Page 8 of Cocky Nerd
“No!”
“Whynot?”
“We can’t wait around for a housekeeper to comeby.”
“I’ll give her a copy of mykey.”
“You don’t have a key to myapartment.”
“Well, obviously I’ll need one. Here, this is the key to my house in Palo Alto.” He removes a fancy key from a classy key ring and holds it out to me. I don’t takeit.
“Why are you giving me your housekey?”
“So I don’t have to wait around for you whenever you want to come over. Your personalized six digit guest code for the house security system is your birth date, it has already been programmedin.”
“You remember my birthdate?”
His eyes widen and he grins. “Well, we’ll see if I got it right if and when you enter your code into my security system keypad, won’twe?”
“I’ve lived here for over a year. Why am I seeing younow?”
“I told you. Your brother asked me to check in onyou.”
“It never occurred to you to check in on mebefore?”
“I apologize. It’s not that I haven’t thought about you, believe me. I’m very busy. When you see my schedule you’ll understand. Let me now explain to you why I’m here.” He takes my hand and presses the house key into my palm, closes my fingers around it. I look up into his eyes and remember hearing him calling me “beautiful intelligent and talented” a minute ago, but I was so defensive it didn’t sink in until now. He’s never complimented me before. That was as close to a compliment as Johnny B. Nerdballs is capable ofgiving.
I clear off the magazines from the armchair and gesture for him to sit in it, while I take a seat on the sofa. “So? Explain to me why you’rehere.”
He lifts the shoulder strap of the leather messenger bag over his head, and I can see that his armpits are sweating. It is warm, but I hope he’s nervous too, because he should be. Whatever his intentions for this unannounced visit, I think it’s safe to say that he’s blowing it. He places the bag on the ground by his feet, and places the shoulder strap in such a way that he won’t trip on it, in case I throw something at him or lunge at him and he has to make a run forit.
I lean back, rest my elbows on the back of the sofa, and place my ankle on my knee, spreading out. Body language. I’m taking up as much space as possible, to show him I’m incharge.
He puts his elbows on his knees, which are spread apart, clasps his hands together and leans forward. I try not to notice the dark swirls of exposed sexy chest hair.Jesus, you grew up good,JB.
He begins: “As I said, I maintain a busy schedule and travel much of the time, but I have some significant events coming up in the coming weeks—an important business trip to Shanghai, then a gala event in New York, a fundraiser for my new charity in Cleveland…I usually travel alone because it’s easier, but my market research consultant has informed me, time and again, that the most successful men in my industry aremarried…”
“Really? My market research consultant has informed me that most unmarried men are unmarried because nobody wants to marrythem.”
“Is thattrue?”
“No. But it waswitty.”
“It would have been witty if there were any truth to it. Anyway. Due to the nature of my new initiative, which aims to encourage more women to get involved in the techindustry…”
I involuntarily guffaw. “Sorry.”
“My PR consultant has recommended that I attend these upcoming events with a girlfriend, to convey myself and my industry as more ‘woman-friendly,’ as she put it. I'll be very busy, as always, so I'll need someone who requires a minimal amount of attention, someone I don't have to make an effort to get to know orimpress.”
I see where we’re headed with this. “Whoah, easy, a girl can only take so much sweet talk,mister.”
He leans down to wipe an imperceptible scuff mark from his thousand dollar shoes. “About two weeks after returning from Cleveland I’m going to a wedding in Santa Barbara and I’ll definitely need a date for that so don’t have to deal with…what I usually deal with when I go to weddingssolo.”
“Being laughedat?”
He is sosmug.
“Oh just say it—women throw themselves atyou.”
