Homeless Heart

Chapter 12

Lizzie

After talking to Phin, I went to my office, feeling better about my day despite the endless phone calls and things to do. My assistant, Hope, interrupted my thoughts of Phin and his dimple. Hope looked like Zooey Deschanel on that show New Girl. She had big blue eyes, a petite size, and her sexy nerd glasses got men's attention. Her style was high-end thrift store. She always looked adorable and sexy; she had the hot librarian look that I envied. I wished I could wear those clothes, but they didn't suit me. My style was conservative; I was more a J. Crew girl.

She peeked her head in my office. "Are you feeling okay?"

I nodded my head, instantly trying to convince her and myself. "Yep, I am A-OK."

"Hmm, not sure I am buying it. You look weirdly happy for our busiest time of year. You never look happy this time of year. The flush look on your face tells me you ran into a hot guy."

Damn, that girl was good at reading me. I had to confess, or she'd keep asking me.

Sitting back in my seat, I motioned her in. "Come in and sit down. We are going out tonight; I'll tell you all about Phin then. For now, let's worry about Operation Charity Fundraiser that pays our salary."

Hope knew I meant business, so we got to work and reviewed the list of things to do for the rest of the week. Despite her loving to meddle in my life, Hope and I worked well together, and we had a great relationship. I loved her because she was efficient, organized, and fun.

Hope knew me well enough to know that at this time of year I could be a real bear. She knew that short, concise answers meant not to mess with me. I wasn't one for chitchat if we were super busy, so Hope always let me be. Lucky for me, she didn't take it personally. I had explained to her that my brain was running on maximum capacity, and anything extra didn't compute. I was usually an easy-going boss, and that's why she stayed and put up with me during the lead-up to our big event.

The day flew by, and we were on track for the event. Hope and I went to the Ferry Building right after work for some drinks and a catch-up. I loved having drinks here; the view was terrific this time of year. There wasn't a cloud in the clear blue sky; you could hear the seagulls and admire the epic Bay Bridge. A typically beautiful spring day in San Francisco would bring a smile to anyone's face and helped sustain mine. We sat and enjoyed the magnificent view and our expensive drinks discussing anything other than work. The attractive men jogging by the window weren't too bad either.

Hope elbowed me. "What about that one?"

I watched a handsome man running past in shorts and a soaking wet T-shirt. "He's hot, but he's running. I don't even run to the refrigerator. He's too active for me. I work too hard to exercise that hard. He should try walking in heels all day, now that's a workout. I want a guy who's the equivalent of a basset hound. Cute and lazy."

Hope took another long drink of her Blood Orange Cosmopolitan. "Fine, what about that one over there?" She pointed this time to an attractive guy sitting at the bar, but he was drinking with a woman. They look like they could be on a first date.

"He's with someone. I'm never going to be a home-wrecker. Plus, he's a German shepherd, not a basset hound."

"You don't know; it might be a work thing. I was trying to get a beat on your level of interest and what you're into these days. I guess I’ll have to look at different breeds of dogs to be my guide for your dates. You've been in a total man drought since 'Evil Greg.' Tell me about the guy you met today! Was he a basset hound?"

Reluctant to mention Phin because it probably would amount to nothing and Hope loved to match-make. I think the cocktails and my happy disposition got ahead of my tongue as I blurted out. "He was nice, and he bought me a coffee right after I dropped my phone."

She leaned in with a conspiratorial smile. "Tell me more."

"I saw him again today; his name is Phin, and we chatted for a bit, but I had to get to work. Trust me, he's no basset; he's a full-on fox hound." I wasn't doing a very good job of hiding my enthusiasm.

Hope leaned farther forward. "What's the problem?"

"Well, I think he's pretty young. Probably twenty-four or twenty-five."

Hope almost spit out her drink; then her eyes lit up even more. "Girl, you have hit the puma pay dirt. Again, what's the problem?"

I slapped her arm. "Wait, what the hell is a puma? I thought I was a cougar. Weren't we talking about dogs? I am confused."

Hope took a sip of her drink. "Oh no, at our age we are pumas: still fast, hot, and agile. Cougars are more graceful and slightly older."

"Oh, okay, thanks for clarifying that for me. Anyway, Phin was nice, and I can tell by looking at him there's a story to tell."

"Jeez, you and your strays."

"He's not a stray. Poor kid needs a job; he hasn't been able to get a job since leaving college. If you hear of anything around the office, let me know. I think he'd do just about anything right now."

Hope leaned in. "Would that include doing you?"

My mood quickly shifted to irritated. "Are you saying I should pay him to have sex with me?"

Now she was laughing at me, which just made me madder.

"Lizzie, of course not." She paused for a second. "Although, that's not a bad idea, it's been a while since you've had someone order in your drive-thru."

"I'll go to In-N-Out Burger for my drive through," I protested.

Hope burst out laughing. "You heard what you said, right? I would never comment on your in and out practices."

I had to laugh at that one. As much as I hated to admit it, Hope was right. I hadn't had a date or a boyfriend in ages, but my boyfriend in the nightstand would have to do for now. It had been two years since Greg had left and it had gone by quickly. I honestly hadn't missed being in a relationship. After meeting Phin, having a man in my life had started to sound right to me, and my lady parts didn't disagree.

"Darn it, all this talk of drive-thrus has made me hungry!"

Before I could say anything else, she held her finger up to my lips to keep me quiet. "Why don't you hire him to be a bartender at your event? I am sure that would help him out."

I slapped my forehead, wondering why I hadn't thought of it, realizing I had been too busy thinking about licking his dimple. "Yes, that's a great idea. Why hadn't I thought of that?"

"Because you aren't as smart and beautiful as me?" Her bravado was a complete cover-up for her lack of self-esteem.

"Yes, I know you are a smart-ass, and you have a beautiful mind. The rest needs work."

Finally, we got our laughing under control. We held up our glasses, we clinked, and Hope said, "Cheers to new opportunities."

She threw back the rest of her drink in one shot. She was a bad influence on me. "One more?"

"Why not! We really should eat something." I really should have gone home, but I felt like letting my hair down. When I got back, I was determined to go to bed and sleep. No late emails or phone calls for work.

When my head finally hit the pillow, I was a little tipsy, and for the first time in a few months, I slept like a rock. Not sure if it was the cocktails, sheer exhaustion, or the thoughts of Phin as I drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, I woke up feeling better and ready for a new day. The morning went quickly, and I was out the door heading toward the café earlier than usual, so excited about potentially seeing Phin. As I got closer to my destination, my heart beat faster; all I could think about was making Phin a proposition he couldn't refuse.