Page 47 of Check Mate

What an odd request. If he had a restaurant in mind, why didn’t he ask me out? “Sure,” I answer, then decide to mess with him. “But…”

His face falls. “But what?”

“Are you still seeing Lizzy, or did you end things with her?”

His shoulders drop as if relieved that I’m just messing with him. I burst into laughter at his expression.

David crosses his arms and pins me with a glare. I guess some things never change. “You’re very easily entertained.”

I meet his eyes and grin. “Lucky for you. That makes me a very low-maintenance date.”

“You’re ridiculous,” He says, but can’t hide his smile.

“How’s six?”

“Sounds good. I’ll pick you up here?”

“Okay. Oh, and please no Mexican food.”

He chuckles. “Deal. See you tonight.”

It took me most of the day to edit my photos from Peru and write a detailed article about the excursion. I included all the photos and details on how to book and what the experience was like. The words flowed from my fingers like never before; this is definitely my best article to date. Normally I only post articles twice a week, but I was too excited to wait and posted it right away. An email will alert my subscribers to a new post and hopefully it will have some comments in an hour or so.

I yawn and check the time on my computer, it’s only three… that gives me time for a quick nap before I get ready for my date tonight. I don’t normally have trouble sleeping, but last night and the night before were rough. Surely I didn’t grow so accustomed to sleeping next to David that I’ll be ruined for sleeping alone forever. I set an alarm on my phone and snuggle up on the couch.

An hour later, I wake up with my face covered in drool. Mo is on the coffee table staring at me. “What are you looking at? You drool all the time.”

He turns his back to me. I stretch my limbs before grabbing my laptop to check my website. I’m anxious to see if anyone has commented on my new article.

Mo decides he’s no longer disgusted by me and curls up next to me on the couch. I give him a scratch behind the ears and he purrs happily.

I pull up my website, and when I look at the number of website subscribers on the bar at the left-hand side of the screen, my jaw drops. I sit there stunned for several seconds before shaking my head like that will make the shock dissipate somehow.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I take a deep breath, then refresh the page. Surely this can’t be right. I open my eyes and there it is again… 350,000 subscribers. Over a hundred thousand new subscribers since I posted my article an hour ago.

My shaky fingers scroll down to the bottom of my post to read the comments and I gasp, causing Mo to startle next to me. He gives me an annoyed look and moves away.

Over five thousand comments. I’ve never had this many. I average about two thousand comments on each post, which I thought was incredible, but this is a magnitude I never thought I’d reach. And it’s only been an hour.

I scroll and begin to read through each comment, some telling me how gorgeous the photos are, several saying they purchased a few of the active wear sets I linked, and even more talking about how they now want to book a trip for themselves to see the ancient ruins.

Happy tears start to trickle down my cheeks until they speed up and I’m sitting on my sofa in a puddle of my own tears, completely overwhelmed by the success of this post and the positive commentary.

Wiping my face with the sleeve of my oversized t-shirt, I take a few calming breaths and open my email. Hundreds of new emails greet me and my eyes fly over the titles. Most of the emails are new sponsorship opportunities and companies wanting me to promote their products.

One email catches my attention and I click on it first. It’s from the marketing director of Monaco Hotels Inc. Monaco Hotels are a major international hotel chain known for their five star restaurants and full-service spas.

I read and then reread the email again and again. Making sure this is actually real. They’re offering me a paid sponsorship. The amount they’ll pay me along with complimentary stays in their hotels would be more than enough for me to travel full time. This is the opportunity I’ve been dreaming of, I just never thought it would happen this soon.

I’m looking over the contract attached along with the contact info of Bridget Lecour, the marketing director. She wants to meet with me in person to go over the contract—if I'm interested.

OF COURSE I’M INTERESTED!

But there’s a lot to consider here, namely the rift this will cause between me and my parents… but also this new thing sprouting between me and David. We haven’t even been on our first real date and we’d have to do the long distance thing. It could never work.

I have some big decisions to make. My phone pings with a text, and I welcome the distraction from my thoughts.

David: Pretty sure I didn’t give you permission to post that picture of my ass on your website. You’ll be hearing from my lawyer.