Page 31 of Ruthless Desire

Stopping, I turned and smiled as he approached. “Hi,” I said.

“Lizzie, I wanted to share something with you. I loved your mockup design for a local bookstore website. I know it was only an assignment for my class, but I think you showed great talent,” he said. “I would love to get you in contact with my friend Lucy. She owns a local art gallery, and her website is in dire need ofa facelift. Would you be interested? I can’t promise it would pay much, but it would be great exposure,” he finished with a smile.

“Yes, that would be wonderful!” I exclaimed.

My heart fluttered, and I had to stop myself from jumping into his arms.

“Great. Here is her business card. Give her a call, and you all can set something up. She’s expecting to hear from you.” He winked before turning on his heel to walk away. “I’ll see you in class tomorrow.” He waved.

“Wow, Lizzie. That’s fantastic,” Avery gushed, as she watched me tuck the card inside my jeans pocket.

“I know. This is like a dream,” I said, still in shock. I couldn’t believe my professor believed in me enough to share my name with a local gallery owner. If I could secure this job, I could then get more. Each step I took, I felt like I was jumping mountains on my way to my dream of being a graphic design artist and owning my own company.

“Avery, this could get us to our own company faster than what we expected,” I sighed.

Linking her arm through mine, Avery smiled. “I told you everything would work out,” she teased.

Smiling, I nodded my head as we continued to walk down the path circling the buildings on campus.

“What are our plans tonight?” Avery asked, as she walked beside me.

We walked out of our Business Methods class that we shared, making our way across campus. It was almost Thanksgiving, and I loved how the weather here stayed warm. I wasn’t a fan of the cold.

“I’m not sure. I know Chase mentioned going to see a local band play at a bar, but I don’t know,” I said. “I would love to see the Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens before we go to the show. The customer service lady at the front desk of ourhotel told me it is a must see. Plus, it’s free and could offer us some much-needed peace and tranquility. I mean, I would love to go to a concert, but we’re surrounded by music and noise all day. Sometimes, I just want some quiet.”

“Well, I don’t work tonight. I’m up for whatever you guys want to do,” Avery finished.

“I’ll see you back home, and we can figure it out,” she said, as she parted with me and walked to her next class.

I was done for the day and knew Chase would be waiting for me in the parking lot. Avery would get a ride back to the hotel with a friend she had met in her business class.

As I made my way to the parking lot, I heard my name again being called. Man, I was popular today.

“Lizzie, wait up,” a male voice called.

Turning, I spotted Jake coming my way. He was in my design class and shared a love of website design. His girlfriend had already graduated and was building her own website for her florist shop.

Stopping, I smiled and waved as I shifted my backpack on my shoulder. “Hey, Jake.”

“I overheard Professor Smith telling you he had a website design job for you. That’s huge!” he shouted, as he waved his arms around.

Laughing, I smacked his arms down. “You’re being dramatic,” I teased. “But it is great,” I admitted.

“If you ever need any help, you let me know. Jennifer might need some help too.”

“Wow, that’s so nice,” I gushed.

Placing his hand on my arm, Jake offered a genuine smile. “I’m really happy for you, Lizzie. You deserve this,” he said. “I gotta get going. Jennifer and I have tickets to see a show this afternoon at the Bellmont Casino,” he raved.

“Wow, have fun.” I smiled.

Before I could say or do anything else, I spotted a figure racing toward us at lightning speed.

Chase.

Rushing on us, Chase grabbed Jake by the collar of his polo shirt and shoved him aside. Jake lost his balance and fell onto the concrete path below.

“Get off my girl,” Chase growled, as he stared daggers at Jake.

---