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"Aww, come on. You're turning out to be a superstar. The best decision I made in a while was moving you up."
A knock comes at the door, interrupting our conversation.
"Give me a second," I say to Oliver. "Come in," I call out, knowing it's Nicole.
She enters, looking slightly out of breath, a hint of exhaustion in her eyes.
"I'll call you back later, Oliver."
"Sure thing, Shane. Later," Oliver responds, the line going blank.
I turn my attention to Nicole. "What's going on?" I ask with concern. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah," she smiles a bit. "I was just chasing your nephew down, trying to get him to finish his vegetables."
I let out a hearty laugh. "Did you catch him?"
"Yeah, he's taking his nap now," she replies, but there's a nervousness behind her smile, something she's not saying.
"What is it?" I question, sensing something more.
"I hate to bother you, but I could really use that advance soon, if you could…"
"Of course. Sorry, I put in a transfer yesterday, so it should pop up on Monday after the weekend. But if you need money now, I could…"
"No, Shane, Monday is fine. I really hate to rush you on it, but I have a few loans I need to pay off."
"Sure, no problem. Are you sure you're okay? You don't need anything else?"
She walks up and kisses me on the forehead. "I'm fine," she assures me. "Sorry to bother you. I think I'll take a nap, too." She gives me a final smile before turning and leaving the office.
As the house grows quiet with Nicole and Jaime napping, I slip out by the pool for a quiet lunch and a quick phone call.
"So, how's it going with your little secret keeper?" Balina asks, her voice playful. I can hear the background noise of a busy film set, with someone shouting, "Clear the set!" in the distance.
"She's coming along, I guess."
"Give her some time, Shane. She'll get there."
"Yeah, I think so."
"So, what is it you need advice on now?"
"Well, I'm not great at this whole... courting thing. The last serious relationship I was in was with you, and, well…"
"I did all the courting," she laughs. "Wow, this one must be really special. I can't wait to meet her, though I'm not sure how she'd feel about you calling me for dating advice."
"Well, I guess she has her secrets, and I have mine."
"Yeah, you two are really starting off on the right track," Balina teases.
"So, what do I do to slowly show her I want her to be more? How do I start it off?"
"You start by casually inviting her to things. Include her in your plans, but don't expect her to always be present. More like... always considering her, you know? Always have a seat for her right next to you. And don't go overboard buying her a bunch of things that could scare her off, or worse, make her think you think she can be bought, or set her up to expect things from you. Treat her like a best friend forty percent of the time and a girlfriend the other sixty percent. Then slowly shift it to where she doesn't even notice."
"So no gifts?"
"Simple things, nothing too expensive, and make sure the gift means something and has some purpose behind it. No Cartier bracelets just because it's Tuesday. Focus on her interests and buy things that represent them. Think about the happiest couple you know. Use them as a model."