Chapter Three
CALEB
I called Miss May from Wife for Hire there and then and now it's Wednesday and I am sitting in her office area waiting for her to take me into her room. It's quaint and I can see she takes a lot of pride in her artwork. I stand and walk toward one piece of a woman holding up her wedding dress and running back down the aisle away from her husband-to-be who is standing there staring at her. Why is he not running after her? Why is she running in the first place? I have a lot of questions about this piece of art.
"You're an art man, Caleb," a small voice comes behind me. I turn and face the woman who is in the painting. I look back and forth to the painting and she laughs. "Yes, that's me."
"I have questions about it, but now that I know it's you, it would be rude to ask." I look at the painting once more before turning completely to face, who I assume to be May. "Miss May, I assume," I say, extending my hand for her to shake.
"Yes." She shakes my hand. "Come," she ushers me into the room. "I want to hear your questions, you'd be surprised how it can tell me a lot about you, Caleb."
I take a seat and get comfortable. "The first thing that hit me was that he wasn't chasing you and I wanted to know why. Then I wondered why you were running, with a smile on your face too, I noticed there at the end."
I watch her as her expressions change on her face. Then she smiles. "Not very many men ask the first question. Most are concerned that I ran away from a wedding that clearly cost a fortune and left my groom to deal with the fallout. That makes you a very interesting character, Caleb. Would you run after your future wife if she began running back down the aisle?"
"I would, unless she was running towards a man with open arms waiting for her, then I'd just leave to go and be happy. If she is running away she probably has a good reason, and we both know that you need to hear all sides of the story before jumping to any conclusions. But more than that, when I get married it will be because I love someone wholeheartedly and couldn't live my life without them. So the answer is, yes I would run after her and have the conversation that we clearly need."
I see emotions running over her face, especially in her eyes that seem to tear up.
"I didn't mean to upset you, Miss May."
"No, it's fine, Caleb. I wish my ex had even tried to stop me leaving him, but he didn't and it was for the best in the end anyway. I found out he had been sleeping with my best friend and she was pregnant with his baby." She looks down at her hands which are intertwined.
"Then you made the right choice and didn't have to go through the heartache of finding that out on your honeymoon or when you came back. It was the right thing." I lean over the desk and put my hand on hers. I don't know why I am doing it, but it just feels that she needs some comfort.
She looks up at me. "You're a good man Caleb." She takes her hands away and then leans back in her chair. "So, you need a wife to hire?" It comes out as a question rather than a statement.
"Yes, I have a wedding to attend. It's my ex's wedding. Like you she was cheating on me, even though we were engaged. She was cheating on me with my business nemesis and the guy who bullied me at school. She knew I hated him so they deserve each other. But to invite me to their wedding takes the absolute piss."
"Ah, I see. So you want to take a beautiful woman with you and pretend you don't care and that you are married already?" She turns toward her computer screen. "Let me see who we have available."
"I wasn't going to go, but my assistant told me to go and rub it in her face the way she wants to do with me. I'm not one for pettiness, but I actually like the idea of this. I need someone who is going to play up to that for me."
"So, a woman who is beautiful, classy, can stand up for herself, quick to learn—as she has to learn about your life—and someone who is going to play the doting wife. Okay let me have a look through. When are you looking to start the search and how long do you want her to pretend to be your wife?"
"I didn't really think about that. I thought it would be just for the weekend."
"Well, we need to get her to get to you know. you better so we would advise maybe two days before and two days after just in case they drop over unannounced which they easily could."
"Ah that makes sense." I take out my phone to check my calendar. "So, the wedding is in two weeks. So what if we say three days before that and three days after just to be safe."
"What's your usual type?" She looks at me and I can see her analyzing me. She smiles. "Just checking you out." She laughs.
"I don't have a type, really. I work a lot so I don't get to meet a lot of women and it's difficult to meet women who want to be with me for me and not for my money."
