Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 72655 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 363(@200wpm)___ 291(@250wpm)___ 242(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72655 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 363(@200wpm)___ 291(@250wpm)___ 242(@300wpm)
“Opposites are supposed to attract. Just because we like different things doesn’t mean we couldn’t potentially find the same things important. Hypothetically, obviously.”
“What if I don’t know what I want to do in ten years? Or what if I do? What if it’s just running my companies and maybe adding another and another?”
“So you just want to keep making more money? Or do you want to be married to your job? And if that’s a yes, then is it because you want to use it as a crutch to replace the things in your life you don’t have or because you truly love it? And if you truly love it, then wouldn’t you want to buy companies that make a difference in the world?”
“As a legacy project?”
“That’s such an ugly way to put it. Although, maybe legacy means leaving something that matters for the next generation.”
“I don’t know the answers to any of that,” I tell her truthfully.
“Do you want to travel?”
“For work?”
She sighs. “For work or any other reason.”
“I guess so.”
“Okay.” She fiddles with her phone and puts it back into her purse. Then, she makes good eye contact, and it sucks me in…straight down into the vortex of her lovely green stare. “Maybe I’ll go first. I’d like to travel. To Ireland and Scotland, and definitely just for the pleasure of it. Not for work. I’m not sure if I want to have kids. Maybe one day. Also, I love animals, pretty much all kinds. I act tough on the outside, but inside, I’m pretty much a big softie for just about any cause. I wish the world were a better place. I truly do. It really hurts to think about the amount of suffering in it. And a lot of the time, I feel truly helpless.
“I love antiques and thrifting. I did it when I was younger because I liked cool things and didn’t have the cash for new stuff. Even now, I don’t have a lot of extra money, but even if I did, I would still want the one-of-a-kind old stuff. I’m a great lover of history, no matter how it’s told. Antiques, fiction, non-fiction, I’m here for it. I like cooking, but I’m terrible at it. I love baking, too, but I’m even worse at that. The same goes for sewing. I adore fashion of all kinds, especially dresses, and I’ve tried making my own creations a few times, but it’s always a wretched disaster. I live alone by choice. I love my friends, but I like my alone time, too. I believe in doing something you love. Something that has meaning. I know that’s a pipe dream for a lot of people, and I know how lucky I am.”
She trails off with that, and I don’t know what makes me feel worse. The fact that she almost quit her job because of me or the fact that we’re still doing this charade, also because of me.
“Other than that, there’s really not much else you need to know. I had a great childhood. I have one older sister, and she’s older by two years. I have aunts, uncles, and cousins. I also have one living grandma, and I miss the other three like freaking crazy. I went to college here. I love living here. I’d leave, but I’d probably always find my way back. It’s good to know where you’re from, even if your path takes you in other directions. We had pets growing up, mostly a family dog and a cat. We do things like family reunions, and we grow a garden every summer. My mom is good at baking and canning and pretty much everything I’m not. I love to read, and I inherited that love from both my parents. My dad works in an office, and my mom went back to work as a receptionist in a doctor’s office after I turned ten. Neither of my parents went to college, but they did do on-the-job training, and they still do that sometimes if their employers send them. My sister is a dietician, and she’s freaking amazing. Their names are Phillip and Joy, and my sister’s is Atella. Yes, she also got an inventive name.
“None of us can draw or sing, but we all wish we could. We’re pretty unathletic as a whole. And I’d say that if we were pressed, which I know we likely will be, we should say we met and bonded over crabanana splits. You were here having one, and I was here having one, and we noticed at the same time that we both liked them, and we’d never seen another person order one. Ever. It was one of those right moment, right time events—kismet shit. I told you about what I did for a living, and I made pudding sound so good that you couldn’t resist giving it a go. If you’re not already past that point.”