Chapter 2
Twenty minutes later and the lesson is yet to start. First Elijah left to take a quick call, he then offered to get me a drink which I declined, then he went to have a bathroom break. That was ten minutes ago.
He's either nervous pooping or trying to come up with an excuse to reschedule the lesson. I don't know which one I'd rather him be doing.
He steps into the room looking flushed.
"Sorry about that. I was just..." He trails off.
"Don't worry about it, we've got plenty of time left," I reassure him. "If you're ready..."
"Yeah." He sits beside me. "I'm a bit nervous..uh..I've never done anything like this before."
"Most people haven't."
"I mean I've kissed people before, I just haven't hired..."
I chuckle. "Most people haven't hired a professional kisser before. Your nerves are valid." I reach into my bag and pull out the questionnaire I've brought with me. "My job isn't really about teaching you how to be a better kisser, though that's what a majority of my clients think. It's more so to give you the opportunity to find out what you like when it comes to kissing and how to understand what the other person wants without you having to ask. A lot of people find it embarrassing to ask what the other person wants as if you should already know what they want after the first time kissing and/or doing other stuff." As I speak I notice his body slowly relaxing.
"Let's start with part one, body language."
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As I sit in one of the booths at Blossom I pull out my ledger and write down the length of the lesson with Elijah and how many more I think he will need so I can review his progress once we've had a certain amount of lessons.
It was nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be. I fact it was great. Elijah seemed as though he was actually interested in the what I had to say and the information I was giving him, he took notes and asked questions, unlike a lot of my other clients who pretend to listen then become alert when it gets to the kissing.
It's refreshing speaking to someone who wants to absorb the information in giving them.
The booth chair squeaks as Asia sits down beside me. She places her outrageously oversized handbag in between our thighs, letting out a groan as she places her head in the palms of her hands.
"I can't believe I'm about to say this but the lesson with Elijah went great."
"Did you underestimate me?" She sits up, flipping her brown hair over her shoulder.
"Is that a rhetorical question or do you actually want the answer?" I hand her the menu.
"I can't believe you'd doubt my skills! I'm great at finding you clients!" The waiter stops at our booth and asks us if we'd like to order.
"We'll have a pizza, half meat lovers and half pepperoni. Two glasses of water" Asia sits the menu down and the waiter nods and walks away. "How many have I found?"
"You did find me six, all of whom I don't give lessons to anymore."
She shrugs her shoulders. "It's not my fault you're picky."
"I'm not picky, I'd just rather not have a client of mine aggressively grab my breast and tell me 'I know you want it' when in actual fact I don't want it." I rant.
"That was different, he was actually an asshole. The others weren't." Asia retorts.
"Need I bring up Dylan and his attempt to make me fall in love with him." She rolls her eyes.
"Fine, Asia admits. "I'm not the best at finding you clients, OK? Are you happy now?"
"Very." I smugly respond. "Now what important news required me to rush here and push back my next lesson?"
Asia breaks eye contact and looks down at her twiddling fingers. "Ezra got the job."
Don't make a scene. Don't make a scene.
"THAT MICRO PENISED DIPSHI..." Asia clamps her hand over my mouth, muffling my words.
"Could you keep your voice down please?" She hisses, looking around the restaurant.
"I col iph yuh goh yuh han ofph mah farce." She slowly removes her hand, wiping the saliva from my mouth on a napkin.
I swipe the back of my hand across my mouth, wiping away the saliva that has pooled in the corner of my mouth. "Why the hell would Hudson give him the job?" I ask in disbelief.
"Apparently he did better than the rest of us interns." The waiter sits our pizza in the middle of the table and we each grab a slice, having a few bites before resuming the conversation. "They're keeping me on as a temp, so at least I'll be getting paid while I look for an actual job."
"Well, you can always join me and kiss people for a living." I sarcastically comfort her.
"Yeah right. I could never kiss that many people on a regular basis, I'd be way too paranoid about getting some sort of orally transmitted disease." She grimaces.
"They all get tested before we have any lessons."
Asia shakes her head. "I still couldn't do it. I just would be able to."
"If you can almost have sex with Ezra and his micro peen for free then you can definitely kiss people for money."
We crack up laughing, remembering the time I walked in on them in the office supply closet just as Ezra pulled down his boxers.
Asia gasps for air as she says "I can't believe I was about to have sex with him."
We finish the rest of the pizza and leave Blossom, paying for our food on the way out. As we start walking to the SparkCo Marketing building, Asia tells me about a new client SparkCo has partnered with.
"It's the biggest partnership the company has ever had and it hasn't even been announced yet. I've been hearing rumours around the office that the first movie SparkCo will be marketing for them is expected to make more than a hundred million in the box office." She takes a breath. "I even heard the CEO of Dalliance Media will be choosing a team of people from both his company and SparkCo."
"Are you going to go for a spot on the team?" I look at her reaction to the question.
Pressing her lips together she tilts her head side to side. "Hmm, I don't know."
"Come on. What have you got to lose?"
"Thanks for the encouragement." She scoffs.
"Asia I'm serious. This could be a great opportunity for you." I insist. "Being specifically chosen to be on a team of people handpicked by the CEO of a multimillion dollar company? Imagine the things it could do for your career."
We come to a stop outside of the SparkCo building, assistants rushing inside while holding mountains of drinks. People brush by us, their arms grazing ours. We push and squeeze our way through the lunchtime crowd, stopping beside the doors of the building.
"How about this? We both try and get chosen to be on the team?" Asia suggests.
I shake my head, saying the word "No" repeatedly.
She grabs the sides of my head, her palms pushing my cheeks inward. "If you get chosen you'll probably meet people, casting directors, producers, actors even. And with Dalliance having a partnership with Serenity Publishing, I'd probably be able to meet agents and if I'm lucky, one who's willing to read my first draft."
How does she always talk me into doing stuff?
By guilt tripping me that's how.
I relent, groaning as I tell her "Fine. I'll do it."