"Your assistant was very efficient. Almost too efficient. If you're not careful, I'll steal him for myself." I wagged my finger playfully at him.
A low growl erupted, and I swore his blue eyes flashed dark. His nose flared, and his hands clenched yet again. I stepped back, my previous unease flashing forward again.
"Was-was there something specific that you needed to discuss with me?"
"No." His answer came out in a rumble, shooting down my spine.
Despite my visceral and embarrassing reaction to him, I was annoyed by his one-word reply. Surely, he could've scheduled this meeting during work hours. Why did I have to fight through rush hour traffic to meet him for nothing in particular?
"So you are satisfied with the progress and that we hit your design brief accurately?"
He inclined his head but otherwise remained silent.
I was itching to ask to see the rest of the penthouse. I'd heard about a beautiful set of neo-Gothic doors that were installed in the master suite that I absolutely had to see in person. But I couldn't spend another moment in this man's presence. He unnerved me and made my stomach twist in knots.
"Okay, well, my senior designer, Kelly, keeps me updated. Von has been conferring with her for day-to-day items. If you're here for a while, that's who your main contact will be." I waved my hand dismissively. "But I'm sure you know that. I'll pop in intermittently until the final couple of weeks—"
"That is unacceptable."
My mouth hung open mid-speech.
His eyes dropped over my form again before he once again pierced me with his haunting stare. "I selected your company specifically because I admired your style and vision. I also took great care in viewing your portfolio. Alongside the work you have done running your own company, your previous portfolios over the years impressed me greatly. I understand you transformed that resort in Whistler into five-star luxury."
My face reddened at the compliment. "It was a group effort," I murmured.
"She is modest too," I thought I heard him respond.
"Need I remind you that this is a multimillion-dollar project, the largest you have ever worked on?"
"Well, yes, that's right. But—"
"I chose Spaces by Alice, not Spaces by Your Senior Designers. As experienced as they may be, they are not you."
I bristled, even though my cheeks stayed heated at his words of praise. "I assure you that my staff are fully qualified and have been supervising this project with zero issues. I also check in with them regularly—"
"I do not care. I am here now, and I want you."
My belly quivered at his words, even though I knew he didn't mean it that way.
Breathless, I replied, "Yes, well, I have a few projects that I oversee, so it won't be—"
"Miss Harper." His rough inflection of my name had me pausing.
"Mrs.Harper," I coolly corrected. Then a stab of guilt hit me when I realized that while I was drooling over Mr. Angelou, my sweet husband was probably unloading our breakfast dishes from the dishwasher.
Mr. Angelou's mouth tightened, and I could've sworn his eyes bled dark again before his blue hue reemerged. The dark lighting in here must be playing tricks on me.
"Alice."
The way his accented voice vibrated through me had my heart racing. But what was more alarming was that my name sounded familiar on his tongue, and it momentarily distracted me from the fact that he intentionally bypassed my married title.
"I expect your full attention and devotion to this project," he continued. "Otherwise, I will not hesitate to pass along how…uncooperative you are on such a simple request."
My eyes narrowed at his threat, and I fought to temper my raging emotions. If he had been any other client, I would've pulled up the contract he and Von meticulously signed and highlighted each term and condition that they both signed off on.
Of course, I knew doing that would be pointless. As much as it pained me, he was right. This was a massive project, one that could lead to more. Acheron Angelou had money to burn and the right connections to get shit done. Even if I argued over every clause in our contract, it would prove fruitless. One bad word from him could tarnish everything I’d worked hard for. We were at the tail end of this, anyway, so I just had to suck it up and make it work.
"Fine," I conceded through gritted teeth. “I have to move some things around, so it'll take a few days."
