_OceanofPDF

“There are a hundred women who’d marry you in a heartbeat,” I said.
“But here you are. In my studio. After not having seen me for how long?”
“At least ten piercings ago.”
“See? And that’s another thing. Am I even your type?”
“Am I yours?”
“Fuck no.”
“Right.” He put his cup on the table, and I thought he was going to walk
out. Instead, he bent forward, leaning his elbows on his knees. “Look, I
could dip into the usual pool and be half of a ‘cute couple.’ But I’m not
interested. I don’t need a woman nagging me for attention. Bitching about
birthdays and anniversaries. I don’t have the patience or the time. I’m
interested in doing private business with a businesswoman who can keep
the business private. Is that you?”
He had me on a string until the last sentence. I was an artist, not some
powerhouse in pumps and a jacket with inch-thick shoulder pads.
“What I don’t get,” I said, “is why you don’t hit up an ex-girlfriend or
something.”
“I’ve had four long-term girlfriends since Millie. Some better than
others, but I work seventy hours a week and I travel. Every one of them
resented it. Two sulked. One made an ultimatum.”
“They loved you.”
“Love makes for messy divorces.”
“Wait. That’s three. What about the fourth?” I asked.
“Doctor June Mackie. Worked eighty hours a week. She married John
Burkis last year. The senator.”
“Wow,” I said. “You weren’t kidding. You literally broke up with her
because she worked.”
He sighed, and I got the feeling that this was the one woman he’d really
loved. “I’d rather jerk off than schedule a fuck every two weeks.” He
poured more tea in his mug. “You want yours warmed up?”
Was making himself the host a strategy? Was he showing me how nice
he could be? Or did he want to be in control?
I peeked in the top of the teapot to check the water level, then I nodded
and watched him refill my tea. “You could have worked less, you know.”
“That’s not what I wanted.” He handed me my cup by the handle so I
wouldn’t burn my fingers.
“Thank you, Logan. You’re a full-service provincial asshole.”