Page 34 of Last First Kiss

His voice is rich and smooth, almost hypnotic.

Jordan’s seen him before. He can’t remember where. But there’s something about the confident way he holds his jaw.

“Great to see you too, Javier,” Kami says. “And, please, Kami is fine.”

His dimples deepen. “In that case: Javi works for me.”

Kami turns to Jordan. “Javi, this is Jordan, one of our other event coordinators.”

Javi offers his hand. “Yes. We’ve met before. Briefly.”

Jordan’s brow furrows as he shakes Javi’s hand. “We have?”

“Last year. At the mayor’s Valentine’s Day gala,” Javi says casually. “I believe your mom—”

It hits Jordan like an out-of-control eighteen-wheeler.

“You’re the guy my mom tried to set Denz up with!”

Javi’s laugh is as effortless as the suit he’s wearing. “I’mJavi. And yes, that happened.”

He releases Jordan’s hand. To Kami, he says, “I’m more known for my event management skills than my personal life, I assure you.”

“I’ve seen your work. You’re very talented,” Kami agrees. “It’s why I hired you.”

“Wait.” Jordan’s forehead wrinkles further. “He works…here?”

“Mm-hmm. With Kim and Connor splitting time between events and the company’s social media branding, we could use more coordinators to meet our clients’ needs,” Kami explains. “Javi comes highly recommended.”

“So, you poached from our competitor.”

Jordan doesn’t mean for it to come out as an accusation.

“Iappliedfor the position,” Javi corrects. “I left Elite last month.”

Jordan blinks slowly. He tries to piece everything together.

When did Kami post a job opening? Why hadn’t she mentioned it? Mentionedhim? And why the hell would she bring on someone from their biggest rival? A company whose owner has spent years not so subtly bad-mouthing their family’s legacy.

“A lot of important changes have happened in the last year,” Kami tells him. “I want to ensure we continue to grow. Javi’s experience will help with that.”

“Thank you, Ms. Car—” Javi pauses, dimples flexing. “I mean, Kami.”

Kami nods her approval.

Jordan wonders when he walked into an episode ofSuccession.

“I’m excited to start pulling my weight.” Javi’s eyes movearound the conference room. “You and 24 Carter Gold have put on some incredible events over the years.”

“More than some,” Jordan grumbles.

If Javi heard him, he doesn’t acknowledge it. Instead, he says, “I hear you might be getting back into the wedding scene?” He raises an interested eyebrow. “Was that Tom McClintock’s son I passed on the way in?”

“It was,” Kami confirms. “Sam and his fiancée are our newest clients.”

“Weddings are my specialty.”

“Were,” Jordan reminds him. “When you worked at Elite Events.”