“Think about it, okay? It’s not too late. You know this isn’t right.” And with that, Brian hung up.
Ryan put the phone down on his desk and stared at it.Do the right thing.He hung his head; they had sunk all their money into this mall and if they could recoup that, maybe it was for the best. But Charles Grey was very convincing, he talked a good game and, to be honest, Ryan didn’t really think he had the energy to fight him on this. And if he did fight him, he was sure Charles wouldn’t hesitate to have him thrown out of the company and replace the name Stark with Grey. Just as he was thinking about him, an SMS lit up his screen. He stared at it.How the hell did this man know?
Charles Grey:Rumor has it that our friend talked to Omnicor.
He looked around the room quickly. This had actually been Charles Grey’s office, once upon a time. Had the guy left cameras and bugs in it?
Ryan:I wouldn’t know anything about that.
Charles Grey:Ryan, don’t be sentimental about this. It’s a business decision. Use your head this time.
Ryan:This time?
Charles Grey:I’m sure you don’t need reminding of what happened last time you forgot your head and let your emotions get in the way.
The fucking asshole. Ryan was furious now. Just because this guy knew him from the time he was in diapers, it didn’t give him any right to talk to him like this. Like his father had. He pulled himself together and typed a message back.
Ryan:Noted.
He put his phone down and his computer screen lit up this time. He was being bombarded by technology right now. He looked at his screen, where a Google Calendar reminder was blinking at him.
“Shit!” He stared at it. He’d totally forgotten about the charity function this evening. He loathed those events, where all the important business and society people gathered wearing fancy clothes and drinking champagne while acting like they actually gave a shit about anyone less fortunate than themselves, anyone who had some dreaded disease or disability, or who lived on the fringes of society. He could quite happily miss this event—except he couldn’t. He’d accepted months ago. A knock on the door made him look up; she was standing there in the doorway.She.
“Sorry to interrupt,” she said sweetly. “I just saw a reminder come up on your calendar for tonight. I don’t know if you saw it?”
“I did,” he said.
“Is there anything you need me to do for you for tonight?” she asked quietly.
“I really hate these things,” he said, sitting back in his chair.
“Why?” she asked. “Isn’t it nice to do things for others?”
“Trust me, this evening has less to do with charity and more to do with being seen out and about in the latest designer outfits, eating fancy food, drinking expensive champagne and socializing.”
She shrugged. “Doesn’t sound that bad.” She smiled and started turning away.
A thought hit him.
“Miss Granger,” he called after her. “Come in, please.”
She walked up to his desk and sat down.
“What are you doing tonight, Doris?” He called her by her first name when they were out of earshot of everyone.
“Nothing. Waiting for you to finish work, I guess.”
He cleared his throat nervously. “Uh . . . would you like to come with me tonight? As my assistant, it would be helpful to me.” He tried not to smile, but he couldn’t help it.
She smiled back at him. “Sure, if it would be helpful to you?” Her voice sounded light and flirty, like it had last night.
“It would be,” he said. “Very.”
“Should I bring a notepad this time, so I can take notes?” she asked.
“Maybe not a notepad, but you can wear high heels this time, if you want,” he teased.
“High heels, I’ll make a note of that. Anything else?”
