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‘I...I was just coming.’
‘Good to hear.’ He turned on his heel and strode back into the conference room.
‘Someone’s got an armadillo in their bonnet,’ Susan whispered, her eyes wide with speculation.
Perla grabbed the sheets, gave a non-committal smile to Susan and hurried across the marble floor in her three-inch heels, only to freeze when she entered the room.
The only seat left at the small conference table was next to Ari. She’d have to sit beside him, breathe in his spicy cologne, feel the warmth of him and place herself within his powerful aura for however long the blasted meeting took. Her throat dried as her heart rate roared.
Ari glanced up and sent her another impatient look, one that made her stash her unease and walk to his side.
Ideas for the opening event were discussed and tossed or kept as Ari saw fit. Half an hour later, he turned to her. ‘Do you have your list?’
She nodded and passed copies around. ‘The top four are secured. The other three are yet to be finalised...’
‘Oktoberfest?’ Ari demanded.
Perla frowned and glanced down at the sheet in her hand. ‘Sorry, that wasn’t supposed to be on there. It was an idea I thought of floating but I don’t think it’s the right image for this hotel.’
‘You’re right. It’s not.’
Several of her colleagues exchanged glances. Perla ignored them. Pursing her lips, she met Ari’s direct stare. ‘Like I said, it wasn’t supposed to be on the list—’
‘But it would be perfect for the San Francisco hotel.’ He put the list down and caught up a pen, flicking it through long, elegant fingers. ‘Contact their concierge, tell them to trial it and give us feedback on how it goes. And make sure you take credit for it. As for the rest of the suggestions, I’m on board with the jazz quartet and the White House tour. Add it to the other maybes and we’ll discuss a shortlist at the next meeting.’
Warmth oozed through her but her veins turned icy when she spotted the repeated exchanged glances. From the corner of her eye she saw Ari’s jaw tighten as he brought the meeting to a close.
In her haste to leave his disturbing presence, she dropped her file. She retrieved it and straightened to find him blocking her path to the door.
Her heart jumped into her throat. ‘Did you need something?’
His gaze drifted over her and he frowned. ‘Is everything in your wardrobe black?’
‘Excuse me?’
‘Black doesn’t suit you. It makes your skin look too pale.’ His eyes dropped lower, the opening of her shirt.
She forced herself not to reach up and button her shirt. Or touch her skin to test if it really was on fire since his gaze burned her from the inside out. ‘You stopped me from leaving to disparage my clothes?’ She casually leaned against the table and lifted an eyebrow, although casual was the last thing she felt.
He rocked back on his heels and shoved his hands into his pockets. For several seconds he didn’t speak. ‘I see that I’ve made things difficult for you here,’ he finally said.
The hint of contrition in his tone made her breath catch. Nonchalantly, she tried to shrug it away. ‘It’s partly my fault. I overreacted. I’ll deal with it. As you said, I need to trust my instincts and my talent, and not what other people think.’
He nodded. ‘Bravo,’ he said. Thinking he would move out of her way, she started to take a step and paused when his mouth opened again. ‘And if it doesn’t earn me a sexual harassment charge, may I suggest you find a better fitting shirt that doesn’t display all your assets?’
Her gasp echoed around the room. ‘It’s not that bad! And stop talking about my assets or I’ll have to point out that shoving your hands in your pockets like that pulls your trousers across your junk and displays your assets. Not that I’m paying a lot of attention, of course,’ she added hurriedly and felt her face flame.
God, she needed her head examined!
One eyebrow slowly lifted. ‘Of course.’ He remained planted in front of her, as if he had nothing better to do than to rile her.
Unable to stand his intense gaze, she glanced down and saw just how much cleavage she was displaying. God!
‘I just...seem to have put on a little weight, that’s all. And I was running a little late this morning so there was no time to change...’ She grew restive beneath his continued silent scrutiny. ‘Seriously, it’s not that bad.’
His nostrils flared and a look passed through his eyes that made her think he was toying with the idea of arguing the point. Instead, he opened the door. ‘After you,’ he said.
