Best Friend For Hire Reprise, Entry 20

 Should I call him now?  Hmm… I would get to see James today.  I was certain he wouldn’t let me down, but I was also introducing him to Ai and Mai Drache, allowing them to steal away my time with him.  The sooner I called him, the sooner I would get to see him, but I also would be preparing him to meet two exotic beauties, beauties I only knew thanks to Alma.  She was late arriving the other day.  Apparently, she got distracted listening to the discussion between James and Jarod on werewolves, but we still managed to square away my story with the twins.  I was now their foreign acquaintance through my mother, and they’d assist in training James and me after I tested if he could use magic.  Was I really safe letting them be around him though?  Competing with Alma was impossible, but her standards were far too high for most any fully-human boy to meet.  I doubted Ai and Mai needed nearly such high standards, and James was quite remarkable.  One look into those sexy blue eyes of his would surely get them interested.  

 The eyes… I was going to call him.  James deserved as much forewarning as I could give him before their plane landed.  When he answered, I said, “Man-slave!  I know you don’t have school this week, and… well, this’ll sound a bit odd, but I was wondering if friends were allowed to hire you.  Not as my man-slave for today, but I found out some of my friends are coming to town.  Being a tad immobile at the moment, I can’t really help them look around, and they’re determined to see some sights.  Is there any way I can pay you to pick them up and show them around?”  The pause after I finished was distressfully long.  Was I not being convincing enough?  I mean, I didn’t really look forward to him spending too much time with the tricksy duo, but I wasn’t going to back out on Alma after already agreeing AND getting paid, especially when she bought me a new car.  

 “If you want me to help you out, it’s not really a problem.  I wouldn’t dream of charging you for this.” James told me.

 I considered this for a moment.  I could try claiming that Alma owed me if I got her a discount.  Alma surely wouldn’t see things that way though, since she wanted to help James’ business even if she didn’t admit it.  I relished the thought that he was willing to go out of his way just for me.  “Honestly, I think things will be better if you let me pay you for this.  Would you mind?” I asked, pleading with him.  Dealing with the twins for an extended period deserved pay.  Plus, I could negotiate terms if he was being paid.

 “I honestly don’t like mixing my business with my personal life, but I’ll do it this time for you.” he told me, leaving me feeling a bit guilty for abusing our odd friendship.

 “Okay.  The girls are named Ai and Mai Drache.  They’re half-Japanese, identical twins.  Just be at gate thirteen by eleven o’clock to pick them up.  Most likely, they’ll spot you before you spot them.” I told him, feeling a bit nervous.  I knew I wasn’t competent enough with magic to train anyone, but the little I knew of Alma’s scheme was a bit too far out of the box even for me.  

 “How would they spot me, Emma?” James inquired.

 I couldn’t keep from giggling.  I knew I shouldn’t have sent them a picture of James, especially with Alma so shocked by his shirtless state, but she was so cute when she was shocked.  Then there was the hunkiness of James that helped the twins gain more interest in the whole plan.  That boy shirtless could distract any girl with a pulse.   “I may have just texted the only picture I have of you to them.” I lied.  I didn’t want to explain why I texted it earlier, especially when I couldn’t mention Alma’s adorable reaction.

 “Thanks, Emma.  There’s nothing like starting off a job on the right foot.  I’m sure you even labeled the picture ‘my man-slave’ when you sent it,” said James, sarcasm dripping in his voice.

 Laughing uncontrollably, I told him “You are getting to know me!  I’d totally give you a treat if you were here.  The girls need a little excitement after a long flight, so don’t be upset with me.”  I was impressed and tickled that James was getting to know me so well.  I really did write “My man-slave!” over the picture before I sent it, but that was mostly because I printed it like that for a frame.

 “Knowing that I don’t have a car, how am I to pick them up?” he asked.

 “Man-slave, I told you that I’m hiring you.  You get to drive my new car!” I told him, a bit envious that James got to drive my baby first.  On the bright side, the car might smell like him for a while.

 “New car?  Actually, don’t tell me.  I’ll see it when I get there,” he said, ruining my chance to gloat.

 Oh well.  There was little I would be able to explain anyways.  I told him “Aww.. I promise that it’s very cute!”  Right.  Now, I needed to warn him more about the twins.  There was no way I’d be able to remember after he arrived, so I continued, saying, “So more about the twins..  The only way I’ve found” ― Well, Alma pointed it out after the video chat. ― “to tell them apart is their eye color.  Ai’s eyes are a slightly lighter shade of brown.  I’m not sure how well you can get to know them in a day, but they tend to purposely confuse everyone about which is which.  They’ll probably be wearing identical outfits and be giving the wrong name at random times, so I’m attempting to give you a fighting chance.  You, sir, as my dutiful man-slave must show the girls a good time, take them wherever they wish to go, and resist their flirtations no matter what.”

 “You’re purposely sending me out to spend time with girls you are certain will flirt with me but want me to resist them?” he asked, sounding amused.

