“That’s not what I said. If you can just get her to design and update the house’s interior, you might be able to convince her that you’re worth taking a chance on by the time the project is done. It won’t be a walk in the park, but if you spend the next few months showing her that you’re not the guy she thinks you are right now, then you might still have a shot.”
“Okay, but how do I convince her to take the job?” I asked. “She made it pretty clear that she doesn’t want it.”
He shrugged. “How do you convince anybody to do anything? You start by not accepting her refusal. Do whatever it takes to get her back to that house.”
“So I’ll offer her more money,” I said slowly. I reached for my phone and opened our email thread as I sound-boarded my idea with him. “I’ll pay her double her usual rate and give her full carte blanche with the design. That’d make the project irresistible, I bet. No budget, full control, and a huge payday if she’ll stay on as my interior designer. She can’t say no, right?”
I sent the email just as Steph walked into the room. She planted her hands on her hips and turned on me. “Please tell me you haven’t sent that yet.”
“What?”
“I heard what you just said, and it’s a bad idea,” she said in a tone that brooked no argument. “So please tell me you haven’t sent it yet.”
Dropping my gaze back to my phone, I saw the notification confirming it had been sent. “Uh, why was it a bad idea?”
Her shoulders fell and she dropped down onto the sofa beside Jeremiah. “If you act like you think she can be bought, it might piss her off even more, even if she agrees to work for you. Plus, didn’t you want to be with someone who doesn’t want to be with you for your money? If the only reason this girl sticks around is for a nice fat paycheck, it kind of defeats the whole purpose, doesn’t it?”
“I’m assuming you heard what he did?” Jeremiah slung his arm around her and pulled her closer.
She shook her head, and he wasted no time filling her in. By the time he was done, she was looking at me like I was the biggest asshole she’d ever seen in her entire life.
“Seriously, Tanner? How? You’re not that guy, but even I’m wondering if I really know you right now.”
“I prefaced this entire story to Jeremiah with, ‘I fucked up.’ I know I did. Trust me, you don’t need to tell me and there’s no way you could make me feel worse about it, but how do I fix it? Can I fix it?”
“You might’ve been able to if you’d waited a few days, brought her flowers, and then asked her to talk and explained the situation. Have you really already sent the email?”
I nodded, staring at my phone again. I knew she was right, but the email had been sent. “It’s too late now.”
She gave me a sympathetic look and leaned her head on Jeremiah’s shoulder as she let out a deep sigh. “In that case, you’ll just have to hope that she’s willing to give you one last chance. But Tanner?”
“Yeah?”
“Really think about whether you want it, because it’s going to require something you’ve never had to do for a girl before.”
“What’s that?” I asked.
A slow grin spread on her face. “You’re going to have to work for it.”