I liked the way he listened to me as if every word I said mattered.
I liked everything about him.
And somehow, he was mine.
11
HARI
“I’m so giddy.”
That line reminded me of a line from an old movie, but I couldn’t quite place it. But I did click my heels before skipping from the front door into my office, deftly picking up a box of goodies and continuing skipping until I opened the door to the workshop.
I wasn’t sure why I stopped because I shouldn’t give a damn if everyone in the workshop sniggered or stared open-mouthed. My permanent guys knew me, and the temp people working on the hotel project had better things to do than gossip about the boss.
Adrian and Callum grinned, and the other guys barely glanced at me. I grabbed coffee and said there were donuts for everyone. That earned me a cheer before I sashayed into the showroom. But as I strolled past the credenza, I noted one corner had a milky stain. Damn, that was moisture that had gotten in before it was cured. It needed a half day’s work, and I asked Callum to take care of it.
Waiting until he and one of the temp guys carried the credenza into the workshop, my thoughts went to Remy. I traced around my mouth, searching for the memory of his kiss. My head remembered, but did my lips? I closed my eyes and an image of him in my arms popped into my head. He was in the middle of a mind map, and the words soft, pliant, and yielding radiated from that central location.
With my feet on the desk—Dad and my grandpa would be horrified that I treated our faithful mahogany beast like that—I sipped my coffee. I had twenty minutes before a recurring client arrived, so I sent Remy a text.
What are you doing?
I clutched the phone, hoping he’d reply straight away.
Answering your message.
Oh, he was a smart ass.I wish you were here.
Shouldn’t you be working?
Very funny. I sent him a screenshot of my calendar.
Busy day.
Mrs. Langford’s driver pulled up outside. She was often early because she insisted the traffic from her place to here would be worse than it was.
Gotta go. Work calls.
It was a productive morning because Mrs. Langford was downsizing and she needed purpose-built furniture to fit the space. Of course I was pleased, but the business was approaching crunch time where I had to decide whether we could maintain our standards if we expanded and hired yet morestaff. It was a good problem to have, but it was one I had to think on now, rather than in a few months.
After she left with a promise from me that I’d meet her at the new place at eight in the morning, I checked the time. Remy should have stopped for lunch, though when you worked from home, the lines between work and a break blurred.
“Hello. Are you on my doorstep?”
“Sadly no. Did we have plans?” I pulled up the calendar on the laptop.
“Not really, but I was hoping you were going to surprise me with another gift.”
“Not today.” A dick pic wouldn’t be appropriate considering we’d kissed and gone no further.
I filled him in regarding the decisions that were in my future, and he asked pertinent questions about whether I wanted to expand or keep the business small and personal.
“I’m not talking about mass-producing. I would still meet with every new client.” It was more about finding skilled workers and having someone manage them because all of Jackson’s energy was spent on the hotel project.
“You can hire me? I’m a people person, though I know nothing about wood.”
I spat out my coffee and almost dropped the phone. “Are you serious?”
