Page 241 of The Billionaires

I wait until she reviews them all.

“A dog walker?” she exclaims. “You know I usually place C-level executives.”

“I know your usual comp is a percentage of their salary, but I’ll pay you directly for some of these more unusual placements,” I say. “Oh, and I’ll need you to find replacements for them—where, again, I’ll pay a fee.”

“What kind of a fee?” she asks.

“Name a number.”

She does.

“I’ll give you double that,” I say. “And there’s something else, for which I’ll put a zero next to that number.”

Her voice goes breathless. “What?”

“I’ll need you to recommend me a headhunter,” I say. “Ideally, someone as good as you.”

“No one is as good as me,” she says confidently. “But I can do my best… if you tell me why.”

I explain about the hearing and how my former reputation might come up.

“Oh,” Caroline says. “I’ll say it again: Piper is one lucky girl.”

“Thanks. You and I can still be friends, of course, and we might be able to resume working together in the future.”

“I’ll have my own firm by then,” she says. “And I’ll consider taking you on as a client—or not, depends on how charitable I feel.”

“That’s a deal,” I say. “And I will recommend you to some people who’ll keep you very busy in the meantime.”

She thanks me and I hang up. I proceed to have a similar conversation with the folks who are about to find other employment, and everyone seems okay with it, except maybe Susan, whose husband also works for me.

“How about I find your husband and you a job together?” I offer.

“You think you can?” Susan asks.

“Of course.”

That seems to pacify her, and I get back with Caroline to tell her she has one more candidate to add to the list.

Okay, I should feel calmer now, but I don’t.

I guess the prospect of getting married—to Jane—is like a shot of espresso.

Speaking of Jane, once I get back home, I grab my Kindle and buy the first of the Bridgerton books in an effort to better understand my soon-to-be bride.

To my huge surprise, I get hooked on the novel and can’t stop reading until it’s finished. Wow. I really liked it, despite the fact that the target audience for this genre seems to be women, and that I knew what would happen since season one of the show was faithful to the book.

Well, pretty faithful. The book was more humorous, which is one of the reasons I prefer it over the show.

I end up buying the sequel but don’t start it as it’s already late. Instead, I shower and brush my teeth before jumping into bed.

Time for Yoda’s daily Force training—or beating the bishop, as they probably called it in Victorian times.

Thanks to all the erections Jane has given me, this should go record fast.

Fuck.

I shouldn’t think about Jane when I do this. I promised her things between us would be platonic, and this violates that promise, as do any fantasies where I violate her.

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