I nod. “Yeah, those are two different things for sure, but the principles are the same. My job with the restaurant was to make it irresistible. I had to post pictures that made the food leap off the page. I had to show people having a great time. I had to make sure anyone scrolling would stop and feel the vibe I wanted them to feel. And those are the exact same things I’d do with you, but I’d use the word indispensable instead of irresistible.”
I refrain from mentioning that he already is irresistible.
“I’d make people want to stop scrolling to get to know a piece of you that you’ve worked so damn hard to keep hidden. I’ll make them feel the vibe that the Aces are nothing without Luke Dalton, and they won’t continue to be a fan of the team if you’re not on it. Their loyalties move with you, not with the team. Sort of like all these new Tampa Bay fans now that you know who moved,” I say, speaking about one of the most famous quarterbacks in the league. I’m no expert but even I heard about that.
“By posting pictures of me on a treadmill?” He seems doubtful.
I smile. “Seems like you’re starting to get it.”
He’s quiet as he mulls over my idea, and eventually he heaves out a long breath. “What if I agree to it?”
“Seriously?” I ask, my eyes wide in total shock at his complete one-eighty.
“Okay, forget it.” He shakes his head and moves to stand.
“Wait!” I say, a little desperation there in my voice as I realize I need this job just as much as he needs me to do it. “If you agree to it, then I draft out a real plan, you approve it, and we get moving.”
“What do you charge?” he asks.
For Luke Dalton? Nothing. The chance to get this insider view of his life? Priceless. “How about room and board?”
He chuckles. “Don’t be ridiculous. You need a job, and you just pitched yourself to me. I wasn’t looking to hire, yet you’ve somehow convinced me that I need you to keep my job. So I’ll ask you again, and I mean apart from room and board since you’ll have those here as long as you need them. What do you charge?”
I’m just supposed to come up with a number? I had a salary at my last job. I guess I could charge him a portion of what I took home every two weeks, but I had more than one client.
I also had a team of others behind me, including my ex. I won’t have that here.
“Okay, how about this,” he says to my silence as I weigh what the hell I should say. “I throw out a number, and you agree or disagree. Sound fair?”
“I need to draft your strategy first so you can determine what you think I’m worth,” I point out.
“I think I know your worth,” he murmurs, and I can’t tell if he’s flirting with me again or if he’s accidentally dropping his thoughts aloud—sort of the same way I do sometimes. “But fine. Strategize and let’s talk when you have it. How long do you need? A week or two?”
“I literally have nothing else going on. I can probably have it to you by morning.”
He laughs. “Okay, roomie. Take the night off and work on it tomorrow. If you want, we could order something for dinner and just hang here with Pepper and maybe a movie. Sound okay? Good times with someone who’s becoming a good friend.”
My heart balloons during the part where he basically asks me on a date, but he manages to pop it just as quickly there at the end with his final word: friend.
That’s all we are, and that’s all he’ll allow me to be.
For now.
I nod. “Sounds great. I’ve never seen the movie with Pepper’s namesake, so maybe Iron Man.”
He shoots me a look like I’m crazy. “You’ve never seen Iron Man?”
I shake my head.
“Then that’s definitely what we’re watching.”
A few hours later, we’re sprawled on the couch with Chinese food. Pepper lies on the floor by our feet with a chew toy, and the movie plays while we eat.
It feels like a date night in with my boyfriend.
But, I remind myself, that’s not at all what it is.
In fact, depending what he thinks about the strategy I’m thinking about when I should be concentrating on the movie, it’s sort of like a night in with my potential new boss.
CHAPTER 18
I stare down at the blank sheet of paper.
I swear, last night when we were watching that movie, I had about a million and one ideas for what to do, and now that I’m ready to draft the plan, I’m drawing a total blank.
It’s not because Luke’s out on the treadmill in his short runner’s shorts and no shirt again. That’s not what’s distracting me except it totally is and my eyes keep moving toward the window because good God I could sit here and watch this show all damn day.
I make a list of food I want to keep around the house. Luke told me last night to add whatever I want to the general list and Debbie will pick it up. It’s a great distraction when I’m supposed to be working.
It’s quite the system here at Casa de Luke, and while I actually enjoy cooking, I’m certainly not the pro Debbie is. I basically add popcorn, extra bananas, and Smirnoff Seltzers (since Luke apparently only keeps beer and hard liquor around this place) to the list and call it a day.
“Focus, Ellie. Focus,” I say aloud, and Pepper tilts her head at me in the same way she did yesterday, like she’s trying to understand what I’m saying.
I draw in a breath, and then I pull up the worksheet I used to use at my old company whenever I’d draft a strategy. I immediately recall the acronym I always used when strategizing: SLUTS, or Situation assessment, Landscape trends, Usable data to help develop a plan, Timeline for the client, and, last, Setting goals.
He needs a lot of help. I’m going to start with social media, but he’ll need a spokesperson who can handle interview, sponsorship, and collaboration requests, a publicist who can identify ways to get him out into the community, and a media relations specialist who can get the media to the same events he’s at to ensure coverage. I’ll need access to his agent and anyone else representing him. My specialty was always social media, but I have experience in the other areas, too.
When I think about assessing Luke’s current situation and what he can do to change or improve...well, we’re starting at zero. Literally. He doesn’t even have an Instagram account, so anything we do will be an improvement.
I look at the landscape next. I search the top wide receivers, including my own brother, and study what types of things they post. I research other popular players and what makes them popular. I’ll need more information there, and I write out all the questions I have for Luke as well as other areas to research so I can gather the most relevant usable data once I get the green light on this project.
I create a content calendar of what Luke will be posting for the next few weeks, but a lot depends on his schedule. I jot down some more questions for him. He admitted that football is his life, and when I look at what similar athletes are posting, I see a lot of collaborations and brand representing, lots of pictures of kids and families, pictures from professional events, and plenty of game day or practice action photos. I jot down a ton of notes, and I see what he means about taking a photo with a product because then he looks like he’s repping that product. I’m sure once his page is verified as real, the offers will start pouring in.