Life Swap

This is not my life. He thought that over and over again as he sat across the table from the beautiful girl that was offering him a phenomenal job.

Two days ago, out of the blue, Devon got a call asking him to meet Angela Harper for lunch at a pretty swanky downtown spot called Kudzu. He couldn't imagine why anyone would name a restaurant after a parasitic vine, but he knew it would be the kind of place that he could never afford. Luckily, lunch would be on Ms. Harper.

He was a little confused about why they would be calling him. Sure, his resume had been posted online for the last few months, and yes, he had been looking for a new job for a while, but thus far he hadn't had any responses. He was beginning to think that he'd be stuck in the same nowhere job for the rest of his life. He'd say he'd be stuck there until retirement, but he knew that, on what he made, he'd never be able to retire.

And now he was sitting at lunch with a ridiculously gorgeous blond in a ridiculously expensive suit. "I know you have a lot of questions Mr. King. I hope that by the time we're finished here, all your questions will have been answered."

"Please, call me Devon, Ms. Harper."

"Only if you call me Angela." She smiled and took a sip of her water. As Devon ate his salad, Angela explained exactly why her company was interested in him. He learned that she wasn't interested in his resume. She was interested in his writing.

At this he was a little thrown off. The only writing he ever did was on a blog that had maybe six readers. He knew that his stuff was not widely read. How would anyone just happen to stumble onto it and then offer him a job because of it?

"Devon, you have a unique perspective on the world at large. The people I represent would like to see your words reach a larger audience." She smiled again when she saw the look of shock on Devon's face. "We're willing to pay you very well to continue to do something that you obviously love to do."

Angela wrote a number on the back of her business card and slid it across the table. If it hadn't been for the dollar sign in front of it, he may have thought it was her phone number. Good chance he would have been just as happy with that. When he realized exactly what she was really offering him, he nearly choked.

She smiled again. "Devon, this isn't a joke. We're very serious about what we're offering you."

"This isn't my life," Devon said, aloud this time. "I'm not anyone special. Beautiful women don't just treat me to expensive lunches and offer seven figures for things that I've written."

"Devon, this may not be your life now, but it could be." She stood up, causing him to stand as well. Angela reached across the table and took his hand. "My number is on the other side of that card. Call me once you've had a chance to think things over."

Devon picked up the card again and flipped it over. He smiled at Angela as she walked away. He smiled again when he saw her look back to smile at him. He sat back down and sipped his water, contemplating what it could mean to do something that he loved and get paid substantially to do it. If it was a true offer, it was a life he would gladly trade his in for.