Chapter 38
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
DEIDRE
“S top sending me flirts ,” I say over my shoulder as I continue to stare at my computer screen.
“What?” Luke replies from behind.
“I have work to do,” I remind. “I can’t have you distracting me.”
“But I’m a good distraction,” he states with a cocky tone.
“Babe,” I sigh. “I appreciate what you’re trying to do. But if I’m going to figure out a way to get out of this contract with Victoria, I need you to stop distracting me with the very thing that got me into this whole mess.”
“I didn’t get you into the mess. I’m actually the reason that made you want to fix the mess that you are now fixing.”
“Okay, fine,” I sigh. “You’re right. But I need you to let me focus so I get out of this mess sooner.”
“Most good ideas come from a random moment that has nothing to do with being focused on the very thing you need to solve…like sex.”
“Luke,” I whine.
“I can’t help it,” he claims. “You’re hot. You’re mine. All I want to do is remind you that I’m thinking of you.”
“And make sure I’m thinking of you every two seconds,” I laugh.
“What’s wrong with that?”
“Nothing, unless I need to work,” I counter. “I don’t bother you when you’re working.”
“I wouldn’t mind it. It lets me know that you care.”
I spin in my chair to face him. “You think I don’t care?”
“No,” he chuckles. “I’m just teasing. I’m sorry.”
“You’re going to give me a complex.”
“What? How?” he quips.
“Teasing me this much is going to make me nervous and insecure,” I state playfully.
“Don’t be. I mean it as just good fun.”
I bite my lip.
“Now, who’s doing the teasing?” Luke asks with a smirk.
I smile at my victory.
“Guys won’t admit it, but we like to know our girlfriends think of us, too,” he states. “We tease each other about the things you girls do for us, but deep down, we secretly like it and want it if we don’t have it. We get insecure and need to know you care.”
“Oh my God!” I exclaim.
“What?”
“I think I know how to get out of this contract with Victoria,” I say.
“Seriously?”
“Seriously,” I confirm.
“How?”
It takes all of about a minute to share my idea with Luke.
I ramble on about how this could be the way to change the contract with Victoria easily.
As the words spill from my mouth, I’m pacing the room in a frantic state, pausing on occasion when another idea pops into my head.
Once Luke says he understands what I’m going to do, I immediately get to work on adding the new functionality to our test app that we use for new scripting before we launch it officially.
I work through the rest of the day, ignoring Luke most of the time as my fingers try desperately to keep up with my brain.
Luke’s sweet, bringing in food and drinks, making sure I take at least a five-minute break here and there.
When I’m done, we lounge in the hot tub.
“I never knew guys could give such great hand jobs.”
His hands stop and he stares at me. “This isn’t a hand job. This is a massage.”
“A massage that is on my hands.”
“If you had a dick right now, and I was massaging it with my hands, then it would be a hand job,” Luke corrects.
“I do have a dick,” I state cunningly.
“I’ve seen you naked…you don’t have a dick.”
“Yeah, I do,” I reply. “Yours.”
“That’s wrong on so many levels.” He almost breaks and smiles.
“You liked it,” I tease.
“I’m rubbing your hands, not your cock, therefore it’s not a hand job.”
I laugh. “Technically, every time you jerk off, it’s me giving you a hand job.”
“If it was your hands on my dick, then yes, you’re giving me a hand job. Not when it’s my hand and my dick.”
I remain composed despite being amused by how serious he’s taking this topic and by the fact that we’re even having this conversation at all. I don’t think I’d ever imagine having a conversation like this with a guy, least of all Luke.
“It’s not funny. It’s like me saying that every time you touch yourself or use your vibrator, then that’s me getting you off.”
I crack and a smile emerges on my face.
“You’re fucking with me aren’t you?”
“Me? Never,” I lie sarcastically.
“That’s it.” Luke lunges for me.
I laugh, trying to get away and out of the hot tub.
“Oh, no you don’t.” He pulls me into his chest. “I’ll show you the difference.”
“I believe you.”
“You will after I’m finished with you,” Luke announces.
The next day, I’m able to get an early afternoon meeting with Victoria at her office.
I still don’t know why she bothers with the building.
Most of her work is done remotely. She could keep her costs down by having a home office.
With the way Hollywood works, most meetings aren’t in boardrooms, but rather coffee shops and over meals.
“Hey,” Victoria greets happily as she walks into her office.
“Hi,” I return, standing so I can kiss her cheek as per our usual greeting.
“Rachel told me you have a new app idea that’s a perfect fit with Flirt .”
“Well, it’s not a new app per se,” I correct. “More like an addition to the current one.”