 “Exactly!  Consider this a test of your loyalty, man-slave.” I told him, wishing that statement was less accurate than it was.  I really wanted him to do well but not too well.  If he somehow managed to lose Alma’s interest, maybe she would just send the twins on home.  Then I could monopolize on the situation.  If Ai and Mai decided to stick around after meeting James, I would really be in a fight to keep him.  Then again, maybe I could get one of them?  They weren’t Alma-beautiful, but they were waaay beyond normal beautiful.  Please, go well!  “James, I really appreciate you doing this for me.  This truly is a huge, important favor to me.  I’m going to pay you through your website.  I’ll offer an amount and you can get around to debating it after you see what they put you through.” I told him, reinforcing the idea that he was getting paid.  After all, Alma was loaded in a way that made most nations seem poor, and she wanted to pay him.

 “Don’t worry.  I won’t drain your bank account completely,” he teased.

 I laughed and told him “Oh good.  Thirty cents will be enough then.”  James was such a wonderful man-slave.  I wanted to keep him.  Instead, I did my best not to keep him on the phone too long.  Okay, so I really just wanted him to hurry that sexy butt over here.  Though after transit, he wouldn’t have much time before he needed to get the twins.  I hobbled over to get the beautiful flowers James had bought me in a safe hiding spot.  Explaining how they lasted so long would be difficult without admitting I used magic on them, which was out of the question.  I also couldn’t tell him that I’d be allowed to remove my cast by the end of the night.  Life was difficult when shackled by secrets, and cleaning up couldn’t go fast enough when a sexy man-beast was on his way over.  I dressed up a bit again, wanting to be firmly planted in his mind.  When James finally arrived, I hurried to the door, dropped my crutches, and clung to him as I said, “Man-slave!  You totally need to carry me to my room after I get to see what you think of my car!  Careful with the leg!”  

 Being swept up in James’ arms was the stuff of dreams.  He smelled heavenly, had a body to die for, and was really talented as well.  I really didn’t want to let him go.  The look on his face when he saw my car was sooo cute.  I loved my pink bug, but the idea of him driving it was hilarious.  I told him “Isn’t it the cutest car you’ve ever seen?  I can’t wait until I can drive the thing.  You should feel special, getting to drive my car before me.  You best get going though.  To my room, man-slave!” when all I really wanted to say was “Stay.”  I didn’t though.  Instead, I kept talking about my car, saying, “I hope it’s fast.  That’s the turbo-charged model, so it should be, right?  You like it, right?”

 “Don’t worry.  I think your car suits you well, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy its speed, as long as you’re not hoping to go over two hundred.   I just don’t know if that shade of pink is really me though.” confided James.

 I smiled and kissed his cheek.  He was such a wonderful boy, having grabbed my crutches on the way without needing told.  “I am rather certain that you can make any color look good.  You may put me down now.” I told him, despite wanting to be held for longer.  Staring up at him, I wondered if I should warn him that my car wasn’t stock.  In addition to getting me custom colors, Alma hired some mechanics to make a few adjustments to the car, claiming that there were a some things she felt needed improvement.  She really could be a sweet girl.

 “Considering that you’ve never seen my driving, I’m surprised that you aren’t worried about that paint job surviving the night.” he teased with a wink.

 “If you can handle driving a Mercedes, I’m sure you’ll be fine with my little Beetle.  Please do be careful though.  The twins can be a handful.” I earnestly warned him.

 “How did you know about the Mercedes I drove?” James asked.

 I rolled my eyes and told him “Jarod.  Duh.  Do you think he can resist talking about a car?”  I actually knew from Aaliyah and Alma, though I couldn’t remember who mentioned it first.  Jarod had, however, talked about cars enough when we were gaming that I knew I was safe enough with the little lie.  Still, I felt guilty lying to James, even for Alma.

 James laughed and said, “I’ll make sure to stick any parts that fall off in the trunk.  Try to behave until I get back.”

 I gasped at his audacity and said, “Man-slave, you would accuse me of misbehaving?  I am most offended!”  

 With a smirk and a wave, he left me.  I hoped he would be thinking of me while he was out.

 “You did well.  Don’t you worry about your new toy.  I’ll fix the car if he runs into any problems,” stated Alma, making me jump.

 She was extremely talented at sneaking up on me, but one look at her lovely face always convinced me to forgive her again.

 “I am quite grateful for your loyal services, but you really don’t need to go kissing the boy.” she told me as she came to stand by my bed.

 Oops.  Irritating Alma was always easy, but I was certain she meant well.  With how she was staring at her phone as she held it near my cast, I was sure that she was checking up on my leg’s healing again.  “Thank you.” I told her with a smile.  

 “Charge your cast again before he returns.  If it dies, you won’t be notified when it can be removed.  Everything else looks in order, so I’ll be off.” she told me.

 I wasn’t able to say a word before she vanished, obviously chasing after James.  She was the most vigilant guardian anyone could want, probably too vigilant for most, but I knew she meant well.  I did as she instructed, plugging the cast into its charger before checking to see if Jarod was up for a game.  He wasn’t James, but he really was better than most.  For today, I really needed the distraction.