A Life Like This (Life #1) (15 page)

“Angelica, please call me Jon. Save that Mr. Harper shit for my brother.” His voice is so stern yet at the same time playful.

“Jon, how may I help you?” I ask him nicely.

“All business and no fun aren’t you?” he asks me. I can tell he is grinning through the phone.

“Well, you called my office asking questions about my work, so yes, I am talking business,” I reply smartly.

He laughs deeply, very much like Blake. “You’re right, I did. Maybe I just called to hear your voice, though.” He sounds so smooth. He must use this line a lot. It’s not going to work here.

“I’m sure you wouldn’t waste your time or mine to just hear my voice, Jon. How can I help you?” There, take that.

“I waste no one’s time, Angelica. I merely wanted to invite you to the club tomorrow night. It’s our official party to launch I.P. I thought you might want to be there to see what your firm is representing.” He states matter-of-factly. Cocky fuck, he knows throwing work in there will force me to have to attend.

“Thank you for the invitation. Unfortunately, due to the short notice, I have previous arrangements tomorrow night. I will ask my colleagues if they will be able to attend,” I say sweetly.

“What a shame. I would have loved to see you there.” His voice is now low, seductive. I know what he would have loved to do with me there. Cocky bastard.

“I would have loved to attend. Again, thank you for the invitation, perhaps another time.”

“Yes, perhaps. Goodbye, Angelica.”

“Goodbye, Mr. Harper.” I’m smiling as I hang up the phone. I’ll definitely tell Greg and Allen. I would love to see Jon’s face when they both show up without me. Ha! I’d go just to hide and see that. I wonder what Blake would think of his brother’s behavior. No, I know what he would think; he would be pissed. It doesn’t matter, though. I’m not going, so there is no need to involve Blake in this. Greg walks in a short time later.

“Thanks a lot, asshole! I got stuck listening to Jon Harper try to woo me into going to his club.” I throw my pen at him, but his reflexes are good and he dodges it.

“Ha, thank God, I didn’t take it. I wouldn’t have been able to resist that hunky voice.” We both break out laughing.

“Well, don’t be too sad. I told him I would send you and Allen there tomorrow night.” I smile my great big smile with the head tilt.

“Damn it, Ang, why did you do that? I don’t want to go to his damn club. He doesn’t want us there. He wants you.”

“Exactly, and that’s why I can’t go. He said it’s the official release party for I.P. Vodka and he thought we would want to be there to see it go off.”

He sighs, knowing like I do one of us has to go. “Damn it, okay, but you owe me!” I smile at him again as Allen walks into my office.

“What does she owe you?” Allen asks, looking at us.

“She owes me…shit, I don’t even know…dinner!” He points his finger at me.

“Dinner it is,” I happily agree.

“What makes him deserve dinner? I want in,” Allen chimes in, making us all laugh.

“Greg agreed to go to the I.P. launch party tomorrow night at Club Next for Jon Harper. Go with him and you can join in on the dinner.”

“I’m in, free night at the club. Awesome.” He smiles his goofy smile.

“See, Greg.” I point at Allen. “Why can’t you be more enthusiastic like him?” Greg just shakes his head.

We spend the next hour revising our presentation again after Bill has made his remarks. Once the guys leave my office, I catch up on emails and up and coming projects. I also call a few past clients to make sure they are still happy with the advertising pitches we provided for them. It’s not in my job description, but I started calling clients back a few years ago and our return ratio, because of it, is almost 100%. People like to think you care about them. They like to think they are constantly on your mind. If you do that, then they will give you more business. They will come to you first with any future advertising needs. So I do it to keep our clientele happy and keep them coming back for more.

After making my last phone call, I check the time on my computer, five fifty-five pm.
Fuck!
When did that happen? I power off my computer, and then grab my belongings and head out of the office. Most of the staff on this floor is gone for the night, so after only a few goodbyes, I make my way downstairs. Charlie is gone and the night security is at his place. I smile at him then walk into the brisk night air. Shit, it’s cold. I should have worn a warmer jacket. What was I thinking? As I start to walk around the corner, I see Joey walking toward me. Always handsome that man, he’s walking like he is on the runway. Eyes on me, his black jeans tailored to perfection, black leather boots always looking brand new. His coat is black and form fitting. Even when wearing it, you can tell he is ripped under there. He picks up his pace and runs toward me and takes off his jacket once he reaches me.

