Chapter 11

Feeling refreshed after her bath, she stepped out of the bathroom and went straight to the side of the bed and  reached for her phone, which had been buzzing nonstop while she was in the shower.

“Hello? Gabby, are you okay? I was in the shower. What is up?”

“Yeah, I am good. Something just crossed my mind.”

“What is it?” Audrey asked, pulling her shirt into place.

“About the card I gave you a few weeks ago. Did you ever call him? What did he want?” Gabby asked, her voice tinged with curiosity.

“Oh, right! The card!” Audrey stammered, glancing around her room. 

“I kind of forgot about it.”

She walked over to the table and sat down.

“Thanks for reminding me. I should probably call him right away,” she said before ending the call, leaving Gabby no chance to respond.

Audrey let out a slight sigh. She had completely forgotten about the card and the man who had left it with her.

She opened her drawer and rummaged through its contents until she found the card tucked among her other belongings. It was matte black, with clean, precise edges. The initials JLE were inscribed on it, with a phone number printed boldly beneath them.

That is weird. There is no company name or logo, just an abbreviation.

She dialed the number.

It rang several times before someone finally answered.

“Hello?”

A calm, soft voice came through the phone.

“Hi. My name is Audrey Bennett. You left your card at the diner a few weeks ago and asked me to give you a call,” Audrey explained.

“Audrey Bennett.” The voice remained calm. “I know exactly who you are, and I have been waiting for your call.”

“What took you so long to call?” the man asked, his voice taking on a more authoritative tone.

“Uhmm, I…” Audrey stammered, taken aback by the unexpected question.

“Meet me at the lounge on the ground floor of the Ashford Hotel at eleven tomorrow morning. I have a business offer for you.”

Before Audrey could gather her thoughts or ask a single question, the call ended.

She stared at her phone in disbelief.

“Just like that?”

She shook her head.

“Hell no. I will not be meeting you anywhere, mister.”

Audrey tossed her phone aside and collapsed onto her bed. She had spent enough time worrying about the embarrassment of the previous day. She was not about to let a strange man and his mysterious business offer keep her awake all night.

With that thought, she settled beneath the covers and allowed herself to drift off to sleep.

****

Jonas stepped into his apartment, loosening his tie as he shrugged out of his gray suit jacket.

“Welcome home, sir,” Camille greeted him, approaching to take his briefcase.

“I will take that, sir,” she added, reaching for it.

Jonas handed it over, and Camille headed upstairs with it.

He walked into the living room and dropped onto the couch, draping his suit jacket over the armrest. The day had been exhausting, and all he wanted was a quiet evening to himself.

“What would you like for dinner, sir?” Camille called from nearby.

“Steak, mashed potatoes, and asparagus,” Jonas replied.

“I will have the chef prepare that for you, sir,” Camille said with a slight bow before leaving to attend to it.

Jonas rose from the couch and made his way upstairs, dragging his tired feet along the hallway. After the exhausting day at the office, all he wanted was a long, hot bath.

He had spent the entire previous week working from home, enjoying the solitude and the rare opportunity to have the place to himself. But that brief period of quiet had come to an end. Things were back to normal, both at work and at home, and his schedule had once again become demanding.

He stepped into the bathtub and lowered himself into the warm water until it covered most of his body, leaving only his face above the surface.

He closed his eyes and let out a slow breath.

This was exactly what he needed.

After what felt like an eternity, Jonas finally stepped out of the bathroom. Water dripped from his damp hair onto his broad shoulders and chest. He reached for a towel, dried his hair, and then wiped the water from the rest of his body.

He walked over to his closet glancing through them until he finally reached for a pair of blue shorts and a white T-shirt.

He slipped into his clothes and walked out of his room shutting the door behind him.

The aroma of freshly prepared food greeted him as he approached the dining table. His dinner had been arranged neatly on the large glass table, the steak resting beside a serving of mashed potatoes and asparagus.

Jonas took his seat and lifted his cutlery.

There were few things he disliked more than incompetence, and poorly prepared food was one of them. He was particular about what he ate, which was why he rarely dined outside his home unless he was visiting one of his favorite five-star restaurants in West Virginia.

He had hired an internationally trained chef to oversee his meals at home. On longer trips, he occasionally took the chef along to ensure his meals were prepared to his standards.

Jonas cut into the steak and took a bite. The meat was tender, cooked just the way he liked it. He chewed slowly, his expression relaxing with satisfaction.

After swallowing, he reached for his phone and typed out a brief message. He set it aside before returning his attention to his meal, cutting another piece of steak.

“Did you enjoy your meal, sir?” the chef asked, standing a short distance from the table.

“Yes, I did,” Jonas replied, the corners of his mouth lifting into a slight smile.

Once he had finished eating, Jonas left the dining area and headed upstairs to his bedroom. He sank onto the bed, exhaustion settling over him as the events of the day began to replay in his mind.

He suddenly sat up and reached for his phone, which lay at the other end of the bed. He picked it up and placed a call.

“Cancel all my meetings for tomorrow,” he said when the other person answered.

“All right, sir,” came the reply.

Jonas ended the call and placed his phone on the nightstand beside his bed.

He settled beneath the covers, resting his head against the soft pillow. 

Tomorrow, he would finally meet Audrey Bennett, the artist he had spent so long searching for.