15
Bex
Bex had been seeing Roman enough lately and worried that, if she wasn’t careful, he was going to turn into a habit. Like her habit of starting each morning off with a square of fine dark chocolate. It was something she looked forward to. Savored. And felt like the day just wasn’t right when she didn’t have it.
“Hi,” she breathed as he got into her car. She had dated plenty of guys who wore cologne. Some good smelling and some not so good smelling. Some wore just a hint, while others seemed to take a shower in it. She had also dated plenty of guys who didn’t wear cologne. Actually, it wasn’t something she normally noticed unless it was a bad smell, or one that was too strong, or one that just really didn’t fit the guy.
But when Roman stepped into the car, the scent of him came into the car with him, and it was glorious. It didn’t even smell like cologne, exactly. It was more like it was just a part of him—a scent that was clean and fresh. Maybe birch? Bergamot? She didn’t know. Maybe it was cologne, and the guy was just ten levels beyond pro at picking out the right scent. She hoped that it would stay in her car forever and ever. Then, whenever she needed a pick-me-up and she couldn’t be around Roman, she could just go sit in her car and breathe in the scent of him.
Wow, she was falling ridiculously hard for him.
“No Enoch today?”
Bex shook her head as she pulled out into traffic. “He has a basketball tournament, and Nikki is at a weekend getaway. I have another backup videographer I sometimes use, but I thought this one could be easily filmed by my friend Tripod there in the back seat. Plus, I figured it might be a little less intimidating to everyone else in the class if there wasn’t a person videoing.”
She looked up the address of the painting class earlier in the day. It was in a pedestrian mall with cute shops and plenty of places to eat, and the drive wasn’t long. Once she got parked, they found the shop where the painting class would be, then headed two shops down to a cute little café with outdoor seating.
Right as they finished ordering, a teenaged girl walked up to them, doing a pretty good job of not acting nervous, except for the way she was fiddling with the keys in her hand. “You’re Bex Sterling, aren’t you?”
“I am. What’s your name?”
“Lanie. I can’t believe I’m actually meeting you. I love your show, and I want to start my own someday. I’ve been watching yours for like two years, obsessing over everything. Can I ask you for some advice about running a business?”
She was pretty sure she heard Roman make a scoffing sound that he tried to hide. She ignored him and said to the girl, “Sure!”
“I start college in the fall, and I was thinking of doing a marketing major and entrepreneur minor. Do you think that’s good? Or would another major be better? And should I wait until I’m all done with school and have everything ready to start? Or is it better to start now so I can get practice, and just build slowly?”
Bex answered her questions until the woman behind the counter said, “Excuse me—your order is ready.”
The girl thanked her profusely and went back to join her friends, while she and Roman took their tray outside and found an open table. As Roman took their sandwiches off the tray and placed one in front of each of them, Bex said, “Did I hear you scoff when she asked for business advice?”
“I just thought it was a strange question, because it’s not really a business.” He handed them each a drink.
“I have a business license and incorporation papers that say otherwise. But I’m curious to know why you think it isn’t.”
He looked sheepish, like he knew he was in trouble. “I guess it was just because your only employees are your sister and your nephew.”
“For a long time, it was just me. And it was still every bit as much of a business as it is now. We both make digital products, Roman. The only difference is that my business gets paid by companies showing ads and yours does by people buying apps.” It bothered her that he didn’t seem to have the same respect for her business that he did for his own.
He sighed. “You’re right. I apologize—that was very rude of me. Let me make it up to you.”
“Ooo. I like the sound of that. Will it involve kissing?”
A smile lifted the corners of his mouth. “There can definitely be kissing. And how about I surprise you at the inn some random evening by showing up with dessert?”
“If it can be pie, then you’re on.”
In between taking bites of their sandwiches, Bex told him a little more about what to expect tonight. They had been working on such short notice, not only to give the Nudge Out app time to collect enough data about her, but also because all of the interviews with Roman had been on top of her normal production schedule.
“I called the owner of the shop where we’ll have the painting class. There will be eight people in the class, so we won’t be able to interview while we are taking the class. But she said that if we can get there a few minutes early, we can film an introduction before it starts, and then film the rest of the interview there after.”
“That sounds perfect.”
The weather was beautiful, and she wished she could just hang out at the diner, chatting and watching the cars and pedestrians go by for hours while she sat close, leaning her head on his shoulder. But this interview wasn’t going to film itself.
So the moment they finished, they stood up and collected their trash and headed toward the garbage receptacle. As she was dumping the tray, the lid of the garbage can caught on the tray, causing her to dump all the crumbs from their sandwiches down her front. She was just brushing it off, checking to make sure no sauce had jumped ship and was catching a ride on her shirt right before filming when she noticed Roman stiffen beside her.
“Dad.”
His tone was that of surprise and guilt, like a kid getting caught watching TV when he was supposed to be doing homework. Bex looked up to see a man that, by the strong shoulders and jawline, was very much Roman’s dad. The resemblance between the two was uncanny. Except his dad had gray in his sideburns, wrinkles around his eyes and the aged skin of someone twenty-five or thirty years older, and had clearly spent a much larger percentage of his life not being in touch with his more calm, peaceful side. He was dressed in a suit, and so were the two men and one woman with him.
“Roman! What a surprise to see you here. What brings you to Portland? And with this lovely young lady?”
Bex stopped brushing the crumbs off her blouse and jeans, and hoped she hadn’t missed any.
“Dad, this is Bex Sterling.” Roman paused a long moment, like he wasn’t quite sure what to introduce her as, then went with, “She is an audience targeting specialist that we are using to make sure we are reaching the right audience in our advertising of our new app. We just met for a dinner meeting to go over some things. Bex, this is my dad, Doctor Richmond Powell the fourth.”
“Nice to meet you, Bex Sterling.” He reached out and shook her hand, then motioned to the people standing with him on the sidewalk. “And these are some of my board members—we were just meeting to discuss strategy, as well. Are you an employee of Roman’s, or are you freelance?”