Page 40 of Becoming His Muse
“You’re on, but don’t be upset when I win,” she teased.
Elion chuckled. “We’ll see about that.”
They sat that way in comfortable silence, listening to the wind dance through the trees for a while. She felt peaceful, and thelast thing she wanted to do was move or leave, but it was already after five, and she had dinner plans with two of her friends and Xola. They weren’t meeting until eight, but she wanted to take a short nap before then. She’d woken up to the unpleasant sound of one of her neighbors working on their house earlier than she would have liked.
She rearranged herself, looking up at him. “I have to go.”
Elion dropped a soft kiss onto her lips. “Okay, Sweetheart.”
He released her, and Olani moved from between his legs. She packed up the containers while he packed the drone and controller away. After slipping into her shoes, she helped him fold the blankets. She carried them and the basket while he grabbed the pillows and the backpack, and they headed toward the parking lot.
When they packed everything into the backseat of his car, and he’d opened her door for her, Elion pulled her into his chest, leaning down to capture her lips with his. Olani allowed him to lead her in a slow kiss, her arms wrapping around his neck.
“I’ll call you tonight,” he spoke against her lips.
She gave him one last peck before dropping her arms. She slid behind the wheel, started her car, and backed out of the parking space.
“Kyn, you’re laughing, but I’m serious. Everyone I send him, he either says they’re grossly underqualified, which is untrue, or he’s managed to run them off within a couple of weeks,” Olani informed her friend before taking a drink of her wine.
“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to laugh, but it sounded like you were whining about it. Like a child that didn’t get her way. He isn’t being derogatory or abusive to the temps you send, is he?” Kynlee questioned, sobering from her laughter.
“No, he isn’t, or if he is, none of the applicants that worked there for any short period have said anything.”
“Maybe he’s just one of those people that is hard to work for,” Sura, another of their friends, threw in.
“He could just be a closeted asshole,” Xola supplied. “It wouldn’t be too hard for him to be one and the temps not expressly know that was what he was doing.”
“Both are possibilities,” Olani agreed. “Which is why I was hoping you’d go in as a temp Kyn and get a feel for what’s going on. That way, I can send him someone that will fit his needs, and if it’s an in-house problem, it gives you the opening for a new client.”
She watched Kynlee sip her wine as she thought about it. She would have dropped the client any other time, but she didn’t have a reason to because no one could tell her why they’d left after a short time. Most of them said it just hadn’t worked out. She’d never been one to drop a client just because, though, she reserved the right to do so. She also wanted to place someone qualified and deserving of the position because the salary was above average.
“I don’t see why I couldn’t go in and work for a few weeks to see what the problem may be. I have a few seminars scheduled, but I’m free after those.”
Olani smiled at her. “Thank you. This will help me out immensely.”
“What are friends for?” Kynlee questioned. “What company is it?”
“Enumeration One.”
Kynlee shook her head with a smile. “It’s either cocky or confident for them to not only think they’re at the top of whatever list their business is in but to put it pretty much in their name.”
“I was thinking the same thing,” Sura added.
“What’s the owner’s name?” Kynlee asked.
“Wolfe. Wolfe Lenkov.”
“Well, we’ll just have to see what Mr. Lenkov’s problem is.”
Olani smiled in thanks at Kynlee, because if anyone could figure it out, she knew it was the other woman. The conversation turned to what Sura had been working on lately while they waited for the main dishes to be served.
17
Elion sat in the conference room chair, waiting for the rest of his team. They’d called a meeting to discuss his next exhibit as if he hadn’t just had one a month and a half ago. But he understood. It took several months to get a show together. The correct venue needed to be chosen, promotion and advertising done, the theme of the night, which was always set by the things he sculpted, needed to be selected, and whether he would allow another artist or two to take part always had to be decided.
It was why he only put on three or four exhibits a year. They took a lot of time to prepare for outside of his creating them, which in itself took time, especially if he found himself with a creative block. Those he was no stranger to.
His fingers drummed against the table in impatience. He’d been waiting on them for the last ten minutes, and Elion hatedwhen things started late. It had the potential to throw his entire schedule off when it happened.