"I understand that for sure. So you don't mind blonde, redhead, brunette?"
"No, I've never had a type." I think back over my dating history which has clearly been a disaster or I wouldn't be here. There was one woman who I loved more than anything, but I broke her heart and I guess I've stayed away from women who look like her. Maybe I should try her type, it might be what's missing in my life. "Well, there was one woman. I've tended to stay away from women who look like her, but maybe that needs to change." I sit upright in the chair, feeling a new purpose in this hunt. "She has brunette hair, naturally curly, but not too tight curls. She doesn't care what the fashion is, she has her own style. But as a person she is genuine and would help a hurt animal on the street. That's the type of woman I want."
I look at Molly and she's smiling at me. "Maybe you should give her a call and invite her along."
I laugh. "That is not going to happen. I broke her heart, she said a long time ago that she wants nothing to do with me. Maybe I've been holding out for someone like her."
"I think you have. subconsciously no one is as good as her and that is why you haven't committed to anyone yet."
"I was committed to Tillie, though."
"Were you happy? Can you say that she made you happy or was she more of a trophy wife? I imagine some of the things she did annoyed you, embarrassed you." She smiles as she takes the pen and touches her lips with it.
"Oh yes she annoyed me. All the time. It was a marriage of convenience."
"Were you upset when you broke up?"
"I guess, but I was more pissed off that she hooked up with Daly. She knew I hated him, so she definitely did it on purpose. It annoyed me that I fell for her bullshit, to be honest."
Molly chuckles. It's a sweet sound that fills her small office. "So, that shows me the kind of woman you are looking for. Now, I just need to go over our database, see who is available and who fits your specifications."
"How long does that process take?" I shift in my seat.
"It can take a day or two as I have to reach out to the women who are not on assignment and check their availability and their interest. I'll reach out to you and let you know how the process is going. Now do you have any questions for me?"
"I don't think so, I know you'll talk about price when you come back to me, I know the wedding is not too far off, so I understand you might not be able to get someone who matches my criteria, but I hope you do. I love this concept. Oh, one question. If this works out, would there be an opportunity to hire the same woman again if I have to attend a function or anything?"
"Of course, as long as you are both agreeable then I don't see a problem. The only thing is if she is on another assignment. But it is something that can be discussed upon completion of the assignment." May stands.
I stand too and reach out my hand once again. "Thank you Miss May, I appreciate your help."
"Not a problem, Caleb. I am happy to help and I will contact you in the next few days and let you know about the candidates."
"Fantastic thank you." I walk out of her office and onto the sidewalk. "What an interesting concept," I mutter to myself as I walk toward the coffee shop on the corner. I need some caffeine and time to think about this. What if I met someone who is the woman of my dreams and someone I don't want the assignment to end with? I wonder if there is a penalty clause that I have to pay her a finder's fee like for a recruitment company? I forgot to ask, I'll give her a call and check on that later.
Right now, I'm going back to the office with my coffee to face the day ahead. The only problem is I can't get her out of mine. It's so bad that I even think I see her everywhere I go. I locked that door in my heart a long time ago and today I've opened it to think about her. Maybe I need more than coffee. A drink sounds good.
My cell rings. "Caleb Masters."
"Caleb, it's Sheila. We need you back in the office. A contract has just landed on our desks and I've set up an emergency meeting. I'll make coffee for you when you're back. It's going to be a long night."
"I have coffee but fill it up, I think we'll all need it. I'm on my way back, I'll be in about half an hour in this traffic. Fuck that I'm going to walk, it's beautiful out."
"You're going to walk? Jesus, what the hell did Miss May say to you?" Sheila is laughing.
"Nothing that I didn't already know. See you soon, Sheila. Are you able to work late too?" She usually works late with us, so that she can keep us in food and drinks, but also she's there to help out with the making of contracts, copying and anything else that we need help with.
"Of course, Caleb, you know it." She hands up and I stride back to the office.