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She digs her feet into the ground and yanks on Cameron’s hands.
‘Why’re you stopping?’
‘Listen.’ Jules grabs his other hand so she’s grasping them both. He’s not running from what she wants to say to him. His eyes are bright and wide and his hair is a mess. Jules falls a little more for him in this second.
‘You’re so prepared. And intelligent, with years of experience. Patricia sings your praises at work, you know that?’ His mouth opens and shuts, and he swallows. ‘The first thing she said when she told me you were attending the conference with me, was that you’ve been making major improvements with the digital side of the company. Patricia doesn’t sugar-coat. She thinks you’re the best thing since lab diamonds.’
His gaze is unblinking. He’s staring at her like he’s searching for something. She hopes he finds it.
She squeezes his hands tight. ‘I think so, too. But you need to not hyperventilate right now.’
Cameron’s eyes flutter shut and he drops his head to his chest.
‘Here’s what we’re going to do,’ she says. ‘We’re going to get back to the hotel and go to your room, you’re going to run through your presentation, and I will sit there and listen, and give feedback if you want, as many times as you need.’
Cameron’s head lifts. His fingers squeeze around her palm. They’re sweaty, and she’s not sure if it’s from the speed walking or nerves.
Her heart seems to exist in her chest and throat at once.
‘What if it’s six times?’ he whispers.
‘Then we better grab some coffee and chocolate on the way back.’
There’s no warning as he grips her face tightly between his hands and presses a hard kiss to her lips. It lacks finesse, but the sheer fervour in it makes Jules’s toes curl and steals her breath.
He pulls back and presses their foreheads together. ‘Jules. You—Thank you.’ Another fast kiss. ‘Thank you.’
Chapter 22
Back in Cameron’s hotel room, Jules sits on one of the desk chairs, watching Cameron give his presentation on targeted marketing for Gen Z. He’s marginally calmer now he’s running through his presentation, though he’s speaking a tad fast.
It’s still Cameron’s voice though, and it rolls over Jules’s skin like an erotic aural massage, so she can’t be blamed that it takes ten minutes for her upper brain to kick into gear.
‘Stop. You’re too tense.’
Cameron grips his palm cards tight. Jules suspects they’re only a security blanket. He hasn’t looked at them once. ‘Excuse me?’
‘You’re tense. Your shoulders are all bunched up and your neck is jutting out,’ Jules waves her hand toward him. ‘It’s affecting your breathing and that’s causing all kinds of problems.’
Jules gets out of the chair and walks over to Cameron, pressing down and back on his shoulders. Tingles rush up her arm but she ignores the physical thrill. She honestly does want to help him. Besides, it’ll be good for that ache in her chest.
‘You seem very knowledgeable on this stuff,’ Cameron says.
‘I did a public speaking course a few years ago.’
‘Right.’ He rubs a closed fist in a circle over his chest. ‘So what’s the fix?’
‘Picture the audience in their underwear.’
‘Jules.’ Cameron’s eyes lock onto hers and Jules’s fingers tighten on his shoulders. ‘If I picture you in your underwear, I’m not going to be able to get through this speech.’
Heat burns in his eyes. His voice has dropped in pitch and she’s not sure if it’s intentional or not, but it makes her thighs squeeze together.
Her gaze drops to his mouth but she reins in the impulse to kiss him. ‘That was meant to be a joke to get you to loosen up. Don’t actually do that. Here.’
Jules removes her hands from Cameron, then takes a deep breath in and rolls her shoulders back and down, like she did before her own talk. Cameron copies her movement.
‘Once more,’ she directs. ‘Perfect.’
