Faith

I'm up bright and early and throw on some sweats and a tee over my naked body before heading down to the kitchen to start the coffee. I realize I may be the only one going into the office today. After I start the coffee, I head back upstairs for my shower. When I return to the kitchen, Liza is there with her head on the counter and a cup of coffee in her hands.

"Good morning, sunshine," I say a little too brightly.

"Shhh," she whispers back to me.

I can't help but laugh and place my hands over my mouth to stifle the sound.

Liza raises her head just enough to give me a death stare and sip coffee.

"Breakfast?" I ask her quietly. She nods her head slightly.

I go around the kitchen, putting together pancakes, and hear a groan from the stairs.

"It sounds like Grace is up," I say as I pour her a cup of coffee and set it beside Liza.

Liza doesn't move or acknowledge my comment. I flip the pancakes as my sister sits beside Liza at the breakfast bar.

"Good morning, Sis."

Grace grunts back at me and pulls her coffee to her lips. I plate their breakfast and place their plates in front of them. I grab the butter and syrup, then sit to enjoy my breakfast.

By the end of breakfast, Grace and Liza become part of the living again.

"I'm going to leave for the office. I'll hold down the fort so you two can take your time getting there." I stand, place my plate in the sink, and pour them another cup of coffee.

"Thank you," Liza replied gratefully.

"Yes, thank you, Faith." Grace gives me a slight smile.

I say goodbye, grab my purse, and leave for the office.

I'm working at Liza's front desk when the phone rings. I quickly answer it.

"Good morning, Double Faced Advertising," I chirp.

"Good morning; I'm calling on behalf of Lance Crawford. I want to confirm your 3:00 with him today," says a joyful voice on the other end of the line.

"Yes, I can confirm that meeting," I reply.

"Perfect. Mr. Crawford is looking forward to it."

"So are we. Thank you for your call," I add.

We say goodbye and hang up. I sure hope that Grace is up for this interview today. I send her a text to remind her of the meeting. She responds with a thumbs up.

Liza and Grace arrived at the office at 11:00 a.m. looking much better than when I left them. I get up to give Liza her seat and head into my office. I sit, and my phone buzzes.

"Yes, Liza?"

"Benson Easton on line one," she informs me.

I'm surprised to be getting a call from Easton. I press line one. "Good morning, Mr. Easton. How can I help you?"

"Good morning, Faith. Please call me Benson," he answers.

"Of course, um, Benson. Is there a problem with the video?" I ask, trying to keep the concern out of my voice.

"No, no, not at all. It's perfect. I'm calling because I have another project that I would like you to collaborate on with me." Benson's voice is as smooth as silk.

I attempt to clear my thoughts of imagining his smooth voice whispering naughty things in my ear. I'm so happy that he cannot see me. I'm sure my cheeks are pink from the warmth rising into them.

"Of course, what do you have in mind?" I inquire; my damn voice comes out raspy.

I hear him chuckle on the other end of the line; I'm dying here.

"Can we meet this afternoon to discuss it? Say around 3:00?"

"I'm sorry, we have a magazine interview at that time. I'm not sure how long it will take," I respond, not even trying to hide the disappointment in my voice.

"How about a dinner meeting then? You can pick the restaurant. Let's say 6:30?" he asks with a hint of hope in his voice.

"That sounds good to me. Let me check with Grace, and I'll get back to you," I say a little too quickly. Why does this man, whom I'm not even sure I like, affect me like this?

"I would be thrilled if at least one of you could meet with me; I would like your input on the project," he replies.

"Do you like sushi?" I inquire.

"I love sushi."

"6:30 at Lumi's okay with you?" I ask.

"Perfect."

"I'll have Liza make a reservation." I get butterflies in my stomach in anticipation of having dinner with Benson Easton.

"I'm looking forward to it, goodbye Faith."

"Goodbye, Benson."

Why do I feel so excited for 6:30 to come? He's just a client, I tell myself before jumping out of my chair and rushing over to Grace's office.

I knock and peek my head inside. Grace looks up from her work. "Yes?"

I cannot contain my smile. "Are you free tonight at 6:30 to have a business dinner with Benson Easton?"

She raises her eyebrows in surprise. "Benson Easton? Why? I thought that he said everything was good with the promotional video."

"He wants to meet with us about another project he is working on," I explained.

"Really, that's awesome." Grace opens her calendar. "Damn, I already have a dinner meeting planned tonight with Growing Up Orange Juice."

"I thought that was already a done deal?" I retort, surprised at her words.

"Oh, your part is. The client wants to tweak my graphics a bit. They felt bad about being so particular, so they wanted to buy me dinner. Are you okay going yourself and getting the information on the project?" She asks me with worry in her voice.

"No problem, I can do that. I don't mind at all. I can take care of the details," I ramble, and my sister gives me a knowing smile.

"You'll be fine," she encourages me.

I nod, unsure that I can handle a meeting with Benson Easton alone, and leave her to get back to work.

On my way back to my office, I stopped and asked Liza to make reservations at 6:30 for two at Lumi's.

She gives me a questioning look. "I know Grace is meeting Grown Up Orange Juice for dinner. Who are these reservations for?"

"They're for Benson Easton and me," I say, trying to hide my excitement. "He has another project that he wants to work on with us."

Liza gives me a look. "Mmmhmm. I bet I know what his project is."

I feel heat flush my face. "He has been nothing but professional." I find myself defending him.

Liza puts her hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay. I'm just saying that I'm not blind. I see the way he looks at you and Grace and the way you blush when he smiles."

I've heard enough. Am I that obvious? Damn, my embarrassing blushing. It gives me away every fucking time! I go back to my desk, thankful for the work that I have to keep my mind occupied till our interview with Lance Crawford.

Grace and Liza have only been here an hour, but I'm getting hungry. I walk back out to Liza. "Lunch?"

She looks at me from her computer. "I could eat, but let's order something so I can work through lunch."

"Sure, does pizza sound okay?" I ask.

She smiles. "Perfect! I'll give Berkeley Pizza a call."

"You know what we like! Thank you," I say before popping into Grace's office. "You okay with pizza for lunch? Liza is ordering."

Her phone rings, so she nods her head in agreement before answering.

I head back to my office to send some emails before lunch arrives. I will not lie; I'm nervous about our afternoon interview. I've never met Lance Crawford, but I have read his work. He's pretty good. I decided to jot some notes before our interview. At least I know the subject of his article is about successful young businessmen and women in the San Diego area.