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“No!” The word exploded out of me, and I grabbed the file from the table and used it to cover my hot face.
This bastard.
This.Bastard!
He chuckled, and I peeked out over the top of the file. His lips were turned up at one side into a bemused smirk—the kind that had the imaginary Chloe in my head hitting him with a box file.
“I believe that’s the first time I’ve ever seen you this flustered, Chloe.”
“This is a very personal discussion!” I squeaked out, using the file to fan my face. “It’s certainly not something I’m comfortable talking about with you.”
“Then why bring it up?”
“You know very well why!”
“If I knew, I wouldn’t ask.”
It was official.
I was going to murder him before my resignation was ever accepted. Would I last a week in the same house as this man?
I took a big drink of my water and gulped it down, then drew in a deep breath to regain my composure. “I have no desire to field calls from women who think you’re interested in them, sir,” I said honestly. “I think that debacle with Emily Grandstein has cured me of that forever.”
“Is that the only reason?” He raised his eyebrows.
“What other reason would there be?” I coughed and reached for my water again. “Well, if we’re both in agreement regarding it…”
“As you said before, this is a business trip. I have no intention of wasting my time with such frivolities.”
That might be the first and last time I would ever hear a man in his early thirties refer to sex as a ‘frivolity.’
“It looks like that’s everything on the list.”
I glanced at my watch. “Yes, it is. You have a meeting in fifteen minutes with Ms Sayuri Hitoshi, the CEO of Hitoshi Industries, and her translator Mr Haruto Tachibana.”
“Do you have the—”
“Right here.” I whipped out the brief notes on the meeting and handed them across the table to him. “You read those, and I’ll clean up here.”
A knock sounded at the door. “Mr Black? Miss St. James?” Daniel’s voice echoed through it. “Ms Hitoshi and Mr Tachibana are downstairs in reception.”
“Never mind. You read those, Daniel can clean up, and I’ll go and greet them,” I said, shutting my laptop and grabbing my things before running to the door. “Daniel, can you get rid of that mess, please? Oh, sir, your tie is wonky,” I called over my shoulder on my way out. “Melody, please be ready to bring some tea. Do I have anything on my face?”
She blinked at me. “No, you look perfect.”
“Excellent.” I put my things on my desk, smoothed out my skirt, and headed for the doors. “Make sure there’s no sign of your lunch by the time we get back.”
“You’re like a whirlwind,” Melody said, gathering her and Daniel’s rubbish from lunch.
“Whirlwinds get things done,” I called, walking out. “You have five minutes.”
***
I collapsed over the arm of my sofa with a giant flump and stared up at the ceiling.
It was done.
The contract Alastair had given me was all good, and it would be ready to sign first thing in the morning when I arrived at the office. I knew it would be—I trusted that they wouldn’t screw me over, but I’d still wanted to get it checked.
