"Babe I'm about to leave for work." Marcus softly said as he sat next to me on the bed.
"It's 5:30, why do you need to leave so early today.." I groaned pulling his on his suit jacket and him following on to the bed next to me.
"The team got called out to Colorado for a case, the plane leaves at 7. I'll be home tomorrow night for dinner.. I promise." He kissed me before pulling himself off of the bed.
"Be careful, I love you.." I pouted while watching him grab his bag from the floor and start for the bedroom door.
"Always baby, I love you too." He said as the door softly shut behind him.
I guess this is what I get for being with and FBI agent..
I tossed and turned for the next hour trying to get myself back to sleep, but sleeping without him in the bed is so foreign to me... Even though it seems he's gone more than not. When my alarm started to go off at 6:30 I pulled myself from bed and into the en suite bathroom in our apartment. I flicked on the shower and waited patiently for the water to get warm, once it was to my liking I hopped and basked in the warm hug that was the water pouring over me.
I was just about to hop in my car and head to my restaurant when my cell started to ring.
"Hello this is AJ"
"Hi Miss. James, this is Courtney from Foodie Magazine."
My Jaw dropped, I forgot about my interview with them this morning.
"We are wondering if you were still coming down for your interview? We thought it was Scheduled for 8."
"Of course, I mistakenly written it down for nine. I'm on my way down see you soon dear."
I lied about the time.
"Perfect."
I hung up and went flying out of the parking garage like a bat out of hell.
I made it to the Magazine headquarters at 9 o'clock on the dot. I threw my keys to the valet driver as I grabbed my bag from the back seat. The magazines building would be quite intimidating to me if I wasn't rushing my way through it up to the 13th floor. I got to the floor only to be bombarded by four receptionists trying to prove that they deserved more out the job that they currently held. Each of them asking what they could do for me, from taking the coat I wasn't even wearing to offering me coffee when I had one in hand.
"Miss James." A women in the shortest skirt I'd ever seen worn in an office said to be.
"Hello!" I exclaimed reaching my hand out to her, she shook my hand and continued.
"I'm Courtney, we spoke on the phone earlier." She smiled and lead me down a hallway of office with glass walls.
"Yes we did, I am sorry for the mix-up." I apologized.
"Oh dear, no worries. It seemed to work better for Alec's schedule anyway."
"I thought I was interviewing with Daisy?" I questioned..
Alec is way higher up in this industry compared to Daisy whom I thought I was meeting.
"That was the original plan, but Alec is intrigued with your work and wants to do it himself." She nonchalantly said as she pulled open a door of an office much bigger than the rest.
"You may take a seat wherever you feel comfortable Miss. James." She said, before leaving and letting the door close behind her.
This office is immaculate. Everything in here was either white, perfectly unblemished or glass with not a single finger print. I was almost nervous to spill my coffee on something in here.
A moment after admiring the office I heard the door open and my head was instantly on a swivel. In came waltzing in Alec Joslyn the most attractive man in the entire food industry.
"Hello Mr. Joslyn, it's a pleasure to meet you sir." I stuck out my hand.
"Aw Miss. James call me Alec, but the pleasure is all mine. I am glad I decided to take over this interview. You my dear are quite beautiful." He smiled and shook my hand.
"Thank you Alec." I blushed as his eyes glazed over my entire body without a single hit of regret.
"Shall we sit Miss. James? I have quite a few questions for you?" He said as he walked to the couch and took a seat. I sat on the opposite side from him.
"Of course, but if I am calling you Alec I'd like you to call me AJ." I smiled.
"I'm sure you would, but I am not going to. Miss James lets get this started." he grinned, I shook my head agreeing.
Something about this damn man is so intimidating, i've been around the FBI agents for years with Marcus and never felt this level of intimidation from a person.
"How have you had so much success in opening and running 30 dining establishments from California to Maine?" He asked setting down a recorder and flipping open a notebook.
"Well this was not on my own by any means, my father opened 27 of them. He passed unexpectedly when I was 21 leaving them in his Will while I had no knowledge of." I answered hoping this would be the only one involving my dad.
"You say you had no idea that was in the works?" He rose a brow at me.
"No, my father had not been in my life since I was 7 and i hadn't spoken to him since I was 18 when he called on my high school graduation." I hate this, I hate this.
"Why was he so trusting to leave you with 27 restaurants at 21?" He continued
"Well at the time I was well into the food industry, I over 6 million people following my food blog 'Ada's Eats' and additional to that I was in culinary school at the time." I followed
"How are you handling having so many establishments on your own?"
"Well Alec, I am most definitely not doing this on my own. There are countless insanely talented individuals working at the Ada-J's restaurants nationwide. I hardly do anything on my own truthfully." I smiled.
"How do your menus vary from coast to coast? If there are any differences?" He questioned.
"The menus on the west coast are highly vegan and vegetarian friendly, but there is also a mix of seafood and chophouse still foods. On the east coast it is very seafood oriented, lots and lots of seafood, but out restaurants in the middle of the two are mainly chop house style, mainly steak and heavy meat orientated." I proudly said.
"Now that you brought up vegan, and vegetarian aren't you vegan? And how does that counteract with your career?" He said biting his lip looking at my legs, this man is kid of a pig.
"No, I am no longer vegan but I am a proud vegetarian. At work if we are trying to add to the menu or find a new spotlight dish I will eat small portions of meat to 'OK' it but other than that I am singularly vegetarian." I smiled waiting for this to end.
"Miss James, I want you on the cover of this month's issue." He said looking me dead in the eye.
"What?" My jaw must be on the floor right now.
"You're incredibly beautiful and you are the best interview we've had in months. I want this to be a spotlight addition. Send photos from your blog over and you'll see yourself on the cover before the end of the week." He said scooting closer to me and setting a hand on my knee.
"Yes, sir. I'll have them to you by the end of the day." I stood up.
"Adaline let me walk you down stairs. My next meeting is across town." He put his hand on my lower back and we left the room.
We made it to the elevator and all of the little minions that were so overly polite and chatty when I first got here had not said a single word the entire time Alec and I were in the room. They were all ogling over this man, yet I had every desire to get as far away as possible. This elevator could not have been slower, I just hope to god that there is someone else coming down with us. The elevator opened and I took a step in, Alec following with his hand still attached to my back. To My dismay no one else was in the elevator with us, and this is one slow elevator if i do say so myself.
"Adaline." He removed his hand from my back and stood in front of me.
"You're really intriguing me, would you like to go out to dinner with me tonight. I have someone who I think will be interested in you." He grinned putting his hands on both sides of me.
"I would really love to." Lie. "But I have plans with my boyfriend." Another lie.
"I don't think you'll want to pass up my friend. He won't be happy." He said putting his hand under my chin.
"I cannot, along with my plans I am working late tonight." I said dodging underneath his arm and out of the elevator the second it opened.
"Oh dear you're going to regret this." He said almost as threat under his breath.
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thanks for reading, let me know what you think so far..
talk again soon
xoxo lex