Page 55 of Mr. Perfect
“It’ll have to do for now. I’ll return my shirt to you later,” Jude said. He eyed the angry birds at the back door. “Mind if I go out the front door? I’m kind of partial to keeping my cock and balls.”
Felix was a big fan of them too. He walked with Jude to the front door. They stopped on the front porch, and Jude pulled Felix to him for a long goodbye kiss.
Then Jude walked away, leaving Felix’s lips tingling and his emotions reeling. He’d almost made it to his car when Pete and Pearl came shrieking around the side of the house.
“Get him, Pete,” Felix yelled.
Jude sprinted to the safety of his car, then flipped Felix off before driving away.
Felix whistled, and the birds followed him to the back yard. He plopped down into the chaise, then stared at the trees surrounding his property until his eyes lost focus and the colorful landscape became an impressionist painting. Pete and Pearl made their way home at twilight as the fireflies lit up the woods surrounding his house like tiny fairies dancing on the wind.
A question played through his head like a broken record, but the hunt for answers had changed. He’d stopped askingwhyand started wonderingwhat if?
Afew days later, someone lightly tapped on the frame of Felix’s open door. When Felix didn’t stop what he was doing, the person cleared their throat. Felix kept working.
“Excuse me, Felix. Can I have a minute?”
Felix had known who his visitor was without looking up from his computer screen. Shy knock, awkward throat noise, and a timid voice equaled Jimmy.
“What can I do for you, Jimmy?” Felix asked, but he didn’t stop typing. If the rookie wasn’t confident about interrupting him, then Felix had no qualms about giving the kid only part of his attention. When the pause stretched beyond awkward and became weird, Felix finally looked up.
Jimmy was as pale as a ghost and worrying his bottom lip between his teeth hard enough to draw blood.
“For fuck’s sake,” Felix groused. “Come in here and sit down before you pass out. I’m all out of smelling salts.”
Jimmy’s shoulders tensed, and his face turned a mottled pink as if his skin couldn’t make up its mind about being angry. Felix was just happy to see a spark of life. “I’m not going to pass out like a damsel in distress.”
“Convince me,” Felix challenged, gesturing to the empty chair in front of his desk. “Show me that you want to be a reporter forSavannah Morning News. Scratch that, Jimmy. Show me you deserve to be here.”
Jimmy swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing almost cartoonishly. If this had been one of Felix’s beloved childhood Saturday-morning shows, Jimmy’s heart would be knocking against his rib cage.
“Spit it out, kid. I don’t have all day. Wow me.”
Jimmy laughed nervously. “My first article is due next week. Would you consider reading it and providing feedback?”
“Me?” Felix asked. People rarely caught him by surprise, but Jimmy just had. Felix had been nothing but caustic and rude to him. Why the hell would the younger man seek him out? “Why?”
“Because you’ll be brutally honest, and it’s the only way I will reach my full potential.”
Felix nodded. “I won’t hold anything back. Are you sure you’re prepared for it?”
“No,” Jimmy admitted. “But it’s what I need.”
Felix had never seen himself as the mentoring type. Correction: he’d never wanted to be a mentor. That hadn’t changed, but Jimmy had piqued his curiosity. “Email it to me. Be sure to include the deadline for me to provide my feedback.” With that, Felix turned his attention back to his computer without so much as a goodbye to the young reporter. He was such a dick sometimes.
At three o’clock, he powered down his computer and left for an important appointment. He’d called Veronica the morning after watching Spencer’s interviews and requested a meeting with The Auto King. She’d assumed Felix wanted to inquire about the status of his Fusion and referred him to the service department.
“Making assumptions is your specialty, isn’t it?” Felix had asked her. He hadn’t waited for her to answer; he’d saved them both precious time by stating the reason for his call. “I’d like to interview Mr. Spencer about his Second Chance Program.”
“Oh. Is this for the paper?”
“Either the paper or the podcast,” Felix had replied. “I’m not sure where it fits yet, but I know it’s a critical conversation to have. If I’m going to showcase the more sinister parts of our fair city, then I should also highlight her best attributes.”
“Isn’t that contradictory?”
“Isn’t that life?” Felix had countered. “Seldom is a person, or a city in this case, all good or all bad.”
“True. I’ll talk to Mr. Spencer when he arrives. One of us will get back to you sometime today.”