for Reece.
***
The fresh flowers on my desk were a nice
surprise and a good sign that he wasn't going to brush me off at
the office. While my computer booted up, I knocked on his door and
entered. He greeted me with an infamous Reece Kavanagh smile, all
crooked sexiness.
"Hey," he said, coming around the desk. He
clasped my face in his hands. His thumbs brushed along my cheeks
with aching tenderness. "I missed you yesterday."
"I missed you too." We kissed passionately,
like we hadn't seen each other for months. When we broke apart, I
realized the door was still open. Anyone stepping out of the
elevator would have seen.
He followed my gaze beneath hooded lids. "You
don't want anyone at the office to know about us," he said
flatly.
I tried to gauge his thoughts but it was
impossible to tell what he was thinking behind the cool façade.
Thankfully the phone at my desk rang, saving me from answering.
We worked apart for the rest of the morning,
only seeing each other in meetings. At noon, he came up to my desk
and asked me to go to lunch with him. I refused.
He crossed his arms over his chest and
frowned. "I let it go Friday night," he said, his words carefully
measured. "It was a crazy environment and the paparazzi were
waiting. But now…Cleo, is there something wrong with me that you
don't want to be seen with me in public?"
"No. Of course not."
"Am I not up to your usual standard of
date?"
I gave him a withering glare and he gave me
an innocent shrug back. "Yeah, I always go out with hot
trillionaires, and you're just a billionaire, so…"
"Hey," he said, "I'm working on it."
I threw my pencil at him and he caught it,
smiling, although there was something uncertain behind it.
"We spent one night together," I told him.
"Let's just cool it and see where this is going before we let
everyone know. Okay?"
He bowed his head, nodded. "If you won't go
out to lunch with me, it seems I have to get lunch brought in."
He returned to his office and shut the door.
Thirty minutes later, a caterer arrived with a basket of food for
Reece. I buzzed him and he came out.
"Hungry?" he asked me.
I glanced at the elevator door closing on the
caterer. "You want me to have lunch with you out here?"
"No. It's too public and I didn't make a
trillion dollars in the last half hour. It looks like you have to
hide away in my office and eat in secret until my broker
calls."
"Ha ha. Funny guy."
He picked up the basket and followed me into
his office. He had a picnic blanket laid out in the square of
sunlight near the window and a bottle of white wine chilling in a
cooler tub at the edge. He put the basket down and invited me to
sit, then served me lunch from the selection of cheeses, salads and
cold meats.
"This is very sweet, Reece. Thank you."
He eyed me over the rim of his glass. "You're
looking at me as if you didn't expect me to do something like
this."
"I admit that I didn't."
"My reputation as an asshole precedes me
again, I see."
I chewed the inside of my cheek and decided
to be honest with him. Or partly honest. "I've heard all sorts of
things about you, but the words ruthless and cruel have come up
repeatedly."
"Cruel," he muttered. "Is that from
Cassie?"
I didn't want to give him an answer. If I
told him no, he might continue to ask and I couldn't tell him about
Ellen. I just couldn't. "Reece, what happened between the two of
you? Why does she hate you so much?"
"She thinks I'm going to tear down her
house."
Wait, what? "She thinks you're going
to tear it down? Does that mean you're not going to?"
"I admit I'm having second thoughts."
Whoa . "Since when?"
"Since Saturday."
I frowned at him but he didn't meet my gaze.
What had happened on Saturday? I'd been with him the entire time
and he hadn't mentioned backing down on the proposal. Maybe one of
those phone calls had changed his mind, or maybe something Ash had
said did the trick.
"Has the building contractor fallen through?"
I asked. "Or did one of the other
***
The fresh flowers on my desk were a nice
surprise and a good sign that he wasn't going to brush me off at
the office. While my computer booted up, I knocked on his door and
entered. He greeted me with an infamous Reece Kavanagh smile, all
crooked sexiness.
"Hey," he said, coming around the desk. He
clasped my face in his hands. His thumbs brushed along my cheeks
with aching tenderness. "I missed you yesterday."
"I missed you too." We kissed passionately,
like we hadn't seen each other for months. When we broke apart, I
realized the door was still open. Anyone stepping out of the
elevator would have seen.
He followed my gaze beneath hooded lids. "You
don't want anyone at the office to know about us," he said
flatly.
I tried to gauge his thoughts but it was
impossible to tell what he was thinking behind the cool façade.
Thankfully the phone at my desk rang, saving me from answering.
We worked apart for the rest of the morning,
only seeing each other in meetings. At noon, he came up to my desk
and asked me to go to lunch with him. I refused.
He crossed his arms over his chest and
frowned. "I let it go Friday night," he said, his words carefully
measured. "It was a crazy environment and the paparazzi were
waiting. But now…Cleo, is there something wrong with me that you
don't want to be seen with me in public?"
"No. Of course not."
"Am I not up to your usual standard of
date?"
I gave him a withering glare and he gave me
an innocent shrug back. "Yeah, I always go out with hot
trillionaires, and you're just a billionaire, so…"
"Hey," he said, "I'm working on it."
I threw my pencil at him and he caught it,
smiling, although there was something uncertain behind it.
"We spent one night together," I told him.
"Let's just cool it and see where this is going before we let
everyone know. Okay?"
He bowed his head, nodded. "If you won't go
out to lunch with me, it seems I have to get lunch brought in."
He returned to his office and shut the door.
Thirty minutes later, a caterer arrived with a basket of food for
Reece. I buzzed him and he came out.
"Hungry?" he asked me.
I glanced at the elevator door closing on the
caterer. "You want me to have lunch with you out here?"
"No. It's too public and I didn't make a
trillion dollars in the last half hour. It looks like you have to
hide away in my office and eat in secret until my broker
calls."
"Ha ha. Funny guy."
He picked up the basket and followed me into
his office. He had a picnic blanket laid out in the square of
sunlight near the window and a bottle of white wine chilling in a
cooler tub at the edge. He put the basket down and invited me to
sit, then served me lunch from the selection of cheeses, salads and
cold meats.
"This is very sweet, Reece. Thank you."
He eyed me over the rim of his glass. "You're
looking at me as if you didn't expect me to do something like
this."
"I admit that I didn't."
"My reputation as an asshole precedes me
again, I see."
I chewed the inside of my cheek and decided
to be honest with him. Or partly honest. "I've heard all sorts of
things about you, but the words ruthless and cruel have come up
repeatedly."
"Cruel," he muttered. "Is that from
Cassie?"
I didn't want to give him an answer. If I
told him no, he might continue to ask and I couldn't tell him about
Ellen. I just couldn't. "Reece, what happened between the two of
you? Why does she hate you so much?"
"She thinks I'm going to tear down her
house."
Wait, what? "She thinks you're going
to tear it down? Does that mean you're not going to?"
"I admit I'm having second thoughts."
Whoa . "Since when?"
"Since Saturday."
I frowned at him but he didn't meet my gaze.
What had happened on Saturday? I'd been with him the entire time
and he hadn't mentioned backing down on the proposal. Maybe one of
those phone calls had changed his mind, or maybe something Ash had
said did the trick.
"Has the building contractor fallen through?"
I asked. "Or did one of the other
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