go wild.
She glanced at his atomic wall clock. “Yikes, the morning’s almost gone. Don’t you have Rotary Club at noon?”
“Yeah. Want to go with me?”
“Can’t. I’m having lunch with a friend from Google.”
“Well, good. That’s good.” Charlotte networked like nobody’s business and her contacts in the tech industry would be pure gold when the time came to market the app. They didn’t have enough employees yet to justify a full-time HR person but someday they would. He had Google-sized dreams and Charlotte could help make that happen.
“Anyway, you don’t need me at the Rotary luncheon.” She waved her hand in his direction. “You’re the face of the company.”
“I may be the face but you’re the mouth.”
She laughed. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“Please do.” She had the most beautiful mouth in the solar system – full and pink. He’d spent way too much time fantasizing about it.
“The point is the Rotarians are interested in you and your socially responsible think tank, not your support staff. And FYI, we could use some more investors. Another three or four multi-millionaires and we wouldn’t be so afraid to fire Blake Pearson. See ya.” She started out of the office, her hair swaying against her shoulders.
He’d only touched it once when they were nine and she’d managed to get gum stuck in it. He remembered the silky texture and how much he’d hated using scissors to get the gum out. “Charlotte?”
“What?” She turned back to him.
“Want to grab some pizza tonight?”
“Sure. I’ll ask the others.”
“You know what? Let’s just go by ourselves.” He couldn’t say what had made him suggest such a thing. She’d been beautiful every single workday for six months, so why this sudden urge to be alone with her? She’d probably question the plan.
She chuckled. “Sick of the endless arguments over toppings, are you?”
“You have no idea.”
“Then let me know when you’re ready to leave.”
“Will do.” He waited until she’d left his office before releasing a deep sigh. She hadn’t questioned the plan because it would just be two friends getting together after work.
If any other guy in the office had suggested a twosome for pizza she might wonder if it was supposed to be a date. In his case, that thought wouldn’t enter her mind. He’d hidden his feelings very well for a long time. She didn’t suspect a thing. Sometimes he fantasized pulling her into his arms and kissing her just to see what would happen. He’d probably end up with a black eye and a pair of busted glasses.
He was about to leave for his obligatory luncheon when Rylan Krause walked into his office. The guy was a genius when it came to designing software. He was a crucial member of the team, but more important, he was a loyal friend.
“I know you’re on your way out the door.” Rylan had been putting in some long hours recently and shaving had become optional. “Charlotte told me you have that Rotary thing.”
“Afraid so.” He envied Rylan his scruff. The guy could get away with it, whereas the face of the company could not. The men Tony’s father knew, men who’d made the startup possible, shaved every morning and sometimes again before dinner.
“This won’t take long. Just wanted to make sure you were going to tell that asshole to keep his hands off Miranda. If you don’t, I will, but it’ll carry more weight coming from you.”
“I’ll say something, but it’ll have to be after I get back. Did you see what happened?”
“No, fortunately, or I might’ve hit the guy. I overheard Miranda talking to Charlotte. Miranda’s a straight shooter. Not a drama queen at all. And we can’t afford to lose her as a consultant.”
Something in Rylan’s voice indicated that more than the app was at stake. But he was right that losing Miranda would be bad. The app’s functionality depended on accurate data about fruits and veggies, which meant hiring a
She glanced at his atomic wall clock. “Yikes, the morning’s almost gone. Don’t you have Rotary Club at noon?”
“Yeah. Want to go with me?”
“Can’t. I’m having lunch with a friend from Google.”
“Well, good. That’s good.” Charlotte networked like nobody’s business and her contacts in the tech industry would be pure gold when the time came to market the app. They didn’t have enough employees yet to justify a full-time HR person but someday they would. He had Google-sized dreams and Charlotte could help make that happen.
“Anyway, you don’t need me at the Rotary luncheon.” She waved her hand in his direction. “You’re the face of the company.”
“I may be the face but you’re the mouth.”
She laughed. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“Please do.” She had the most beautiful mouth in the solar system – full and pink. He’d spent way too much time fantasizing about it.
“The point is the Rotarians are interested in you and your socially responsible think tank, not your support staff. And FYI, we could use some more investors. Another three or four multi-millionaires and we wouldn’t be so afraid to fire Blake Pearson. See ya.” She started out of the office, her hair swaying against her shoulders.
He’d only touched it once when they were nine and she’d managed to get gum stuck in it. He remembered the silky texture and how much he’d hated using scissors to get the gum out. “Charlotte?”
“What?” She turned back to him.
“Want to grab some pizza tonight?”
“Sure. I’ll ask the others.”
“You know what? Let’s just go by ourselves.” He couldn’t say what had made him suggest such a thing. She’d been beautiful every single workday for six months, so why this sudden urge to be alone with her? She’d probably question the plan.
She chuckled. “Sick of the endless arguments over toppings, are you?”
“You have no idea.”
“Then let me know when you’re ready to leave.”
“Will do.” He waited until she’d left his office before releasing a deep sigh. She hadn’t questioned the plan because it would just be two friends getting together after work.
If any other guy in the office had suggested a twosome for pizza she might wonder if it was supposed to be a date. In his case, that thought wouldn’t enter her mind. He’d hidden his feelings very well for a long time. She didn’t suspect a thing. Sometimes he fantasized pulling her into his arms and kissing her just to see what would happen. He’d probably end up with a black eye and a pair of busted glasses.
He was about to leave for his obligatory luncheon when Rylan Krause walked into his office. The guy was a genius when it came to designing software. He was a crucial member of the team, but more important, he was a loyal friend.
“I know you’re on your way out the door.” Rylan had been putting in some long hours recently and shaving had become optional. “Charlotte told me you have that Rotary thing.”
“Afraid so.” He envied Rylan his scruff. The guy could get away with it, whereas the face of the company could not. The men Tony’s father knew, men who’d made the startup possible, shaved every morning and sometimes again before dinner.
“This won’t take long. Just wanted to make sure you were going to tell that asshole to keep his hands off Miranda. If you don’t, I will, but it’ll carry more weight coming from you.”
“I’ll say something, but it’ll have to be after I get back. Did you see what happened?”
“No, fortunately, or I might’ve hit the guy. I overheard Miranda talking to Charlotte. Miranda’s a straight shooter. Not a drama queen at all. And we can’t afford to lose her as a consultant.”
Something in Rylan’s voice indicated that more than the app was at stake. But he was right that losing Miranda would be bad. The app’s functionality depended on accurate data about fruits and veggies, which meant hiring a
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