Page 20 of Her Three Tech Bros

“I think that’s a great idea. You’d be the hottest bartender in LA. No one would earn more tips than you.”

“So what you’re saying is, the pay wouldn’t be that much less than what I make now.”

“Exactly. You could definitely still keep the yacht.”

“Oh, well, that’s a relief.” I chuckle.

Jade smiles up at me before taking another sip of her margarita. I watch her lips touch the cup, unable to stop my mind from imagining those lips somewhere else.

Her hazel eyes sparkle in the sun, and she looks so fucking beautiful that it hurts. I’ve had hundreds of girls out here on my yacht, drink in hand, but not one of them was as stunning as Jade. And not one of them looked at me the way that she’s looking at me right now.

“I want to know more about your job,” she says. “How did all of that start?”

I take a sip of my drink before answering.

“Ryan, Logan, and I met in our freshmen year of college. All three of us were going for software engineering. We always joked about starting our own company together, but we never really took it seriously. Then, during our last year, we started to actually formulate a plan. We came up with a few ideas before an idea for cybersecurity software stuck out to us. After we graduated, we dedicated all of our time to creating it, instead of looking for some tech startup to work at like most of our classmates did.”

“That’s amazing. How long did it take to finish it?”

“About a year of nonstop work. But it was so worth it because a year after we created it, we started our company, and it kind of blew up after that. It was pretty crazy how fast everything happened.”

“That’s impressive. It takes a lot to stand out like that.”

“You said you were in marketing, right? How’s that going?”

“Yeah, that’s what I got my degree in. I’ve had a few different marketing jobs since graduating, but nothing huge. The place I’m at now is pretty big, and it’s definitely the biggest place I’ve worked at. So far I like it a lot. I can see myself being there for a while.”

“Is this job the only reason you moved here?”

“Kind of. I mean, I could have gotten a job closer to home. It’s not like there was a lack of opportunities there. But a huge part of me just wanted to get out of my hometown and go out on my own. I felt pretty stifled back in Colorado.”

“Do you regret leaving?”

“Not at all. I love it here. It’s been a little lonely not knowing anyone, but I haven’t been here that long. I expected to feel like that at first. I don’t see myself wanting to leave any time soon. In a way, I feel like I was meant to live here.”

“How so?”

“I can’t really describe it, but that first time I stepped out of the airport, I just felt different. I felt free.”

“LA can do that to you. You can say a lot of things about this place – the people suck, traffic sucks, but you can never say that LA doesn’t allow people to be themselves. There’s just something about the atmosphere here that’s different.”

“I agree. I can’t say the same for my hometown, though.” She laughs.

“Oh, yeah?”

“Yeah, I come from a small town where everyone is constantly in each other’s business. Sometimes I don’t mind it that much, but after a while, it gets annoying.”

Jade and I talk for hours, and it isn’t until the sun starts to go down that we finally take the yacht back to land.

As soon as we step off of the gangway and onto the dock, Jade sways, grabbing my arm for support.

“Whoa, are you okay?” I ask, steadying her.

“Yeah, I just got a little dizzy from being back on solid ground. It kind of feels like I’m on the water still.”

“Yeah, it takes a while to get used to that. Do you need a minute?”

“No, I’m fine,” she says, giving a shy smile.

---