Jonathan's POV:
I wasn't sure if it was me, per se, but something was making Winston uncomfortable around me. I had noticed so in Montego's conference room after telling Winston that I was his partner now instead of his competition. Immediately after the statement left my mouth, I felt like a fool.
Winston looked at me weirdly, despite his small nod, before trying to get as far away from me as possible. It would've worked if we hadn't gotten on the same elevator again. The ride to the first floor was tense and silent; neither one of us knew what to say. Winston didn't acknowledge my existence until we stopped in the lobby. He looked cautious and stood a slight distance away from me.
"I'm not exactly sure how this is going to work, but we can exchange numbers so that we can discuss it at an appropriate time." He said, looking anywhere but in my eyes.
"Is now not an appropriate time?" I asked, slightly offended that he didn't seem to want to be anywhere near me. My question caught him off guard if the way his eyes widened was any indication.
"Oh. Now is fine, I guess. I just assumed that you had to be back at your office or something." He explained. A blush appeared on his face that made him look boyish. I smirked before leading the way for him to follow. In a matter of seconds, he was walking beside me.
"Now is good. It's almost lunch time so how about we grab a bite and discuss our new project?"
"Yeah. Yes, that's fine."
"Great. Did you drive?"
"No." He mumbled. "I actually live a short walking distance from here."
"So you're from this neighborhood." I reckoned. We stepped out of Montego's warm building and into the cold New York air, unconsciously stepping closer to one another for body heat.
"Yeah, and I know a great pizza spot. That is if you're up for pizza." He chuckled, causing me to do the same.
"Are you kidding? I was born and raised in New York; I'm always up for pizza." I replied with a playful nudge.
Why I was being so nice to Winston, I didn't know, but I decided not to question it further than that. Technically, it's not like I was a mean person. I just didn't always want to interact with other people. However, in the short time that I've met Winston, he had sparked my interest, and I wasn't sure if it was a good or bad thing yet.
"Then pizza it is." Winston replied with a small grin.
The walk from Montego's building to the pizza parlor was not as long as I had expected. The cold air had most likely turned my face blue, but I didn't mind as the parlor's warm atmosphere caused my being to melt. The strong scent of pizza and other oven baked goods was too heavenly to describe in words. I nearly moaned as I took in my fill of the cozy place.
"I had the same reaction the first time I walked into here as well." Winston laughed. "What would you like? I can order while you get us a booth."
"Two Hawaiian slices." I replied while pulling out my wallet, but Winston just waved me off.
"I got it."
"Are you sure?" I questioned, not exactly comfortable with him having to pay for my food.
"Yes." He grinned again. "But if I were you, I'd hurry to get a booth. This place can get pretty packed during lunch hour."
As he said that, I noticed the rush of people entering the parlor. After giving him a nod, I looked for a pleasant booth where we could discuss our work without too much distraction. I found one in the far corner of the parlor, close to the window and away from prying eyes.
I took a seat, setting my briefcase aside and pulling out my phone. With no unnecessary emails, I started up my game of Panda Pop. I was able to work my way through some levels before Winston took a seat across from me.
"We'll get our food in about ten minutes." He said as he too set his briefcase to the side. "I forgot to ask you what you preferred to drink."
"Any soda would've been fine."
"That's great because I ordered us both Sprites."
I laughed, as did he, while I shook my head in slight disbelief. It fell quiet between us once again, but unlike in the elevator, this silence was comfortable, almost calming.
Winston looked out the window, and I took that time to look at him. His hair was styled in a neat comb over, unlike mine which I had left wild this morning. He was slightly pale and currently sporting a five o'clock shadow. The more I took him in, the more I noticed how attractive he was. I bet he was pulling in women left and right since I didn't see a ring on his finger.
My phone buzzed on the table, catching the both of our attention. Paisley's name flashed across the screen, three times to be exact.
"You're mighty popular." Winston teased, making me chuckle as I unlocked my phone and read Paisley's messages.
I groaned. It had completely slipped my mind that I should be preparing for a date tomorrow, a date that I wasn't too excited to go on.
"Something wrong?" Winston asked in concern. I decided not to respond to Paisley's messages and instead set my phone back down.
"No, not really. Just a date I'm not too happy about." I muttered with a shrug. Winston's eyes widened before he nodded understandingly. He mumbled something incoherent before going back to gazing out the window.
"You know, I'm not bad company if you engage in conversation with me." I baited, which finally settled Winston's attention on me.
"I'm sorry. I'm not used to engaging in normal conversations." He chuckled nervously.
"I was only teasing, but maybe we can talk about the billboard to ease your mind."
"That would be great."
Winston and I had a long discussion about how we'd go about the project. The only time we stopped speaking was when our pizzas arrived at our table. However, once we were done, the conversation kept flowing.
