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His heart thumped. Hearing voices outside his office, he raised a hand in the air to silence her and pressed a finger to his lips. He didn’t want his employees to overhear them and spread gossip. Katia’s idea was worrisome; he didn’t want to hear more about it. He enjoyed collaborating with his staff on new projects, and encouraged them to think outside the box, but this time his marketing manager had gone too far. They had a great working relationship and he trusted her explicitly, but there was no way in hell he was making his personal life public fodder. That wasn’t the Crawford way, and he didn’t want to embarrass his family or use Demi to get sales.
“Forget it, Katia. It’s not going to happen.”
The women ignored him, acted as if he hadn’t spoken. They bounced ideas off of each other, debated what he should do to woo Demi, oblivious to the skeptical expression on his face. Katia suggested buying ad space for Sparks on Demi’s social media pages and Mercedes agreed.
Chase picked his mug up off the desk and gulped down his lukewarm coffee. He couldn’t imagine anything worse than his personal life being a hot topic on social media, and hoped the story died quickly.
Taking a deep breath, Chase inhaled the soothing aroma oozing out of the cool mist humidifier. His office was his home away from home, and he’d taken great care in designing it. Spacious and bright, it had large windows, potted plants, designer furniture and framed quotes by world leaders around the room, but reading the inspirational words didn’t help calm his nerves. He wanted to know why Demi had posted the damning video and to figure out how to get it off the internet.
“Ladies, I have work to do,” he said, returning to his desk “We’ll talk tomorrow. Good night.”
“Chase, we have to capitalize on your romance with Demi. It’s publicity gold. We can’t let this incredible opportunity pass us by,” Mercedes repeated. “We have to run with this.”
“No. We don’t. My personal life is off limits, so drop it.”
“But this is the marketing story of a lifetime.” Katia flashed her hands in the air, as if reading an invisible billboard, and spoke in a dramatic tone of voice. “Dashing app developer and scintillating beauty blogger meet in magical Ibiza, and sparks fly. Demi used your night together for her own professional gain, and so should we.”
A bitter taste filled his mouth. “No way.”
Katia’s face fell, but he didn’t apologize. Knew if he did she’d have the upper hand and he’d eventually cave to her demands. And that would be worse than a computer virus.
Memories of his night with Demi filled his mind. He’d never been emotional in the bedroom before, but the moment he’d slid his erection inside her, he’d lost it. He’d clung to her as they’d made love. Must have whispered the words “beautiful” and “spectacular” a thousand times. And had actually used the L-word. “I love being inside you,” he’d confessed, kissing her. “You’re incredible.” Days later Chase still didn’t understand his behavior and feared he never would. Demi had knocked him off his game and there was nothing he could do about it.
Mercedes spoke and the sound of her voice yanked him out of his thoughts.
“Chase, Katia’s right. You have to pursue Demi. The public will eat it up and sales of Sparks will skyrocket!” Dollar signs flashed in her eyes. “Maybe Demi can help us convince Geneviève and her drool-worthy fiancé, Roderick Drake, to shoot a commercial for the app—”
“But they didn’t meet on the app,” he interjected, bewildered by her marketing plan.
Katia shrugged. “Who cares? They’re a gorgeous couple and millennials love them.”
Chase pinched the bridge of his nose. His headache was getting worse and now his back ached, too. His employees knew about his horseback accident, had even visited him in the hospital a few times, but he hadn’t wanted them to know about his lingering symptoms, so decided to wait until they left to take his medication in private.
His gaze strayed to the compass-themed wall clock above the couch. Great. He’d wasted an hour arguing with Katia and Mercedes. If he didn’t get back to work, he’d miss visiting hours at the hospital and his mom would think he didn’t have time for her.
“We have to do something or Sparks is going to tank, and I’d hate for that to happen.”
Chase didn’t argue with Mercedes. The numbers didn’t lie. First-week sales and online reviews were critical to an app’s success and Sparks hadn’t generated any buzz. Still, he didn’t like the idea of wooing Demi for profit, and told Katia her plan was cold and calculated.
“No, that’s business,” Mercedes countered. “Sparks will generate world-wide attention, and Demi will have the pleasure of dating one of the sexiest, most coveted bachelors in the Hamptons. It’s a win-win for everyone, so let’s make it happen before Sparks sinks into the abyss of all-time worst apps.”
“It’s not going to work,” he said, shuffling the papers on his desk into a neat pile. “And even if I agreed with your plan, which I don’t, I wouldn’t even know how to contact Demi.”
Katia and Mercedes shared a look, then sidled up beside him, grinning from ear to ear.
“Good thing you have us to help you, huh, boss man?” Katia linked arms with him. “Now let’s go.”
He stared at her with wide eyes. “Go where?”
“To save Sparks, of course, so hustle. Time is of the essence.”
Ignoring his protests, Mercedes grabbed his leather briefcase and dragged him out of his office. The women escorted him past the reception area, through the sliding-glass door and into the taxi idling at the curb before Chase even realized he’d been kidnapped in broad daylight.
Chapter 13
“Passengers, we apologize for the delay and appreciate your patience as we wait for this matter to be resolved,” First Officer Van de Berg said over the intercom system. “I expect the ground crew will have the door open within minutes, but in the meantime please enjoy some more complimentary snacks and beverages from our in-flight service.”
Groans and sighs filled the air and Demi kicked her Fendi travel bag to let off some steam. It wasn’t the pilot’s fault that the cabin door was frozen shut, or that they’d been stuck on the JFK airport tarmac for an hour, but Demi was sick of twiddling her thumbs and desperate to escape the jet.
