The Pepper in the Gumbo (Men of Cane River #1)(46)
“I don’t have a social life. Nothing exciting going on here.” Paul threw it out with a laugh. But Andy just cocked his head and fixed him with a stare.
“I can’t believe you’ve been here one day and you’ve already got a…” Andy’s mouth formed an ‘ohh,’ as he guessed the woman in question. “I don’t think that’s a wise idea, Paul. I’m surprised she even agreed to meet you. She doesn’t want our company here. Getting involved with her won’t make that go away. It will probably make it much, much worse.”
“Well, she doesn’t know it’s me,” Paul said. “Not the real me. She thinks she’s meeting Browning Wordsworth Keats.”
Andy stood perfectly still, staring at him. Paul recognized that look. It was the look Andy had worn when they realized a million video games had been shipped to Canada with instructions only in Chinese. It was the same look he’d had when one of their top programmers had dropped out of sight, only to resurface in their competitor’s company. “There’s nothing I can say to convince you that this is a really bad idea?”
Paul straightened his cuffs and took a breath. “I think this will simplify everything, actually. I realized I was fighting battles on every side, when I don’t need to. I’m going to tell Alice who I am, she’ll realize I’m not out to destroy the world, and maybe we can open this store without any more drama.”
“Or she’ll feel betrayed by the way you’ve lied to her face, decide that you’re worse than she thought, and do everything she can to destroy you.”
Paul choked out a laugh. “Wait a minute. Alice just believes that our culture is dying and she wants to protect it.” He paused. “And she has a little block against technology for some reason, but I think she’s just not aware of how it can be used to her advantage.”
Andy raked a hand through his hair. “I don’t know if it’s because she’s Creole, like you, or because she’s beautiful, but you’re completely ignoring the problem here. Alice isn’t your great auntie who needs a lesson on using the Internet. People like Alice already know what’s out there and they’re actively fighting it. She’s not going to be impressed with a few flashy websites.”
“No, but she is impressed by Browning Wordsworth Keats,” Paul said. Except for the part where he ripped books apart. She would be livid when she discovered how the books get scanned and uploaded. But he didn’t want to think about that right now. “Listen, Alice isn’t a monster.”
“No, she’s a woman,” Andy said.
Paul frowned. “I never knew you to be misogynistic. She must have really rubbed you the wrong way.”
“My friend.” Andy clapped him on the shoulder. “I’m trying to say that if you were a woman, it wouldn’t be an issue.”
“I don’t follow.”
His friend looked him straight in the eye. “Are you telling me that you don’t have feelings for her? And you’re positive she doesn’t have any for you?”
Paul thought about the moment he’d opened her first email, of the picture she sent of her shelf, and of the time he saw her making faces at herself in the mirror. He thought of how he’d wanted her to dump the boyfriend, how his stomach dropped when he realized she was going to fight his new store, how he’d wanted to wrap her in his arms when he’d seen the tears on her face.
In the last two days he’d spent sixty thousand dollars on a book he didn’t need and punched a man he didn’t really know. In a few minutes he was going to reveal the secret he’d carefully kept for two years. It didn’t make any sense. None of it did. He obviously wasn’t thinking with his head, but his heart.
“I don’t know what she feels,” Paul said.
“Oh, boy,” Andy said. “I knew the day would come when I’d watch you join the ranks of the love-struck zombies. I just didn’t know it was going to happen here.”
“I’m not--” Paul cleared his throat. He wasn’t sure what he was. “I’m not a zombie. This is a calculated business move to help our new store.”
“Uh huh. Well, let me go change and then we can see how this new business move goes.” Andy stopped at the doorway to his bedroom. “But if I had to guess, I would say this is going to get a lot uglier before it gets better. If it gets better.”
Paul walked to the window and looked out toward the stage. Maybe Alice was already there, looking for BWK. His stomach rolled. He hadn’t been this nervous in years. Not when that actress took him to the Oscars. Not when he accepted the award for best Online Game Play of the Year before the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences. . Not on his last date, that was for sure.
***
Alice turned and gave herself a long look. The tall, standing mirror showed the reflection of a young, pretty woman. She belted the waist of her teal, Western-style shirtdress with red embroidery on the hem and pockets, accentuating her hourglass figure. A scuffed pair of red cowboy boots replaced her usual vintage pumps. She tucked the rings into her shirt. The only thing left was a smile. Alice grinned at her reflection. There was nothing she could do about the lawsuit at that very minute, but it was hard not to worry. She leaned forward, examining her lashes and pressing her lips together. She wondered if she needed more makeup. Suddenly she remembered the first time she met Paul.