Free Getting by (A Knight's Tale) by Claudia Y. Burgoa Page B

them behind her back. A strange move I didn’t understand.
    The girl didn’t know Mitch, my twin, only Liam. Knowing the girl, there were a few possibilities on how she’d react. Ignore us and pretend we never met. Not likely, since her boss was in front of her. Smile and walk away, a thing she liked to do when the social situation called for it. Liam grew accustomed to the woman. Ignore me personally and pretend for a minute I had invisible powers—most likely.
    “Liam,” she sighed, scratched the tip of her nose and crinkled it. “And here I thought you’d give me the full seven days off.” That un-humorous laugh I had learned to hate made an appearance. She needed me, my body sensed it. The entire situation was hard for her to handle.
    “Wait,” Gaby said. “You two know each other?” She looked at Emma, then at Liam, who nodded. “Weird.”
    “He’s my boss,” Emma responded, and then turned her attention to Liam. She wanted something. “I was going to call you,” she said to my brother.
    “I spotted you yesterday, after you checked in.” He acted casual. “What are the odds? I didn’t know you’d be coming or I would’ve offered you a ride from New York.”
    Emma shook her head, and I noticed she gazed at me and Mitch once before taking her attention back to Liam. “I read your email.” She ignored the ride comment, aware she’d ride with me—and my family—on one of our private jets. Also, her insistence on Liam’s email proved me right, the woman married her job long ago. This explained why she hadn’t avoided us or walked out. I chuckled and glanced at Liam—I had told him she’d respond before the rest.
    Not acknowledging me, but flaring her nose, she continued selling her abilities to Liam. “Earthybabies isn’t a good name. Can we change it? Eco-baby sounds catchier, Natural Beginnings, Nature-starts, Nate’s.” She pulled a paper out of her back pocket and tried to hand it over to Liam. Instead, I grabbed it from her tight grip. Our fingers slightly touched sending the usual electric current through my entire body.
    Emma’s nostrils flared—was she going to breathe fire? I ignored the glare she un-tenderly gifted me, and risking my life I pulled it harder from her.
    “Bunnies are overused.” She used the professional voice that informed me she was pissed at someone—today it was me—or the situation. I thought both would apply, and I hated her attitude. “Lion cub or a puppy with a couple of simple flowers would be perfect, adding a couple of grass patches.”
    “Why not Earthybabies?” A valid question, since it took me a long time to come up with the name, why would she change it? I examined the logos and names. She crossed her arms with a defying stare. Emma hated to be questioned when things were obvious. Not that they were to me.
    I gave in before we began to fight over something as simple as a name. Mostly because I thought she was right. “Nate’s, I like it. Simple and natural. Lion or puppy, do you have any other animal in mind? How about a giraffe?”
    Her narrow glare wasn’t friendly, but I ignored it. I took this at face value, an unplanned business meeting. “Too many companies use giraffes, bunnies and puppies,” she said thickly. “The latter always sells. You can adopt it too, if you want to go that route.” Emma uncrossed her arms and her body loosened up. “Lions would bring in the whole mom lioness—protecting, cuddly and lovable—effect. You buy them because you want to protect your baby by going back to nature.”
    In a matter of minutes she convinced me to rename my line and use K&W to create the image. She asked questions about my target audience, prices, distributors and other information I didn’t have on top of my head. Liam stayed with us while we spoke to add some suggestions. The organic baby line was my idea, and the business became a family thing.
    “It’s a brilliant idea.” She approved the new venture. “Organic baby