Victoria takes her seat behind her desk as her thumbs begin tapping away on her phone. “What do you mean?”
“Let’s say it’s an upgrade for Flirt ,” I suggest.
“Great! Let me hear it.”
This is good. Victoria seems to be in an overall happy mood, so this should be easy.
“We want more users,” I say.
“Obviously.”
“And we want to increase the potential with our sponsors,” I add.
“Definitely.”
“So I figured, why not incorporate everyone into the app?”
Her gaze finally lifts from her phone. “What do you mean, everyone ?”
“I mean, not just single people looking for a booty call. I mean couples. Those who are dating and married.”
“Why would they use our app?” Victoria asks.
“My app,” I remind, reestablishing my authority.
“That’s what I said,” she claims.
I pause for a second, directing myself to stay on task and not argue with her about what she said.
Her mood can change instantly and cause a fight.
“It would allow couples, married or just dating, to flirt with each other. Whereby for special occasions and holidays, they would want to send flowers, or candies, or book a getaway hotel to propose, or?—”
“No. Wouldn’t work,” Victoria claims.
“How do you know? We haven’t even tested it yet.”
“It just wouldn’t,” Victoria states. “Besides, what we have now works great. Your numbers have almost quadrupled since last year.”
“Victoria,” Rachel’s voice calls from just outside the office.
“There’s a Mr. War…oh, I’m sorry.” Rachel pauses in the doorway and looks back and forth between Victoria and me.
“I didn’t know you two were talking in here.
I just thought that Dei had already left since I didn’t see you both in the conference room. ”
“No worries,” Victoria replies. “We just finished. Tell him I’ll be on the phone in just a minute.”
Rachel looks at me as if she’s making sure that I agree with Victoria, but I don’t respond. She waits two extra seconds until Victoria shoos her away.
“I’m going to test it,” I state.
“No,” Victoria replies, her voice an octave higher.
“Yes,” I insist. “This is my business and I have every right. I merely came in today to give you notice as a courtesy.”
Her eye twitches. “Why the redirection?”
“It’s not a redirection…it’s more of an expansion.”
“Does this have anything to do with a previously mentioned boy that we’ve talked about?”
“I told you that he’s a part of my security team.”
“You two seem pretty cozy,” Victoria accuses.
“He’s an old friend from back home,” I remind. “Tony wanted a male I feel completely confident with.”
Victoria studies me for several long seconds. “Test it. But it won’t be worth launching until another year or two with all of the marketing we’ve done the past few months that will be put out to the public. And we don’t want to confuse our users.”
My users, I think to myself.
By my guess, it’s been at least six months since I’ve blatantly heard Victoria act as if Flirt is her business and has been blocking me on certain decisions. Now, I think I’m starting to understand why Rox warned me and why Victoria has lost all of her other clients.
“Is that all?”
“This will be tested,” I inform. “And if it is received well, it will go into effect sooner rather than later.”
“Our contract is for how Flirt currently operates,” Victoria states. “Not any major or drastic changes.”
I’m pretty sure the contract does not state for the business as is. Every business person knows there needs to be room to grow and adapt to what’s working and what’s not. I need to make a mental note to double-check the contents of the contract.
“These aren’t drastic changes,” I counter.
“Yes, they are.”
“It’s still my business,” I remind assertively. “I make the final decisions.”
“And we have a binding contract,” Victoria returns sternly.
Her demeanor is consistently changing into someone she wasn’t in the beginning.
I think that I’m seeing more of the real Victoria for the first time in almost three years.
She can hold the contract over to me to some extent, but I will not go down without a fight to keep my business and conduct it as I see fit.
Without another word, I nod and leave the room. My body feels the weight of the floor below me as my heels click against the marble, sending shocks into my bones from each point of contact.
“Dei,” a voice calls from behind me as I stand in front of the elevator.
“Huh?”
“Dei,” the voice repeats.
I turn and find Rachel standing just two feet away from me.
“You okay?” she asks, concerned.
“Fine.”
“Don’t let her bully you,” she encourages. “I liked the sound of what you want to do to the app.”
“You were listening?”
“Yeah, sorry,” Rachel replies bashfully.
“Don’t be. I’m glad you like the idea.”
The elevator dings and the door opens.
“Thanks and have a good rest of your week,” I state, moving into the box.
“Thanks. You, too,” Rachel replies. When the door is halfway closed, Rachel says, “Oh, hey.”
I reach forward, stopping the door from closing.
Rachel approaches with something in hand and an apologetic expression. “Some of these have been here a while and a few just came in today for Flirt .”