Page 62 of Mr. Hotshot CEO

“Your ideas are crap,” Cedric mutters, and I sympathize with him. “How many times have I told you that?

“Two dozen, perhaps?” Vince says cheerfully. “I’ve lost count. Anyway, you’re jetlagged, and I bet Julian wants to fantasize about his new girlfriend while he’s sun tanning. As for me, there’s always hookers and blow, even at eleven in the morning.” He gives me a mock salute before heading downstairs, Cedric behind him.

I sit back down and massage my temples.

As I’m picking up my novel, I realize I didn’t correct Vince when he referred to Courtney as my girlfriend.

Chapter 17

Courtney

On Fridays I have lunchwith Bethany, a post doc in the lab next to mine. We either go out for sushi or banh mi. Today we’re having the latter.

“How’s your son?” I ask as we walk to the restaurant.

Bethany has a two-year-old who seems allergic to the idea of sitting still for more than two seconds.

“I got him to eat broccoli last night,” she says. “It’s a miracle. Of course, it was in between running around with a box on his head and dumping Duplo all over the floor.”

Now that I’m in my thirties, most people my age are settling down and having kids, and they often aren’t available to go out on Friday and Saturday nights. Though I’m happy to go to their houses and hang out with their kids and try not to swear, it’s not the same as when I was younger. It’s harder to avoid spending the weekend alone, something which isn’t great for my mental health.

But this weekend and next weekend, I have Julian.

Bethany and I reach the banh mi place on Yonge and place our orders. Pork belly for me, as always. We’re lucky to get a seat by the window, but before Bethany unwraps her sandwich, she pulls her blonde hair back in a ponytail and looks at me curiously.

“Something’s different about you,” she says. “I’m not sure what, but something is definitely different.”

When we had sushi together last Friday, I hadn’t even met Julian yet. I’d admired him from a distance at Chris’s Coffee Shop, but that was all.

So much has changed since then.

I have a bite of my delicious sandwich. “You’re never going to believe what happened.”

I tell her about meeting Julian and our deal and moving in with him. She hasn’t heard of his family before, but penthouse-owning CEO gets the point across. I also mention that we’ve started sleeping together.

When I finish my story, she looks at me with wide eyes.