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I tip my chin down. "Thank you."
"But I’d prefer to have a word with JJ about the possibility of using Kane Enterprises as our advertising agency."
"Oh, but—" I begin to protest, but she’s already dismissed me.
She tosses her blow-dried, chin-length hair over her shoulder as she turns to JJ. "In private."
JJ seems taken aback, then nods.
"If everyone else doesn’t mind stepping out," he murmurs.
The woman snaps her fingers, and the men who’ve accompanied her jump up to their feet and head for the door.
I grip my fingers together and look between them. The woman is in her early forties, dressed in a skirt that shows off her shapely legs and a blouse tucked in at her waist to show off her figure. Her blonde hair is cut in a blunt bob that swings around her shoulders. Her make-up is perfect. Perfect eyeliner. Perfect lipstick. Perfectly manicured nails. I fold my hands behind my back. I can’t remember the last time I got a salon manicure, preferring to take care of my nails by myself. She’s well put together, confident, glamorous, and closer in age to JJ than me. She eyes him with a hungry look. No doubt, as soon as I’m out of the room, she’ll make a move on him. And he—? JJ leans back, a slow smile tugging at his lips. He all but preens under her attention. It’s like the two of them have forgotten about me. I clear my throat.
The woman turns to me. "This is a private conversation," she reminds me.
"Oh, don’t mind me. I’m just going to take notes."
She frowns. "This isn’t that kind of a meeting."
"Oh, aren’t you going to be talking about the campaign? In which case, I really do think I need to be here. I’m Mr. Kane’s Executive Assistant and the Account Manager on this, after all."
"And we don’t need you here for whatever is to be discussed. Go on, shoo." She snaps her fingers.
What the—? If she thinks I’m one of the emasculated men on her team who’s going to snap to attention just because she says so, she’s got another thing coming.
I draw myself up to my full height, "Shoo? Did you say shoo? I don’t think—"
"Lena." His deep baritone rumbles across the space. "You need to go."
"What?" I turn on JJ. "This is my account. I helped put this presentation together, and if I need to debrief the team later, I need to be in on all aspects of the meeting. You know that, JJ."
He hesitates.
The other woman’s frown deepens. "I need to speak one-on-one with you, JJ." She straightens her spine. "Or do the client’s wishes not count anymore?"
JJ tilts his head, then nods. "Out, Lena."
"But—"
"Now." He lowers his voice to a hush, and that dominance in his voice—oh, God… My nerve endings seem to fire all at once. My thighs clench, and I’m sure my panties are soaked. I could stand around all day listening to him scold me, and have spontaneous orgasms just from listening to him.
"Go." He jerks his chin toward the door.
I spin around and march toward the exit. Goddamn him and that bitch. I step outside the conference room, and to the side. Then, because I can’t stop myself, I pull my phone from the pocket of my skirt and pretend to study it as I watch the two of them from the corner of my eye. The woman rises to her feet and walks over to stand next to JJ. She leans a hip against the conference table and speaks to him. JJ nods occasionally as she continues talking. Then she puts out a hand and touches his shoulder. I stiffen. Bloody hell, is that normal? Touching a business associate like that? And JJ doesn’t pull away. He smirks up at her.
The woman laughs. Anger squeezes my chest. They definitely know each other outside of work.
"They make a good couple, don’t they?" A man steps up to join me. He’s one of her team. One of the men she dismissed earlier.
"Sylvie’s always had a thing for JJ," he adds.
Like I care. Why is he telling me this anyway? When I don’t reply he shuffles his feet. "It’s one of the main reasons she prefers to attend the meetings with Kane Enterprises in person, you know? So she can meet with him. She also thinks she has a better chance at influencing him."
"Indeed."
Sylvie leans in closer. She runs her fingers down JJ’s collar. Every muscle in my body tenses.Whoa, hold on. Why am I getting all twisted out of shape?It’s JJ’s business if he wants to sleep with his client. It shouldn’t matter to me. Except I put in a lot of work on this deal. He may have completed the presentation last night, but I put in days’ worth of effort behind it, as did the rest of my team. I owe it to them to step in and find out just what’s going to happen next.
