18

Foster

“Hello?”

“Hello there, Ella. How are you?”

“I’m getting along. How are you Mr. Dobson?”

I furrowed my brow at the odd use of such professionalism. I checked the clock to make sure she wasn’t at work before I cleared my throat, and I figured she must’ve been upset with me for the way I’d walked out on her. I couldn’t blame her. I was upset that I had to leave her, too. But, I wanted to talk to her.

I had to see her.

“I was wondering if you would do me the honor of accompanying me to dinner tonight. You know, to make up for running out on you so quickly for work,” I said.

“That actually sounds wonderful. I have some things I’d like to say anyway,” she said.

“Would it be alright if I picked you up around seven this evening?”

“I’ll be outside waiting.”

I wondered what it was she wanted to talk about, but the moment I pulled up to her apartment complex all thoughts fled my mind. There she was, with her long brown hair stacked high upon her head and a gold dress sitting on every single curve of her body. Her skin contrasted perfectly with the crimson red lipstick she had become known for in my life, and the moment she spotted the car she came over and opened the door.

I was so stunned at her beauty I couldn’t speak.

“Foster,” she said.

“Ella. You look… breath-taking.”

“That’s very kind of you to say. Where are we headed this evening?”

There was a coolness to her I wasn’t used to. It was like she had up the same shield that night I met her in the club. Her blue eyes weren’t warm like the morning I’d woken up with her, but were icy like the moment she realized what was above the club she worked at. I felt my heart palpitate in my chest with nerves as I navigated back onto the road.

I had to do whatever it took tonight to make sure she didn’t leave.

“I thought we could indulge in a bit of seafood tonight. How does that sound?”

“I love seafood,” she said.

“Perfect.”

We rode in silence until we got to the restaurant, then she got out before I could even open her door. She walked in front of me instead of beside me, obviously not wanting my touch on her back, and I studied the way she held herself. Her head was high and her shoulders were rolled back. Her feet walked with determination and her hips weren’t swaying the way they normally did.

She was intentionally posturing herself for an argument, so I braced for the impact. But, I wouldn’t have to wait for long, because my ass didn’t even hit the seat before she launched into a speech that was clearly rehearsed.

“Mr. Dobson, let me go ahead and say what I have to say.”

“I could tell something was on your mind. I’m honored you’d like to talk with me about it,” I said.

“That’s because it concerns you. I understand your plays at deception, but there was no need to deceive me. All you had to do was be upfront about your intentions with me from the beginning. You are a striking man, and a romantic tryst with you would’ve been just as welcomed as what I thought we were doing.”

“And what is it that you think we’re doing?” I asked.

“I am well aware of your reputation, but I am also well aware of the monetary issues you are running into with the condos. You did not have to sleep with me or pamper me or butter me up in order to make the news easier for me to palate. I’m a big girl who can take care of herself. Myself and the residents in that complex deserve as much notice as possible with the price hike you were discussing over the phone.”

“Miss Ella, there has been some recent developments that-”

“You’ve spoken enough, Mr. Dobson. Enough to get me to fall into bed with you on multiple occasions. Now, it is my turn to speak.”

Her icy eyes froze me to my core and everything inside of me up roared in panic. I would do whatever she asked if it kept her ass in that seat. I had to tell her everything. About my plans and the money. About the decision the board just finalized on how we would handle the price hikes to their condos and how I would pay the difference.

About how I’d truly come to care for her and her presence in my life…

“And honestly? It isn’t your fault. You showed me exactly who you were when you took me to the third floor of Expose. You showed me the kind of man you were then, and I wasn’t sure what I was expecting of the man who barged into my condo a few days later talking about renovations and floor plan changes and such. However, you could’ve been more forthcoming about this just being a little tryst, and I am very upset that you weren’t.”

“What makes you think this was simply a tryst?” I asked.

“The fact that it was so easy for you shut me up. The fact that you simply thought you could crook your finger and I would come. The fact that you understood there were monetary issues with people’s homes-- with my home-- and yet no phone calls were made to update us on anything.”

“You are well aware that I hadn’t be able to arrange anything with the board until just this afternoon, correct?” I asked.

The question garnered me her silence, so I filled it with the words I knew she needed to here.

The truth.

“When the monetary issue was presented to me, not only did I figure my project manager but I got the board of investors to agree to a personal investment of my own. I’m taking more personal stock in my company in exchange for a two-hundred-thousand-dollar investment that will cover the overages that have been discovered with regard to your condo as well as your neighbor’s condos who have plans to stay in the building. The price isn’t elevating from the one you signed off on when I was in your apartment that day.”

“What?” she asked.

“As for the question of my character, you would be spot on. The man I was when you met me at Expose was nothing but a sleazy scoundrel who was looking for a one-time fling because of a stressful day at the office. But, that’s not what this morphed into, Miss Ella. I began to miss you. To long for you when you weren’t there. Yes, my body gravitated towards your beauty, but waking up with you in my arms forced my soul to gravitate towards yours. The man sitting before you now isn’t the man you met at Expose. This man-- this Foster-- wants to be with you. This Foster cares about you and what happens to you. You’re special, but not just to this world, Miss Ella. You’re special to me. I’m paying out of my pocket, so I know nothing happens to you. So you can have what you want. So you will stay so I can take you out to more dinners. Maybe whisk you away to France or Italy one day just to see your face when you taste the delicacies their countries have to offer. I’m sorry for what you overheard, and I’m sorry for the way we left things. Please let me try to make it up to you.”