“Yup?”
“Are you listening?”
“Of course,” I said, forcing my focus back to her face. Roxy glared at me adorably.
“It has to be next week or nothing. This is a big deal.”
“Okay.” I smiled at her.
She sat back in the conference chair and stretched her arms over her head. “Don’t you want to write anything down? We made a lot of plans.”
“Roxy. Trust me. Remember?”
She sighed. Her thumbnail picked at the grain of the conference table.
“Vincent emailed me.” She kept her features straight but she messed with her fringe. “He said MooreTek’s CEO is bringing her think-tank. They’re counting on us to inspire some brilliant breakthrough.”
“Eesh. No pressure.”
“This is what I’m saying. I trust you, Sanders. But I really want to make sure you understand how huge this is for the Lodge.”
People sometimes underestimated me because of my easygoing personality. I was used to that. I repeated back the itinerary of the next week hour by hour. Her eyebrows inched up as I spoke, and by the time I was done, she was almost smiling.
“I’ll also write it down, if that would make you feel better,” I added softly. “I’m taking this as serious as you, okay?”
She let out a breath that puffed out her lips. “Okay,” she said.
“Don’t worry, Roxxo. I know you may not buy into all this new-age stuff, but I’ve worked with some of the biggest companies in the country. There’s truly something to be said for learning to pull back your mask and show some vulnerability with your work mates. I’ve seen billionaires in tears who come up with their most innovative ideas from that rawness. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t really believe in it.”
“I trust you,” she said.
We held each other’s gaze and I could almost feel her opening up to me. Like a tight new bud of spring just barely starting to bloom. I would be gentle and patient. I would not crush her. I could be the sunshine that coaxes her to reveal herself.
Around noon my stomach growled loudly enough for her to hear.
I put a hand on my middle. “Shush, you.”
She looked up from her notebook. “I think we’re good for the day. Why don’t you go get lunch. I just have a few more notes to take.”
I stood and stretched, arms high until my back popped. When I looked back at her, she was chewing on her lip and looking at the little bit of skin revealed. She looked away, quickly pretending to take a note on a yellow-lined notebook. I took a steadying breath and straightened my shirt.
“Good idea. Need anything?” I asked.
She stayed focused on her paper, chewing the end of her pen. Did she understand that everything she did was so sexy? From this angle her cleavage was fully on display. A little flick of color flashed beneath her bra strap, stretching almost to her collarbone. What I wouldn’t give to discover where that tattoo went. I needed hours to explore.
I must have gone noticeably still and quiet because she looked up. She pulled her shirt closed and I felt like a real prick.
“I think this went really well,” she said.
“Agreed.” I cleared my throat because my voice had gone a bit funny. “I look forward to working with you.”
Her pen tapped rapidly on her notebook. “Let’s go to dinner,” she said without looking up.
I froze. My heart pounded like she’d just proposed marriage. “Wh-what?”
“Tonight. Let’s go get some dinner and celebrate. There’s this fun bar in town, I can show you.”
“As a date?” I asked. That at least, caused her to look up.
