”
“I think you mean ‘touché,’” I corrected.
“Whatever. I’m just saying, be careful, you know. I don’t want you getting yourself in a heavy situation, man. You’re my best friend. I care about you.”
He was trying to be thoughtful, and I appreciated it. With a smile, I said, “I see your point, but I think we can handle it. We’re both adults and we can keep our personal and professional lives separate.”
“Sure, sure… but do you think it’s worth the risk? What if things don’t work out between you two? It could make things really uncomfortable at the office,” Trevor countered.
I didn’t even want to think about the possibility of things not working out between Harper and me, but he had a point. Nevertheless, I found myself saying, “I understand your concerns, but I really like her and I want to give it a shot. I’ll just be careful and make sure we keep things professional at work.”
Trevor let out a sigh. “I guess it’s your decision in the end, but just be careful. I don’t want to see you get hurt or for things to get messy at your job. You’ve worked super hard to make that place successful.”
“Trev, I appreciate your concern. I really do, but I’ll be careful and make sure to handle everything responsibly. Thanks for looking out for me, buddy. But at the end of the day, I’m the boss. I can do whatever the hell I want.”
Trevor chuckled. “Well, good luck with that.”
16
HARPER
Monday morning, I got ready for work feeling both nervous and excited. All weekend, I’d been mentally preparing for this day, going over everything in my mind, even taking some time yesterday after my last shift at Carmine’s to make sure that my outfit was professional and that I had everything I needed for my first day. It had been super difficult not to tell Dotty where she could shove it, but I’d bitten my tongue, even when she’d said they were better off without me, just in case I had to go crawling back.
Taking the train to the office, I couldn’t help but think about Logan. He was going to be myboss. After Paris and the date we’d gone on, I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was a spark between us. How it would affect what we had going on before, now that we had a professional relationship, I wasn’t sure, but I was determined to keep things professional while at work.
The walk from the subway exit to the building was short. Before I entered the building, I took a few deep breaths, reminding myself that I could do this. I used the reflection from the building to check my outfit. I’d made sure to dress in a professional, yet stylish, outfit. I wore a pair of tailored blackpants, a white blouse, and a sleek black blazer. I combined this with a pair of classic pumps and a string of pearls, completing my look with a touch of understated elegance. If I had more money, I might’ve had something nicer to wear, but I thought it worked. Maybe next time I went to Paris, I’d be able to afford more clothes.
Taking the elevator upstairs, I watched other people check their phones or hurriedly watch the numbers of the floors tick by. No one else looked nervous. Was I the only one in the city starting a new job today?