Free Fighting Perfection (The Perfection Series Book 2) by Heather Guimond Page B

concentrate on the story.  I really needed to find something to do for work.  I didn’t enjoy being idle and with my friends all off at their jobs, I didn’t have much to do with my days.  More and more, I grew dissatisfied with being a lady of leisure.  No longer would a good book sustain me through the quiet days.  I needed something more.  I didn’t know what to do, but I was getting to the point where’d I’d take a simple waitress job just to have something.
         I drifted back to Vance’s office and took another look around.  Was it time to pack everything up and redecorate the office to something more of my taste?  I didn’t know.  If I’d allowed myself a moment of deeper introspection, I would have realized that not only was I not interested in changing things, I really wanted to hold on to this last piece of him.  It didn’t occur to me that it might be similar to maintaining a shrine to him.  Instead, I closed the door and resolved to think about it another day.
         I eventually settled in the living room to think over my future.  I could go to law school, I thought.  At one time, that had been my aim, but after finishing my Bachelor’s degree, I’d decided I couldn’t get myself into deeper debt by taking on more student loans.  Consequently, I’d done the next best thing and became a paralegal.  I’d loved the law, and it gave me the opportunity to do a lot of what I considered ‘lawyerly’ things:  legal research, drafting briefs, advising clients.  It was a great career, but I no longer felt a passion for it.  Problem was, I didn’t feel a real passion for anything.  I had regained my desire to be among the living after Vance died, but I didn’t know how I wanted to live.  It was so frustrating and the more I thought about it, the more impatient I became with myself.  So, after hours of wracking my brain for some kind of idea, I gave up and did the only thing I could think of.  I went shopping.
         After a few hours of retail therapy where I ended up buying nothing but some new bath products, I felt a little bit better.  I was still a little restless, but there was nothing to be done for it.  On the way home, an idea occurred to me.  UCLA had an extension program.  I could just sign up for classes that sparked my interest.  At least I would be doing something with my time.  As soon as I got home, I ran to the computer and looked up their website.  I perused through the programs and one in particular caught my eye—Communications, Media, and Fundraising.  I had good people skills and the idea of working for a charity was also appealing.  I could potentially work for one who raised funds for cancer research.  I noticed that there was an actual certificate program I could enroll in online.  The first class was being offered for the summer session, so I quickly sent off an email to the Certificate Advisor listed on their website inquiring as to the date classes would begin.  I felt energized at this potential goal.  Now I needed to have a mini celebration.  More cookies?  As I was contemplating how to reward myself, my phone rang again.  I assumed it was Justin calling to confirm our plans for the evening, so I picked it up without looking at the screen.
         “Hey, sexy pants!  We on for this evening?” I mockingly purred into the phone.
         A deep, familiar voice carried over the line.  “That all depends on what you have in mind, Kitten.”
         I closed my eyes and wished the ground could swallow me up.  It wasn’t that I minded hearing from James; in fact, I was pleased to hear from him so soon after the weekend, but now I was most likely going to have to explain who sexy pants was since there was no way I could tell it was him calling.  He’d never given me his number.  It was an awkward idea to say the least.
         “Hello, James,” I said.  “It’s nice to hear from you, but don’t call me