matters too much, I have one of those at home anyway.
I strip off and get in the shower, letting the water rain down on me from the wide, silver showerhead. It feels great. Afterward, I change from my suit and tie into a more casual shirt and pants then head down to the bar. It feels stupid, but I can’t wait to see Clara.
****
The bar is more old-fashioned than my room, more in keeping with the rest of the hotel. High-backed brown leather chairs nestle in the corners of the dimly-lit room while a lone jazz pianist provides the soundtrack for the evening. It’s the kind of place that would once have been a haze of cigarette smoke but, with the smoking ban, now just smells faintly of alcohol and leather.
I take a seat at the bar and order a whiskey on the rocks. It will probably be a few minutes before Clara gets here but I don’t mind being patient. I flick through the dozens of emails on my phone deleting them as I go and, when I look up, it’s just in time to see Clara come in. She was worth the wait.
She walks in with a slight unsteadiness that suggests she isn’t used to wearing heels that high. The black cocktail dress she’s wearing hugs her figure perfectly and her lustrous hair, released from the bun she usually wears it in, cascades to her shoulders.
How the hell am I supposed to act professional now!?
“Hi!” she says, hopping up onto the bar stool next to mine.
The scent of her perfume—warm and fruity with a hint of cinnamon—wafts over me. She turns to look at me with a coy smile that suggests a lack of confidence in her appearance, but I suspect it’s just for show. There’s no way she doesn’t know how incredible she looks.
“You look…nice,” I say coolly, “You’re making me feel a bit underdressed.”
“Thanks. I don’t stay in five-star hotels very often so I thought I should make an effort.”
“What would you like to drink?”
Chapter 25
Clara
“White wine,” I reply.
My dress has started to ride up so I pull it down when Kyan isn’t looking. He was right, I am probably a bit overdressed for an evening in a hotel bar. I wasn’t sure what to wear so I just went all out. Unfortunately, it probably looks like I’ve dressed this way to try and seduce him. From the way he keeps looking me up and down, it might just work.
He’s wearing a plain, white shirt and some tan chinos with deck shoes. The typical rich guy smart-casual look. Kyan pulls that look off better than anyone I’ve seen before. His shirt is filled out with broad shoulders and thick arms and comes in close to his small waist and flat stomach. I’ve seen what’s underneath that shirt and I realize I’m biting my lip as I think about it again.
Control yourself, Clara. After a couple of drinks, you can make your excuses and go to bed…ALONE.
The bartender brings my white wine over and I sip it. The fruity warmth of the drink feels good and I have to force myself not to gulp it down.
“What’s your room like?” asks Kyan.
“It’s amazing,” I reply, “The view is incredible, you can see right across the city. And the shower…”
“It’s like standing under a waterfall isn’t it?”
“Yeah. Does your room have a hot tub too?”
“Yep. Shame we aren’t going to get a chance to use them.”
“Maybe next time we come,” I say.
“I don’t think Mr. Huang and his colleagues will be inviting us back for a while. Here’s to our success!”
We laugh together and clink our glasses before draining them. Kyan orders two more drinks for us and they appear moments later. At this rate I’m going to be unconscious in less than an hour.
I make sure to make my next drink last, sipping it slowly while we chat.
“So what’s the future for Ellis Energy?” I ask, “What are you going to do when you’ve burned every fossil fuel in the world?”
“Long term? We’ll move into renewables of course. There’s no other choice.”
“So why not invest in renewables now? Wouldn’t it
I strip off and get in the shower, letting the water rain down on me from the wide, silver showerhead. It feels great. Afterward, I change from my suit and tie into a more casual shirt and pants then head down to the bar. It feels stupid, but I can’t wait to see Clara.
****
The bar is more old-fashioned than my room, more in keeping with the rest of the hotel. High-backed brown leather chairs nestle in the corners of the dimly-lit room while a lone jazz pianist provides the soundtrack for the evening. It’s the kind of place that would once have been a haze of cigarette smoke but, with the smoking ban, now just smells faintly of alcohol and leather.
I take a seat at the bar and order a whiskey on the rocks. It will probably be a few minutes before Clara gets here but I don’t mind being patient. I flick through the dozens of emails on my phone deleting them as I go and, when I look up, it’s just in time to see Clara come in. She was worth the wait.
She walks in with a slight unsteadiness that suggests she isn’t used to wearing heels that high. The black cocktail dress she’s wearing hugs her figure perfectly and her lustrous hair, released from the bun she usually wears it in, cascades to her shoulders.
How the hell am I supposed to act professional now!?
“Hi!” she says, hopping up onto the bar stool next to mine.
The scent of her perfume—warm and fruity with a hint of cinnamon—wafts over me. She turns to look at me with a coy smile that suggests a lack of confidence in her appearance, but I suspect it’s just for show. There’s no way she doesn’t know how incredible she looks.
“You look…nice,” I say coolly, “You’re making me feel a bit underdressed.”
“Thanks. I don’t stay in five-star hotels very often so I thought I should make an effort.”
“What would you like to drink?”
Chapter 25
Clara
“White wine,” I reply.
My dress has started to ride up so I pull it down when Kyan isn’t looking. He was right, I am probably a bit overdressed for an evening in a hotel bar. I wasn’t sure what to wear so I just went all out. Unfortunately, it probably looks like I’ve dressed this way to try and seduce him. From the way he keeps looking me up and down, it might just work.
He’s wearing a plain, white shirt and some tan chinos with deck shoes. The typical rich guy smart-casual look. Kyan pulls that look off better than anyone I’ve seen before. His shirt is filled out with broad shoulders and thick arms and comes in close to his small waist and flat stomach. I’ve seen what’s underneath that shirt and I realize I’m biting my lip as I think about it again.
Control yourself, Clara. After a couple of drinks, you can make your excuses and go to bed…ALONE.
The bartender brings my white wine over and I sip it. The fruity warmth of the drink feels good and I have to force myself not to gulp it down.
“What’s your room like?” asks Kyan.
“It’s amazing,” I reply, “The view is incredible, you can see right across the city. And the shower…”
“It’s like standing under a waterfall isn’t it?”
“Yeah. Does your room have a hot tub too?”
“Yep. Shame we aren’t going to get a chance to use them.”
“Maybe next time we come,” I say.
“I don’t think Mr. Huang and his colleagues will be inviting us back for a while. Here’s to our success!”
We laugh together and clink our glasses before draining them. Kyan orders two more drinks for us and they appear moments later. At this rate I’m going to be unconscious in less than an hour.
I make sure to make my next drink last, sipping it slowly while we chat.
“So what’s the future for Ellis Energy?” I ask, “What are you going to do when you’ve burned every fossil fuel in the world?”
“Long term? We’ll move into renewables of course. There’s no other choice.”
“So why not invest in renewables now? Wouldn’t it
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