Page 26 of The Girlfriend Card
“So who is Jane, anyway?” I asked. “Is she some other girl you’re going to interview?”
He scoffed. “I’m not interviewing anyone else. No one else even came close to being qualified.”
I gnashed my teeth. I reallydidn’t want to be this guy’s only option … it’d make telling him no that much harder.
“Thanks again for meeting me on short notice. I really appreciate this, Olivia.”
“Just don’t get your hopes up, okay? Because I meant what I said.”
“That’s cool.” He smiled confidently. “Because I meant what I said about changing your mind, too.”
I chuckled. “I guess we’ll see.”
Dakota gestured at the counter. “Can I buy you some lunch?”
I didn’t want anything, but Dakota insisted on buying something, so I let him order me a latte. Before we could sit, though, he had to clear a mess of dishes from the table—he’d had a sandwich, a salad, a pastry, and some kind of smoothie.
“Looks like you had a big lunch,” I remarked as he tidied up.
He chuckled. “Yeah. At my height, I have to eat a ton just to keep weight on. It’s pretty annoying.”
“Sounds like a decent problem to have,” I said. “How tall are you, anyway?”
“Six-five.”
Wow,I murmured under my breath. My dad was a giant who towered over practically everybody, and yet Dakota had two inches on him.
We took our seats, sharing the small round table.
“Thanks again for meeting me.” Glancing over the side of the table, he ran his eyes up and down me. “But you didn’t have to dress up for this, you know.”
“Clearly not.” I giggled, pointing at Dakota’s outfit. He’d done the gym-bro thing and hacked the sleeves off of his shirt,leaving behind enormous, gaping holes that flaunted his jutting pecs and rippling torso. “I’m surprised they even let you in here dressed like that.”
Not that I’m complaining,I thought, stealing a quick peek at his thick arms.
“Just so you know, I wasplanningon cleaning up and changing clothes, but my trainer held me up at the gym.” Dakota grumbled, embarrassed. “Anyway, let’s get down to business.” He drummed his fingers on the table as if building up to something, yet no such climax came. “So. Hm. How should we do this?”
I gave a disinterested shrug. “Beats me. I already told you I’m not interested. I’m only meeting you because you seemed so desperate.”
“C’mon, there’s gotta be something I can do for you. I know you said it’s not about money, but—”
I shook my head. “It’s not. I don’t need money.”
He lowered his voice to a whisper. “Thirty grand. I’ll pay you thirty grand if you do it. That’d go a long way towards paying off your tuition next year at Stanford, wouldn’t it?” He smirked as if he’d already won, and I had no choice but to accept this irresistible offer.
I sighed. “Dakota, I’m telling you, I do not need money.”
“Damn. Really? Not even for thirty grand?” Confusion washed over his face. “Alright, how about something else? Just tell me what you want and I’ll do my best to make it happen. C’mon.”
“I don’t need anything from you, Dakota. I have everything money could buy.”
“Okay, then how about something moneycan’tbuy?”
“Like what?”
“Fuck if I know,” he said. “Money’s the most important thing in the world.”
I shook my head solemnly. “That’s not true.”
