I shrug. “You’re not in any of those departments. And I want your brain on this.”
His cheeks flush pink. “We’re free today, right?”
“Not quite. Dinner. Be ready at five. Wear something nice.”
“O-okay.” Jamie’s eyes swirl with questions, but most of them are about the folder, so he digs in.
I selected my seat both for the shade and the upwind position, and it’s nice to be able to relax in Jamie’s presence again. I crack open my laptop and start actually catching up on work.
Everything is finally back on track.
Chapter 30
JAMIE
I’m glad Morgan gave me something to work on, because otherwise I worry too much about these dinners with investors. I want to google them so I don’t make a fool of myself, but it seems to ‘read better,’ as Morgan says, if I go into things naive.
This is the first science I’ve gotten my hands on since I started at Artemis, and I’m not about to second-guess it.
But it’s a complicated case. It’s not until I realize Morgan’s left the balcony that I check the time. It’s quarter ’til five.
I jump up and scurry into my room, and I swear I hear Morgan chuckle behind me.
She was maybe teasing me withwear something nice, but then I see the suit bag tucked into my suitcase and I realize… I reallycould. If I don’t know who the investors are, I can probably make a better impression than a sweater, right?
And maybe a little part of me wants to prove that not only Tobias can pull off a suit after all.
I tuck in the button-up and slip on the jacket, then assemble the accessories that Eileen and I picked out. There’sa stack of hammered copper bracelets, hoop earrings with gold spikes and dangling emeralds, and a gilded rose pin for my lapel.
I glance into the mirror and put my hair back up with the clip I accidentally stole from Eileen.
And I have no time to overthink this as Morgan knocks on the door.
I getdéjà vu—or I guess it’s notdéjà vu, since thishashappened before—as I pull the door open.
There’s something inherently sensual about the deep crimson of her silk suit with its black silk lapel on the cropped blazer and matching color block black hem for the pants. She wears the blazer open as usual, revealing a black silk sleeveless top underneath. Black diamond pendant earrings, matte black loafers, and a high ponytail complete the look.
She’s as gorgeous as ever.
Her eyes flick down, lingering on my shoes before slowly dragging up.
I shiver, my spine tingling with the sensation of her gaze.
I want to say something about how I can change, but her eyes hold me. When they meet mine again, they’re black with just the slightest ring of violet.
Itisdim in here.
“You look good, Jamie,” she says casually. Then she turns towards the door, and I know to follow her.
#
I was expecting another extremely fancy restaurant, but I wasnotexpecting to step into another dimension. Something literally beyond my imagination.
This restaurant is delicately settled into an ecological marvel—a natural seaside grotto that weaves in and out of the water-licked cliffs. The air tastes of salt and seaweed, and there’s only a low railing between the tables and the ocean crashing against the rocks twenty feet below.
The waiter leads us confidently along a narrow ledge along the cliff, and there’s no railing here.
I hesitate, feeling a sudden and deep affection for American safety regulations.
