Indiscriminate Attraction

“As a matter of fact, I do. You weren’t getting ready to leave, were you?”

Laylah knew that he knew, like everyone else in the office knew, that leaving was exactly what she was about to do. Anytime she planned to leave early, she gave as much notice as possible. While she hadn’t told March directly, news always traveled fast in these office suites. “What’s on your mind?” she asked, refusing to respond to his query.

“I have a phone interview I’d like you to conduct. It’s an assignment I planned on handling, but I’ve been called up to attend a special meeting with city council members.”

“What time is the interview scheduled?”

March lifted his hand and looked down at his wristwatch. “In ten minutes.”

How could he possibly prepare her for this assignment in such a short time frame? This was just another of his hateful ploys. “Who am I interviewing and on what topic?”

March handed her a sheet of paper with typing on it. “It’s all right here.”

“Whoopee,” she halfway snarled. “Nice to know you always come prepared.”

“Always prepared,” he said. Without further ado, he turned around and left.

Laylah wished that that was the case. March was the most un-prepared man she’d ever met. Calmly, she gathered up her belongings, along with the typed sheet of paper he had handed her. Humming a soft tune, she left the office and headed toward the exit.

March came running out of his office in time to beat Laylah to the employees’ exit. “Where do you think you’re going? I just gave you an important assignment.”

“I know,” she said blandly, stepping around him, looking down at her watch. “If you hurry, you won’t be late for your special meeting.” Thank God for cell phones.

Laylah planned to conduct her interview by cell phone. She was sure March hadn’t thought about that. If he had, he would’ve found another way to try to sabotage her plans. Since she was well seasoned at this sort of thing, it should be a piece of cake for her. Besides that, she had already interviewed this high school principal several times. Seventy-year-old Clara Holliday had just won another prestigious, newsworthy award.

March would more than likely call her on the carpet on Monday morning, accusing her of belligerence, but getting the assignment done was always the best revenge against an idiot boss. She would be ready for his tired behind, just as she always was. He’d never best her because he simply wasn’t the best.

Chapter 3

All finished with the Holliday interview, which had gone off as smoothly as a summer breeze, Laylah pulled her car up in front of the shelter instead of parking in the lot, her normal routine. She had made it there right on time. Upon spotting Chancellor, she quickly blew the horn, regretting it the moment lots of heads turned her way. She couldn’t help smiling broadly as he made his way over to the car.

Chancellor opened the door and slid into the passenger’s seat with ease. He looked over at Laylah and smiled. “How’s your day been?”

As Laylah thought about how it had made her day to best March at his evil deeds, laughter trilled in her throat. “Beautiful! And yours?”

“Pretty darn good, considering. You ready for our little shopping trip?”

“I am. I know people who’d give up a limb or two for the chance to go to Home Depot to shop for plant-pest spray.”

Chancellor roared with laughter from deep inside his belly. “That’s funny.”

“I thought so,” Laylah remarked, trying hard not to sound too flirty.

Wondering if she was trying to be cute or cocky, Chancellor gave her a wry look. He liked her sense of humor, but he didn’t care for artificially overconfident women, hoping she wasn’t anything akin to those types. Too much confidence in folks was hard for him to take, period. He had never been arrogant; he thought of himself as both humble and compassionate. “Do you always toot your own horn like that?”

Laylah seemed baffled. “What do you mean?”

“Your comment after I said you were funny was kind of arrogant.”

The look in Laylah’s eyes was sincerely apologetic. “It wasn’t my intent to come off like that. You’re the first person who has ever called me arrogant.” Well, that’s not quite true, she mused, suddenly recalling March saying that about her a time or two. She really didn’t like being referred to as such. She was very confident but never haughty. She had been pompous with her boss on a few occasions, which she hated to admit.

As Laylah pulled into the parking lot of the Home Depot, she quickly glanced over at Chancellor. “I’m sorry if I offended you in some way.”

“You didn’t. And I’m not insulted. I think I simply read you wrong.”

“I’m happy you’ve changed your mind about me.” She turned off the ignition. “I guess we’d better go inside so I can get you back to the shelter in time.”

“Why do you even care whether I land a bed there or not?”

“I just do. I’d like to see everyone get one. It doesn’t make me happy to know that our country is the greatest superpower in the world, yet it lacks compassion.” Laylah sighed hard. “If you’re wondering if I’ve taken a special interest in you, I have. I’m attracted to you, Chancellor Kingston. I know that may seem ludicrous, but it’s true.”

“Is an attraction to me ludicrous? Or is it ludicrous to be attracted to a homeless man? Which one is it, Miss Versailles?”

Laylah could easily refuse to answer that question, but she thought it might make her seem shallow. She was anything but superficial. “I guess I could say both. There are people out there who would definitely think it’s ludicrous to be romantically attracted to a homeless guy. To be real honest with you, I feel as if I’ve been acting a little insane over my attraction for you. What do you think of it?”

Chancellor grinned. “I think I like having you attracted to me. Despite you not being homeless, the attraction is mutual. The truth is, I think you’re pretty hot. I guess a guy down on his luck shouldn’t even be thinking or saying something like that, huh?”

Laylah blushed fiercely, something she’d done a lot of since meeting Chancellor. “I’m truly flattered. Thanks for the return honesty. I appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome. Now that we both know we’re attracted to each other, how do you suggest we handle it?” He was very interested in hearing her response.

Laylah gave a resigned sigh. “Wish I’d asked you that question first.”

They both laughed, seemingly content to leave the question unanswered for now.

Feeling less foolish than she had before her confession, Laylah slipped out from under the steering wheel. That Chancellor was just as attracted to her made her feel much better. How they’d go about establishing any type of relationship was anyone’s guess. This wasn’t an everyday situation. Nor was it an ordinary boy-meets-girl scenario.

Woman meets homeless man and falls head over heels in love. Go figure…That would definitely be one exciting story to write. Laylah laughed inwardly.

Chancellor located the item he needed to treat the plants right away. The formula came in a spray and a powder. When he couldn’t make up his mind which one might work best, Laylah made it up for him by tossing both items into her shopping cart.

As they proceeded to the checkout line, Laylah spotted an eye-catching lighting display. Because she had been looking for a new chandelier for the dining area, she began to look at the various ones for sale. She gave a few oohs and aahs before she came upon the perfect one for her formal dining room. “What do you think of this chandelier?” she asked Chancellor. She didn’t know why, but his opinion mattered.

Stroking his chin, he pursed his lips. “Beautiful. Are you in the market for one?”

“Have been for quite a while.” She chewed on her lower lip, thinking about who she could get to install it for her. A bright smile lit up her eyes as she looked over at Chancellor. “Do your handyman skills include working with lighting fixtures?”

“You’re in luck.” Chancellor winked at her. “They do. I’m very experienced in electrical work. Looks like I’m getting lots of chances to earn my supper.”

That’s not all you’ll get to earn. She quickly chided her devilish wickedness. “When do you think you can hang it?”

He put his forefinger up to his right temple. “I’ll have to check my calendar first.”

“Okay. Just let me know when.”

Surprised that she hadn’t caught his attempt at light sarcasm, Chancellor chuckled. “Whenever you need me to do it is when I can get it done.”

She could surely run away with his statement. She had a lot he could do for her.