“You dumb ass, what’s this little sweater going to do to keep you warm? You’re not in Texas anymore, baby girl.” He bundles me up like a parent.

“Thanks, Dad!” I kiss him on the cheek. He holds his arm out for me and I put my arm through it.

“How was work today, sweetie?” he says, trying to mock a fatherly tone.

“It was busy as fuck!” We both laugh. “How about yours? You’re looking sharp today, per usual.”

“Oh, this?” He points to his outfit and smiles. “I just threw this together last minute; you know me.” He winks at me. Liar, that man takes as long as it does any woman to get ready, if not longer. He makes any outfit look like it just came off the runway, which it might very well have. “I had two shoots today. Luckily, they were solo shoots, so there was no drama bullshit.”

“Oh, how I’ve missed you when I was gone. I told them you’re coming back with me for Christmas, FYI.” I flash him my pearly whites.

“You little devil, of course you would commit me to that without even asking me.” He’s joking. He always spends Christmas with me, but he acts as if he has another choice. It’s another reason I think Joey and I bonded so much when we were in college – our mutual dislike of our mothers. The fact that our fathers are out of the picture also helped. We spend every holiday together. We are our own family, and I wouldn’t change it for the world. We walk into a quaint little bistro and are seated in a booth in the back corner. A waitress appears almost immediately after we are seated and asks our drink order while only staring at Joey. He gives her his panty-melting modeling smile, making me laugh and roll my eyes. He orders us a bottle of Moscato and sends her on her way.

“Does it ever get old seeing these girls practically throwing their panties at you?”

“Never.” He gives me the same smile he just gave our ever-horny waitress. “I am merely helping to brighten the day of women all over the city with this face of mine. It’s not my fault; I was blessed with these amazing features.” He winks at me, cocky fuck.

“You are a cocky bastard, you know that?”

“Yes, yes I do.” The waitress returns with our bottle of wine then takes our orders. Once she is gone, I tell Joey about my phone call with Jon.

“That asshole wants in your panties. You better not fucking let him. He’s a player.” Joey is officially in big-brother mode now.

“I’m not going. I’m making Greg and Allen go to represent us. Even Blake told me his brother is a bad person. He gives me the chills and not in a good way. I’m not stupid, Joey. I know what he wants and he is not getting it from me.” I take a drink of my wine, annoyed Joey would think so little of me to warn me not to go.

“Look, baby girl, you know I’m only looking out for you. I know you’re a smart girl, but guys like Jon don’t take no for an answer.” The waitress chooses that moment to bring our food. Once she is gone, he continues. “Just keep your guard up; that’s all I’m saying.”

“I will.” We both dig into our food, and it’s delicious. I love Italian food. Well, I love all food actually, and it’s why I force myself to run every damn morning. Otherwise, I would balloon up.

“So, Mommy Dearest called me yesterday,” Joey informs me with a mouthful of food. I look up at him; this is never good news.

“What did the bitch want?” I stare at him with pissed eyes.

“She wants to host a Thanksgiving dinner. You know, for our big family and all.” He is being sarcastic; there is no one else, just the two of them. “So anyway, all she needs is five grand to hire an up-and-coming caterer.” He sounds sad. Goddamn it, I hate that woman. All she ever wants is money.

“Wow, that’s a new excuse.” I grab his hand. “Ignore that money hungry whore. Tell me you told her to pound sand?”

