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“It’s that?” I fold my arms over my chest. “Adam, you worked hard and you earned your spot fair and square. You deserve to present in the next round.”
He walks closer to me, his long legs eating up the distance between us. “It’s always been a grey area, but with me in the office now, it’s a clear conflict of interest. I can’t, in good faith, participate.”
“Bull.”
His lips quirk.
I turn around and lick my lips. In a cautious voice, I suggest, “If you need me to come back to Vision Tech—”
“We don’t need you,” he says cheerfully.
I cringe.
“The team is doing a great job. Of course, it’s ironic that we needed three people to make up foroneof you, but they’re pulling their weight and making you proud. Besides, I’ve already won the first round of the competition. That’s better than not participating at all. I can take a break and let other people have a chance to come in first.”
“But you don’t have to,” I say shakily.
“It’s okay. I’m fine with it.”
“But—”
“Ooh,” Adam reaches for the bag I’m holding, “did you make the pasta I like?”
“No pasta for you.” I haul the bag back.
Adam looks up with a wry grin. “Am I being punished?”
“Yes.”
“For what?”
“I…” My brain goes blank. I only know that I’m annoyed and I’m not sure why.
Adam embraces me. “Nova, just say it.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I mumble against his chest.
“Always so stubborn,” he mutters. “Just say you want to come back to Vision Tech.”
I tuck a braid behind my ear and frown at him. Rather than play tough, I let it out. “I want to come back to Vision Tech.”
“Was that so hard?”
“It’s humiliating. I left so dramatically.”
“And you can come back just as dramatically. If you want, I’ll rent some horses. You can ride into the lobby, declaring your takeover.”
I stare at him in mild horror. “I do not understand how your brain works.”
“It’s ajoke,darlin’.” He grips both my shoulders and rubs up and down. “I’ve already informed the rest of the team. You can have a smooth transition into this new dynamic. The team’s responsibilities will remain the same. I’ve put measures in place to make sure they stay accountable to you. I don’t want you over-working yourself like you did in the past. With the team behind you, you’ll finish work whenever you want to and you’ll have people to run beside you. People who’ve proven that theycanhandle the strain.”
“Wait, go back. You told the team I was coming back before I even told you?”
Adam plants such a hard kiss on my lips that my ears start ringing. Without warning, he releases me and looks down with confidence. “You’ve forgotten that I know you as well as you know me.”
“That’s still too much. You couldn’t be sure.”
“You’ve been stealing my Vision Tech files from home and reading them.”