It was decided that we would send out announcements for model castings, starting next week, before having the photo shoot two weeks later. That gave us more than enough time to build the set and sort through Montego's fashion line for the outfits that would be placed on the models. After the photo shoot, we'd go about editing the pictures before finally sending Montego the final product. In total, we had about a month and one to two weeks to finish everything. Challenge accepted.
"And then we get paid." Winston stated after making a checklist on his cell phone. "Would you like me to email this to you?"
"If you don't mind. I guess a checklist will help to keep everything organized." I replied before giving him my email address. We exchanged numbers then too before departing from the cozy parlor, seeing that we had gotten through our lunch.
"I'm going to head home now and see if I can work on the model casting announcements." He said as we stood outside.
"You don't need to go to your office?" I asked with interest.
"I work from home." He answered sheepishly. I wasn't sure if the blush that appeared on his face was from embarrassment or the cold weather.
"Oh. That's interesting. Well, I have to head back to my office. If you need anything, just send me a call, or text, or something."
"I will. I'm kind of glad I get to work with you." He mumbled while stuffing his hand into his pockets.
"Likewise, Winston. I'll hear from you soon?" I questioned. It wasn't hard to decipher the expectancy in my tone.
"Most definitely." He promised.
***
"Girls, I'm going on a date tonight." I voiced as I walked into Alyssa's room. My twins were currently working on their coloring books as the TV played Higglytown Heroes. They stopped what they were doing almost immediately before jumping up in excitement.
"Really, Daddy?!" April questioned brightly.
"With who?" Alyssa followed up.
"Do you remember Paisley from my job? I'm taking her out." I answered. Instantly, their excitement vanished.
"She's not the one!" They nearly screeched. My eyebrows shot into my hairline as they faced each other and began whispering. Once their conversation was done, the looked back at me.
"We forbid you from going on this date, Daddy." Alyssa declared.
"We don't even like Paisley." April grumbled. I took a seat on Alyssa's bed, and my girls took the initiative to each sit on my lap.
"I thought you loved Paisley." I said in concern, thinking that this is what they had wanted in the first place.
"Okay, we like her." Sighed April.
"We just don't like her with you." Continued Alyssa.
My daughters were just too mature for their own age, and it was almost scary. If someone had told me six years ago that I would be getting something close to matchmaking advice from my children, I would think they were crazy in the head. But, here I was receiving just that.
"Mommy promised that she would send your soulmate to you." April told me seriously. "And when you meet the person, you would know."
"So just wait until you meet your soulmate, Daddy, before you go out on any date." Ordered Alyssa. I laughed as I kissed both of their foreheads. It's not like I was really looking forward to this date with Paisley anyways, and my girls not liking the idea just sort of confirmed it. A part of me felt like a dick for canceling on Paisley at the last minute, but I would get over it.
"You two are the bosses." I declared while tickling their sides. "So how about we watch a movie together instead?"
"Yes, please!" Was my synchronized response.
***
"I'm sorry about canceling on our date Saturday night." I told Paisley the following Monday morning. Instead of the angry insult I was expecting, I was given a small and polite grin.
"It's okay, Mr. Russell. I never stood a chance with you, and I guess you canceling on Saturday just kind of proved it." Paisley replied softly. I stared at her in wonder. She really was too kind to be considered normal. Any sane person would be giving me a bashing right now. Was it because I'm her boss?
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure. Anyways, I've finished setting up your calendar for the day and I sent it to your email. Anything else you need, you know where to find me, Mr. Russell."
It was then that I knew I was being dismissed. Paisley was being passive aggressive, and I wasn't sure if I was actually upset about it. I guess it was better than being yelled at.
"Thanks, Paisley. And again, I'm really sorry."
"It's fine."
I sighed as I entered my office and set my briefcase down. My desk had three neat piles of what I assumed to be ideas from my creative team for random projects. Instead of procrastinating, I got to work right away, sorting the ones I approved and discarding the ones I didn't. I worked like that for about an hour before being startled by my cell phone.
Putting my work aside, I grabbed the device, grinning widely when I saw that it was Winston calling. I had been looking forward to receiving a call, or even a text, from him since the moment we left the pizza parlor. It was like an unexplainable need to talk to the man.
"Hello." I answered casually, maybe a little too casually. However, Winston didn't seem to mind.
"Good morning, Jonathan." He answered, sounding like he just woke up. His deep morning voice made me still in my seat as unexplainable arousal shot through my body.
"I- Um. Good morning." I mumbled, more than concerned about what the fuck was happening to me.
"Is now a bad time?" He asked, which made me realize that I was acting stupid and probably making him uncomfortable.
"No. No. Not at all. Sorry, I was just caught up with work." I lied.
"Oh! Well, I just wanted to inform you that I was able to finish the posters for the model castings and I sent it to your email. I'd like to know what you think about it."
"Are you asking for my approval?" I joked as I booted up my computer.
"What? No!" He laughed. "I would just like my partner's opinion on my work." He replied back just as teasingly, completely unaware that the simple word was starting to have a dangerous effect on me.