“I did. I actually told her to fuck off and lose my number.” I stare at him shocked. He has never told his mother anything like this. As much as he hates her for using him for his money, he loves his mother and I know he wishes she would change her ways. He looks up at me. “I know, shocking right? I’m twenty-eight fucking years old; it’s time for me to realize that all that woman wants is my money, nothing else.” He sounds so defeated. Goddamn it, if I ever run into that woman, I’ll make her wish she was never fucking born. “She cried and said she doesn’t know why I would talk to her in such a way. So I told her to cut the shit and that I was never going to give her another dime.” He just plays with the food on his plate for a minute before continuing. “She cried some more and told me she will be homeless if I don’t give her money. I told her I was sorry about her bad luck and hung up the phone. I feel like shit, AP.” I get up from across the booth and sit next to him. He puts his arm over my shoulder and rests his head on mine. “Why does she have to be this way?” I know he’s not waiting for a response. I honestly don’t have an answer for him; I wish I did.

“You did the right thing, JoJo. She’s a grown woman, and she needs to be an adult. It’s not your job to pay her way through life. I’m sure she won’t be homeless, but if she is, she made her bed. She has to lie in it.” I hug his side tightly. We sit quietly for a while just embracing one another. “I love you, Joey. I’ll always be your family.”

“I know, AP, I know.” He kisses the top of my head. I can’t stop the tears that spill. I’m sad for my best friend. I’m sad that his piece of shit mother has put him in this position. She has made him feel like it will be his fault if she ends up on the streets. Fuck that bitch. I hate her. Joey tilts my head up when I hiccup. Damn it, I always hiccup when I cry. “Damn it, Angie, don’t cry. I’m fine.” He wipes my tears away and hugs me tightly. “Let’s get out of here.” I stand before him as he reaches into his pocket and throws two hundred dollars on the table.

“Joey, I don’t think it was that much.”

“I know, but I’m breaking her heart leaving here with another woman, so she deserves a nice tip as a consolation.” He winks at me as I slap his chest.

“I wish I could be as cocky as you are,” I tell him as we head out the door.

“Please, AP, you are a cocky little thing yourself and you know it.” He just stares at me. He is right; I have my moments.

“Sometimes.” I smile at him then link my arm in his as we head to my place. We walk at a steady pace, not speaking, just enjoying the sights. Being a New Yorker, you sometimes forget to slow down and take it all in. It’s right what people say about this beautiful city, people are always in such a damn hurry. There are people either rushing past us clearly late for something, and then there are the tourists. They are the easiest to spot. They stop everywhere, take pictures of everything, and point at everything. It’s fun to watch. Sometimes I wish I wasn’t a local, so then I could take in all the sights as a tourist. How fun that must be? The feeling of coming to a huge city, to a loud city, to the City That Never Sleeps.”

“Hey, Earth to Angelica. Anybody in there?” Joey is frantically waving his hand in front of my face. “Damn, baby girl, these checking out spurts you’re having are happening more often than I remember.”

“I’m fine, just daydreaming about how an out-of-towner must feel when they come and visit this fine city of ours.”

“Shit, who knows. Clearly, they need to take the same damn pictures everyone else has to take, though. God knows the Statue of Liberty looks different from their camera than all the damn post cards in America. Speaking of pictures, wanna come with me this weekend to get some shots? The photographer at my shoot today was talking about this trail he went on not too long ago and how he wishes he would have had his camera with him. Figured I’d give it a shot. I haven’t been out with my camera in a while.” He looks over at me expectantly.

“You know I will, JoJo. Do I ever say no to you?”

“Nope, never. Actually, no one can say no to this face.” There he goes again with that model smile. He’s a good-looking motherfucker.

“I don’t doubt that to be true. Go home, I got it from here.” My place is just around the corner; he doesn’t need to walk me to the door.

“We are almost there, dipshit. I might as well now.”

“Hey, asshole, I didn’t ask for a door drop off. You don’t have to play those gentleman-like games with me. Save them for whatever woman or man you plan on fucking later.” I kiss him on the cheek and then head off toward my house.

“Who says it’s not a man and a woman?” he whispers to me. I turn in disbelief.

“You sick fuck, go home!” He laughs at my discomfort then heads off in the other direction. As soon as I walk through my front door, I kick off my heels and head to let Roger out. He has a little doggy door, but he likes when I leave the sliding glass door open for him.